Product Description

One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them... The Return of the King video game once again puts the fate of Middle-earth in the hands of the gamer. Mirroring the final instalment of the blockbuster movie trilogy, the game charges players with destroying the One Ring by casting it into Mount Doom and thus freeing Middle-earth from the clutches of the Dark Lord Sauron.

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King allows players to journey through multiple gameplay paths, taking control of the motion picture trilogy's heroes. Defend the walls of Minas Tirith as Gandalf, raise the Army of the Dead as Aragorn, Legolas or Gimli and, with Frodo and Sam, deliver the ring to the fiery depths of Mount Doom.

Based on environments from the upcoming movie, The Return of the King has third-person gameplay that includes immersive action and adventure elements set in rich, interactive levels. An all-new multiplayer co-op mode will let players form their own Fellowship before embarking on their journey through Middle-earth.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #12257 in Computer & Video Games
• Brand: Electronic Arts
• Released on: 2003-11-14
• Rating: To Be Announced
• Platform: GameCube

Amazon.co.uk Review
Bringing familiar faces and locations from the hit film, EA's tie-in game The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King could be easily written off at first glance as a simple cash-in. It's therefore a very pleasant surprise to find such an addictive and high quality game nestling at the heart of it all.

The developers have, as with the enjoyable Two Towers tie-in, opted for a beat-'em-up in the style of old classics such as Golden Axe. It proves to be a wise choice. Seamlessly incorporating some of the finest cinematic moments from the film, the game is a frenetic, rip-roaring and hugely entertaining affair. And surprisingly, it's a well-thought-through and highly challenging one too. The gameplay rewards the player willing to try things other than the same old moves, and through a series of combos and upgrades, it constantly pushes you onward. It's no one-weekend wonder either, with a healthy long-term challenge packed in.

Downers? A couple of levels don't quite reach the standards set by the game's best, and the toughness of the challenge may also deter more casual gamers. They'd be really missing out though, for not only is Return of the King one of the best movie tie-ins of recent times--certainly eclipsing the aforementioned Two Towers title--it's a tremendously enjoyable game in its own right. It's just a shame now that EA have run out of films and books, as we'd happily thirst for another instalment 12 months down the line. Best make the most of this one, then... --Simon Brew

NGC Magazine
"A slasher elevated to something near true greatness by cinematic looks and simple but deep play mechanics. 86%."

Customer Reviews

Orc slashing fun with Aragorn
The Return of the King is basically the follow up to the Two Towers computer game and takes up pretty much where the other left of, at Helms Deep

In fact this is the first level in which you play as a new character Gandalf, as it is a tutorial level you can't die and will break you into the game before the real action begins. You have the choice of 3 different paths, the path of the wizard- Gandalf, the path of the King- Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli, and the path of the Hobbits- Frodo and Sam. This adds a new twist to it as before in Two Towers you could choose between Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli but now you can have wizards and hobbits to play as.

The gameplay is "kill anything that moves and is not an allie", which means Orc's, Uruk-Ai, Trolls and even the Nazgul are included. However there is sometimes so many enemies that you are quickly overwhemled and when surrounded by 10 Uruk-Ai you know you are going to die. That was the biggest problem with the game as it is stupidly diffcult, after getting up from being hit only to watch your character get knocked straight back down over and over again get's very frustrating and can ruin the game.

However you then get to levels like Minas-Tirith, Cirith-Ungol and Pelenor Fields which are fantastic levels to play through. After you complete the game you can play any level as any character including the 3 unlockable one's, which means you can take Frodo to Paths of the Dead or Gimli to Osgiliath. This all goes to complement the level up system as each character levels up when they recieve experience points and can buy new abilitys and combos to make the game more enjoyable. To make things better a co-op mode has been put in which is fantastic and a joy to play.

Return of the King is a great game which is let down by an evil difficulty and some dodgy camera angles, but the co-op and level up system will keep you coming back for more.

LOTR hard but thrilling
I first played this game on a completed multiplayer on gamecube I could therefore play as level 10 aragorn, attepting to kill 200 orcs. Once you've got the hang you'll be hooked. While the single player is fun but tough there is a dificulty setting which decreses the hard element. If you're stuck on a level and just play continually for 1 hour you'll complete it but do you really want to waste all that time?? The path of sam is quite easy while gandalf and the felowship are harder. You can train your characters in 2p to make it easier but only for the fellowship.

On the whole this game is good but hard at the same time. It's a game to try before you buy definatley but after you complete it the replay amount is huge especially once you unlock the bonus levels!!

blah
well,well. another game squeezed out of a book/film. However the difference with this one is that it is actually really good!
Gameplay and graphics are amazing, levels are detailed, special interviews can be unlocked with actors once you have finished parts of the game, film footage from two towers and return of the king, special voice overs from the actual actors throughout the game and many many more!!!
The really good thing about this game is that there are 3 strands in the game-gandalf/Aragorn,gimili,legolas(you can go any character)/frodo,sam(however just sam at the start of the game). these three strands meet up at the end.......at mount DOOM!!! Ha HaHa!
Also once you have completed the game, you can unlock all the other characters and play the levels with them. once you have done that there are about 6 secret characters to unlock, however i have not got that far yet, so idont know who they are, maybe it will be Peter Jackson dressed as an orc, i really dont know.
the other great thing about this game, is the fighting. there are missions were it is just orc mayhem. one example is when legolas, gimili and Aragorn are fighting their way through the gate at Gondor, and at the battle of the Pelennor fields-the orcs just keep on coming, and you just keep on smashing.
this is a really good game by EA. they really have done well this time. it will excite anyone who has read the books, or even seen the film. also, if you have not read it or seen it, you should still get it, i guarantee you will want to read the books and see the film once you have completed the game.
WAYHEY!!!