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I have just finished my first play through of this in solo mode and it's a pretty solid game. It's a linear hack 'n' slash that is done pretty well. The mechanics are simple enough, no big combo buttons to hit. I played as the Ranger and he ended up pretty well balanced as we killed our way through Aganduar's minions.
The Graphics are pretty darn good and the atmospheric music works well.
Contrary to many reports, you do need to think a bit in combat as just charging in will have you down and out pretty quick.
There is plenty of loot to sell and swap around your team and it's easy to manage that part.
For those of you who are looking for RPG elements, then this really doesn't contain them, the plot is linear and the interaction with the NPC's either furthers this plot or provides background info on LoTR, but does not allow you to change the storyline.
Neither is this a 'free world' roam, you go in a line as guided by the game.
There has been a lot of concern about the AI not levelling the other characters. It actually does so automatically, neither it, nor you need to apply the points they gain unless you wish to switch to that character, I found my companions quite smart and capable of looking after themselves and me. The AI is also smart enough to gather it's own loot for these characters and equips the best equipment for them, so if you can't remember what they have and give them an inferior 'gift' the AI won't equip it :-)
Overall, I enjoyed my 14 hours in Middle Earth (familiar characters and the law made it quite plausible).
This is not and never was intended to be a 'Skyrim', but it is, none the less fun.
Once you 'beat' the game, you can play through again with the same character and continue levelling on the next difficulty or select a new character and start again, or even select a new character and start again with all their equipment they had as AI in the first play through.
If you like a simple game, that passes the time, come wage 'War in the North'.
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Hello and thanks for checking out my review of this game by Snowblind Studios.. This game has people split down the middle. Is it worth a play through if you are on the fence about this game? Maybe this will help a bit. Think Baldurs gate (with bigger enemies of course) mixed with some dynasty warriors, then throw in a little horde mode (ala GOW) for the challenge missions (which you try to last through multiple waves of enemies including boss characters.The Lord of the Rings : War in the North is set as a companion piece beside the Lord of the Rings trilogy. It overlaps the plot of the movies at many points and allows you to mingle with most of the main characters from the movies and books. This is an UNTOLD story within the LOTR universe and as such should have a special attraction to those who are big fans of the original story. You will choose between 3 playable characters, a dwarf, a magician elf, or a Ranger (archer). Each character has their own skill tree associated with building up special skills and or improving base ones. All three of your characters are participating in the loot gathering and leveling process. You can ONLY play with one of them at any given time and are NOT allowed to switch between them throughout the levels. Therefore you will have to wait until the end of each level to assign points and to decide which character to use. This can be a bad mix as you will have to take EACH CHARACTER INDIVIDUALLY to the shops to sell, and buy new items. The same poor design applys to the skill tree. You would have thought the developers would have allowed for an easier way to manage the party. It is important that you continue to develop these secondary characters even if you focus on one (as I did with the Ranger). The reason is that you will need the powers of the other characters beefed up for specific boss fights. So this is A MAJOR deduction for me. You will be wizzing along with the story and then realize that it's time to take care of the party which slows the pacing down. But I did like the skill trees as well as the loot options found throughout the towns you visit.
I thought the character development was important as this may be a game saver to those who care (like i do) but for those who don't care about the story.. and are looking for the next technological marvel... Pass on this game like the black plague. It is buggy and you will likely get ticked off at your party members as they are not the best teammates in terms of strategy or efficiency you will scream for them to get out of your way at least 10 times). But the game is not apologetic about what it is or what it attempts to do. If it was released 5 years ago it would be considered a top tier title but is shadowed by some pretty impressive competition this holiday. And despite its rather poor technology it is a fun and satisfying dungeon crawler. But it is far from perfect. I liked the damage system which allows you to see the combos you are pulling off and rewards you for stringing more of them together. I also felt that the combat was simple AND YET SATISFYING. I disagree with the reviews on acuracy of hits. It is accurate enough for this type of game.
Graphics in the game are good.. NOt great. But you will enjoy the larger Boss battles as well as some of the extremely satisfying environments. There will be some points you will be impressed and others you will feel like a different development team was subbing in at some point. But the title is one of VERY FEW LICENSED LOTR GAMES THAT SUCCEEDS IN MAKING THE GAME FUN AND WORTHWHILE. I am 10 hours in already and have opened up several towns as well as some challenges that change up the flavor. I found myself playing these "challenges" several times and was having fun. It reminded me of some of the Borderlands DLC maxies
*****It is a violent game and the action can offer decapitations as well as arms and legs being serated.. I would not allow a child to play the game if you want to avoid this.. BUT IF YOU CHANGE OPTIONS SETTINGS YOU CAN TURN OFF THE GORE and there are little other concerns from a language/conceptual angle *****
So to summarize... I am not verified because I rented it.. And am keeping it out for an exptended time. I feel it is worthy of a purchase but not at it's current price. Maybe on the first couple of price drops snag it or do as I have and try it out first. I think it's dated feel hurts it as a top tier title worthy of release date spending. The game is worth a playthrough for ANYONE looking for a good CO OP dungeon crawler. It does the license justice and stays true to the LOTR mythos. It is a blast to combo up 5 or 6 enemies (think batman arkham) and then use a quick finishing move to finish off an orc. AS A CO OP GAME THIS GAME IS FANTASTIC TO PLAY WITH FRIENDS!!!!! That should be enough for some to try it out as the co op is done very well indeed. I would bump up the fun factor a ton when playing with buddies.
best LOTR property I can remember on a CONSOLE.. Enjoy!
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This is a pretty basic game, it's a hack and slash RPG. It's fun, challenging and the loot keeps things pretty interesting. I bought this specifically for the co-op option, there is a good chance I won't be playing this at all on single layer (not to say that wouldn't be fun). My wife and I had a blast with Baulder's Gate on the PS2 and we've never really been able to find anything that was close enough to that game since then (well, SHE hasn't).The fighting is quick and fluid, the conversations with the villagers are not tedious. Getting in and out of the leveling menus is easy and.from what I can tell the re-playability on this will be decent because the skill tree looks like it can't be filled in one game. The game is not an open world style, but there are side quests that you can pick up in the towns you visit and you'll find these items along your path.
The game is challenging as well, despite my protests we are playing this first round on easy and I've still died a few times. But still, I'm not exactly sweating the battles with the big guys either.
If I were rating this for a single player I'd probably put it at 4 stars, still a great game but I'd want a little more depth in a single player campaign.
Oddly enough the cut scenes remind me of last gen graphics but the game play graphics are beautiful. One of the first times I've seen something like that happen.
I'm actually thinking about getting this game as a gift for someone for Christmas so we can play the three player co-op.
Honest reviews on Lord of the Rings: War in the North - Xbox 360
First off i do not for the life of me know what the reviewers of this game were playin when they reviewed this game. This is some of the most fun me and my brother have had in a while. The review complains of dying to much, ok that is true if you just charge in and start swingin a la Dynasty Warrior but as for my game i used the ranger, my brother used the Mage and the AI the warrior and the (AI does a pretty good job i might add). Anyway the dwarf would tank while i hung back in the corner and sniped while the mage split time between throughin a healing shield on the dwarf and backing away to use spells. It promoted an tactical battle that wasn't just a free for all brawl. Also the reviews complain of your abilities taking to much mana, well as for me that also promoted a tactical edge because you can't just run into a battle spam'n special moves. You must pick when and where to throw out an ability and our mage had a ton of will enhancing runes on the equipment so my brothers mage had an healthy mana pool. It just seems the more i play the more baseless the reviews i have read are. I'm having a hell of a time and if anybody has any friends or family that likes these sort of games, it is some of the best co-op i have played since baldurs gate: dark alliance for ps2. This is why i base my opionion on my experience and not critics. You are doing yourself an injustice if you do not give this game a shot.Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Lord of the Rings: War in the North - Xbox 360
As a Lord of the Rings fan, I pretty much assumed that most games would be movie spin off rubbish or past it's prime MMO games. So, I was a little hesitant about picking up LOTR: War in the North. After spending a solid night playing the game, the following are my initial impressions on the game.For starters, the game is mature in nature, which is awesome. You hack and slash enemies arms off their bodies and blood is spilling everywhere. You can turn this off, but in a universe that this rarely occurs in, I love it. This isn't a movie rehash where everything is toned down to get a certain rating, you'll see blood in your travels, and that's a good thing in a world that is certainly violent by design.
At the onset of the game, you'll be tasked with picking one of three characters. A human Ranger, Elf caster, and a dwarf axe wielder. Each class is similar in that they can do melee and range but they all have their own specialties. I chose to go with the ranger. While the game gives you a default look for your character, you can change it early in the game when you are in Bree. I really liked this addition to the game since you can make the character your own. My ranger has jet black hair and a square jaw. Kind of reminds me Madmartigan from Willow (props if you remember that classic movie.)
The gameplay in War in the North is typical hack and slash. On medium difficulty, enemies take a good deal to bring down early in the game but after each level you will be putting points into stats that will help you bring down enemies faster (or to complement whatever play style you have. The gameplay is indeed fun but by the end of the night I was getting a little tired of it. There wasn't much in the way of variety to change things up. But, I'm still very early in the game and this shouldn't be a huge criticism against it since the world is still being fleshed out and the characters introduced.
If you are a Lord of the Rings fan, you'll really enjoy this game. Being able to play as someone besides the main characters from the books/movies is a welcome way to enjoy the universe and you'll see things happening in the world from a different perspective. New enemies I've never heard of pop up and all are involved in the story we all know and love in same way. If you aren't too hot on the LOTR series though, your mileage may vary with this game. Hack and slash fans will enjoy it but there are certainly better games out there to play. Being a fan of LOTR gives the game the extra "oomph" needed to push the player along in the world.
So, final though Lord of the Rings: War in the North really good game that can get tiring if you aren't a LOTR fan. Hack and Slash fans will enjoy the game, but their mileage will vary depending on interest in this beloved series.
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