Lord of the Rings : The Battle for Middle Earth has attempted to become a new RTS game similar to that certain Total War game which has took the strategy gaming world by storm. Although Battle for Middle Earth cant match the sheer scale of Rome Total War, it does have the same feel and is a quite entertaining game. Fans of the trilogy may well prefer to have the characters they know and love rather than the accuracy and historically based Total War.

Those of you who don't know about Rome Total War may not know exactly what I mean when I say a new style of RTS game. Basically put, Its not just a map where your units are on and you attempt to wipe out the opposition. You have a Map split into provinces each commanded by a different force. To take control of a Province you have to engage battle with whoever is there. Once battle has been acknowledged, Each army is placed onto a close up map of that provinces. This is where the RTS style gaming comes in as you tactically place your armies in order to destroy your foe.

You do not build barracks or a town centre etc in this mode like in games such as Warcraft, all this is done on the main map as you build up your resources and construct your cities. Once in battle. Any units in your army are yours to command but you train any more until after the battle is finished.

In The Battle for Middle Earth you can control your favourite heroes in battle such as Aragorn, Gandalf and the countless others. Unfortunately although this is an RTS game, there is a storyline to this one. Loosely related to the actually Lord of the Rings itself. This is where some of the problems begin to appear. While the game allows you to control your heroes and armies, and allows them to die, the story can't accept deaths of such characters. So occasionally they will reappear. This is a little loose, but I can see why it was required in the game. The comparison with Rome : Total War now ends. Battle for Middle Earth is more linear and maybe because of it a slightly easier game. Battle for Middle Earth is a nice game which is a good game top lead you into the Total War series if you haven't already tried them. If you have recently bought Rome : Total War then you may find this game doesn't have the same depth and as a result you could be a little disappointed in that respect.

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Features

• Fight the epic, sweeping battles from the Academy Award-winning The Lord of the Rings film trilogy from a whole new perspective—as commander of hundreds of soldiers and creatures.
• Control massive armies and interactive battlefields across the vast world of Middle-earth.
• Lead the forces of good or evil by controlling one of four unique groups, from the Riders of Rohan to the forces of Sauron, each with its own playing style, resource management, and base-building techniques.
• Take command of strategic territories across a highly detailed, 3D map of Middle-earth and turn the tide in the battle to control The One Ring.
• Forge new heroes, customize their abilities and powers, then lead them into battle where they’ll gain experience and rank in their quest for victory.
• Watch your armies come to life as they express emotion—from anger to fear to triumph—when reacting to events and their surroundings.
• Make smarter and faster decisions in the heat of battle with an all-new intuitive, streamlined interface that gives you contextual control of your forces and structures.
• Challenge fellow rulers online in massive multiplayer battles.

System Requirements

Minimum:

• Windows 2000/XP
• Intel Pentium III/AMD Athlon 1000MHz
• 128MB RAM
• 3.2GB Hard Drive
• 4x DVD-ROM
• 32MB Direct3D Video Card
• DirectX compatible Sound Card
• DirectX 8.1
• Keyboard and Mouse

Battle for Middle Earth Cheats + Resources
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You may also want
The Battle for Middle Earth - Official Strategy Guide Covers all 25 missions' units, stats, abilities, upgrades, and strengths and weaknesses Exhaustive walkthroughs for the forces of good and the forces of evil campaigns How to command four unique sides, including resource management and base-building techniques Thorough skirmish maps guide reveal key points of interest Proven strategy for creating and maintaining buildings and armies, and sending units into battle