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Great story/animation, poor game BIG disappointment for xbox

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 31 / 35
Date: September 29, 2002
Author: Amazon User

JRR Tolkiens "Lord of the Rings - Book 1 'The Fellowship of the Ring' storyline is closely followed in this Xbox adaptation (allows some Xbox magic with great sound track, music & above average graphics). The animation sequences between scenario runs are delightful with audio dialogue. The whimsical artwork used was nice, aimed at the younger audiences to reduce the blood/gore, slash/gash & the frightening darken minions of the Dark Lord.

That ends this great attempt to make a great game from the greatest fantasy trilogy of all time. Peter Jackson's movie trio lives up to JRR Tolkiens work with a few film adaptations to make each film a stand alone art form.

Summary; This game is best reviewed in the PROS vs CONS format to best describe the game players expectations of this XBOX game.

PROS - The background music is awesome. The animation sequences of the characters is quite good (great transition between scenarios). The characters voices & dialoque are very effective to the story being told. The games storyline is true to the author. You can SAVE OFTEN (and you must!!!!).

CONS - LONG & FREQUENT Game BOOT (loading) between scenarios. NO Middle Earth Maps to be used. NO mapping or auto mapping features (as in MORROWIND) (you must memorize quickly or die). This means NO REFERENCING for location. NO GOING BACK or EXPLORING. Limited Inventory features. THIS IS ONLY A CONTINUOUS SLASH/GASH GAME. You only play FRODO, STRIDER & GANDALF at specific check points (NO OPTIONS). (for example; Frodo from start to BREE. STRIDER from BREE to RIVENDELL etc. no other choices) LIMITED path advance (NO ROAMING as in MORROWIND). ONLY FRODO USES STEALTH. STRIDER & GANDALF MUST FIGHT or RUN or be KILL by EVERYONE (this is NON-STOP). Almost everything is resolved by killing, destroying or dying. (again only FRODO can use stealth). You must move quickly or die!! You must CONSTANTLY search for food, health & magic potions (this distracts the game player from reaching specific scenario goals). VERY FEW rest points to enjoy the game. CANNOT STOP or GO BACK AND EXPLORE MIDDLE EARTH!!

These are only the most frequent perks & annoyances while playing this game. It is to bad so much effort went in, the basic game is there, but the features are to limited to make this a [current price] must have Xbox library game. If you want detail, free roaming, the ability to be cunning, a great investment would be "MORROWIND".

I am truly disappointed in this Xbox games attempt to tell the "CLASSIC" JRR Tolkien "Fellowship of the Ring" story. See the movie, skip or rent the game. ENJOY.

Good graphics, fun puzzles, too short!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 11 / 14
Date: October 26, 2002
Author: Amazon User

A new Lord of the Rings RPG is out for the PS2, XBox and other platforms. How well does the first book in the trilogy translate to a role playing game?

To start with, you're doing a role-playing game and start out as Frodo. There's no fighting, just wandering around in a very nicely rendered Morrowind-style graphic house and town. You have a purity meter, so don't go stealing things from others' houses!

You have simple quests to achieve - get a mill working, find the pigs. You gather up some firecrackers and mushrooms (yum!) and deal with your annoying relatives. In hardly any time at all you've met up with Sam, Merry and Pippin and have left the Shire.

The game progresses like that - Frodo just creeps along, solves random quests and tries to stay pure. You can use the ring to find secret areas, but using the ring makes you more corrupt. You have to do good deeds (i.e. these little quests) to keep yourself balanced. Eventually you can also play Aragorn and Gandalf, and stop into other locations such as Bree, Weathertop, Rivendell, and up through the end of the book at the river's edge.

I was disappointed because the back of the game made it sound as if you could *be* any of the three characters (Frodo, Aragorn, Gandalf). Instead you're stuck as Frodo in the beginning, trudging around from house to house. Most houses don't even have anyone in them and the few that do are often empty. The puzzles are solved in about 2 minutes each with little thought.

I do enjoy the graphics, and the way each character is a 'type' is fun. Frodo's purity and thieving skills, Aragorn's fighting, Gandalf's magic. The cut scenes are good and help to move the story along, and flow in with what you are doing.

Still, I really would have enjoyed something a bit more involved, with quests that involved more actual thought, with real thieving being necessary instead of just 'pick lock - ok got deed' and 'sneak along road -ok got past riders'. The quests are very obvious - you get 2 or 3 explicit clues for each one that push you into the right direction. The voice actors sometimes seem bored with what is a world-rescuing epic. Gandalf's recitation of the 'one ring to rule them all' at the beginning sounds like he's reading through a shopping list!

In any case, it's fun to wander around the various locations and interact with the characters from the book. The graphics are nice, and they include many characters that the movie didn't have time to include. A must have for Lord of the Rings fans, if only to participate in sort of a 'moving story book' that lets them, for a time, return to that fantastically detailed world created by J.R.R. Tolkein. As a HUGE fan of the series, that includes me!

Just not what it could have been...I wanted so much more.

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 8 / 11
Date: September 27, 2002
Author: Amazon User

I applaud the effort that went into building this game, but they really needed a few more months on it.
The graphics look kind of blurry and some of the textures just don't fit right. I liked the sound effects...particularly the cabinet doors opening and closing in Frodo's home, but the singing from Tom Bombadil was pretty awful and Frodo's clumsy dancing made it even more ridiculous.
The problem is the combat, the stupidity of the enemies and the unforgiveable load times.
The enemies move in ways that don't make sense, can't seem to see you unless you strike them, and get trapped by little knee-high obstacles that they should be able to walk over or around.
Ring Wraiths just aren't scary at all when a two-foot hedge prevents it's efforts to grab Frodo. They sure don't seem very motivated.
But the load times are very long and jar you out of the experience. I took this game back to the store and exchanged it for Dynasty Warriors 3. Dynasty takes about five seconds to load a level or scenario that is about a mile across and has hundreds if not thousands of soldiers and horses in full battle.
You play from one end of the map to the other killing hundreds and hundreds of soldiers and even big boss captains that have their own fighting skills. And ALL of this happens with that one five second load time. You run inside of a castle, you fight your way down the stairs, you jump on a horse and gallop a half mile to the front lines...ALL of this without a single load time.
In Lord of the Rings, if Frodo is the only character on screen and wants to walk into a Hobbit hole, it loads for a good fifteen seconds, then you want to leave...well there is another twenty seconds of load time. If you accidentally hit the wrong button and walk back in a door you just came out of...it's gonna take you a minute before you get your character back again.
This is really unforgiveable with the hard drive on the Xbox being not being used at all. Even when Gandalf is in Moria, he would stand at the door of a room and wait for it to load, so it would be black until the graphics loaded.

The game is also very short...too short for an epic. It took me five hours to get to Moria and I was just walking around alot, taking my time.
Any game that costs $50 better give me alot more gameplay than 10-12 hours worth.

The melding of two great nerd loves: video games and LOTR

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 6 / 7
Date: September 28, 2002
Author: Amazon User

I just finished playing two hours of the new Lord of the Rings game.

Wow.

Few times have I been so moved by a game. Grand Turismo 3, Ico & Grand Theft Auto 3 on the PS2 moved me deeply. Munch's Oddysee, NFL 2K3 and Max Payne on the Xbox rocked me.

But LotR floored me.

I've played two hours and haven't even left the Shire. I've met so many characters, walked around just in awe. Inside and out! I can't even imagine what it's going to be like once I get into the quest.

Graphically...well, this is the reason I bought an Xbox. I love my PS2 but there is *no way* the game could look this good on it. The textures, character movements and landscapes are simply stunning. Stunning. I stood on a little hill and looked off into the distance - there was no fog, no pop-ups, just mountains. Beautiful mountains. Did I mention the character movements? There is nothing, I repeat nothing, on Earth like looking at Frodo walk around. It is exactly how I pictured him moving. His shoulders moving one way, his little cape going another. It's amazing. I can't say enough about the look of this game. Too bad this isn't an Xbox exclusive (PS2 will get this in October) because if it was, it would definitely be a reason to buy the system.

As far as gameplay goes, it's actually pretty standard. Your basic "get a mission, fulfill it and get some kind of reward" type of play. Nothing groundbreaking there. But that's not what I expected. What I expected was to be immersed in the world of LotR, and in that sense it pays off in spades. Spades, I tell you.

What's amazing is that it captures perfectly the mood of the book. There is that sense of whimsy combined with a sense of impending doom that is unbelievably tension building. And I've not even encountered the Wraiths yet! I can't imagine what it will be like when I get into the "action" part of the game. I get dreamy when I realize that Bombadil, Rivendell, Moria and Lothlorien await me.

Simply put, amazing. I'd say get the Xbox for the graphics, but if that's not possible then definitely get this baby when it comes out for the PS2.

You have hours and hours of neglect (for the outside world) awaiting you. And that's a good thing.

Disappointment in Middle Earth

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 6 / 8
Date: December 31, 2002
Author: Amazon User

Notice all the 5-star reviews from 10-, 11-, and 12-year-old gamers? Not a coincidence. This 28-year-old gamer found this title SERIOUSLY wanting.

Like others, I was excited about this game. Also like others, I'd seen ads for The Two Towers game, and assumed this was the prequel. MAN was I disappointed.

This game is a poor attempt to shoehorn an adventure game onto Tolkien's narrative. Playing it is like being on rails--no freedom in where you go, what you do. Most of the time, you walk along a path that you can't leave, both narratively and in some cases literally.

The combat is sluggish and repetitive, and the tasks are annoying and boring. It's almost like the developers said, "The player already knows where we're going to end up, so let's give them lots of stupid, trivial things to do in order to get there." In fact, I found myself thinking in terms of game design a LOT. "Ok, it looks like I ought to be able to jump over that, but I can't. They must be telling me this is the end of the road in this direction..." Good games don't make you think this way.

Enemy AI is BONE STUPID. You can lob stones at the spiders from a point far enough away that you don't trigger them. Enemies get stuck on corners or things protruding from the walls, and you can pummel them with impunity. I guess to a 10-, 11-, or 12-year old gamer, this can easily be confused with "fun".

Voice acting is uneven at best. Graphics are ok, but not what you'd call X-Box showcase quality. The game looks like a literal port from one of the "lesser" platforms, with one exception: the X-Box's pixel-shaded water. Which, sad to say, looks strangely out of place next to the graphics quality of the rest of the game.

The only bright spot of this game is the soundtrack. The music is very well done, and blends the dispair, fear, and triumph of Tolkien's world very nicely with the action in the game.

A great game for true fans!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 5 / 6
Date: October 06, 2002
Author: Amazon User

If you liked the movie and liked the books, then you will love this game. You start out in the Shire playing as Frodo. You get to help people in the Shire to keep your purity at it's best. The game features characters that didn't appear in the movie, but they are in the book. That helps with feeling like you're actually carrying the ring through middle earth. Not to give any suprises away, but you'll get to play as two other characters. One of which has the power of magic(Hint), where as the other uses his skills as a warrior(Hint). The game promises to entertain! I suggest it to any fan of adventure/action games.

One friggen expensive coaster

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 4 / 5
Date: October 29, 2002
Author: Amazon User

If RPG's are your bag, go for it. Tolkien fans - Don't expect too much because it doesn't deliver. Unfortunatley, I did have expectations and was failed. Graphics are very good, as is sound. However, the start of the game, dialogue and loading are about the worst I've witnessed. Rent it first... I did have the forsight to atleast do that much and until its due back...its collecting dust, as I play Halo.

The Lord Of The Rings : The Fellowship Of The Ring

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 4 / 5
Date: November 24, 2002
Author: Amazon User

This game is a great XBox game. The graphics are mouth dropping , the sound and music are wonderful , gameplay is awsome and fun , and the storyline goes along very well with the author J.R.R. Tolkiens first book of "The Lord Of The Rings." The way the land of Middle-earth looks in "The Fellowship Of The Ring" is fantastic. The orcs and trolls look very cool , and the ringwraiths and balrog of Moria look awsome. All of the other characters in this game look cool too. The characters you can play as are Frodo the hobbit , Gandalf the wizard , Aragorn the ranger , and more. This game has nothing but pure action in it , and there are thousands of enemy orcs and trolls to kill on your way to destroy the evil one ring of power in the fires of Mount Doom in the dark land of Mordor. The Lord Of The Rings : The Fellowship Of The Ring video game for the XBox deserves a good five stars because it is a brilliantly made video game.

Intellectual Game which sticks to the original story

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 4 / 5
Date: June 24, 2004
Author: Amazon User

To begin, this game is not for those who cannot problemsolve, by themselves. This is not a puzzle game, but you do need to explore in order to get to the next level. Unlike the second two movie-like games, this isn't a rambo style 'kill'em all game' but a true hobbit's game.
If you can get to this point in the review, you will probably like this game. It sticks to through the original chapters of the story, such as the Old forest, Tom Bombadil, Barrow Wights, and many othe small intricasies of the original Tolkien novel.
The warning, I say once again, is you need to figure things out on your own. Watch out for the shadow of the black riders!

Has its MAJOR flaws, but a very nice game

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: October 15, 2002
Author: Amazon User

I would like to preface this with two things: I am a LOTR FREAK! I have a library of reference books, and have read the series several times over, including the Hobbit and the Silmarillion. Second, the very first game I played was HALO, so for quality of game, I have very very high standards, since HALO was the game of the year (and with good reason).

The game is staunchly true to the book. Dialogue is taken straight from the book in times (though the "subtle" incusion of chapter titles got very, very cheesy at time), the environments are true to the descriptions, and the characters fit description. The background music is very nice for a game; it isn't Johann de Meij's Lord of the Rings Symphony or Howard Shore's oscar winning score, but it is really very nice. It reminds me of the background music (not the main theme) of the X-Files in places. The environments are realistic; seeing dust float in the rays of the sun through a window is fantastic. The 3d cutscenes are superb (though this is the one time the music could have done better).

My biggest gripe is the damn LOADING... screen! Every single time you enter a house or go outside you must sit through it for a seemingly endless amount of time, and it REALLY interrupts the game's flow. With HALO, there was a split second screen hesitation that a lot of the time you wouldn't even notice, and you proceeded. The XBOX's capabilities could really have been used better here. Next, the facial animations are cringingly bad at times. HALO was flawless, and using actual game animation instead of a 3d cutscene was pulled off with success in that game. In this game, using the same animation as in the game to do transition and dialogue scenes fails pretty miserably, Tom Bombadil especially (though it was nice to see him incuded in the game, which is more than I can say for the movie). The Balrog didn't really inspire fear into my heart, and it seemed kinda blah after seeing the towering beast of "shadow and flame" in the movie. The Ringwraith's looked impressive, although their voices in the transition scenes (not the 3d scenes) were kinda regrettable. Their shrieking cry was pretty good though.

Well, that is about it. I honestly liked this game, but I don't think you would if you aren't a die-hard Tolkeinite like I am, or if you have high standards for games.

PS
Though I don't know any cheat options or maps, the Atlas of Middle Earth by Karen Wynn Forstad has been VERY useful :)

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