The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-Earth II

This doesn't feel like a knock-off Lord of the Rings game, rather it comes off as a true labor of love from designers that have a very good understanding of the material from which they are working and the finished product is much better because of it.

Battle for Middle-earth II is proof that EA was serious about getting back into the good graces of serious RTS fans.

Improves upon the original in several fundamental ways. Most importantly, it allows you to build your fortresses and buildings anywhere on the map, rather than pre-set building zones, opening your strategy up and allowing for a lot more variation in gameplay.

Ounce for ounce, this sequel improves upon its predecessor in every imaginable way, and as a result, is even more delightful. It’s fun, exciting, and beautiful to see and hear.

It's not often you come across an RTS with production values this high; every part seems to be polished till it shines.

It's hard to find much fault in this fun and well-balanced game. It's set in arguably the best fantasy universe ever and its production values are sky-high. [May 2006, p.68]

Ultimately, playing games should always be about fun and that's why I absolutely loved playing this game.

It helps all the more if you can recognize the subtle genius in zerging an enemy base with a battalion of Lothlórien elves, but even if you can’t, it’s still worth a long look.

All that said, Battle for Middle-Earth II is undeniably a labor of love, a grand work of art, and easily the best-looking game of 2006 so far. [Jun 2006, p.65]

If you think you’d be up for a fantasy RTS title that takes its combat halfway seriously, you owe it to yourself to at least try the demo. If you like that small taste, you can be sure that the retail version is a full course.

A solid RTS experience. With beautiful graphics and sound, balanced gameplay, and six different factions to play as, RTS fans won’t want to miss this one!

What self-respecting Tolkien fan can be without this title? While the game does have a few stumbling points, this is a well-done RTS that enables players to experience the turmoil of the fantasy world, or just to create their own legacy within this fantastic realm.

Regarding graphics, it's really hard not to drool over this game. Seriously. The design and art team did a fabulous job on every single location that appears in the single-player campaign.

It's hard not to say something dull like "fans can't afford to miss it," but, you know, it's possibly the first time anyone's been able to say that about any Middle-earth game. Ever.

Fusing the content from the recently-acquired license to the Lord of teh Rings books with its existing movie-based assets has resulted in another winner for Electronic Arts. [Apr 2006, p.130]

As welcome an update as we could ever have hoped for. By expanding beyond the reach of the films, adding in the distinctive modes of play in the forms of the simple campaign and the more tactical War of the Ring and improving upon the construction elements, EA have done a splendid job of bringing an already solid RTS right up to date.

Old-fashioned RTS in modern clothing, and a definite step forward from the last. [May 2006, p.63]

The Battle for Middle-earth II improves on 2004's game with a better strategic mode and a much broader scope that encompasses the whole of Middle-earth.

The only complaint that anyone could have about the game is that sometimes the battles can get so amazingly big that it is very easy to lose track of what one is doing.

A visceral, engrossing epic noticeably lacking in refinement. [Apr 2006, p.82]

While Battle for Middle Earth 2 has taken a step back from its more avant-garde predecessor, it's a welcome one. If it wasn't for the woefully sub-par AI, this game would earn an easy, unreserved recommendation. But rolling over the AI time and time again in single-player just gets old, and if you don't have the appetite for online play, you'll end up pushing it to the back of the drawer and hoping for a patch.

There's really nothing here that truly deserves great reward. But I had legions of fun. And, for this game at least, that counts for, oooh, pretty much everything.

What we have in The Battle For Middle Earth 2 is a good title, very good at times, that could become rather great with some patching.

A few bugs and a lackluster hero creation mode, however, don’t change the fact that Battle for Middle-earth II is a great real-time strategy game that is worth adding to your collection.

Some of the new features, like The War of the Ring mode don't play out as nicely as they should, and the single player campaigns are a bit generic, but overall this is a great, fast-paced game.

The hottest RTS game this year, and one of the most rewarding Lord of the Rings title available.

A brave and courageous publisher would have let the sublime source material dictate the design rather than reach for the nearest proven formula. [Apr 2006, p.80]

While it does not bring anything significantly new to the genre, Battle for Middle Earth 2 is a solid RTS.

Overall Battle for Middle Earth II is not a drastically improved game when compared to the first, but it does deliver more high-budget and engrossing RTS gameplay.

A more than competent and enjoyable real-time strategy experience.

There's no way to deny that The Battle for Middle Earth II is simply a lot of fun. The venerable mythology and frenetic battles come together in a very satisfying bundle.

Joins a crowded arena of decent real time strategy games. It doesn't stick out much from the crowd, except for its license.

The Battle For Middle-Earth II may look impressive, and its basic, by-the-numbers RTS approach is fun in a mindless sort of way. However, in no way is it anywhere near the game we hoped for. What a waste.

My biggest concerns, though, rest with how multiplayer is balanced. The heroes are simply far too powerful; in one game, three heroes utterly destroyed an entire enemy army. Things get even worse when playing with One Ring enabled.