The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King – PS2 – Preview

E3 2003 – Hands On

The last chapter of the Lord of the Rings
trilogy is coming to consoles in Return of the King. The demo I played was of
the Minis Tirith Wall scene in the upcoming film, and already the game looked to
be shaping up nicely. The action was intense, and the game made nice use of
interactive objects. The game will feature seven playable characters (three
starting and four hidden) including Gandalf, who was in the playable demo. The
game featured the same hectic combat system of its console predecessor, The Two
Towers, with some nice improvements. In the demo build, it was much more
necessary to interact with items and environments around you. For example, at
one point you maybe fighting a dragon, and then you’ll have to run over and
order troops to launch a catapult at an adjacent tower. The game will also
feature two-player co-op gameplay, a feature which was sorely missed in The Two
Towers.

The game is set to release on the PS2 this
fall, along with the release of the film.