LEGO The Lord of the Rings Preview for PC

System: PC, PS3, Xbox 360
Dev: TT Games
Pub: Warner Bros. Interactive
Release: Q3 2012
Players: 1-2
Screen Resolution: 480p-1080p

The booth rep showed me around the Balin's Tomb portion of the game (as I already mentioned), but for some reason he didn't actually let me play. Still, the gameplay looked solid. One thing that caught my attention was that all nine members of the Fellowship were present for this battle. Yes, where most LEGO games limit you to two simultaneous characters, LEGO The Lord of the Rings allows for all nine Fellowshippers to be present at once. While this could potentially make switching back and forth between characters confusing, the booth rep seemed to have no trouble keeping up with the action. Then again, he's a pro at this.

LEGO The Lord of the Rings Screenshot

I also noticed a few tinier details that brought a smile to my face. For example, Frodo's sword would glow blue whenever orcs were near. Yes, this is indeed Sting (the sword that once belonged to Bilbo, not that British chap who makes music.) Also, enemy HP is displayed dynamically, meaning that instead of seeing a health bar floating over an orc's head, you'll knock off pieces of its armor to show how much damage you've dealt. It's a clever way to implement a health system that doesn't clutter up the UI or confuse younger players.

Now, I'll admit to having a little bit of LEGO game fatigue at this point, but LEGO The Lord of the Rings looks like an incredible change of pace for the series that takes advantage of a license I'm truly passionate about. All things considered, I'm pretty sure I'll be picking up my own copy when the game launches this fall.

By
Josh Wirtanen
Editor / News Director
Date: July 26, 2012

Game Features:

LEGO The Lord of the Rings is based on The Lord of the Rings motion picture trilogy and follows the original storylines of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.

LEGO The Lord of the Rings takes players along on the adventures of Frodo Baggins and his unlikely fellowship as they set out on a perilous journey to destroy The One Ring and save Middle-earth.

Kids, tweens, teens and parents can traverse the Misty Mountains, explore the Mines of Moria, knock on the Black Gate of Mordor, and partake in epic battles with Orcs, Uruk-hai, the Balrog, and other fearsome foes while harnessing the humour and imagination of LEGO gameplay to solve puzzles and explore Middle-earth.