The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

The Good
The gameplay has been improved a lot from The Two Towers, there are more characters and they have lots of different skills each other. The levels are cool, they have lots of interaction and feel more alive, you can use objects to kill enemies with timing, open doors with switches and some more things.

The RPG elements are very good too, not very complex but good, the abilities you get are more useful than in The Two Towers game, there are more strength and vitality upgrades and some good new killing moves.

Also, the three different routes that merge into the final levels are a nice addition, you can play with Gandalf, Aragorn and his two companions (Legolas and Gimli) and the hobbits Frodo and Sam, you can progress each route in the order you want, and when you have reached the end of the three you will be able to play the final levels, where the fellowship gets together again.

The music it's cool, the same from the film, and it's very well implemented in the different moments of the game.

Also there are some nice unlockable extras and secret characters, which is good.

The Bad
I would have liked a more extended ending, the one in the game left me a bit empty, I suppose that's because the game was released before the film and they didn't want to spoil it very much.

The Bottom Line
I was surprised when I saw how good this game was, I normally dislike everything with the EA level on it. A great mixture of beat'em up and RPG, an excellent end to the epic trilogy.

The Good
The graphics are simply amazing and they smoothly transition the real time rendered FMVs to clips from the movie that isn't out yet! The gameplay is simple yet engaging and the leveling system is not overly complex. You just kill some enemies in a level and then use the experience to purchase new moves and spells. The Cooperative multi-player is extremely fun as none of the games graphics fade since the game only has to render one new person. The music in this game is from the movies and always fits the theme. There are no overly difficult combos like in most other fighting games. The locations from the movie/book are faithfully recreated in the game and you'll feel as if your battling through a spider filled maze or a massive fortress.

The Bad
In a couple levels the use of the catapult on buildings is there. However when you hit some of the towers. They fall as if they were made of Styrofoam. In cooperative there are no checkpoints and not enough lives to share. So if one of the players dies twice or each dies once. Your back at the start of the level. There are many times that I fought my way through hundreds of orcs only to die and be forced to do it over. Only because of my brothers mistakes.

The Bottom Line
Even with it's few shortcomings this game is worth every cent I payed for it. It's a buy for fans of the movies/books and also for people who just want a good hack and slash RPG with few puzzles. This game is nearly perfect even though fantasy games were never my cup of tea this one had me playing the Xbox whenever I got a moment to do so! Also this is one of the few games with good cooperative play.

The Good
All a game that was based on a great film and a classic fiction story inspired for years. All the enemies and levels for all the fights make sword-fighting and archery magnificent. All the quotes like the ones featured in the movie, are amazing to hear. Although its off key from the movie a bit its great to see it in a new point of view, and since the game features a lot of enemies to fight in every level and featuring enough time, you can upgrade your characters quicker than in The Two Towers video game.

The Bad
Nothing. It was a great game.

The Bottom Line
I think that most people think the game might be bad for being made before the movie, but if they like the fantasy or medieval setting they will love this one.