Pandemic Studios launchedThe Lord of the Rings: Conquestin 2009, and it is still unlike any otherLord of the Ringsgame on the market.The Lord of the Rings: Conquesttook the mechanics of Pandemic’sStar Wars Battlefrontseries and put them into the world of Middle-earth. Players got to control soldiers on both sides across multiple levels during the events of the trilogy, and this class-based Middle-earth game concept needs to be revisited.
Lord of the Rings: Conquestwas far from a critical darling, as critics felt like the story was too brief, and the multiplayer did not have much to offer. On top of that, the combat and the maps felt pretty lackluster. That all sounds pretty bad, butthe core idea behindConquestwas fun and unique. With the rise in popularity for Middle-earth properties thanks toRings of Power, there is no better time to revisit the idea.
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Lord of the Rings: Conquest Was a Cool Concept
The Lord of the Rings: Conquestbrought players through the War of the Ring, putting them in the shoes of simple soldiers in the various armies of Middle-earth. They could takecontrol of soldiers from Rohan, Gondor, Rivendell, Harad, Mordor, or even Isengard depending on the battle. They would fight to hold objectives or kill a certain amount of enemies to win, and there was a single-player story that loosely depicted the major battles fromLord of the Rings.
The game shared manysimilarities to Pandemic’sBattlefrontseries, with players able to select one of four playable classes that each brought something different to the table. They could become a master swordsman through the Warrior, shoot their enemy from afar using the Archer, sneak across the battlefield as a Scout, and cast powerful magic spells as a Mage. Each class had benefits and required a new strategy to master.
Just likeStar Wars Battlefront, players could gain control of various heroes and villains from theLord of the Ringsbooks and films. They represented the most iconic characters on Middle-earthlike Gandalf and Legolas. Players could also utilize mounts to traverse the battlefield, and sometimes gain control of powerful units like Trolls or Ents.
It was very muchStar Wars Battlefrontset in Middle-earth, and provided a decent amount of fun. However, the game was severely lacking in many areas. Players got to play both sides ofThe War of the Ring, but it was way too brief, and the multiplayer felt lackluster. The game felt repetitive and did not have the same level of polish as theBattlefrontgames, and as a result the game’s servers were shut down a year after release, which may point to its failure to capture an audience.
The Conquest Concept Needs to Be Revisited
The Lord of the Rings: Conquestwas not a great game, but it was a concept that has not been repeated since.Lord of the Ringsis known forlarge battles against Sauron’s evil, andConquestgave them the chance to be engrossed in these scenarios, and it came the closest to making players feel like a soldier in grand armies. With a bit of polish and the help of today’s hardware, a newConquesttitle could be really cool.
Middle-earth is once again in the public eyethanks toRings of Power, and that makes it a great time to release more titles set in Tolkein’s universe. EA was able to revive theStar Wars Battlefrontseries after Disney bought Lucasfilm, and now it could do the same thing withLord of the Rings: Conquest. If it spent some time to fully flesh out the concept and provide more variety in the gameplay, itcould be the next big thing. If anything, it would surely be a treat for fans of Middle-earth.
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