The Lord of the Rings, The Battle for Middle-earth II

"Great Game; Perfect For Lord Of The Rings Fans"

First of all let me start by saying that this is not just for LOTR fans. Everyone who is looking for a quality gaming experience or is a huge RTS fan MUST PICK UP THIS GAME.

Graphics-10/10

The first thing that jumped put at me was the amazing graphics in this game. EA has spent real quality time making this game visually stunning. During fights, the chaos of flaming fireballs and literally hundreds of guys fighting each other couples greatly with the beautiful landscape. One of the best jobs they did was on the water. The water has such a genuine feel you begin to get seasick from staring at its utter beauty.The sounds of ambiance, chaos, and clashing of swords will keep you totally immersed in the game.

Gameplay-8/10

The gameplay was absoloutly and deeply involved. You can spend hours defending or destroying Middle Earth in the,unfortunetely, short campaigns. What really shines here is the War of the Ring mode. this mode will take days to finish but the risk style gameplay is absoloutely brilliant. The online play is a must. Despite some small lag and ladder problems, the play is excelent on a broadband connection. The human online play brings me to the gameplays major flaw: the horrible AI. Often, the computers will run straight through a large concentration of defences to kill a level 1 farm at the back of your base. If your playing a fortress level (Minas Tirith, Helms Deep, ect.), even if you have a hole in your walls or your are playing a free for all, the enemy will be completely determined to bust down your gate, one batallion of easily destroyed soldiers at a time...

New Features-9/10

In terms of new features, there is little dissapointment. But even so, buy the cheaper normal version. The collecters edition is nearly useless. Some new features include create a hero, which is not very in depth, but you hero is very powerful, and obtaining awards is great. the new way of spacing buildings and building anywhere you want was a great idea adapted from such favorites as Warcraft III and Starcraft. Building walls everywhere allows for huge in depth strongholds. The only problem with walls is 1. They die way to easy. often, a hord of uruks can destoy a whole section and 2. they cannot have units stand on them.

Overall-9/10

This game is positively great. Recommended for anyone looking for a game set in everyones favorite fantasy world.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 03/17/06