Lord of the Rings: Conquest (Xbox 360) Review
Posted by Chad Alan on 02.03.2009
Chad Alan wages war on Middle-Earth.....
Title: Lord of the Rings: Conquest
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: Pandemic
Genre: Action/Battle
Players: 1-4 offline (2 co-op) 2-16 online (2 co-op)
Rated: T (Teen)
Conquest is Pandemic’s latest concoction using the Battlefront formula. Take 2 parts warring armies, add 1 part securing control points, and add 1 part successful franchise and you get a game that fantasy geeks can brag to sci-fi geeks about. This game takes the familiar story of the Lord of the Rings Trilogy and puts you right smack dab in the middle of the battles. After completing the Good campaign you can then take on the Evil campaign. I was a little disappointed that both campaigns were not available right from the start. I know how the good guys win and with no real side-plots to add to the story, I was very quick to skip through all the cut-scenes. If you don’t want to deal with all the story you can jump into an Instant Action battle or go online and see how you compare with the rest of the world.
Graphics
I found the graphics to the game to really be on par with today’s 360 graphics. The characters looked good and you could definitely tell each character apart. Basic details were put into facial features and clothing, weapons also see a bit of detail and look as brutal as their real life counter-parts. Larger classes like the ogres and ents show very well with a bit more detail involved. Where this game truly shines is in the details in the battlefields. The distance rendering is amazing and really makes you feel like you are in the middle of a battle on middle-earth. I can understand why the effort was put where it was because paying too much attention to the characters themselves would be missing the forest for the trees and this time the forest fights back.
Gameplay
A game like this doesn’t rely on the story telling or even intense graphics. This kind of game relies on the gameplay itself to draw you in. With a tutorial at the beginning that first shows you how to move, then right into combat, this game drops you right into battle ready to swing your sword, or mace, or staff, or whatever instrument of destruction you like to use. The controls are simple to use so you can focus on your combat, which is where your attention should be because it gets a little rough. Movement is left up to the left thumb stick like most games and to sprint you just keep moving and it will kick in automatically. I’m left a little unsure about the auto-sprint as it is nice to not have to worry about it when you’re running to or away from something. Yet, I feel like having a separate button to control sprinting or just clicking down the thumb stick would make things much easier so I didn’t have to rely on having a straight path just so I can sprint. The combat itself is simple enough with three attack buttons and a modifier button to hold so you can perform special attacks. That makes hacking your way to the goal a lot easier. To add a little flair to the game a throwing attack attached to the right trigger was added and it was a nice move on Pandemic’s part in my opinion. This gives you the chance to knock down your opponent and run up on them if you’re using a melee class. Something lacking on this though is an auto-aim feature for these special attacks. When you’re trying to knock down your opponent or heal your ally you end up completely missing because they moved at the last second. Maybe something along the lines of an auto-lock after keeping the cross hairs on the target for so long would make things a little easier while keeping some sort of balance.
If you’ve played any of the Battlefront games then you know how this one is going to play out. The two armies start off at opposite ends of the map and it is your job to go capture, defend, or re-capture the control points throughout the map. In single player mode, you will be given the option to play as a hero such as Aragorn, The Mouth of Sauron, or a Balrog at a context point in the battle. In multiplayer you have to earn the ability by acquiring so many points. It’s fun to play as one of these guys as each has their own special abilities and some of the bigger ones can grab opponents and throw them at their own comrades. As a Lord of the Rings book geek, I have to say that I’m disappointed that Faramir is a melee swordsman and not an archer-type ranger as he is in the book. But then again, I was severely disappointed with that plot point in the movie so I lay the blame squarely on Peter Jackson’s head for that one.
Sound
I’ve only had the chance to play this game on my TV without the surround sound. Even though I just heard the game through stereo speakers that come with my TV, the sounds of battle come alive in Conquest. I could hear swords clashing behind me and could tell when something I didn’t want to see was coming up behind me. Something I enjoyed throughout the game was hearing some random chatter in the heat of battle. Usually it’s just someone giving a battle-cry and the recipient letting out a yelp or death rattle, but it always seems to enhance the surroundings.
Lasting Appeal
This game is not for anyone expecting to play this solely as a single player game. That is not what it was meant for. Even trying to get through the evil campaign after finishing the good can be a bit of a chore. What this game was meant for was to battle your friends on the Shire or maybe on the plains of Mordor. If Pandemic can put out some downloadable content such as maps, more classes, and maybe address some of those issues that I think more people than I have with the game; then this one might be sitting on your games pile for a while and not heading back to a games store.
Fun Factor
Being a fan of the books, movies, and Battlefront games there was a lot for me to look forward to in this one. It keeps you entertained with the ability to cause some chaos on Middle-Earth and to be able to beat your friends down as a Balrog while playing with them in multiplayer. The action is kept going a solid pace making you want to skip the story so you can get right to business. The couple of quirks that I had with the game made me a little frustrated, but there weren’t enough to deter me from finishing the battle. The evil campaign gives you a chance to see things from a different point of view and in this Dr. Phil world we now live in isn’t that what it’s all about.
The 411
Lord of the Rings: Conquest definitely makes you feel like you are in a battle for your life and freedom. Pandemic does a great job of doing that by using certain sounds and background visuals. The simple control scheme makes it easy for anyone to pick it up and play for the first time. The style that this game was made is not going to appeal to everybody. I think the type of gamer that would really enjoy this enough to buy it is going to be fans of the Star Wars: Battlefront series that are looking for a newer version to play on their current generation console. Lord of the Rings fans may be interested to see what the evil campaign has to offer as a story, but beyond that there is not a whole lot. I would recommend first renting this before buying it if you are not a Battlefront enthusiast.
[As of writing this article I did notice that there is some new DLC, a new hero’s arena. This might spark some interesting matches. Touche Pandemic.]
Graphics
8.5
Everything was pretty on par for a 360 game, but the backgrounds were stunning.
Gameplay
7.5
Keeping the controls simple was a great touch, but one or two more things would have made it alot better.
Sound
8.5
Anytime I forget that I'm sitting on my couch in my living room because I hear the sounds of battle all around me is good in my book.
Lasting Appeal
7.0
The offline campaign really only offers a chance to look at the side of evil, multiplayer is what will save it here.
Fun Factor
8.0
This game will really appeal to many Lord of the Rings geeks like myself, but then only the ones that really enjoyed Battlefront and will give those fans something new to play.
