The Lord of the Rings: Tactics

From Lord of the Rings: The Third Age to The Battle for Middle-earth, I think it’s safe to say that the Lord of the Rings franchise has now managed to successfully invade every corner of the industry. While I’m sure that some people would love to see the trek to Mount Doom finally end, I - for one - am one of the biggest fans out there, so a new game based on the books or movie trilogy is always going to peak my interest. So love it or hate it, EA has decided to bring us another attempt at a strategy game with Lord of the Rings: Tactics for the PSP. While Tactics may not be the gem that The Battle for Middle-earth was, it does however offer fans a decent strategic offering, even if the experience is slightly problematic and short-lived.  

This game is obviously geared towards Rings fans, and although Tactics does its best to use the movie license to its advantage, a lack of any real story development causes you to lose some of your motivation when caring about what is going on. Most of the story is unraveled through short movie clips, much like in The Third Age, and ironically, Tactics suffers from the same problems that plagued that game's presentation as well. Most of the clips managed to feel out of place, and were not really put in any type of chronological order. Even the clips that did manage to set the mood were so poorly edited that they felt a bit rushed, and looked nowhere as good as they did on DVD.  

One major selling point for the game, though, is that players can now play on both sides of the ring. Fans will also be glad to know that both the Host of Mordor and the Fellowship have numerous playable characters, and although this certainly helps add to the replay factor, you never really get to experience all the wonderful characters the way they were intended. A complete lack of guidance is mostly responsible, as you are basically just dropped right into the first battle from the moment you turn Tactics on, with little reasoning why. Each battle ends when a certain objective is completed, which can range anywhere from accumulating 30 points of damage on the Witch King, to simply defeating a band of Urukai.  

One feature that will help Tactics stand out from the pack is the new movement system that has been implemented, which once it grew upon me, became quite enjoyable. In short, each round is played out in two steps for your respective character. The first is the movement phase, which allows you to scan the map and decide where you wish to move your character. The second part of the system is the attacking sequence, which for the most part is very self-explanatory. You decide whom you wish to attack, and once you do so you are greeted with a success rate percentage and the likely amount of damage you will cause. The real beauty of this obviously occurs during the planning stages, though, as you never can quite figure out where your enemy will move until it’s too late, therefore rendering your offensive plan useless. This also comes into play when on the defensive as well, because trying to move wounded allies to safety isn’t always possible due to the enemies ability to stop you dead in your tracks. This type of movement system constantly keeps you on your toes, guessing until the objective is accomplished, and the battle won.   

As I mentioned before, most of your favorite characters from the film like Sauron, Legolas, and Frodo are playable, but this doesn’t quite become as exciting as it sounds. Most every character can perform basic commands like counter attacking and blocking, but for some reason the stronger people like Aragorn and especially Gandalf have mediocre special attacks at best, and don’t stand out as they should. This keeps the battles evenly matched and exciting, but ultimately keeps you from caring about who you actually have on your side during battle. One of the greatest things about the Lord of the Rings story has always been the wonderful character development, but sadly, most of it is non-existent in Tactics.

There is also a major problem with the different types of units on the battlefield. There is little indicator telling you which units match up well with others, and most of the time you’re left figuring this out in the heat of battle. Don’t take for granted that the elves have uncanny eyesight and can take an orc out with one arrow, because in Tactics it’s the complete opposite. Figuring this out became easier as time goes on, but some type of power scale would have served the game nicely, and certainly would have helped in the begging battles.

 It’s no secret that Peter Jackson did a perfect job in recreating the world of Middle-earth, and so far, EA has translated it nicely into their games. That’s why it’s slightly confusing that this is the worst of the bunch. Tactics is not particularly ugly; it’s just that it does little to replicate the wonderful visual standard that a setting like Middle-earth is capable of. Most of the famous characters look spot on, but most of the other units look like they’d be better suited in Attack of the Clones. The special effects are on the lacking side as well and certainly don’t reflect the personalities of their owners strongly enough. One would think that when you manage to reach Sauron, the epitome of evil, that he would be able to unleash some devastating attacks, but in fact, he turns out to be about as powerful as everyone else is, which is disappointing to say the least.

The multiplayer in Tactics just might be more fun than the single-player mode. The great thing about playing against human beings is you never know what to expect from them when it comes to unit types. Each person is giving a set amount of points that can be used to purchase the various characters and units for support, and although certain people have their tendencies, most of the matches turned out completely different each time I played.

The overwhelming amount of fun that I had with the multiplayer did help make up for lack of polish in the single player, though my love for the franchise did allow me to find that somewhat enjoyable as well. Although EA didn’t make this game just for the hardcore fan, the overwhelming amount of questionable decisions and lack of style may ultimately keep everyone else away. 

Gameplay: 7.9
The battle system is new, but definitely interesting. There is also a nice variety of locations and landmarks to be found in the game, but the lack of personality towards the main characters and the bare bones customizing doesn’t help the cause much.

Graphics: 7.4
Although the visuals are decent and most of the well-known characters are represented nicely, the overall style and look of the game fails to compare to what we are used to seeing from this franchise 

Sound: 7.7
Typical LOTR sounds and music, but that definitely isn’t a bad thing. Problem is that I never felt like the sound effects or soundtrack elevated the experience very much.

Difficulty: Medium

Concept: 8.1
Strategy is one of my favorite genres, and LOTR has captivated me for years, so it’s safe to say I was looking forward to this game. There are plenty of notable features, but the overall package fails to deliver on most levels.

Multiplayer: 8.5
This is one game where multiplayer might outshine the single-player mode. Playing against humans is fun and unpredictable, and each match you play is probably going to differ from the last.

Overall: 7.9
Lord of the Rings: Tactics is definitely an interesting take on the series. The ability to play as both the Host of Mordor and the Fellowship is noble, but the lack of character customization really takes away from the charm of this franchise. Hardcore fans will more than likely be willing to overlook its mishaps, and will find an enjoyable experience. The causal fan, however, will find their share of fun as well, but it won’t be without some slight frustration first.