Middle-earth: Shadow of War Etten Freeze Bug

There's a big bug plaguing Shadow of War fans, leaving many unable to play the game for over a week.

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Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor was a breakout success that lead inevitably to a high-profile sequel, the open-world experience known as Middle-earth: Shadow of War that released last year. By and large, most fans have been quite pelased with the experience; however, a number of players are experiencing instances of freezing so drastic that they could be considered game-breaking bugs. These issues are centered around the mission titled The Etten, the final quest in Nurnen that involves a massive Fortress Assault that is supposed to culminate in the hero being granted control over the region. Here's all we know about the Etten freeze bug in Middle-earth: Shadow of War.

Etten Freezing Bug in Middle-Earth: Shadow of War

Instances of the Etten freeze bug follow a fairly consistent pattern: upon trying to load up the mission, the game will freeze up, getting stuck in what looks like an infinite loading loop. From what can be told judging by various posts around the web, this bug doesn't seem limited to just one platform, and is instead causing problems for players on the PS4, Xbox One, and PC alike.

A number of users have taken to the official WB Games forums in order to find a resolution to the problem, but so far, it doesn't look like any purposeful fix is in sight. Despite 18 pages so far filled with upset comments from players, only a few users have stated that they were able to fulfill a number of requirements in order to get the mission to progress. Players have tried things like backing up their saves and reinstalling, to even going so far as to change the way they deal with War Chiefs and Captains leading up to the mission.

The last post on the forum is from user TheRealJoker, who postulates that the game is freezing because players haven't completed a specific set of tasks involving dominating and betraying other characters. In a game as big as Shadow of War, it may be hard to nail down just what it is that the user did right that allowed them to pass beyond the start of the mission. Given that the response was posted just about 15 minutes ago, it's unknown whether or not this solution will work for other players.

There's still no official word from WB Games or Monolith on the issue. While it's possible that the bug will be addressed in time, some players have already waited a week or more, being unable to progress beyond the starting phase of the mission. Until the developer can reach out to players, it seems like many games will just be on hold until a solution presents itself.

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