The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Laptop Battery One ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them....to enjoy the epic final chapter of the highly acclaimed The Lord of the Rings movie trilogy. The successor to the hit The Two Towers, Return of the King is set to be bigger and better than what we could ever imagine. Though many games made about movies seem to always to be average, The Two Towers brought a new stance on movie games and instantly became a hit within the market, but every game has its enemy. Well, not really an enemy but a sequel to any game is expected improve to a point to where it surpasses its predecessor. With pressure built up on EA, can they release the ultimate sequel? From what we know, the new game looks to be exactly what we crave and more.
The Two Towers was dubbed as a hack-and-slash, but since then much has changed. Return of the King features heightened gameplay to an extent where you can actually jump, which the prequel lacked. Players will be able to journey through distinct paths with eight playable characters, including Gandalf, Frodo, Sam, Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, and two more secret characters. The actors have once again lent their faces and voices to the game so players can fully experience the feeling. Motion-captured stunt doubles and facial textures were used so every in game face is fully detailed to the actors. You will be able to raise the Army of Darkness as Aragorn, Legolas, or Gimli, defend Minas Tirith as Gandalf, and deliver the ring to the depths of Mount Doom as Frodo and Sam. Each character has their special attributes from Gandalf's magic ability to Legolas' agility and fierce aim with a bow. Characters will be able to use different sorts of weapons unlike the steady ones in The Two Towers. As before, you will earn points throughout the game to use for purchasing different moves and combos between levels to upgrade you characters abilities and strength. This time around, EA has listened to consumers and included an all-new multiplayer co-op mode to let players form their own Fellowship to embark upon Middle Earth, which I must say is most intriguing. The full product features include:
- Eight playable and secret characters including Gandalf, Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, Sam, and Frodo with exclusive voice-overs provided by the actual actors.
- An all-new multiplayer mode will allow players to team up with a companion.
- Over twelve interactive environments authentically reproduced from the films. Explore the Paths of the Dead, defend Minas Tirith, and battle Sauron's forces at the Pelennor Fields before final confrontations at the Black Gate and the Crack of Doom.
- Third person action/adventure gameplay incorporates multiple character paths for each member of the Fellowship
- More than just a backdrop to the action, the game environments are interactive, letting players incorporate the various environments into their strategies for both melee and ranged combat. Characters have the ability to jump and swing from ropes, fire catapults, kick boulders, etc.
- Enhanced control with the C-stick allows players to perform multi-directional attacks and combos with ease as they battle their way through the forces of evil.
- Battle vicious boss monsters including Shelob, the Witch King, and the final showdown with the Dark Lord Sauron.
- Seamless movie-to-game transitions and never-before-seen exclusive movie footage from the upcoming The Return of the King movie.
- Immerse in a musical score composed by Academy Award-winner Howard Shore.
The game flows vividly with the script that follows the film to bring to life amazing environments from The Paths of the Dead to the walls of Minas Tirith. The levels have been enlarged and characters are now able to interact with them by using different functions like kicking a boulder to crush your enemy or releasing a lever to drop a metal object on your opponent for an easy kill. It widens the games experience even for new players. Returning enemies include the Orcs, Goblins, and Uruk'kai. New comers range from the Fell Beast, the Mumakil, Nazgul, Mountain Trolls, and more. Familiar faces such as Shelob and the Witch King will make a debut as two of many boss fights. In the last adaptation of the game, the enemies were a bit dull and not very up to beat on a challengeable fight. EA has stated that A.I. has been made smarter for Return of the King, so rest assure veterans you will be able to fight the good fight the way you see is fit.
Academy Award winner Howard Shore lends his incredible musical scores for the game that is said to be as heart pounding as the movie itself is. He makes every scene whether it's a soft tender moment or a throbbing action fight stand out in the movie, so we are sure to see that in this epic. The Gamecube version is said to run at a higher steadier framerate then the PS2 version. The screenshots of the game do truly amaze anyone and you can easily see how much the game has been updated graphically. The Gamecube version will also include GBA link compatibility with the GBA version of Return of the King. Players will be able to transfer experience points from the GBA version to the GCN version to upgrade combos and abilities. Other features have not been revealed but expect more to utilize the GCN-GBA link up. The EA team will probably include Dolby Pro Logic II support so the player can get the full experience from the game. This would be a plus for home theater owners. It will make you believe that you are watching the film when playing the game. Hopefully, it will have the power to suck you out of reality as the movie does.
Anyone who enjoyed The Two Towers will definitely fall in love again with this game. Fans of so-called hack-and-slash games will also enjoy this. What else can a player want with a game that has three storylines, GBA-GCN link up, new features, new weapons, interactive environments, and Dolby Pro Logic II? From what I can see, it is more than likely to rise as the true king to Gondor (well, not really). Expect a bit more updated graphics and more features since EA's last showing of this game at E3. I am very much looking forward to Return of the King and will be one of the first of many people picking up this title when it is released. Do yourself a favor and grab a piece of this hot pie in November. I assure you, it will not bring Wraiths to your door.....only Sean Astin.
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