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good game

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 5 / 6
Date: January 01, 2005
Author: Amazon User

i admit, i have not beaten this game yet. but this game is great. the graphics are unbelievable. even on very low setting they are very good. it's also fun to go kill a bunch of orcs or uruk-hai by running over them with riders of rohan. gandalf is amazing. all the heroes are good except gimli. if you like lotr, rpg's, or are just looking for a good game to play you should get this game

I am Having the Time of my Life Playing this Game!!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 5 / 6
Date: December 30, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I'll be upfront with you here: I've only gotten as far as Helm's Deep in the game, but I have been having a blast getting there. This is my very first Real-Time Strategy game and I had trouble at first, but once I got the hang of it I've been plowing away the enemy left and right on every level.

This game is so incredibly fun - my favorite Lord of the Rings game to date. Once I installed it, I played it for 8 hours straight without realizing I was sitting there that long! I've had to make a conscious effort to make a chore list when I get home from work because if I don't, nothing gets done because I'm so glued to this game! Helm's Deep is incredibly difficult and this should be nothing compared to the Battle at Minas Tirith.

If you like RTS games and a big Lord of the Rings fan, this is your game! One word of caution: You will need a high-end computer to handle all the details going on. The battles are fun and exciting; all your favorite characters are here to help out and each one has special powers they gain the higher in rank they become. If you've done a good job of gaining resources and power-ups, you can actually summon the Ents to Helm's Deep - if you choose. Lots and lots of fun - I just can't praise this game enough.

Despite some short comings, this is a worthy LOTR game

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 4 / 4
Date: December 14, 2004
Author: Amazon User

Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle Earth is a brand new strategy game from EA based on the movie trilogy. The presentation of the game is excellent, new voice work from Ian McKellan (Gandalf) gives the game a tone from the other movies and does it very well. The game gives a single player mode as either the good or evil forces, online & LAN multiplayer options and offline skirmish games.

The four races or armies in the game represent the factions from the movies, Gondor, Rohan, Isengard & Mordor. Each race has some similar units such as archers, foot soldiers, siege weapons, etc. Though, one thing i didn't like about this was how some armies have nearly three times as many units as the other, for example, Rohan, the entire army selection (w/out the heroes, more on that in a bit) is 4 units, Peasents, Rohan horseback warriors, Rohan Archers, and Archer horsebacks. This can leave some serious imbalence issues with online games and such, hardley any defense from siege?, no options from foot soliders?, it just seems EA could have added a few more units though perhaps EA was trying to match all the units to the counterparts in the movie. The more balenced armies are Gondor & Mordor, Isengard still needs some work in my opinion.

The newest addition to the game is the heroes, they compose of the main characters from the trilogy, i.e Gandalf, Frodo, Aragorn, Gimli, Legolas, etc. As they fight in battle they gain experience which makes them become more powerful and gain more abilities to turn the tide of battle, similar to the Warcraft 3 hero setup. Heroes just have a health bar, no mana or anything like that, powers are activated and recharge over time.

One thing in the campaign side of the game, as units and heroes gain experience, that carries over to the next mission, so eventually your level one archer can become so incredibly powerful that they can take down the bigger units like Nazgul, Mumakil (the giant elephant-like creatures in ROTK), Cave Trolls, etc. It just seems that the game can become too easy in the end without giving a huge challenge. Though one feature I do like is when you fight and kill units, you gain power points, this grants you access to the huge "Power Tree", for example, after 20 minutes of play I've gained about 8 points, i can spend it on a healing spell, summon reinforcements life Elven Archers, Rohan Warrios, Mordor Orcs, etc. As you gain more and more ponts you gain better powers like summoning Ents, extra resources and the big powers like summoning a Balrog or the Army of the Dead which cause incredible damage to everything in its path.

I also like the base system, once your forces conquer a piece of land, you can choose to place a plot, a plot give you the main building which you must keep alive (usually called the Citidal) and about 6-8 open plots which can be used for barracks for units, resource farms, guard towers and special unit bonus buildings. Thus you must choose carefully what you want in your base, and as you explore the map, you can find more outposts which gives a Citidal & 3 plots. Resources are automatically gathered nad the more of one building you have you usually gain cost reduction bonuses for units, upgrades, etc. The only other big change i would have liked the game go to with more a of hybrid of Rome: Total War & Warcraft 3 gameplay, bigger battles was what I was expecting from the screenshots I've seens but the games works fine just like this.

Now that I've explained most of the game, I'll do a rundown of how the game performs.

Graphics, you'll need a pretty decent rig to run this at full options, my computer consists of:
P4 3.2 ghz
1 gig of RAM
ATI Raedon 9600 XT

I was able to run the game at full settings, a decent computer would be around:
1.6-2.6 ghz
512-1 gig of RAM
ATI 9200 + or nVidia 5600+ video card

Graphics are great for this game, the game uses the Conmand & Conquer Generals engine which is still quite impressive to this day. Fluid animations, good detail for individual units, great job around.

Sound: Score from the movies & some cheesy voice work from the voices of the untis

Controls: Easy as pie, if you've played RTS games before, you'll have no trouble getting into this one.

Overall the game represents the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy as a great whole. From RTS veterans (such as myself) to complete newbies (in a good way), this is worth your money, excellent game for the LOTR fanatic.

Almost, but not quite a classic

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 4 / 4
Date: December 17, 2004
Author: Amazon User

B4ME (Battle for Middle Earth) is a game that I have mixed feelings about. On the one hand, it's a fun RTS that attempts to capture the spirit and grandeur of Peter Jackson's groundbreaking cinematic epic. Unfortunately, it compromises in too many areas and is overshadowed by other superior RTS offerings - Warhammer 40k and Rome: Total War being the two main examples.

Despite EA's attempts to market the 'world map' as a groundbreaking innovation, hardcore gamers will immediately recognise the similarities to the Campaign Map used in Rome: Total War. The big difference is that B4ME's world map severely restricts which mission the player can choose next. For instance, at the beginning you can only play as Rohan (in which case you choose from 2-3 maps) or as the Fellowship (choose a single mission based on a movie scenario).

Another criticism I have is with movie-based missions, which don't adhere to the film-based events. For instance, in the Mines of Moria it's possible for Gandalf the Grey to survive the battle with the Balrog. All that would've been needed is a cutscene showing Gandalf and the Balrog falling off the Bridge of Kazadhum - problem solved, and gameplay wouldn't be compromised. Better use should've been made of the game engine during cutscenes - there are several good examples of this in Warhammer 40k.

The game really soars in regards to how individual units are implemented. One good example is Gandalf, whose powers are exactly what you would expect from the greatest of the Istari. The Wizard Blast can take out an entire battalion, and you can eliminate half an army with Mithrandir's Electric Bolt. And his finishing moves are perfect replications of what you see in the film. Aragorn's swordmaster abilities are another understimated ability, which is graphically demonstrated during the 'Amon Hen' level, where you can use it to take out two whole hordes of Uruk Hai. Impressive.

Another innovation which should've gotten more publicity is how buildings are built. Instead of using peasants to build, certain areas of the map are allocated for base building (outposts, castles, etc...). This is makes base building less irritating as you no longer have to decide where buildings need to be placed, and leaves the player more time to concentrate on strategies and troop building.

In summary, B4ME is almost a classic. But compromises in areas like the world map and single-player campaign spoil the atmosphere of the game. If you're an LOTR or Tolkien fanatic, stay clear of this game. If you're an RTS fan not too fussy with gameplay, then by all means, plop down your hard earned money and have a go. However, I do wonder how B4ME would've turned out if Relic or Blizzard had developed it.

Amazing game

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 4 / 4
Date: December 02, 2006
Author: Amazon User

When my husband got this for Christmas last year I didn't think I'd be into it. I've never played an RTS game but I'm a huge Lord of the Rings fan. After I watched him play it for a little while I started my own game. I got so engrossed in this game. I loved the strategy and the different challenges. As you go further into the game it gets a little more difficult and you gain more powers to use and your Heroes gain higher levels and powers. This game really sucked me in and I even finished it before my husband did.

Best $15 he's spent lately

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 4 / 4
Date: August 25, 2006
Author: Amazon User

My son loves this game and it's a nice way to introduce him to online playing. Have had to reboot before he plays or sometimes he locks up.

Outstanding game! Must Have for LOTR Fans.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 4 / 4
Date: February 02, 2007
Author: Amazon User

This game is a very fun real time strategy game based off the LOTR movies. The battles are fun, challenging, and accurate representations of how I imagined them from the books and films. As a fan of both real time strategy games and a huge LOTR fan I really enjoyed the game.

THIN

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 7 / 11
Date: December 09, 2004
Author: Amazon User

In hoping for epic proportions I was treated to art that is super and a game that is so-so. If you like skirmish play... don't look here... it's not the most challenging. I beat 7 AI enemies on the hardest settings with relative ease. Plus... the campaign missions end up being simple base-on-base action... simply nothing great but solid in it's own right I guess.

Look on the horizon for a new experience. Something new must be coming. Feels like they rushed this game out the door for christmas and to coincide with Return of the King too... marketing always wins I guess.

Some facts

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 11 / 23
Date: November 01, 2004
Author: Amazon User

The battle for Middle-earth is about to begin... Based on New Line Cinema's film adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's classic fantasy trilogy, The Lord of the Rings, The Battle for Middle-earth is an epic real-time strategy (RTS) game that brings the battles-and the world-of Middle-earth to life on a cinematic scale.

Whether choosing to command the forces of good or evil, PC gamers are in complete control of the epic campaigns depicted in all three films of trilogy. From waging all-out combat among Middle-earth's vast armies to controlling your favorite heroes and characters while managing the resources and forces of your side, the fate of a living, breathing Middle-earth is in your hands. More than faceless units, every character in the game expresses real-time emotions that change depending on their situation-watch your swordsmen tremble with fear as they nerve themselves to face advancing Trolls and feel their exultation as they celebrate a hard-fought victory.

Building on a highly advanced version of the acclaimed Sage 3D game engine first used in Command & Conquer Generals, The Lord of the Rings, The Battle for Middle-earth allows you to command the forces of light or darkness in two separate campaigns. You'll have to choose your forces wisely, since each army has its own unique strengths and weaknesses. The Lord of the Rings, The Battle for Middle-earth offers a truly memorable entertainment experience: the first RTS game that brings an entire world to life.

Key Features:

* Command the heroes and armies of Middle-earth in over 35 missions based on all three films of The Lord of the Rings trilogy.
* Control one of four unique sides from the Riders of Rohan to the forces of Sauron, each with its own playing styles, resource management, and base-building techniques.

* Tolkien's world comes alive in a 3D real-time map featuring clouds, waves, and trees blowing in the wind. During missions zoom in from the overview map to view details and manage troops and resources.

* Characters and units express real-time emotion that reflects their situation-from anger to fear to happiness.

* Be the architect of the battle for Middle-earth and orchestrate the memorable, epic war as well as the individual battles from the movies, including the unforgettable siege of Minas Tirith, the battle of Helm's Deep, and the desperate last stand at the Black Gate.

* Experience the most convincing RTS combat to date with straight-from-the-movie melee and range animations and unprecedented siege warfare.

* Balanced gameplay with deep strategy mixed with pick up and play ease of use.

* Online multiplayer battles.

Very Well Done

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 5 / 7
Date: June 22, 2005
Author: Amazon User

This was a very good game. I very much enjoyed it because I always yelled at the movie when the armies didn't do what I wanted to do, or if something during a battle sequence didn't happen the way i thought it should.

The thing you need the most is a very good graphics card. Punch the options up to high quality and you have an excellent quality game at your finger-tips. The music quality and sounds are also amazing.

One of my favorite things about the game -- is that you can alter the way the battle's progress. Such as the the battle before Frodo and Sam begin their own journey (Fellowship of the Ring). In this case, you can same Boromier's life. You can also prevent the Great Wall at Helm's Deep from being breached.

It's a fun way to play the game.

Anyways, i suggest it highly.

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