Lego Lord of the Rings - Xbox 360

Walking Into Mordor With A Smile

Joe Juba — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 22:20:00 GMT

If you’ve played one Lego game, you haven’t played them all. That may seem obvious, but I’ve encountered too many people who dismiss new Lego titles based on the faulty assumption that they are all the same. Lego Lord of the Rings is the perfect opportunity to see how far this series has come since its inception; Traveller’s Tales has crafted a wonderful platformer that stands on its own – though the Lego charm and a great license make it even better.

Lego Lord of the Rings is a broad fusion of many elements – exploration, collection, combat, puzzle-solving – and Middle-earth is the ideal environment for these things to come together. Despite the kid-friendly exterior, the important events from the story have not been substantially changed or watered down. Epic moments like the swarming mass of orcs at Helm’s Deep, the fall of the Witch King at Pelennor Fields, and Gandalf’s battle with the Balrog are all wonderfully executed and fun to play. The mix of faithfulness and playfulness with the source material makes Lego Lord of the Rings the best video game adaptation of Tolkien’s universe, hands-down.

You don’t need to be a diehard fan to have a good time here. The gameplay supporting the story (which follows the three movies) is fun regardless of your level of Middle-earth expertise. Whether you’re playing in single-player or with a local co-op buddy, the variety is astounding. You still beat up bad guys and collect studs, but that kind of activity occupies a much smaller percentage of the experience. Most of your time is spent exploring the iconic environments, hunting down collectibles, and searching for solutions to puzzles. Combat is still important, but it tends to happen in more impressive ways than enemies mindlessly pouring out of doors. Stomping around as Treebeard, riding into battle as King Théoden, and taking down Oliphaunts are just a few examples of how Traveller’s Tales keeps the action fresh.

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Once the War of the Ring is won, your time with Lego Lord of the Rings is just beginning. The (fairly linear) core campaign is an easily digestible eight hours, but the wealth of open-world, post-game content is staggering. With all of Middle-earth available to explore, the most powerful items, best puzzles, and coolest characters are yours to find – including a bonus level where you control two powerful villains. Obsessive players can expect to spend 30 hours or more to hit 100 percent.

As fun as this game can be, some technical issues get in the way. Character selection bugs, chugging framerates, and screen tearing provide occasional annoyances. The irregular audio quality (the voices are all sampled directly from the films) sometimes makes it seem like the main characters’ dialogue is provided by an Internet soundboard, which deflates some otherwise cool moments.

A handful of technical stumbles can’t keep Lego Lord of the Rings from being the best Lego game so far. Finding a great compromise between the linear installments and the sprawling open world of Lego Batman 2, Traveller’s tales hits sweet spots in the structure and gameplay, constantly giving players new goals and new places to explore. The steady stream of goofball humor keeps the mood light, but almost every part of the game is entertaining in its own way.

An Unlikely Ally

He may seem like a generic orc, but you want to buy the character called Berserker as soon as he is available. Available to use only in Free Play, Berserker is able to pull orange handles and throw bombs that destroy Mithril blockades. These are two obstacles that the characters in standard play can’t overcome, so Berserker will be an early MVP for players who want to hunt down all of the hidden items.

Going There And Back Again Via Lego Lord Of The Rings

Jeff Cork — Thu, 16 Aug 2012 22:02:00 GMT

I wasn't entirely surprised when Warner Bros. and Traveller's Tales announced that a Lego Lord of the Rings game was on its way. After getting a demo of the game and its open-world hub, I have to say that its a good thing I keep plenty of surprise in reserve. Lego Lord of the Rings advances the studio's Lego formula even further, adding an expanded open-world element to the game that not only puts Lego Batman 2 to shame, but is something that just about any game would be proud to have.

We started the demo in the Shire, which is as lush and green as in the films. Traveller's Tales latched onto the sense of discovery and exploration that's been a part of the Lord of the Rings lore from the start and ran with it. You'd be forgiven for thinking that the Shire would act like Diagon Alley from the Lego Harry Potter games. Most of the Lego games' hubs manage to seem larger than they actually are. In Lego Lord of the Rings, the world of Middle-earth is yours to explore, from the Shire and beyond.

Players can take their fellowship through areas both iconic such as Weathertop, Rivendell, and the mines of Moria, to more obscure locations. In true Lego fashion, certain characters have special abilities, like Gimly's block-breaking ax, Legolas' deadly bow, and Sam' impressive gardening skills. Players can also collect special hard-to-find mithril blocks, which can be forged into weapons and items at a blacksmith. If you think Frodo should flex his archery skills, give him a specially crafted bow.

Inventory is also a part of the game, and characters can find and hold items throughout their adventures. For instance, a blue key discovered early on may not open up a chest until much later in the game. Traveller's Tales says it's shooting for an RPG-lite feel in the game, and it definitely seems as though it's heading in the right direction.

With voices pulled directly from the film, an authentic movie score, and plenty of slapstick Lego humor, Lego Lord of the Rings is shaping up to be an adventure worth taking when it comes out this fall.

The Fellowship Is Block Together

Jeff Cork — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 14:00:00 GMT

If you like being surprised, you should probably move onto another story. If, on the other hand, you can't get enough Lord of the Rings and/or Lego games, you've come to the right place. Warner has announced Lego Lord of the Rings, which pretty much speaks for itself at this point.

The debut trailer below shows off a few scenes from the first film, The Fellowship of the Ring, including the appearance of a cave troll, and the encounter with the Balrog (and his disgusting breath). Like the upcoming Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes, this one appears to be fully voiced. We'll have to wait and see if Warner got permission to either use dialogue directly from the films or managed to wrangle together some of the original cast for some new recordings. There's also no official word on what platforms it'll be coming out on, but if past installments are any indication, it'll drop on just about every available system on the planet.

What do you think? Are you ready to go on another adventure with that hunky Aragorn fellow?

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