Hack and Slash Fun (The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (Xbox))

Member Name: sympatic

Product:	The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (Xbox)
Date:	16/10/06 (117 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Visually impressive

Disadvantages: Short playing time

This is a good game that is only really let down by the fact that there is not enough game play time and it is far too short which is a real shame as it shows a lot of potential.


The game does follow the storyline of the film however the first parts of the game focus on what happened in the second half of the first film so there is a bit of overlap. In the game you have a choice of three characters that you can play as, Gimlin the dwarf, Aragorn the ranger and Legolas the elven archer.


At its most basic level this game is a fairly standard hack and slash format with a number of battles to fight your way trough which d vary in length. You have a number of quick attacks to use on lightly armoured foes and some more fierce attacks for those bigger better protected enemies whilst all the characters have a good range of combo attacks.


It is also beneficial to try to take out as many enemies as possible with combo strikes and this boosts an on screen meter which measures experience and enables you to buy additional attacks once it is full. For those more distant enemies Legolas and Aragorn have a bow and arrow attack while Gimlin can throw axes with deadly effect.


The control system is easy to get to grips with but does take time to master which is the most challenging part of the game, speed of strikes is off the essence, if you are too slow I found that the screen soon fills up with too many enemies so you have to be accurate and fast with your attacks.


One of the games biggest strengths is that visually it is very impressive with some excellent backdrops and all of the characters boast a lot of detail. The game has some good scenery and makes clever use of the various camera angles available to help enhance the gaming experience. The sound on the game is of a high quality and uses much of the music from the films.


This is a good game to play only let down by the relative lack of game playing time and the only real replay value is to repeat levels playing as the different characters. The game is available on Amazon for £4.17 in the new and used section which represents good value.

Summary: Second LOTR game.