The next up-and-coming game for LotR fans is “The Lord of the Rings, The Third Age”. It is due for release soon, and is compatible with PS2.

The storyline: The game is set in the third age of Middle Earth, and spans the action of all three LotR films. However, the characters are new; a party of 6 adventurers who, like the original fellowship, come from right across Middle Earth. These will include:
-Berethor (Gondorian Citadel Guard)
-Hadhod (dwarf)
-Elegost (ranger)
-Idrial (elf of Lorien)

The quest includes parts of the original story of LotR, and involves your characters occasionally fighting alongside members of the Fellowship.

Gameplay: The game is RPG based, and so includes exploration, character interaction, party development, and a good deal of combat. Your party can gain two types of experience, standard experience and skills points which count towards learning new abilities like magic. The magic in the game is based on elemental forces (earth, fire, air, water, light and shadow), which will vary in power depending on the situation. For more about specific gameplay such as combat, party management and abilities, go to gamespot.com

While protective fans of the books of LotR (like myself) may be dubious of the liberties taken with both storyline and characters, this game promises to be a cut above its more action-orientated predecessors.

by Beruthiel

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