Ps4 – What exactly is the climb mechanic for Shadow of Mordor

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I've just started playing this game on PS4 but I'm having trouble initiating climbs (for example up ladders). I usually end up taking running jumps at the ladder and then magically at some point the climb starts. The screen does occasionally flash up "press X to climb" but that seems to be random. Is this just a case of finding the sweet spot to start a climb or am I missing something?

Best Answer

There seem to be 3 conditions for climbing to happen:

  1. You need to be pressing the "Climb" button.
  2. You need to facing a wall at pretty close to perpendicular. Glancing blows confuse Talion. If approaching a wall at an angle, I'll frequently use the appropriate sideways movement button at the last moment to line up the climb.
  3. You need to be close to an invisible "grab point". While most of the walls in Mordor have plenty of these grab points, in some special locations you may need to move a foot or two to the side to initiate the climb.

FWIW: For Talion's purposes, ladders are mostly decorative, as you should be able to scale a wall on either side of the ladder just as quickly. In fact if the ladder is occupied by an orc, you should be able to out-climb him if you avoid the ladder. Though ladders do give you a good idea of exactly where the orcs will be scaling the wall themselves.