The Lord of the Rings, The Third Age – XB – Review

What’s the difference
between an Xbox RPG and a PS2 RPG?  Xbox RPGs are real-time adventures with a
wide-open storyline (choose good or evil sides, commit kind or cruel acts,
etc.).  PS2 RPGs are generally turn-based games with separate screens for
battles and a single-path storyline that drives the player’s interest.  The
outcome may be pre-determined, but if the story is packed with intrigue, no
one will think twice about not being able to change what happens.  Until a
main character dies…

In The Lord of the Rings:
The Third Age, Electronic Arts brings the much-loved PS2 style of gameplay to
Xbox.  This is a rare occasion for Xbox players, considering that it is the
only next-gen console besides Dreamcast that did not receive a new Final
Fantasy, the leader in turn-based role-playing. 

Finally there’s an Xbox
RPG for Square fans to lose themselves in.  Best of all it stars new
characters from The Lord of the Rings films and features appearances by
(almost) the entire cast.


Berethor is one of the
first characters you’ll meet in the game.  He fought with Boromir during the
Battle for Osgiliath as the Citadel Guard of Gondor.  Elegost is a member of
Dunedain (the same group Aragorn belonged to), swarn to protect the Shire from
those who are evil.  Idrial is woven into the story when she helps Berethor
survive an attack.  Hadhod and Morwen are looking for answers – one hopes to
find pieces of his past, the other hopes to find remaining family members (Morwen
lost her family when her village burned down).

These five warriors are
brought together in different ways, but the ultimate goal is the same: stop
the ring from falling into the wrong hands.  A sixth warrior, Eaoden, will
worm his way into the story as well.  Where does all this lead?

I’ll refrain from giving
anything away, but I must note that the story isn’t this game’s strong point. 
It’s decent, even good at times, but the movies (and previous games) are much
better.

Not surprisingly, The
Third Age is littered with crates and other objects that need to be examined
in order to obtain important items.  Few of them are necessary to your
success, but there’s a reason why you have to search for them: the items are
actually useful.

Outside battle the game
has numerous linear maps and a compass incase you get lost (or forget if you
were walking northwest or southeast).  Inside the battles the game looks like
Final Fantasy.  Easy-to-read menus indicate exactly who’s turn it is, how much
health (HP) is left, the number of action points (AP) that are available, etc.

The Lord of the Rings:
The Third Age has its own version of the Final Fantasy limit breaker system. 
Attack your enemies as normal, then take a gander at the rectangular meter on
the right-hand side of the screen.  Look what you’ve done this time.  The
death of your greatest adversaries is bad enough, but now you’ve gone and made
the Momentum Meter fill up with power.  Once full, switch over to Perfect Mode
to unleash a set of attacks not previously available.

As players journey closer
to the end, they will find themselves in a state of awe.  In a state of awe
for the music, and in a state of awe for the graphics.  Musically the game
captures the essence of the films.  If there’s a new track here you won’t be
able to tell.  Each piece blends into the story so well that you’d think it
came directly from the films.  Graphically the game is no less than what it
should be: spectacular.  It’s clear who each of the characters are (you don’t
have to squint).  That tiny detail seems to mess up so many licensed games,
but not The Third Age.


What’s breathtaking about
it is the environments.  You know and love The Lord of the Rings worlds like
you know and love the planets in Star Wars.  Their images are permanently
ingrained in your head.  Seeing them come to life in this game is akin to
watching a brawl on TV, then playing Tekken for the first time.  You’ve seen
it before, but never did you know that it could look so good in an interactive
world.

Nobody does The Lord of
the Rings like Electronic Arts.  The Lord of the Rings: The Third Age proves
that just because a movie trilogy has ended, you don’t have to stop making
games or only make ones that suck.

Call it a gift to
yourself and take it home today, or grab that big black marker and add it to
your Christmas list.  If EA keeps this up, Santa would need a few more
workshops just to accommodate.


Review
Scoring Details

for The Lord of the Rings: The Third Age

Gameplay: 8.5
The Third Age is
presented in the same way you’d imagine: the graphics are gorgeous, the music
is epic, and the battles are played out entirely through menus.  The camera
angle changes for certain battles; its default position varies each time you
encounter an enemy. 

Graphics: 9
Gorgeous Xbox
graphics.  The worlds are big and beautiful (in design, but not always in
gameplay).  The game’s artists did an impeccable job of rendering all the
levels and characters, re-creating the films’ environments in video game
form.  No Lord of the Rings fan will be able to take his or her eyes off this
one.

Sound: 9
Mesmerizing music
from one of the world’s greatest composers.  Every moment is heightened by an
entrancing masterpiece.  It will become a part of you whether you’ve seen the
movies or not.

Vocally the game isn’t
perfect, but it’s not nearly as hokey as some of the voice-overs we’ve heard
in other RPGs.


Difficulty: Easy/Medium
RPG purists are
once again faced with a game that, while grand and entertaining in almost
every way, is not super-frustrating or overly difficult.  I’m thrilled that
it’s not – an RPG can either be easy or cheap and frustrating.  I’ll take the
former.  For those of you who don’t, I suggest you play a strategy/RPG
instead.

Concept: 7.5
Traditional,
turn-based role-playing set in the expansive Lord of the Rings universe.  None
of the starring characters are in your control, but it’s Lord of the Rings –
how could you not be intrigued?


Multiplayer: 8
Co-op?  In an
RPG?  You bet!  The Third Age makes it possible to take a friend along with
you on this extremely long journey, just like Frodo did when he set out to
destroy the ring.

Overall: 8.5
Three films to
rule them all, several places to buy them.  One developer to make the games,
and one holiday to find them (under the tree!).  The Lord of the Rings: The
Third Age is a great ending to a great run of games.  The length would almost
be intimidating if this wasn’t an RPG.  I beat The Two Towers in less than two
days.  The Return of the King didn’t take me much longer.  I didn’t keep track
of the time I spent with The Third Age, but one thing’s for certain – you
can’t beat this game in a few nights.  You could play it continuously, use a
strategy guide and rush through every level and still have a hard time
finishing it that quickly.  This is an RPG, and a Final Fantasy-sized one at
that.  Take your time and enjoy it.