Shadow of Mordor Sequel Middle-earth: Shadow of War Won't Be Coming to Switch, Says Monolith

The upcoming sequel to 2014's excellent Shadow of Mordor, entitled Middle-earth: Shadow of War, was confirmed back in February via an action-packed reveal trailer. What fans want out of Monolith Productions upcoming open world sequel varies across the spectrum, but the list of things they aren't going to get just grew by one. For the time being, at least, there are no plans to bring the game to Nintendo Switch.

The confirmation comes via an interview with GameSpot, where Monith Productions Creative VP Michael de Plater answered swiftly when asked if the studio might be able to "get this on the Switch." His reply? There are "no plans for the Switch at this time."

The news may come as a bit of a disappointment to owners of Nintendo's new console, as with each passing hardware release since the Wii, Nintendo has lessened the hardware chasm between its own machines and the competition. One might think that Switch's modest but potent Nvidia innards could make the game work, at least in tandem with the motivation provided by its quickly growing install base. Certainly the decision could reverse if Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment has a change of faith or decides the investment is worth it, but for now the game is a no go for Switch owners.

The interview with de Plater proved fascinating otherwise, in particular his comments on the immense stress his studio deals with throughout each and every game it develops. De Plater had the following to say regarding expectations after Shadow of Mordor's wide-ranging success.

Probably some people would disagree, but I think stress for us is generally a really positive thing because our whole studio is devoted to one game. That assumption is like, basically, if we fail, we're doomed. It's all or nothing, which is really exciting and really motivating. That was very clear on Shadow of Mordor; that was the situation. "This is our first go in this genre. If we don't succeed, no one's gonna give us another chance." I think we feel exactly the same.

Middle-earth: Shadow of War is currently scheduled to release on August 22nd in North America, where it will come to PS4, Xbox One, and PC (including Pro and Scorpio compatibility). There's certainly time for a Switch edition to materialize, but if it doesn't, at least you'll have the usual range of options to choose from.