The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

What a grand conclusion to this wonderful story...told to us by Philip Jackson. Three and half hours worth of pure enjoyment. I am not a huge fan of computer enhancements, but in this case, without question, brought to life the dreams of J.R.R. Tolkien. Just a wonderful work, powerfully told and acted. Bravo.

ps..the only complaint I might have is that the length of the film should necessitate a five minute intermission...to allow nature to take her due...and maybe reload on the necessary popcorn and soda, which you SHOULD be reluctant to purchase if your doing a three and half hour marathon!

The video game is awesome. The graphics are great and it follows the movie which is good too. Plus, you get bonus footage of the Return of the King movie too. It's all good in my book. I give it 2 thumbs up. It's a game worthy playing.

Fantasy meets epic. The 80's was full of medievil fantasies, and those of us who loved them, fantasized that they were this good. It is everything you want it to be and more. People who aren't avid fans of the series might think the last 15 minutes drag, but its a small price to pay for the rest. For those who are avid fans, the last fifteen minutes is necessary closure.

If you think of the EA Lord of the Rings games as members of the Action/Adventure genre you are in reality wrong. Since the dawn of video game history, there has always been a genre known as Hack 'n' slash. The Hack 'n' slash genre is basically meaning that the game does not necessitate much mental input, but instead requires the player to use a certain amount of button bashing. Button bashing games however have always had the tendency for getting dull very easily, with this game however, that doesn't seem to be the case. With 9 characters to play with, all wielding their own unique weapons and special moves, this game doesn't get tedious for a long while. Fun-wise, the Return of the King keeps the action velocity up long enough to constantly keep you interested. Should it be fighting an assemblage of fierce Urik-hai, or spear throwing at some nearby goblins, this game succeeds in the keeping-the-player-interested section. As for the upgraded features from the previous Two Towers game, you can now fully interact with the scenery around you. Characters can now pick up spears and fire catapults, as well as lower drawbridges and cutting roles holding up huge chandeliers (Ah… memories.) As for warfare, it is much swifter. You get the Lord of the Rings fighting style in a much more stimulating and further moving perspective.

For me and of course many others, sound is one of the most important aspects of a game. Without a first-class main theme, or an exhilarating and heroic character melody, a game is, in essence, pointless. Being the licensed movie game, Return of the King was therefore given the rights to use the soundtrack from the movies, composed by Howard Shore. This was a huge excitement for me, as I worship the Lord of the Rings soundtrack, especially the main theme. Should it be the Shire melody, or the terrifying Nazgul tune, the soundtrack from the Lord of the Rings is truly amazing, and of course, fits this game perfectly. My only disappointment however, was that the main theme is only played briefly once, during the after-level screen. I feel that inserting it into some major battles would keep the player's morale up, just as the Legend of Zelda overture would keep a Zelda fan happy if it was played during a conflict or Ganon battle. (Heh, wouldn't it have been nice if the overture was played in a final Ganon battle…?) Sound effects are taking from real weapons, which I learnt whilst watching a bonus movie having completed the game. This adds to the whole experience and only makes the sound better.

Here, EA have really proved what they can do. This game is graphically beautiful and amazing to look at. The character models have been created with amazing detail. Just look at Sam's face and see what I'm talking about. Another thing I thought was pretty cool, which has been improved drastically from the previous game, is the way that the game graphics flow into movie clips from the actual film. Those who have played it will know how awesome this actually looks.

J.R.R Tolkien is the master of fantasy writing, and having read the Lord of the Rings book after I watched the first film, I was gripped by his extreme ability to write. The world of Middle-Earth is indeed an amazing and fantastic place; full of adventure, monsters, beauty and of course heroes. The game focuses on the warfare aspects of the film mostly, but for knowing that there is a much more detailed and epic tale inside of it all, it truly makes the experience worthwhile. Hands down to you Mr. Tolkien.

In conclusion, the Lord of the Rings: Return of the King isn't the best game of all time, nor is it the worst. By far, it is probably one of the best Hack 'n' Slash games yet. With a memorable cast of unique and wonderful characters, a plot to die for, and of course one of the best soundtracks to grace the video game industry, The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King is truly magical.

Well in one word yes. The goal was to make a LotR game that would be true to the movies and they did a great job. The levels are well recognized from the movie architecture. Even the characters movements have been taken from the movie into the game. Butt now for some fine details.

You start the game, and well well the THX logo appears. This means you will have a nice listening pleasure waiting up ahead. And its true, the sound/music is terrific. Just think of it, you playing with you're favi character and the tension moves up with the well known music from Howard Shore. Great hah?!! :-) When it comes to the graphics I must say that except from a incident with a low frame rate on the PS2 and NGC its all well done. Even though some details are made of low quality graphics they do give a life feel to the surroundings.

Voiceacting? One word. Superb! The gameplay is nice, not excellent but its higher difficulty than "The Two Towers" game makes it more fun. Interactive elements. Such as throwing spears, pouring boiling oil over enemies give an extra feel of freedom. It will take you at least 10 hours to complete all levels for the first time. So you won't be bored soon cause.....

The cinematics give extra variety and when you finish the game you get three characters, plus extra bonuses after finishing a mission.

Has the game got flaws? Yes one big one, the camera angles are sometimes a pain in the ass. But don't let that ruin the fun cause this war has just begun!!! :-)