Gameplay itself is very fun. At first when I heard about the minimized interface, I got a little nervous because I was worried about not having enough control over the units. To some extent this is true, but I've found it doesn't actually get in the way as much as I thought it would. For the most part it serves the purpose I believe EA intended the player spends less time staring at the bottom of the screen and more time focusing on the battles.
The forces are fairly balanced for the most part. For example, a batallion of Rohan cavalry can be a serious force to reckon with against archers or infantry, but if they come across some Isengard pikemen they'll have met their match. Mumakil can do all kinds of damage, but aren't so strong against archers armed with the flame arrow upgrade. A lot of people say that Mordor is a little bit weaker than the other forces, and I'd have to agree to some extent. However, some good strategy can make up for it. Likewise, Gandalf can be a little too powerful once he reaches the higher levels of veterancy, but there are counters against him as well.
The one thing that really bugs me about the game is the population cap. In the movies, the armies are huge. By having a limit of 200 or 300, you can only have 20 to 30 batallions. That's really not so much, and definitely not enough to recreate to any degree the enormous battles of the movies. Fortunately, there are ways that more advanced users can raise the population cap, but it's still a very annoying thing to have to deal with.
Overall, this is a wonderful game. I would recommend it to anyone, even for the rather high price. Nevertheless, don't expect this game to completely give you large-scale feel of the battles in any of the movies.
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EDIT**: I've been playing the game for several days now, and I can say that it has lived up to all of my expectations (see preview below). While you can't control as mnay troops as in Rome:Total War (we may need to look for a LOTR mod in the future), BFME has its own little niche, and it's a very nice one at that. Inevitably the comparison to RTW will be made, but these are two very different games. In RTW, you can control thousands of low-poly troops, but in BFME, you control hundreds of very high poly soldiers, each with very detailed animations and emotions. Yes, the emotions are a nice part of the game.The graphics are beautifulthey really bring the Middle Earth world to life, especially with the settings maxed out. Howard Shore's score also adds a great side to the game, with some additional remixing that sounded quite good. Voice acting was also pretty good, although you can tell in some parts that they didn't really use Viggo for Aragorn.
Gameplay; I like the new use of veterancy, which puts a crimp on players who rush to build every single building possible, and just pump out units. Cavalry in the game is very powerful, so you'll need to group your men into the right formation. Formations do give some help in BFME, although flank attacks and tactical maneuvers are unheard of, unlike RTW. All the battles are faithfully recreated, including a mission to defend the fellowship and Lothlorien from marauding Moria orcs (one of the scenes cut from the extended edition of FOTR). The Helms Deep mission is fantasticit brings all the rigor, stress, and excitement as portrayed in the movie and books.
The heros are a hoot to use; especially Gandalf, who seems a bit overpowered. A pity the completed Sauron model cannot be played, and in general, it seems that the forces of Evil have fewer Heros than the forces of Light.
The single player campaign missions are very delightful; you can basically replay the steps of the Fellowship or of the Dark Lord, but of course with your own little additions. The multiplayer maps are wonderful, with maps taken from all the geographical locations in middle earth.
Conclusion: A very enjoyable RTS game, that fully immerses you into the ME universe. My only gripe is that the Command Points threshold is set too low, but you can mod the particular file to change that. However, the low command points number was probably set at that level to prevent gameplay lag; at the Battle of Care Andros, with several hundred troops on screen (and despite have 1 gb of PC-4200 ram) I experienced some lagging effects. Sprint, don't run to get your copy NOW! What are you doing wasting time reading my review? Get it! :P
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To say that Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle-Earth looks amazing would be an understatement; it looks fantastic and unbelievably good! I am highly anticipating its release on November 15th, and based on what the EA team has shown us thus far, it looks like all of their hard work has come to fruition. Based on an upgraded version of the C&C: Generals engine, LOTR:BFME brings you into the Middle Earth universe in glorious 3-D, with the capability to zoom-in onto the battlefield for those intense hand-to-hand melees. Of course, there will be those detractors who suggest that BFME is nothing but Generals ported into Middle Earth; in some ways, that's true. A lot of the great features of Generals are retained in BFME, and then some. The EA team has added unique touches, as well as a greater emphasis on tactics, rather than the massed tank rushes that most RTS players are used to. In addition, there are a multitude of unique features and immersive environments that make BFME really come alive.
First, the maps and general gameplay. Gone is the traditional style of RTS with big menus that take up the lower half of your screen. In its place is a context-driven menu, which takes up far less space, and allows the player to bask in the beauty of the BFME engine. It looks extremely intuitive; by clicking on a building, 6-7 options will form in a circle around your cursor, allowing you to just move the mouse slightly to select an option. Base building appears to consist of 6-7 buildings built on pre-fabbed sites inside a protective wall, with additional buildings being allowed to be built outside of the wall. Each of the buildings is true to the movie, and conceived in enormous detail that really lends to the atmosphere. For instance, the Orc slaughterhouse, Orc pits, Warg ranges, and Gondorian archery range. Zooming into the slaughterhouse, you can see the orc butcher cackle with glee and rub his hands together as he whistles for a cow to come up the ramp. He kills it, and carries the steak to hang on a rack outside. Or in the pits, you can see the head Orc prodding the mud with his rod, bringing up a `baby' Orc/Uruk-Hai that slides down the ramp and gets a sword and trudges out. Or at the Warg range, you see an orc clamber onto a Warg, and walk out of a corral. At the Gondorian archery range, the splendid architecture of the once Numenorians is visible in the smallest bricks. You can actually see Gondorian longbow men practicing inside the courtyard, shooting at targets and such. You can play as Rohan or Gondor or Mordor or Isengard; not sure about the Easterlings though.
Second, the units are true to the movie and fashioned in great detail. Buildings can be upgraded with earned points to achieve veterancy and thus pump out more advanced units. The Gondorian archery range can produce regular longbow men, but as the building is upgraded, it can produce say Faramir's rangers (which are a bit like the American pathfinders in C&C: Generals), and what look like upgraded rangers with stealth ability. The Gondorian barracks can produce regular footsoldiers on level 1, but when upgraded to level 2 and above, can procure the more elite Fountain guards. The forces of evil are generally like the Chinese in Generals; infantry is either really cheap, or free, and orcs are continually coming out of the pits with no extra help from the player. There are of course, hero units as well! Units seen so far include Gandalf, Eomer, Theoden, Faramir, and Aragorn. No word yet on evil heroes.
Third, the EA team has decided to add a bit more of a tactical element than was present in Generals. While a group of Gondorian infantry can easily defeat a horde of orcs, (and when they do win, they break out into cheers, thus giving a +1 to their attack), they run away or quake in their boots at the mere sight of a mountain troll picking up a tree to smash them into the ground. That fear subtracts a -1 from their attack. Even the elite Fountain guards with their pikes are no match for the mountain troll and his ad hoc tree-club. But you can group your men into having the archers stand on the inside, while surrounded by Fountain Guards, and thus easily take down a troll. It also looks like you can fully recreate the sieges at Helms Deep and Minas Tirith, and play on the Fields of Pelennor.
Fourth, one item that is a nice carry-over from Generals is what appears to be Generals points. If playing as Mordor, and you kill 100 Gondor soldiers, your catapaults can fire the heads of those unfortunate men at your enemies for an added attack bonus. Or, you can call in Eagles or Nazgul to pick up hapless infantry and dash them into the ground. Probably the most interesting Generals unit is the Balrog, which looks extremely powerful at the moment. Not only can he stomp around and crush the peons, but he can crush a unit into ashes, shoot fireballs from his mouth, and with his very appearance, burn everything around him to a crisp.
If you're a fan of the movies and RTS games, this is definitely one game that you do NOT want to miss! Place your pre-order today! And no, I'm not a plant, just an overly excited fan with too much time on his hands.
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Before receiving Battle For Middle Earth this Christmas Eve (gotta love that darling girlfriend), I had read quite a few dismal reviews for it. In case you've read the same BS, I'm going to attempt to clear some things up for you so the nay-sayers don't bump you away from a great game. So.... The biggest complaints people have had about BFME are:1. Not enough unit types
2. No strategy
Heh. Wrong and wrong. ---First off: There are plenty of units spread out between the four playable races in Battle For Middle Earth. If people have a problem with exactly how many units are in the game, they should take it up with Tolkien Enterprises and not the game's developers. EA was only allowed to play off of characters that were in the movies. And I'd say they did a damn good job mustering all they could with a limited rights license. // Mordor and Isengard are crawling with different units, but low on heroes. Gondor and Rohan may not be the most well rounded when it comes to troop variations, but let me tell ya: Gondor has Gandalf (his powers are truly awesome to behold in this game ) and then Rohan is chock full of heroes. They have Theoden, Eowyn, Merry, Eomer, Gimli, Aragorn, and Legolas. So it all evens out. I don't care who says what about 'shortage of units'. They're all there. There are plenty of formations and combinations to try when it comes to the troop equation.
The second blundering re re misconception that some reviewers have had, is the whole "Yeah it looks cool, but it's light on strategy" tripe. Dear reader, please listen: This game has every bit as much strategy as Rome: Total War, Age of Mythology, or the beloved Warcraft III. These three aforementioned titles are the games that people keep comparing BFME to when complaining about what they deem to be "lack of strategy." In BFME, you need to use the same kind of strategies that you would use in R:TW, Warcraft, or Age Of etc. You need to strategically choose which troops to attack which sortie with, you need to choose where and when to use magical abilities, you need to balance your base between fortification and upgrades, you need to decide when to launch severe assaults and when to buckle down and build up, you need to put your troops in different formations for different attacks, and you need to decide when and how to expand throughout the map and take various outposts in order to attain more resources etc. I don't know about you but I'm seeing plenty of strategy here. I`ve even heard several geniuses say, "Yeah, well in R:TW you can flank, but in BFME you can't." **Attention** Just because Battle For Middle Earth doesn't have a fancy 'Flank Button,' doesn't mean that you don't use the technique of flanking. God forbid if everything isn't pre-programmed for these people. Its called Move your troops around your enemy with queued mouse clicks, and then hit them from the side or behind. Not exactly rocket science. And, I'm sorry, but what the hell is so strategic about Warcraft 3? You fight using large forces of troops supplemented with magical abilities... gee, that sounds familiar... It's the formula for just about every RTS game that's ever been made. BFME follows this formula too and it's a lot of fun. And BFME is also the first RTS game I've ever seen to successfully employ a fun siege feature. In BFME, you'll find yourself holing up in your base with an opening and closing gate while the enemy tries to scale the walls and knock in the doors with battering rams etc. You need to place defenses on your walls, man it with archers, and choose when to open up and bring the fight to your foes. Now I have to say, on EA's part, they did some damn fine designing there. And most importantly: they made it FUN.
The game's graphics, as I'm sure you've heard, are great. The only thing you need to worry about there is updating your drivers, getting the patch that's coming out in January, and not cranking your settings too high. This game is a resource hog. I'm playing it on a Pentium 4, 3.0ghz cpu with 512mb 2700 ram and a geforce fx5200 card. I have it on 1024 resolution with the detail set to medium. It looks great and it runs great. Even though my computer meets and exceeds the requirements, the frame rate gets demolished in the bigger battles if your settings are too high. So that's something to keep in mind. But even so, on medium setting, there is nothing to complain about. Gorgeous and fun effects. Gee, there's that word fun again.
The sound/music is great too. Top notch. The din of battle is great in this game. Clanging, thudding, explosions, cheering and screaming etc. They really did a great job of capturing that chaotic clamor of the movie battles. And the music is pulled straight from the films as well, so you know it's awesome. Remember in The Two Towers when Gandalf arrives with Eomer at Helm's Deep and they charge down the hill into the waiting sea of Uruks? Well the really beautiful and bittersweet sounding song that's played at that part in the film is called Forth Eorlingas. What's cool, is that in BFME, you'll be charging into battle and that song will come on... you know the long drawn out and eerily beautiful vocals? Yeah, well, that song will sometimes start to play as you charge towards the enemy ranks throughout the game. It is rather chuff and inspiring, if I may say. This game is fun and oddly moving in a way. Especially if you're big into the films. Nicely done.
As for the actual gameplay: You traverse the storyline from the side of good or evil and follow the events of the movies. But the cool thing here is, you get to play ancillary (secondary or extra) battles where you get to build up armies and villages and fight skirmishes. The storyline from the film is played out in full, but interspersed with all sorts of fun additional battles along the way. BFME is a long game. There is at least 20-30 hours of gameplay here with the storyline alone. And after you complete the story modes, you get to go back and fight skirmishes with the AI and also with other LOTR geeks like myself, online.
BFME is a fun ride. You get to relive 3 great movies through some great RTS action/gameplay. Plenty of strategy and plenty of fun. Lots and lots of fun. Once again EA proves to us that it's possible to take a massive movie license and make a great game out of it. Anyways, take my word for it: This game does not disappoint. Order this bad boy and go have yourself a bloody-guts good time in Middle Earth.
Honest reviews on The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-Earth
Beware: should you decide to sit down in front of this one, you may not be seen for a while! It is that easy to get lost in this game. Everything is wonderful with it...well, almost.The graphics are fantastic. Gandalf fights using the same manuvers as he did in the movies. Rocks thrown by the Hobbits arc as they near their targets. Orcs run with a limp. It's amazing. The opening scene of the game is remarkable in the way it copies the opening battle of LOTR:FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING. I read in another review that you can actually see orcs butcher cattle in the Mordor slaughterhouse, though I haven't seen it myself (of course, my computer is outdated by a few years).
The game interface is well done. Controls are point and click. The instruction manual accompanying the game is well written and the game also offers a tutorial.
The campaign mode is the hidden treat. I have not completed the Mordor/evil campaign, but it does allow a look at an alternate ending to the events of LOTR. The 'Good' campaign is a blast. Each character from the movie is featured (well, kind of. Worm-tongue and Bilbo are absent, as is Lord Elrond) and can be utilized. Characters are allowed to gain special abilities as they increase in rank. The game does allow a little too much towards the abilities of Gandalf and Aragorn; Gandalf gains the ability to use 'Word Power' at level 10 (essentially the language of Mordor's effects, as seen in the extended LOTR:FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING) and Aragorn can summon up the army of the undead at will once he reaches level 10 (unlike the movie, where he got one shot at it). There are other liberalizations made with characters abilities, but all are done in the name of game play.
The Battle/skirmish mode is more like a fantasy version of Age of Empires or Cossacks. Start with a base, gather resources and kill all who are not your allies. fun, but gets reptitive. It's not quite the mad-rush from AoE or Age of Kings, but it's on that level. A plus is that the heroes from the campaign modes can be 'purchased' using resources. Gandalf, Sauramon, Aragorn, Gimli...even Gollum and the Nazgul are available.
Spells/powers are gained in both the skirmish and campaign modes through victory in combat. Each respective discipline (good or evil) has their own set of powers/spells that can be obtained this way, starting with basic abilities and working up to interventions by allies (Rohan, Elves, Eagles, Ents, and the Army of the Undead for the 'good' guys; basically the Balrog is your only ally for the forces of Evil and he is VEEEEERRRRRRYYY expensive, though worth it). One bummer is that pwers must be purchased in sequence. You can't just save up your points and get a Balrog without first getting the lesser powers (same with the good team. You can't just get the Army of the undead without jumping through the other hoops first).
I have read that some have been unable to run this program on their computers. I'm using a circa 2001 Compaq Pressario with a Pentium4 1.5 gig, 384 MB SyncDram, and an ATI Radeon 9600 video card and have had no problems to date (although it takes a few minutes for my computer to 'dump' this game before I can check e-mail or use the internet after playing).
The price is finally coming down on it, so save your gas money: stay home and play this instead!
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For the record, I do own this game. I purchased it this afternoon, the first day it was available in stores. Just to let you know that I'm not copying a publisher's review from EA's Web site like some people seem to be doing....Anyways, you're here to read a review of the game, so here is mine. The Battle for Middle Earth seems to be the first successful project to bring Command & Conquer/Age of Empires-esque style gameplay to the Realm of Tolkien. Personally I wasn't very impressed with War of the Ring. It seemed to have been put together in a relatively short period of time and I don't believe it lived up to many people's expectations. However, BFME promises to be the LoTR RTS game that we all expected it to be.
Although the game's appearance at first glance calms the devout RTS player, the game does introduce new (haven't yet decided whether they're better or not) gameplay functions and strategies. The first and most glaring difference is the fact that there are no builders. Instead, there are a small number of construction sides located around your central citadel upon which you may construct your buildings. This can become annoying because of the limited space, and somewhat forces the player into either an economic or militaristic mode very quickly. I was somewhat relieved when I discovered that you can capture new citadel points around which you can build another castle with yet more building plots, but you still have much less freedom than you're probably used to.
I have also failed to run across or build the massive armies that the game description boasts of. Because of the limited building plots, it is difficult to gather enough resources while training a decent-sized army. I believe the campaign battles are going to be the biggest battlefields you will find, because the armies have been pre-assembled, and there is no need to attempt to balance military and economy.
Both of these characteristics seem to be contributors to EA's attempt at altering the face of RTS games. Indeed, the game's design does make it difficult to hoard, mass, and attack, like we're all used to by now, and instead puts more emphasis on strategy, careful unit/structure production, and defense.
Many people are probably looking at this game mostly for the single-player campaigns which are based off of the movies. My impression of the campaigns was not as favorable as I had expected. The initial feeling of excitement when seeing digital Middle Earth for the first time quickly wears off after breezing through the first few scenarios. Each of the heroes you control has at least one special power, and it is very difficult to make use of them when you have 9 in the same room. Nevertheless, the heroes (especially in the Fellowship) are so strong that it really doesn't make a difference, you still slaughter the enemy. Even the Moria Balrog doesn't seem to be able to kill Gandalf. Also, you are given very little freedom to explore in places like Moria. You are given a set path to follow and the camera only follows that path, which I found quite disappointing. It felt like EA tried to turn it into a FPS leading me around like they did.
My last point of contention is the fact that the unit graphics seem rough and unfinished compared to the environment. All the trees, water, grass, etc, is wonderfully rendered and animated, but the units still look like unrendered polygons. It's not a big deal, but I would have expected them to spend a little more time with the units.
Pros:
*A great RTS-style LoTR game, what more can you ask for?
*Environment graphics really immerse you in Middle Earth
*Combines the core RTS gametype of C&C/AOE with the heroes, unit levels, and spells/powers of Warcraft III
Cons:
*Strategy can be difficult for experienced RTS players to figure out
*There aren't that many different units
*No Elven civilization
Overall, great game, I am impressed with what EA was able to turn out and believe it will meet or exceed most people's expectations.
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