Review: The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar game

It’s a partnership seemingly made in heaven, or Middle Earth at very least.

Lord of the Rings, the timeless fable of good versus evil, and the massively multiplayer online role-playing (MMORPG) format.

Shadow of Angmar melds the two beautifully, and finally allows a global gaming audience to enter and battle in Tolkien’s epic creation.

Inevitably it’ll be compared to the giant of the genre, World of Warcraft, and we’re delighted to report that it stands up tall.

And not just by Frodo’s standards. It’s no reinvention of the wheel - but it takes the basic winning formula, adds some nice touches - and some hobbits - and dresses it up in a magnificent backdrop that brings the great writer's words to life.

That’s right - this is an official licence of the trilogy of novels, not the Oscar-winning trio of recent films, so don’t expect to find Viggo Mortensen smooching about.

Gameplay-wise, it’ll feel very familiar to MMORPG aficionados, and it's a joy to play. It’s accessible, addictive, packed with nice touches and already busy with plenty of fellow players. The MMORPG staple of 'grouping' - teaming up with other players to complete quests - is covered here through, yes you guessed it, fellowships.

Joining one offers more than just the chance to tackle certain campaigns; it also blesses you with a unique combo fighting system, which means you can join powers for extra mayhem.

It’s a great idea - we’re surprised it hasn’t been done more often - and it means Angmar has a thoroughly satisfactory mix of solo-venturing and group-questing. If you’re a fan of smacking seven shades of Mordor out of fellow humans (admittedly playing as Tolkien creatures) then there is a separate arena for player-versus-player combat, which is a nice touch, but you’ll soon find yourself drawn back to the excellent main game.

Visually it’s an absolute delight. Lacking the movie tie-in is actually a blessing as it grants the artists the chance to conjure up their own vision of Middle Earth. The crafted artwork is simply wonderful, and while there are occasional graphical glitches, it’s still a pleasure to wander around soaking up the atmosphere. Until an orc attacks that is.

So it looks as if the LotR franchise still has some legs, what with this and a new London stage production, and we’d be shocked if Shadow of Angmar doesn’t become a major gaming force in the coming years.

A warning though; veterans of the genre will no doubt know, but it should be pointed out that this requires a monthly subscription to play, although there is a special edition that waives this for a higher retail price.

Vista compatible: Yes