You Still Can’t Play the Best Lord of the Rings Game

The structural designs were unique, the battle animations worked within the premise and the sheer scale of what could be achieved was astounding. To see giant eagles fly above well-built fortresses, as Uruk-hai descended upon your barracks, encapsulated the essence of what a  Lord of the Rings game should be. Couple that with a range of unique abilities that could bolster the troops, players felt as if they had genuine agency in the field, making a difference with swift decision-making.

For those fans of the genre, who might have come to the game because it was a tactical experience, rather than a specific Lord of the Rings spinoff, there was still a lot to love. Well-crafted menus, a good variety of troops, notable upgrade options, and twists on the familiar tropes ensured that this stood out from the competition. However, there were a few limitations to this title, including the restraints placed on building one’s fortress, that indicated that the concept had more potential to grow. 

The Sequel Upped The Stakes With Far More Customization 

If Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle-earth was the starter, then its 2006 sequel The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II was certainly the main course. Naturally, there were some graphical upgrades and visual enhancements, as technology developed between those 2004 and 2006 releases. However, the developers went even bigger with their ambitions, adding further military stables including the likes of the Elves, Dwarves, and Goblins, while still staying true to the Good and Evil campaigns of the past. Features like War for the Ring Mode were brought back, but they were emboldened by exciting DLC and a whole range of customization options. 

Not only could players build their own heroes, which they could unleash into the field alongside Gandalf and Saruman, but they could also build fortresses entirely to their own specifications. Moveable walls, a wider range of building types, and more diverse terrain made those open skirmishes far more interesting. The first game embraced the lore of Middle-earth and the second capitalized on the foundations that had been built.

No other Lord of the Rings game allows players to truly forge a path in Middle-earth in this way, and take part in the same strategy-based warfare that the generals of these armies would have done in-universe. What’s more, that very mythology was handled with care. While recent releases like Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor rewrote Tolkien’s work and established new characters and twists, everything added to Battle For Middle-earth could be traced back to those early texts (even if the game visually matches the films more). The types of troops available, the architecture of the buildings, and even the maps players battled across had been designed with faithful respect for prior materials. It did not try to be original in this way. 

Capture-the-fortress-style campaigns, where players could pit multiple armies against one another as they sought to destroy one another’s structures, could become truly chaotic, especially if the limits on resources were lifted and players could create anything they wanted. Ultimately, whether it’s bringing Sauron or Galadriel into the battle and flipping everything on its head completely, or finding Gollum and embracing the power of the One Ring, the series simply had countless mythos-based details that truly paid tribute to the saga and created an immersive experience for fans.