"Look at my enormous head and hands, Master Frodo!"
Tolkien fans upset: initial trailer well under four hours long
Even though the final Lord of the Rings film was well over five years ago, the movie trilogy obviously sparked a furious lusting for Middle Earth-related games, something EA did their best to capitalise on with mixed results. Now the licence is back with studio Warner Bros., who just sent over the latest update on their new game Lord of the Rings: Aragorn's Quest.
Here's what their press release had to say for itself:
In The Lord of the Rings: Aragorn's Quest, Middle-earth comes to the Wii for the first time ever, delivering action-packed gameplay by utilizing the Wii Remote™ and Nunchuk™. Become the legendary Aragorn and embark upon a quest reliving the hero’s most valiant battles from The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Wielding a sword, shield, bow and spear, players will battle enemies and journey through a colorful and fresh rendition of Middle-earth where they can switch between spear and sword on horseback, taking down evil foes in a truly action-packed gameplay experience. Exclusively for the Wii, two-player co-op gameplay featuring Gandalf allows kids, families and friends to work together in the heart of the action.
Hey, anything that lets kids, families and friends slash their way through armies of orcs and ogres is good in our book. Don't forget as well that the game is scheduled for a release on DS as well, but without the multiplayer aspects and Remote-swinging action. Be sure to check out the brand new trailer of the Wii version below.
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User Comments
1. JayArr
15 Dec 2009, 17:23 GMT
First I've seen or heard of this.....looks promising.
2. derk711
15 Dec 2009, 17:29 GMT
not to bad.... kind of a fable like.
3. Hardy83
15 Dec 2009, 17:31 GMT
That actually looks pretty damn good. lol Sure the art style could be labeled at kiddie, but I think it looks really good.
4. Machu
15 Dec 2009, 17:35 GMT
I haven't given up on this just yet, but oh how I wish they had treated my beautiful books to a game they deserve.
I can only hope that the obligatory Hobbit movie tie-in, will be aimed at a wider audience, and not just the keedz.
@JR: ching!
5. cyrus_zuo
15 Dec 2009, 17:41 GMT
Played this at E3 and it was absolutely horrible. Mindless, tedious battles are bad, but when combined with the co-op system they had was horrible. No-split screen, or even same screen like the LEGO games, instead, one player playing with total screen focus, and the other player just trying to stay visible on the screen so they could play. Think Mario Galaxy sort of help, but complicated by player 2 having an actual character who player one is struggling to get 'on-camera' while fighting.
I found it a horrible experience, but was happy to hear of the game's delay (it was supposed to be out for Christmas originally). I hold out hope that these issues have been attacked so that the game will be made enjoyable.
6. 110percentful
15 Dec 2009, 17:55 GMT
I played the original hobbit on Xbox, and it was quite boring. Hopefully this won't be too bad.
7. Trevor_Fox
15 Dec 2009, 18:11 GMT
Nice. =D
8. bro2dragons
15 Dec 2009, 18:13 GMT
personally, i'm not quite sure what to make of this. seems a pretty generic action game, and i, like 110, am reminded of the old Hobbit game... which, as much as i love the franchise.... was pretty bad. i do hope i'm wrong, though.
oh, and since when does Aragorn use a shield or a spear???
9. Objection_Blaster
15 Dec 2009, 18:38 GMT
Looks alright. I'll stick to waiting for The Hobbit (the film.)
10. LEGEND MARIOID
15 Dec 2009, 19:26 GMT
I'm interested. Bit too cell shaped and PS2ish, but as long as the gameplay holds up, who the frack cares?! The other previews I've read sound promising. Please be good. Radared (ie. I need a revw)
11. Rensch
15 Dec 2009, 19:35 GMT
I wonder how much difference in gameplay there's gonna be when compared to the two games based directly upon the films.
Looks fun though, especially for a Lord of the Rings fan like me.
12. 110percentful
15 Dec 2009, 19:53 GMT
@bro2dragons I love the franchise too, which is why I sort of don't like when they ruin it with cheesy video games. And since when does Frodo have such a big sword, or a shield?
13. pixelman
15 Dec 2009, 20:32 GMT
Looks kind of Twilight Princess-like. I'm a huge LOTR fan, so I'm definitely watching this closely. Hopefully it'll deliver.
14. bro2dragons
15 Dec 2009, 20:37 GMT
@pixel: Can we expect some new Middle-Earth themed pixel art to celebrate?
15. Popyman
15 Dec 2009, 20:51 GMT
If it's as good as Return of The King, I'll buy it. That game was awesome!
16. Odnetnin
15 Dec 2009, 21:35 GMT
It sure has a lot of potential.
17. SevenForce
15 Dec 2009, 22:25 GMT
Its being made by Headstrong Games the same dev who did the awesome House of The Dead Overkill so who knows with these guys it might turn out to be really good.
18. Koto
15 Dec 2009, 23:10 GMT
will it use Wii Motion Plus?if not then that would be just plain stupid, i'll just wait for Zelda Wii
19. Nintendo-Naut
15 Dec 2009, 23:12 GMT
Looks kind of like The Hobbit. I own the PC version and love it.
20. vherub
15 Dec 2009, 23:13 GMT
the co-op could make this solid
21. warioswoods
15 Dec 2009, 23:54 GMT
It can't be worse than the pure hell of sitting through two of those dang movies; thankfully I got my ladyfriend to go with one of her friends to the final one, narrowly escaping a third torture session.
EDIT - I love Star Trek, so I'm not making fun of LOTR fans. Much
22. Ravage
16 Dec 2009, 00:01 GMT
A few scenes in that trailer looked more like Lego Aragorn's Quest
23. y2josh
16 Dec 2009, 09:59 GMT
Missed the best one warioswoods
OnTopic The game looks like it has potential.
24. JimLad
16 Dec 2009, 10:56 GMT
The words 'co-op' caught my attention, we'll see how good the 2 player is in the review.
Visuals look unusually competent, must be the toon-ish look and the fact that it's not ported down, nice.
25. SanderEvers
16 Dec 2009, 11:06 GMT
It looks a bit like a Zelda game
26. LEGEND MARIOID
16 Dec 2009, 12:58 GMT
Gandalf is the other character in co-op I read somewhere.
I hope it uses wiimotionplus 2!
27. Man with a hat
16 Dec 2009, 13:07 GMT
at the best this could be as good as the return of the king (game), tough i do fear this will be a bad game
28. ATRUEZELDAFAN
16 Dec 2009, 19:34 GMT
I would rather play as Gandalf. Anyway, the game looks kinda good. But being how its aimed towared younger audiences its probably very easy.
29. WAM2
17 Dec 2009, 02:11 GMT
This DOES look like the Hobbit game. Is this the same company?