User Reviews (1 - 11 of 37)

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Quality product

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: February 09, 2008
Author: Amazon User

I bought this to replace my old copy that the kids had distroyed. I love this type of game and like to play it to reduce stress.

My son thinks this game is great!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: January 19, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I received this game in perfect shape! I am very pleased with the seller and the game. The game was a gift to my son for Christmas and he plays it all the time!

Shadow returns to Middle-Earth

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 2 / 3
Date: July 15, 2006
Author: Amazon User

The Lord of the Rings: The Third Age is EA's latest attempt at a LOTR console game. It is fun, but tedious. The graphics are great, as are the locations (This game still has the best looking Helm's Deep I've ever seen!). But the overall gameplay is very repetitive. To level up in this game, you must use your powers to gain skill points. Once you have a certain number of skill points, you gain a new power. However, you often end up casting the same power over and over and over again just to level up. Thus, I would only recommend this game for a real Lord of the Rings fan. If you like to play RPG's but don't care about LOTR, buy STAR WARS: KNIGHTS OF THE OLD REPUBLIC. If you like LOTR but don't care about RPG's, buy LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING. If you like LOTR and RPG's, wait a year till EA release LORD OF THE RINGS: THE WHITE COUNCIL (On Xbox 360, PS3, etc).

Great Game - Just too Linear.

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: July 06, 2006
Author: Amazon User

I just got this game the other day and I was actually not expecting much at all (it was on sale) but after playing it I really got into it.

I've been playing RPG's since FFI on the NES. This game has the best battle sequences of any RPG I've ever played. Graphics are amazing and the turn based battle is perfect.

The major problem with this game is (as others have noted) the linear story. You can only go one way. I enjoy games like Daggerfall and Morrowind where you can go anywhere and do anything. This game doesn't have ANY of that...

I'm going to compare this to KOTOR (Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic) to show the differences in the games and give you a better idea of what to expect.

Graphics - KOTOR(7) LOTR(10)
Story - KOTOR(10) LOTR(5)
Fight Sequences - KOTOR(6) LOTR(10)
Replay Value - KOTOR(10) LOTR(1)

If you appreciate unbelievable graphics, beautiful music,and awesome battle sequences... I would buy this game.

If you hate linear games with a so-so story, you'll probably be disappointed.

RPG must play

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: June 13, 2006
Author: Amazon User

I bought LOTR third age and after popping it in and starting off thought 'oh,no, what have I just bought' BUT after the first 30-45 minutes of suckiness after getting into Moria I am hooked completely! A tad too many cut scenes(you can opt out of them but would recommend not as they add to the ambiance of the game) I now cannot stop playing it- very fun game!

Wow! This is really bad!!!

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 1 / 3
Date: May 01, 2006
Author: Amazon User

If I was one of the programmers of this game I would be embarrassed to have my name in the credits.

I've been a LOTR fan since I was a child and have been waiting for some decent games to transport me to that other world. I was really excited about this game but never bought it. I finally got around to renting is this weekend.

I've put about 15 hours into it...not because the game is any good, but because I paid $8 to rent it and I'm going to get my money's worth out of this.

The Pluses:
1. The graphics are good - not great...just good
2. The sound is really good

The Minuses:
1. You get a party of 6 characters but only three can be involved in any fighting ever
2. If you cast a group-based spell, only the characters on the screen get the benefits
3. There is no way to share weapons, armour, etc
4. There is no way to cast spells unless you are in combat
5. Game is so linear it's not even worth guessing where to go...it will tell you you must do A before you can go to B
6. It tries to tie into and parallel the FOTR by adding Gandalf and other characters that talk to you, but the discussion feels like you just walked into a conversation half-way through
7. You can't drop anything you have picked up...so at this point my dwarf is carrying 6 battleaxes and 1 warhammer, plus extra armor, etc
8. Stats mean virtually nothing...
---as your party increases its skills in strength, spirit (magic points), etc they become more powerful and do more damage...which you expect
---problem: some how the same monter that you could kill with a damage of 200 now takes 2600 points...what's the point of going up?
9. The box says 1-2 players...what this means is that player 1 or player two controls the one character that shows up on screen while moving around - the only time that the other player comes into the game is in battle when there are only 3 characters on screen
10. There is no interaction with the world around you...you just walk around, kill stuff and listen to Gandalf or other NPCs

I could go on but these are the big issues with the game. Overall, this game isn't even worth renting unless you like linear, unoriginal games that go nowhere and keep you there.

This game is worthless!

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 1 / 3
Date: April 25, 2006
Author: Amazon User

First off, who thought up the marketing idea that continually interspersing scenes from the LOTR movies would be a great selling point? The scenes have nothing to do really with the game and it gets annoying after awhile. Second, I got totally frustrated at how I'd finish a battle then move on and then if I wanted to backtrack I'd have to fight the SAME BATTLE all over again - it can't be avoided! Other games, if you defeat and win in a battle it's done. You can go back over that same area and not have to fight the exact same battle over and over and over again. You can't choose the character you want to be which sucks and there's not really many treasures to find and they are mostly lame anyway. As a fan of LOTR, I found this game boring, frustrating and totally lacking in creativity. Don't waste your money.

Beautiful graphics and great considering it's a turn-based game

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: March 13, 2006
Author: Amazon User

I think this game has beautiful graphics, good character development, excelent narration and beautiful music from the movies. You travel through the game at the "age" that the Lord of The Rings movies take place, but you play characters from all over middle-earth.
The down side to this game is that it's nothing like a Morrowind RPG where there is freedom to to just about anything, it is pretty closed and doesn't give very many choices.

It has the option to play co-op (which I haven't done yet), travel mode (where you can go to any level after you have unlocked them) and evil mode (this is very fun and gets you special items that you can use in the "regular" mode of the game) Overall a very nice game.

Deserves NO stars

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 1 / 5
Date: November 10, 2005
Author: Amazon User

This has to be one of the WORST games ever created. LOTR:Fellowship of the Ring was a boring mess but then they released LOTR:The Two Towers and LOTR:Return of the King, both excellent games. Well, I'm here to tell you that that trend is officially OVER because The Third Age is the biggest waste of time imaginable. You play as some random idiot that wanders around endlessly getting attacked by various enemies. Don't think these are actual attacks either, no no, you have staged attacks where you select what you want your character to do, then sit back and watch as it is carried out with absolutely no interaction from you. It reminds me of some of the really early games which had this same type of combat system (which is NO LONGER ACCEPTABLE by the way). This was an obvious attempt to bilk a few more dollars out of the franchise but seriously, don't waste your money on even a rental for this dog. This game is boring, lame, pointless and stupid.

Not as bad as people say...

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: August 11, 2005
Author: Amazon User

I have to disagree with most reviews on this site. I find this game to be a great deal of fun--but I like RPG's and level building and I like the gameplay because it reminds me of some of my favorites--like Final Fantasy.

For people who aren't retarded (defined by those who blow through a game in 10 hours designed to be done in 40 hours), this game is a blast. There MOST DEFINITELY ARE areas to level build, and it can be quite rewarding. I have some of the higher level spells for Hadhod and am quite pleased.

The difficulty is easily adjusted for all skill levels and the gameplay is addicting.

There are several faults, however: it is true that the game is too linear. The graphics are also terrible--except for the stationary stuff like the scenery, which makes for a beautiful Middle Earth. There are hardly ever multiple paths to explore, and there are never secrets to be found. Also, you have to ignore the plot of the Tolkien world to appreciate this game at all--not that this plot is terrible (its bad, but not terrible), it just doesn't fit with the Lord of the Rings.

Despite those things, it is just too much fun to fight through the Mines of Moria, or take on hordes of Orcs, or fight the Balrog with Gandalf on your team. I can't get enough. It's great fun level building, as there are a great number of skills to be learned with each character, and most are unique. Some are quite awe-inspiring.

I'd recommend this game--especially at these reduced prices.

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