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Platform: Xbox,(PS2 PC, GBA) |
Developer: Universal Interactive |
Publisher: Vivendi |
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Genre: Action |
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ETA: Q4 2002 |
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The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship
of the Ring
The
both critically lauded and colossal revenue-generating The Lord of the
Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring movie released last year rejuvenated
immense interest in the Middle Earth world created by legendary fantasy
author J.R.R. Tolkien. So much so that there are no less than SIX games
headed to a videogame system near you based on his Middle Earth realm
and those who populate it. Games based on Tolkien’s tomes will be
appearing on every next-generation system including The Hobbit on the
GameCube, Lord of the Rings: Part One and The Two Towers on the Game Boy
Advance, The Two Towers and Return of the King on the PS2, and what I
will be previewing here, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the
Ring (FOTR) coming to the Xbox.
FOTR
will be a third-person action adventure game that lets you control one
of three Tolkien characters: Frodo, Aragorn, or Gandalf. It’s certain
that each character will have both specific strong and weak points while
using them during the game, so strategic planning will be an important
gameplay aspect to focus on if you wish to continue on the path of a
successful quest. FOTR is also sure to include heavy doses of RPG
elements and journeys. There will also be weapon-based, or
magic-based most likely in Gandalf’s case, combat similar to the newly
released Xbox title The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind (if you change the
battle view from first to third-person perspective).
You
will be able to visit eight Middle Earth locales including Hobbiton and
the Misty Mountains while meeting both friendly and not-so-friendly
Middle Earth citizens including the prerequisite orcs, hobbits, black
riders and naturally Balrog himself as he attempts to reclaim the One
Ring of Power. So far, the huge environments that make up the game’s
world are most impressive. Looking smoothly realistic and colorful, they
take advantage of the powerful rendering ability of the Xbox. The early
character screenshots show a tremendous attention to detail, especially
with the wizard Gandalf, appearing magnificent as his white-robed bad
self. Gameplay-wise, expect a lot of puzzle-based activities in addition
to the combat fought by your hero. Weapon and health level bars, ring
strength, the currently selected weapon, and a navigational map are tracked on-screen to help you keep tabs on your gaming progress.
With
the game based on Tolkien’s masterful and legendary work, you already
know that FOTR will have a sound and solid storyline. Today’s superior
videogame console hardware finally gives Tolkien fans like myself the
chance to explore the Middle Earth world as close to the author’s
intended vision as it possibly could be presented. Couple that with the
already lush and beautiful environmental visuals and all FOTR needs is a
well-developed and responsive combat and control scheme to make this a
title worthy of a serious look from fantasy action game fans when it
comes out in the fall, a short time just before the newest movie, Lord
of the Rings: The Two Towers hits theaters and rakes in another Smaug-sized
fortune.
-
Lee
Cieniawa (June 16, 2002)
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