Lord of the Rings: Return of the King review:3 stars (not bad, but not what i expected ) -
First of all, the good things:

- The game follows completely the film and the screens are quite well adaptated to admit someone controlling the characters from the movie.
- The game characters' voices are recorded by the original movie actors, which gives the additive of playing and hearing gandalf!! the real one!!
- The graphics are excellent, the EAGames designers have really been good at this, for with a good video card the game is really nice and the movements are very nicely designed.
- The music, as in the movie: great.

Right, now for the bad things:

- The game is "the lord of the rings", but if instead of Gandalf and orcs you had mr. Duke Nukem and his martians they would be the same game: a shoot-em-up type.
- The game requires really low strategyc movements, most of them are really well indicated so that nobody has to think!!
- And as a result of the past reasons: This game is just to spend hours and hours kicking lots and lots of orcs with gandalf!!! you gain nothing like the satisfaction of having to plan the strategy to take the troops here or there... it's just too mechanic...

Too everybody out there thinking whether to buy it or not, i'd reccomend them to play the demo, play it a lot, and that's how the game is going to be, some additional monsters, some additional powers... oh, and some different scenarios...

5 stars (Awesome Game!!!!!!!) - This game is awesome. It has great grafics, and cool levels. Trust me you will love it.4 stars (First-rate action game) - The second Lord of the Rings game, "The Two Towers," belonged to that rare group of worthy film-based games. How many movie tie-in games have been less-than-stellar garbage capitalizing on a film's popularity? With "The Return of the King," EA follows up their excellent effort on "Towers" with one of the best games of the year. A warning to those who have not read the books and do not know how the trilogy ends: As expected, the game contains many spoilers.

The biggest difference between ROTK and its predecessors may be the amount of action: Fellowship was mostly plot-oriented, and Two Towers featured many small battles and one great action piece--Helm's Deep. ROTK, however, thrives on action. From start to finish, this game is non-stop action and adventure: gargantuan Siege Towers, monstrous trolls, bloodthirsty Uruk-Hai--this game gives you all you can handle, and then some. You'll be thankful for the occasional pauses to rest your thumbs--before the next attack begins. The game features voice-work from the film's actors and some of the most amazing backgrounds and environments I've ever seen in a video game, with perfect contrast between light and dark elements. Like the films, there's meticulous attention to detail. Character design and appearance is first-rate, and character animation (thanks to motion-capture technology) is smooth and even. In addition, the sound quality (THX, no less) is outstanding--every roar, every clash of steel resounds through your speakers.

ROTK features three distinct playable storylines: The Path of the King, The Path of the Hobbits, and The Path of the Wizard. One can play as Aragorn, Legolas, Gandalf, Gimli, Frodo, or Sam, and beating the game unlocks three new characters. Follow Aragorn on the Paths of the Dead and recruit the undead to fight alongside you, from Minas Tirith to the Black Gate. Follow Frodo and Sam from Osgiliath to Shelob's Lair to Mount Doom. Take the wizard's path, and have Gandalf fight from Orthanc to Minas Tirith. There are thirteen levels, and the three storylines converge in a final level only accessible when all thirteen are finished. Some levels are relatively easy (Shelob's Lair wasn't too tough) and some are barbaric in their difficulty (Paths of the Dead took me six tries before I beat it). Each character has their own unique style and weapons, with plenty of enemies to battle: Shelob, Orcs, Mumakils (Oliphaunts), Uruk-Hai, The King of the Dead, and more. Attacks are pretty straightforward: Quick attack, Fierce attack, parry, or fire (arrows and the like). As you gain experience points from defeating enemies, you can acquire better weapons and skills (such as invisibility and the truly awesome Balrog's Revenge) to combat the increasingly difficult foes one faces as the game progresses. And, one can choose to retain those points for oneself, or share them with other characters.

The game has three difficulty settings: Easy, normal, and hard. Easy is just that: easy. Normal is moderately challenging, but beatable for most average gamers. Select hard, and you're asking for it. The enemies seem to never end, and even the lowliest orcs take incredible amounts of punishment before falling. Hard difficulty may be best tackled with the game's Co-Op mode, which allows a friend to participate. A major problem with the game, however, is that you can't replay a level until you've beaten it. But once you complete it, every level opens up and can be played by any character--which gives the game better long-term replayability than most movie titles (and many non-movie ones, as well). One thing I didn't like was the occasional difficulty caused by the game's third-person perspective. Like most TP games, certain positions or angles create blind spots. In close combat, this can prove to be a major aggravation. But those are relatively minor things that detract little from the overall quality of this game. For anyone looking for an excellent action/adventure game, this can't be beat. Highly recommended.

I hope this review was helpful

--Christian Wheeler, gamer and games retailer


Lord of the Rings: Return of the King Features:
Video Games
Xbox (x box)
Microsoft
Action
Adventure
Over 12 interactive environments authentically reproduced from the films
Battle vicious boss monsters including Shelob, the Witch King and the final showdown with the Dark Lord Sauron
For 1 to 2 players
8 playable and secret characters with exclusive voice-overs provided by the actors from the films
All-new co-op multiplayer mode will allow players to team up with a companion

Lord of the Rings- Return of the King is the Video Game version. The full version can be purchased by clicking on the "CLICK HERE TO ORDER" button below for around 19.99USD.