For a book released over seventy years ago, The Lord of the Rings is still going incredibly strong. It's more than just a book, it's a story that has changed the lives of millions of people. Assisted by the Peter Jackson film series, The Lord of the Rings has had a noticeable impact on gaming, along with every other art form and media/ What's not to love about a timeless story of love, friendship, and the triumph over evil?
While many of the games that have come out of Tolkien's world are phenomenal, they can't all be gems. Here are the games that the Metacritic community found less than impressive.
10 The Lord of the Rings: Adventure Card Game, 2019 (Switch) - Score: 75
The Lord of the Rings: Adventure Card Game has been released across consoles, but Switch players have already decided they haven't been blown away. The game has received a respectable score of seventy-five but has come with some criticisms.
In this online table-top style game, players build a deck of heroes from Middle-Earth to defeat Sauron. Reviewers of the game have praised the concept, but there are complaints about glitches and lack of PvP options. Hopefully, the developers may take another look at this project and polish up some of the issues.
9 The Lord of the Rings: The Third Age, 2004 (GameCube, PlayStation 2, Game Boy Advance, Xbox) - Score: 67
This game is a bit of a weird one. Rather than being a story of the fellowship on their way to Mount Doom, this story follows a group of original characters who stalk the fellowship and jump in to steal all the glory!
Original characters aren't always a bad thing as Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor shows us. But, these original characters are really annoying and go against not only Tolkien's lore, but the film universe in which the game is set, as well! The turn-based combat also gets incredibly repetitive.
8 The Lord of the Rings: War of the Ring, 2003 (PC) - Score: 67
Tactical games and The Lord of the Rings go hand in hand. It's a story built around war, after all, and tactical war games can be really engaging. But, that doesn't mean every tactical war game from the fandom is automatically good!
Critics and users have observed that the game doesn't capture the spirit of Tolkien or celebrate the diversity of his characters. Elves, dwarves, and men are put together in the same units! The voice acting and dated animation also leave plenty of room for improvement.
7 The Lord of the Rings: Tactics, 2005 (PSP) - Score: 64
This title was a fairly under-the-radar affair released on the PlayStation Portable fifteen years ago. This was also a tactical game, the elements of which are praised in reviews. However, you could take the aspect of Tolkien out of this game and it wouldn't change much.
The game is very short and doesn't delve into the characters or stories from The Lord of the Rings. One critic accused the creators of simply using The Lord of the Rings as a face to help the game sell.
6 The Lord of the Rings: War in the North, 2011 (X360, PC and PlayStation 3) - Score: 61
This game had a lot of potential, with the promise of exploring an unseen part of The Lord of the Rings story seeming particularly intriguing. The game takes players through "the war in the north," while other book events are taking place during "the war of the ring."
Yet, some critics didn't think the game lived up to expectations. One critic found War in the North overly scripted. Most critics have stated that the combat was boring and felt let down by the game. It was a nice idea, but wasn't executed in the best way.
5 The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, 2002 (XBOX, PS2, and PC) Score: 59
Despite coming out the same year as New Line's film based on The Two Towers, this game has nothing to do with the Jackson film trilogy. However, the doesn't mean it's perfectly based on the book!
This is a relatively short game (5-10 hours), but critics have noted that it drags on longer than necessary. Not only that, but it also adds in content not from the book, while leaving some scenes out. One review notes that you don't even need to use The One Ring and the powers with it to complete the game. One would think this would be rather essential!
4 The Lord of the Rings: Aragorn’s Quest, 2010 (PS3 and Wii) Score: 58
This is another example of a game that could have been amazing! In this game, players follow Aragorn's story and recount his quests and story from The Lord of the Rings. It's also told in the form of a flashback, with Sam telling his story to his children.
Despite being an amazing idea, critics were very disappointed by the graphics, which are just awful for a 2010 game! (This game was also released on Nintendo DS, PSP and PS2, but these versions do not have Metacritic scores).
3 The Lord of the Rings: Conquest, 2009 (PS3, XBOX 360 and PC) Score: 54
This game tries to flip the perspective of The Lord of the Rings story. In Conquest, Frodo failed to destroy The One Ring, and now you must lead Sauron's army in taking over Middle-Earth.
One critic describes the combat in this game as "senseless button mashing," while others state that the game failed to capture the familiarity of Middle-Earth. Both critics and users compare the game to Star Wars: Battlefront, albeit a lesser version. The DS version was slightly better received with a score of 61.
2 LEGO The Lord of the Rings, 2012 (PlayStation Vita) Score: 54
Sometimes, even a great game can't save a sub-par console. LEGO The Lord of the Rings has received fairly positive reviews; the consoles and PC versions of the game maintain a steady score of 80. But, when it comes to the PS Vita, critics found the graphics too awful to save even a game as praised as this one. Some puzzles are missing from the game, and complaints have been made about the combat controls.
The 3DS version only received a 61, so this just wasn't a game for handhelds!
1 The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, 2002 (GameBoy Advanced) Score: 51
When you combine the reviews for the PC and console versions calling this game dull, and the reviews for the Vita and 3DS versions of LEGO The Lord of the Rings, it's not surprising that this is the lowest-rated game.
Critics describe the same issues as before, saying the story is boring and lacking any Tolkien magic. These sit alongside complaints of the graphics and plenty of in-game bugs. Middle-Earth is perfect for a large open-world game, so, restricting that and forcing it into a tiny screen is a recipe for disaster!