Game
The Lord of the Rings
War of the Ring

Format: PC
Vivendi Universal/Warthog
£39.99
3 348542 179554
Age Restrictions: 12+
Available
now


The fate of the One Ring rests in your hands as you play as the forces of good and valiantly for the One Ring's destruction or unleash the legions of evil and claim control over Middle Earth forever...

Take the label "Lord of the Rings" off this game and change the characters names and this could be any role-playing strategy game on the market. It's a shame that the licence was not used a little more creatively for War of the Ring. However, on the plus side Vivendi Universal has taken its inspiration from the original books rather than the movies.

There's plenty of fun to be had. If you're in a particularly vindictive mood, why not crush a few Orcs or blast them into the middle of next week? Or, if you are really in a bad mood, why not switch to the dark side? It is the dark side that provides the most fun (I hope that this won't have certain pressure groups complaining that this may entice more youngsters to choose the dark path in life). It's much more fun controlling the forces of evil than it is the forces of good.

Fans of classic games, like WarCraft, will be disappointed that War of the Ring doesn't offer anything new. In fact, and I may get some stick for saying this, but you could be forgiven for mistaking this game for WarCraft at first glance.

It is fun (especially when playing on the side of evil) but hardly a game that is likely to be remembered as a classic in years to come. What it does, it does well. Just don't expect anything groundbreaking.

In conclusion then, this could have been a cracking game if only the programmers had tried to be a little more original instead of mimicking what has gone before. It's still a well constructed game, it's just that there's nothing here you haven't seen before.

Nick Smithson

Buy this item online
We compare prices online so you get the cheapest deal!
(Please note all prices exclude P&P - although Streets Online charge a flat £1 fee regardless of the number of items ordered). Click on the logo of the desired store below.


cover

£24.99 (Amazon.co.uk)

   

£26.99 (Streetsonline.co.uk)

All prices correct at time of going to press.