The Hobbit

LEAD THE QUEST THAT STARTED IT ALL

Long ago, the Lonely Mountain trembled as the Dragon Smaug destroyed the Dwarf-kingdom in fire and rage. When the Dwarves set out to reclaim their stolen treasure hoard, I, Gandalf the wizard, sent with them the most unlikely of heroes: Bilbo Baggins of the Shire. But even I could not forsee how this choice would rule the fate of Middle-earth.

EXPLORE MIDDLE-EARTH

Battle and adventure through Tolkien's breathtaking world.

WIELD THE POWER OF THE RING

Use the Ring to become invisible and sneak past enemies

ENCOUNTER LEGENDARY CHARACTERS

Meet legendary characters including Gandalf and Smaug

ENGAGE IN HAIR-RAISING COMBAT

Combine attacks using weapons like the legendary sword, Sting

BATTLE HORDES OF ENEMIES

Face legions of enemies from menacing Orcs to Smaug the Dragon

SOLVE MIND-BENDING PUZZLES

Gain skills and weapons to help solve troublesome puzzles

Source:

Back of Case - PlayStation 2/XBox

The game:

The prelude to The Lord of the Rings’

Explore the mystical world of Middle-earth where you’ll need to jump gaping chasms, climb treacherous mountains, solve mind-bending puzzles and battle hordes of enemies just to survive. Meet enchanting Elves, battle-ready Dwarves, a powerful Wizard, massive Trolls, bloodthirsty goblins, and more as you traverse from the peaceful lands of the Shire to the harrowing forests of Mirkwood. And that’s just the beginning.

**Official game based on J.R.R. Tolkien's epic story!

Take part in the historic Battle of the Five Armies! Meet legendary characters: Gandalf, Thorin the Dragon Smaug, Elrond and Gollum!

Experience massive levels in such recognisable areas as Rivendell, Mirkwood, Laketown and the Lonely Mountain!

Over 30 different enemies stand in your way on your epic quest.

A true adventure game, combining the best elements of Action, Stealth, Role-playing, and Puzzle-solving!

Conquer the strategic game of Stonelords, collect and trade all the Stonelords or challenge your friends or characters in the game to Stonelords matches.**

Source:

Vivendi Universal Games UK website - Windows

Summary

Since the advent of Peter Jackson's mega-budget Lord of the Rings movies, Middle-earth has become set in many people's minds as a wonderfully dark, atmospheric environment, populated by shadowy forces such as Saruman's distinctly terrifying Uruk-Hai and Orc armies. The Hobbit treads a rather lighter path for the adventures of Shireling Baggins, presenting Tolkien's world in a vibrant, colourful setting, with cute character art and perky music. But don't let all this talk of kiddy-friendly graphics discourage you from taking a look at Vivendi Universal Games' interpretation of the classic text. The Hobbit may differ in both look and feel to the licensed EA titles, but you'll still feel as though you're experiencing Tolkien's mythical world, with familiar areas from the book including Rivendell, Mirkwell and Laketown amongst the environments encompassed in the journey.

Details

Embarking on the legendary quest armed initially with a stick and sack of stones, you'll fend off foes in a platform-action-style adventure which sees Bilbo go from timid Shireling to hobbit hero. As in the epic text, the tale begins with a group of nine dwarves recruiting the home-loving hobbit as a master thief for their mission to recover stolen ancestral gold from under the fiery snout of Smaug the dragon. The group head for the Lonely Mountain, stopping along the way to fight it out with a variety of Middle-earth's less-than-friendly inhabitants, such as giant spiders, murderous goblins and bloodthirsty trolls.

After completing a number of quests, you'll aquire additional weaponry with which to dispense the slavering hordes with greater ease. Amongst the upgrades on offer are a sword and, later in the game, the one true ring. Yup, you can get your sweaty mitts on THE Ring, and run around invisible for short bursts. Very handy for getting out of some sticky situations.... In addition to the main action, there's also an ingenious minigame that'll require Bilbo to call upon all his skills as a master burglar. Unpick locks within a set time to open the minigame up to multiplayer possibilities, then challenge friends to matches.

Features

• Encounter familiar characters and creatures from the book, such as Gandalf, Gollum and Smaug

• Explore Tolkien's Middle-earth, venture through Mirkwood and into the Lonely Mountains

• Play the unique time-based lock-picking minigame

• Take on more than 30 different enemies, including bloodthristy goblins and trolls

Source:

uk.playstation.com

Play as Bilbo Baggins as he embarks on the quest that made him a legend among his fellow Hobbits.

Follow the timeless story as you travel from the peaceful land of Hobbiton to Lonely Mountain, home of Smaug the dragon. Along the way you will learn the power of The One Ring while accompanying Gandalf the wizard and a band of dwarves on an epic quest.

Features

• Characters and settings licensed by Tolkien Enterprises
• Bright, cel-shaded graphics
• Excellent voice acting and a fully orchestrated soundtrack

The characters and settings bear little resemblance to the The Lord of the Rings movies that are directed by Peter Jackson. You will encounter menacing Orcs and traverse richly detailed environments, but the visual style is much more lighthearted than that found in the films. The cel-shaded art endows enemies and friendlies alike with exaggerated features. The clumsy Orcs shamble round with huge feet; Gandalf's long face is both wise and kindly and Bilbo looks even tinier than the dwarves.

When the game begins, you are recruited by the dwarven crew to be a burglar. You can explore stealthily and even disappear for brief periods by using the power of The One Ring. Bilbo can also attack enemies using a sword, staff and other weapons. As you progress, you will be rewarded with Silver Pennies and Courage Points, which increase Bilbo's health capacity, Antidotes and Health Potions. Vigor Water makes you invincible for a short time. A Quest Log makes it easy to keep track of multiple goals.

Lively animations capture Bilbo's sunny disposition, but the environments he explores are not always as idyllic as Hobbiton. Gloomy caverns and ominous mountains are shadowy and threatening. Details like Bilbo shivering on cold peaks add atmosphere.

Pre-rendered cinematics deliver dramatic story elements as Orcs and humans clash in large-scale battles and dragons torch villages. Narrated storybook sequences add to the literary feel of the game.

Bottom Line

A light-hearted take on Tolkien's classic story, The Hobbit will appeal to young and young-at-heart adventurers.

Source:

www.nintendo.com – GameCube

VIVENDI UNIVERSAL GAMES SHIPS THE HOBBIT’ VIDEO GAME BASED ON J.R.R. TOLKIEN'S LITERARY MASTERPIECE

In the classic prelude to The Lord of the Rings’ trilogy, gamers lead valiant hero Bilbo Baggins on a remarkable journey

LOS ANGELES, CA (November 11, 2003) – The Hobbit’ video game, based on J.R.R. Tolkien's literary masterpiece -- the classic prequel to The Lord of The Rings’ series which has been translated into 26 languages and has sold over 75 million copies worldwide -- ships today, announced Vivendi Universal Games (VU Games). Featuring stunning graphics, The Hobbit’ showcases deep action/combat systems combined with the best elements of stealth, role-playing and puzzle solving. Players will lead the brave Bilbo Baggins on an epic journey throughout the mythical world of Middle-earth’ to ultimately confront Smaug the Dragon. The Hobbit’ is available on PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system, the Xbox® video game system from Microsoft and Nintendo GameCube’ (developed by Inevitable Entertainment); Game Boy® Advance video game system (developed by Saffire) and PC (developed by Amaze Entertainment).

"Vivendi Universal Games is thrilled to release this third-person action-adventure game that is the only video game based on the best-selling book from the number one fantasy series of all time," said Luc Vanhal, President & COO, North America, Vivendi Universal Games.

In The Hobbit’, which brings to life the immortal tale of J.R.R. Tolkien's prelude to The Lord of the Rings’, players explore the magical world of Middle-earth’, where they will meet enchanting Elves, battle-ready Dwarves, the powerful wizard Gandalf, massive Trolls, bloodthirsty Goblins, the evil Gollum and more, as they traverse from the peaceful lands of the Shire to the harrowing forests of Mirkwood and beyond, ultimately challenging Smaug the Dragon.

Product Features:

• Jump, ledge grab, shimmy, climb ropes and ladders, and journey through expansive 3D action-packed environments in the magnificent world of Middle-earth
• Play in such recognizable locations as Mirkwood, the Shire and the Lonely Mountain
• Battle hordes of Orcs, Goblins, Wargs and more in the fantastic quest to retake the Lonely Mountain
• Use the power of the Ring to become invisible and sneak past enemies
• Engage in perilous combat using weapons like Bilbo's legendary sword, Sting
• Confront Smaug the Dragon in the depths of the Lonely Mountain and take on legions of enemies in the epic Battle of the Five Armies

In an early preview of The Hobbit’, Play Magazine said: "On a game play scale, The Hobbit’ ranks among the best, mixing adventure and platforming as well as it's ever been done." And Nintendo Power declared that The Hobbit’ "might prove to be one of the wonders of 2003."

Rated E for Everyone, The Hobbit’ is currently available on the Nintendo GameCube, PlayStation 2 and Xbox for a suggested retail price of $49.99; on the Game Boy Advance and PC for a suggested retail price of $29.99. For sales and ordering information, customers can visit www.vugames.com.

About Nintendo

As the worldwide leader and innovator in the creation of interactive entertainment, Nintendo Co. Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, manufactures and markets hardware and software for its popular home video game systems. The systems include Game Boy®, Nintendo® 64, Game Boy® Advance and Nintendo GameCube’. Since the release of its first home video game system in 1983, Nintendo has sold more than 1.6 billion video games worldwide, creating enduring industry icons such as Mario’ and Donkey Kong® and launching such franchises as Zelda’ and Pokemon®. As a wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of America Inc., based in Redmond, Washington, serves as headquarters for Nintendo's operations in the Western Hemisphere.

About Xbox

Xbox (http://www.xbox.com) is the video game system from Microsoft that brings people together for the most exhilarating game and entertainment experiences. Xbox delivers an expansive collection of breakthrough games, powerful hardware and the unified Xbox Live online service. The new tagline, "it's good to play together," captures the spirit of Xbox as the social hub of the new digital entertainment lifestyle. Xbox is now available in North America, Asia, Europe and Australia.

About Vivendi Universal Games

Headquartered in New York, Vivendi Universal Games (www.vugames.com) is a global leader in multi-platform interactive entertainment. A leading publisher of PC, console and online-based interactive content, Vivendi Universal Games' portfolio of development studios includes Black Label Games, Blizzard Entertainment, Coktel, Fox Interactive, Knowledge Adventure, NDA Productions, Sierra Entertainment and Universal Interactive. Through its Partner Publishing Group, Vivendi Universal Games also publishes and/or distributes interactive products for a number of strategic partners, including Crave Entertainment, Interplay, Majesco, Mythic Entertainment and Simon & Schuster, among others.

Source:

Press Release