The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
As a follow-up to last year's The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers game, Return of the King is largely similar, but, well, larger. With it, EA has done a laudable job of sequel-making - learning from the original by removing the bad, building upon the good, and adding just enough new things to make it interesting. This review functions best with prior knowledge of what the TTT game entails.
In a surprising and somewhat hazardous move, the RotK game was released before the movie by a fair time margin. It was constructed in such a way as to spoil only a small amount of the story for those who haven't heard it before, but as compared with the film, it flubs a few lines and scenes, and even lets out a few secrets (there are things in the game that aren't in the theatrical release, and thus can be concluded will show up in the Extended version). So while it may not be as good a movie companion as its predecessor, the RotK game still does a smashing job.
When JRR Tolkein created the world of Arda and Middle-Earth, and more specifically the tale of the Lord of the Rings, he crafted a rich tapestry of simultaneous detail and wonder, able to entice and consume the imagination. Peter Jackson has more recently become noteworthy in his own right, for being able to cinematize the Lord of the Rings into three splendid works - each a triumph over the last - while still remaining respectably faithful to the word of Tolkein. While it is narrated by Gandalf and filled to the brim with cutscenes from the movie, the RotK game, like TTT before it, has little story to speak of. It can at times be disappointing to neglect the epic storytelling potential, but at the same time, doing so doesn't detract from the actual game.
The gameplay of RotK is immediately identical to that of TTT, but with the maxim "more is better." Where Two Towers had three playable characters and one secret, Return has six playable characters and three secret ones (more or less, rounding out the entire fellowship). While the characters are at first restricted to pathways (Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli to the Path of the King missions; Gandalf to the Path of the Wizard missions; Sam and Frodo to the Path of the Hobbits missions), this restriction is broken upon the completion of the game's last story mission, which shouldn't take long at all - though where TTT had 12 missions and one bonus, RotK has 13 and two bonuses (and even the shortest RotK mission is longer than the longest TTT mission). There's also a lot more environmental interaction, with catapults, gate winches, and all sorts of flaming weapon goodness. The upgrade system is mostly the same, with the addition that certain upgrades (like increased life) can be bought in bulk, netting it for all the characters in the Fellowship for less than what it would cost to buy it individually for each of them.
Graphically and soundwise, again, RotK and TTT are virtually identical. The movie cutscenes look great, and usually run smoothly, while the in-game graphics are enough to get by. Sound effects are pleasing, the music fitting, characters' sound bytes taken directly from the actors (most of the time).
Again in respect to replay value, RotK and TTT are similar in content, while RotK has more overall to offer. With fifteen total missions and nine total characters to play through them all, and a generally higher level of difficulty, RotK can keep you busy as long as you could possibly want it to. And, while there's no word from John Rhys-Davies, there are a few new interviews to unlock - including one with Elijah Wood (Frodo), Billy Boyd (Pippin), and Dominic Monaghan (Merry) filled with gamer trash-talk.
The Two Towers was recognized as, while not being perfect, a more than respectable movie-to-game production; and Return of the King trumps it in every way. There are new (and bigger) levels to play through, and more characters to use (hobbits! and Gandalf!). There's even a co-op play mode, though it's not much to speak of. Return of the King just has more to do, and more fun to offer. It should be interesting to see what EA does with the next game to come in the series, the Lord of the Rings Trilogy.
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