Post by Gravier251 on Apr 27, 2009 12:04:26 GMT -5
It is hard to pin down exactly where to begin in regards to a review of this game. I guess I could start with the positive aspects, as they are a much smaller segment to cover.
The game does incorporate most of the prominent, recognizable musical scores from the movies. These pieces are still just as compelling and enjoyable to listen to as they always have been, and help to add somewhat to the game.
The game itself largely boils down to a simplistic hack and slash affair that may be enjoyable in moderation or if such gameplay really appeals to you. however this is only if you are not put off by the execution of the narrative or the myriad issues that permeate this game. I expect for many the shortcomings far outweigh the appeal.
Thus I should probably descend into the negative. The game mechanics themselves are fairly simplistic, akin to those of the battlefront series that this game has been so keen to point out in it's advertising; indeed most trailers of the game sported some sort of "by the makers of star wars battlefront" tags, as if such a point is an adequate sales pitch.
Star wars battlefront 1 and 2 were enjoyable to an extent, I personally played them a fair bit but I would not justify a purchase on the premise that it is some game made by them. Even if you very much love the battlefront series the lord of the rings setting is fairly far removed from the third person shooter gameplay possible for battlefront, so you will not necessarily also like this game as there is less focus on the shooting aspect.
Anyway, the game features four classes (and a host of hero characters that are basically souped up, re-skinned versions of the core four, with some featuring different animations and strangely less effective attacks for a "hero" character. For instance Elrond uses some kind of water sprinkler effect as an attack, one which is quite laughable and I lack the words to properly do it justice in it's absurdity).
Anyway, the four classes are Warrior, Archer, Scout and Mage (The last class being a painful thing to witness for anyone who cares much for the lore of the lord of the rings universe). The classes work for the most part, each fulfilling a different but ultimately similar role in things. However it can be somewhat frustrating to fight in this game, especially with the lag that can occur in online play as much of the fighting (especially with warriors) boils down to juggling combos.
For example, should a warrior reach you when you are a mage, you will likely jitter around in the air as he flails about, your character rolling awkwardly in mid air as he tries to stand only to be juggled once more till you die. It is kind of frustrating to watch, mostly because it just looks broken. The animation just feels sub-par and the lag online serves to compound this issue.
Another pretty big issue, at least for those who would like this for any semblance of online competitive play is the fact that the ranked servers are sometimes empty and free to pick between. Therefore if you want any achievements like the large numbers of kills without dying you can simply invite your friends to your ranked match and have them help you out.
Being able to manipulate the leaderboards in such a way and circumvent any challenges presented by the achievements by allowing you to invite friends into ranked games kind of renders the entire ranked portion of the game obsolete. It could still be fun to pass the time with the right people online I suppose, but if you are looking for any kind of balanced competitive gameplay, this really isn't for you.
Another issue is the fact that there are merely 4 game types- conquest, capture the ring, team deathmatch and hero team deathmatch. There are a reasonable number of maps but the game types aren't particularly interesting or varied. At least with battlefront 2 there were a wide array of maps, troop types and the reasonably entertaining galactic conquest mode. Therefore the lower selection of game types feels like a step back.
I was disappointed to see there is no mode similar to galactic conquest on lord of the rings conquest. We could have had a map of middle earth akin to a risk board and allow players to gather basic resources to spend on little upgrades for battles in the same way it was done in battlefront 2, choose a territory (map) and then play out the battle for it's ownership.
It was kind of a glorified map select, but it did make things a bit more interesting.
Instead we have the single player campaign (which can be played co-operatively). The campaign mode is a painful thing to witness. It is unimaginative and crude in it's execution. In lieu of any real plot we are shown generic video clips of things identifiable in the movies and given a narrative over the top. However I couldn't help but find it strange as we watched the same Gondorian guards die a second time.
(-Spoilers-)
Also on the "Evil" campaign as the narrator announces that they fled to Minis Tirith after Frodo was slain, you see some generic clip of guards on a wall with some woman smiling happily. It just feels like they didn't even bother with this stuff, as most people wouldn't smile warmly at the prospect of your crippled city being raided by swarms of bloodthirsty beasts a second time. Surely it can't be that hard to find some appropriate sombre looking guards in the film? Or hey, just a wild idea here, but you could actually animate your own cutscenes and form a coherent narrative! Outlandish I know, but it just might work.
They took liberties with the source material in some regards which I can understand. But it was painful to witness a level where Gimli leads a Gondorian force into Moria to reclaim it, only to barricade themselves in Balin's tomb (the door having been rebuilt somehow). Suddenly a cave troll and some orcs burst in, and eventually Gandalf fights another Balrog. It is deja vu of mind numbing proportions. They may aswell have just had players use the fellowship and wade through the original trip through Moria.
Later on in the evil campaign Gimli retreats to Moria with a Gondorian force (even though minis tirith has just been destroyed, way to defend your home guys!). Why Gimli bothered with that when he could probably have tried to go back to his kin instead is baffling. The game just seems to permeate this sense that Gimli is the only dwarf in existence.
Anyway, I should finish lest I continue to berate the games simple, poorly written nature.
Overall this game feels rushed, with average graphics, mediocre animation, a storyline that rivals Lord of the Rings the third age in it's horribly crude execution. The writing is crude and disjointed and the presentation is very poor. Throwing out generic clips from the movies to narration adds to the feeling that it was rushed or they were simply being lazy.
The plot delivery would be somewhat excuseable if it delivered a solid well presented, polished game. However between the animation, overall presentation and class balancing I can't help but feel the product as a whole was either rushed or just lacked any real effort.
I expect there are worse games out there, and if you can set aside the faults some enjoyment can be derived from some battles. It also features co-op and online multiplayer which may be enjoyable for some given the right conditions.
But honestly if you are a die-hard lord of the rings fan don't get this game; it is painful to behold. Likewise for most I wouldn't recommend it simply as it doesn't have much going for it. You could grab a much more satisfying game for the same price, or maybe even less. I guess the achievements are easy to acquire if that is something you care much for, but honestly investing any more money than the cost of a rental into this game seems wasteful to me, as that is about as long as it will last.
The game does incorporate most of the prominent, recognizable musical scores from the movies. These pieces are still just as compelling and enjoyable to listen to as they always have been, and help to add somewhat to the game.
The game itself largely boils down to a simplistic hack and slash affair that may be enjoyable in moderation or if such gameplay really appeals to you. however this is only if you are not put off by the execution of the narrative or the myriad issues that permeate this game. I expect for many the shortcomings far outweigh the appeal.
Thus I should probably descend into the negative. The game mechanics themselves are fairly simplistic, akin to those of the battlefront series that this game has been so keen to point out in it's advertising; indeed most trailers of the game sported some sort of "by the makers of star wars battlefront" tags, as if such a point is an adequate sales pitch.
Star wars battlefront 1 and 2 were enjoyable to an extent, I personally played them a fair bit but I would not justify a purchase on the premise that it is some game made by them. Even if you very much love the battlefront series the lord of the rings setting is fairly far removed from the third person shooter gameplay possible for battlefront, so you will not necessarily also like this game as there is less focus on the shooting aspect.
Anyway, the game features four classes (and a host of hero characters that are basically souped up, re-skinned versions of the core four, with some featuring different animations and strangely less effective attacks for a "hero" character. For instance Elrond uses some kind of water sprinkler effect as an attack, one which is quite laughable and I lack the words to properly do it justice in it's absurdity).
Anyway, the four classes are Warrior, Archer, Scout and Mage (The last class being a painful thing to witness for anyone who cares much for the lore of the lord of the rings universe). The classes work for the most part, each fulfilling a different but ultimately similar role in things. However it can be somewhat frustrating to fight in this game, especially with the lag that can occur in online play as much of the fighting (especially with warriors) boils down to juggling combos.
For example, should a warrior reach you when you are a mage, you will likely jitter around in the air as he flails about, your character rolling awkwardly in mid air as he tries to stand only to be juggled once more till you die. It is kind of frustrating to watch, mostly because it just looks broken. The animation just feels sub-par and the lag online serves to compound this issue.
Another pretty big issue, at least for those who would like this for any semblance of online competitive play is the fact that the ranked servers are sometimes empty and free to pick between. Therefore if you want any achievements like the large numbers of kills without dying you can simply invite your friends to your ranked match and have them help you out.
Being able to manipulate the leaderboards in such a way and circumvent any challenges presented by the achievements by allowing you to invite friends into ranked games kind of renders the entire ranked portion of the game obsolete. It could still be fun to pass the time with the right people online I suppose, but if you are looking for any kind of balanced competitive gameplay, this really isn't for you.
Another issue is the fact that there are merely 4 game types- conquest, capture the ring, team deathmatch and hero team deathmatch. There are a reasonable number of maps but the game types aren't particularly interesting or varied. At least with battlefront 2 there were a wide array of maps, troop types and the reasonably entertaining galactic conquest mode. Therefore the lower selection of game types feels like a step back.
I was disappointed to see there is no mode similar to galactic conquest on lord of the rings conquest. We could have had a map of middle earth akin to a risk board and allow players to gather basic resources to spend on little upgrades for battles in the same way it was done in battlefront 2, choose a territory (map) and then play out the battle for it's ownership.
It was kind of a glorified map select, but it did make things a bit more interesting.
Instead we have the single player campaign (which can be played co-operatively). The campaign mode is a painful thing to witness. It is unimaginative and crude in it's execution. In lieu of any real plot we are shown generic video clips of things identifiable in the movies and given a narrative over the top. However I couldn't help but find it strange as we watched the same Gondorian guards die a second time.
(-Spoilers-)
Also on the "Evil" campaign as the narrator announces that they fled to Minis Tirith after Frodo was slain, you see some generic clip of guards on a wall with some woman smiling happily. It just feels like they didn't even bother with this stuff, as most people wouldn't smile warmly at the prospect of your crippled city being raided by swarms of bloodthirsty beasts a second time. Surely it can't be that hard to find some appropriate sombre looking guards in the film? Or hey, just a wild idea here, but you could actually animate your own cutscenes and form a coherent narrative! Outlandish I know, but it just might work.
They took liberties with the source material in some regards which I can understand. But it was painful to witness a level where Gimli leads a Gondorian force into Moria to reclaim it, only to barricade themselves in Balin's tomb (the door having been rebuilt somehow). Suddenly a cave troll and some orcs burst in, and eventually Gandalf fights another Balrog. It is deja vu of mind numbing proportions. They may aswell have just had players use the fellowship and wade through the original trip through Moria.
Later on in the evil campaign Gimli retreats to Moria with a Gondorian force (even though minis tirith has just been destroyed, way to defend your home guys!). Why Gimli bothered with that when he could probably have tried to go back to his kin instead is baffling. The game just seems to permeate this sense that Gimli is the only dwarf in existence.
Anyway, I should finish lest I continue to berate the games simple, poorly written nature.
Overall this game feels rushed, with average graphics, mediocre animation, a storyline that rivals Lord of the Rings the third age in it's horribly crude execution. The writing is crude and disjointed and the presentation is very poor. Throwing out generic clips from the movies to narration adds to the feeling that it was rushed or they were simply being lazy.
The plot delivery would be somewhat excuseable if it delivered a solid well presented, polished game. However between the animation, overall presentation and class balancing I can't help but feel the product as a whole was either rushed or just lacked any real effort.
I expect there are worse games out there, and if you can set aside the faults some enjoyment can be derived from some battles. It also features co-op and online multiplayer which may be enjoyable for some given the right conditions.
But honestly if you are a die-hard lord of the rings fan don't get this game; it is painful to behold. Likewise for most I wouldn't recommend it simply as it doesn't have much going for it. You could grab a much more satisfying game for the same price, or maybe even less. I guess the achievements are easy to acquire if that is something you care much for, but honestly investing any more money than the cost of a rental into this game seems wasteful to me, as that is about as long as it will last.
