Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle Earth II Review (Xbox 360)

Gameplay

This is a game that definitely gets better the more you play it. The more you learn and the better you get with the controls, the more you will enjoy it all. At first you’ll think that just overwhelming your opponent with wave after wave of troops is enough to get the job done. Sure, it works, but it is so much more satisfying to put together perfectly formed groups of different types of units and attacking from different angles and using actual strategy. This is where the game will really start to hook you. The game also really sinks its teeth into you when you start to use different units such as warships and trebuchets or giant hulking trolls. The deeper you go into the rabbit hole the more units and the more tactics and strategy you have available to you and the better and more fun everything gets.

Issues

It is far from perfect, however. During battles there can be some serious frame rate issues which make selecting units or just moving around the map difficult. And I’m not even talking about full max army vs. max army stuff, either, just a few dozen units onscreen at once will send you into slowdown land. You can zoom in and out and pan around with the right analog stick, but it doesn’t zoom in quite close enough to really see much and it doesn’t pull back far enough to give you an optimal view of the battlefield. A minor complaint I have is that when you first start out your mission objectives aren’t always clear and the functions of the various structures and upgrades and everything else isn’t always clear. It can be a bit frustrating when you first start out, which could turn some people away, but once you get used to everything it is all good.

Graphics and Sound

Visually, Battle for Middle Earth II is pretty darn good looking all around. Each faction is distinctive and each type of unit looks different so you can easily tell exactly what you’re up against by sight. Special effects for your powers as well as explosions look very nice as well. The levels are surprisingly detailed and each one, whether it be the streets of an Elvish city or the grassy hills of The Shire, has its own personality and feel and they all look great. My only complaints, as I mentioned above, are the framerate issues and camera. Overall, though, BfMEII looks great.

It also sounds very good. The music and sound effects and voice work is all right up there at the same level of quality as in the movies. It all feels like an extension of the movies and that is a very good thing.

Bottom Line

The Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle Earth II is a great game that will go a long way towards helping you survive these slow summer months between big game releases. It looks and sounds great and, most importantly, it plays surprisingly well despite the fact that RTS games haven’t always gotten along very well with consoles. It is deep and satisfying and very fun once you get into it. RTS games aren’t for everyone so check out the demo that is available on the Xbox Live Marketplace if you are unsure. For RTS fans or just Xbox 360 owners looking for something new, I highly recommend Battle for Middle Earth II. It is a big game that has even more downloadable content coming so it will keep you busy for many weeks and months to come.