The Lord of the Rings: War in the North

 Xbox 360
Metascore
61

Mixed or average reviews - based on 48 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 48
  2. Mixed: 31 out of 48
  3. Negative: 7 out of 48
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  1. Xbox World 360 Magazine UK
    Dec 28, 2011
    48
    Lack of imagination and repetitive combat send this hurtling into Mount Doom. [Feb 2012, p.96]
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  2. Gameplanet
    Nov 21, 2011
    45
    War in the North, by being a blunt object of a hack-and-slash game with a facile story and an aversion to genuine characterisation, adds itself to the long list of Lord of the Rings games that just aren't Lord of the Rings games.
  3. GameCritics
    Feb 22, 2012
    40
    I might have had less aggravation if I had a dedicated group of other players to go through the game with from beginning to end, but I wouldn't ask any of my friends to pay full price for The Lord of the Rings: War in the North. Thankfully, since War in the North was released after Dark Souls, before Skyrim, and on the same day as Uncharted 3, there's a good chance the game is already in the bargain bin for a fraction of the MSRP.
  5. Eurogamer
    Nov 24, 2011
    40
    A soulless cash-in that has little to do with its license, and nor is it much fun in its own right. If you're lucky enough to not encounter any game-breaking bugs and if you have a friend or two to play with, then it can be pretty entertaining for a few hours. But that's a lot of "ifs" for so little payoff, since overlong levels and axe-sponge enemies inevitably whittle this dungeon crawl down into a slog.
  6. Gaming Nexus
    Dec 6, 2011
    33
    War in the North never quite manages to exceed in neither gameplay or presentation. Ultimately, lackluster environments and repetitive combat make for an experience that seems out of place in the world crafted by Tolkien. Even if Lord of the Rings precedes the title, War in the North does not live up to the level of quality set by previous franchise media.
  7. Metro GameCentral
    Nov 27, 2011
    30
    The Lord Of The Rings is yet again denied a decent tie-in, with this desperately uninteresting and half broken action role-player.
  8. The A.V. Club
    Nov 7, 2011
    25
    Lord Of The Rings: War In The North is rooted in epic literature, but it has miserably low narrative standards.

Awards & Rankings

41
#41 Most Discussed Xbox 360 Game of 2011
28
#28 Most Shared Xbox 360 Game of 2011

User Reviews

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User Score
7.3

Mixed or average reviews- based on 137 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 76 out of 137
  2. Mixed: 46 out of 137
  3. Negative: 15 out of 137
  1. Lungbrace
    Nov 1, 2011
    9
    don't believe the negative hype... not a "perfect" game by today's standards, but then again, today's standards mean, take a genre, streamlinedon't believe the negative hype... not a "perfect" game by today's standards, but then again, today's standards mean, take a genre, streamline the hell out of it, add shooting, action, a little puzzling and a dash of RPG and never make the gamer read anything... this game reminds me a lot of the Baldur's gate dark alliance games snowblind made for the PS2. i love the game, yes it has some bugs and yeah i'm seeing lots of mediocre scores, but this is the first time i have played a game at launch from the time i picked it up until morning, since dragon age origins.

    the gear system is great, you see a nice visual treat every time you find gear and it does a real service to the LotR lore. all gear is crafted by either an area or a race. like dwarf armor has a certain style to it, or swords made by men of bree etc... again, very much like DAO here, it feels like a real world of artisans have been pumping out gear for your survival and enjoyment. and you never have too much to deal with, its the perfect amount of gear to sell and upgrade without ever feeling overwhelmed... and you never have so much gold that you can buy anything and everything you want, the game has a nice amount of difficulty and a great finesse combat system thats very rewarding. do yourself a favor and AT LEAST rent this. i can't wait to play some more tomorrow!!!    … Full Review »
  2. Khalinho
    Nov 1, 2011
    10
    This game is the best in the saga of The Lord of the Rings, for all: atmosphere, graphics, sound, length, fun ... some people say it is veryThis game is the best in the saga of The Lord of the Rings, for all: atmosphere, graphics, sound, length, fun ... some people say it is very repetitive, they do not understand, really. Great game.… Full Review »
  3. VarthRaver
    Jan 8, 2012
    9
    Loved this game! My wife and I played it right through on co-op and I have to say this is the best co-op experience we've had next toLoved this game! My wife and I played it right through on co-op and I have to say this is the best co-op experience we've had next to Borderlands, even though they are very different games. This game is faithful to everything in the Lord of the Rings world and totally immerses the gamer in this exceptionally beautiful and at times dark and sinister world. I really don't understand why so may critics did not rate this game more highly as the characters are solid, the graphics are gorgeous, the game play interesting and the story is compelling and ties in nicely with Tolkien books. I would give it a ten but the game is a little short. Sadly with the mainstream gaming websites critics poor reviews they probably have ensured that we never see a sequel or any DLC for this awesome game.… Full Review »
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