Wii/DS/PS3/PS2/PSP; �29.99; cert 12+; Warner Bros
I was always a fan of EA's LOTR spin offs for maintaining the movie's epic feel within a decent, if linear, RTS. So I was keen to see how Warner Bros would fare with a very different approach.
Initially, the signs aren't too bad. Graphically, there's a lot to admire in Aragorn's Quest ? particularly the 3D world that fits the more soft-focus Shire locations best. Character likenesses are also good, albeit in that shrunken style we've come to expect from Wii games ? and music and voice acting are above average.
There are a couple of niggles, though. There's the camera perspective that continues to pan for a few seconds after your character has turned, creating an almost drunken feel to movement. And then there's the weedy crackle that emanates from the Wiimote when you pick up treasure or kill a significant foe, destroying most of the pleasure in doing so.
In gameplay terms, Aragorn's Quest plays like an arcade adventure with RPG pretensions. Most of the time you're pursuing the main storyline quest, which weaves its way between set-pieces from the movies. Pressing the A button reveals the path to your next keypoint where a cut-scene or battle usually awaits but there are also side quests you can follow for extra gold, weapons or occasional artifacts.
As an RPG, however, this is a seriously dumbed-down affair, with artifacts that can be picked up and viewed in your inventory but then have to be bought as if they were still in a shop. A bigger problem comes in the combat with an auto-targeting system that barely functions, meaning that most battles degenerate into frantic wiggling until a blow connects. It's a shame, because using the Wiimote for fighting and interaction and the Nunchuck for movement and blocking, promises far more finesse than it actually delivers.
However, the overriding problem with Aragorn's Quest is with the way it treats Tolkien's hallowed story. For a start, in retelling key events from Sam's perspective you'll soon find that character, mythology and occasionally logic are largely dispensed with. Take the Palantiri; in the book these are priceless orbs entrusted only to Sauron's most valuable allies, in the game, they're left around the forest floor like lost Satnavs.
Ultimately, it feels almost disrespectful that Tolkien's rich and evocative mythology should be reduced to collecting "Gandalf Tokens" and bowdlerising one of the 20th century's greatest mythologies. The pity is that that Aragorn's Quest works well enough to prove that LOTR does indeed have the makings of an epic RPG. Unfortunately, this isn't it.
? Game reviewed on Wii
Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/gamesblog/2010/dec/17/lord-of-the-rings-aragorns-quest
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