What news of RotK?

[Shieldmaiden]

Has anyone heard of anything new about the Return of the King game? I read a few interviews (I'm so glad that it has a co-op mode now! :thumbs: ) and my cousin 'supposedly' played a demo, but I don't know about that... :rolleyes: Anyway. So, everyone, let's discuss!

[Saruman]

There was an article in PSM2. Here's the bulk of what it included:

A little bit about bosses.

The good news is, the boss battles will be more evenly structured in ROTK, comprising every major showdown from the forthcoming film - including confrontations with the giant spider Shelob, the Witch King and finally mighty Sauron. A welcome relief, really, since TTT's didn't even include Gandalf's epic duel with the Balrog, which really got our egg on. Battles will be 'richer and deeper,' explains Young in classic blandified EA speak, which basically means they'll be 'better'. Poking Young till he gurgled sense, he talked us through the battle with the giant spider Shelob. The battle will use forshadowing, so you get glimpses of Shelob - her huge legs and so forth - poking through the scenery to create tension. She'll be whipping around the tunnels, above and below, before you reach her lair. She'll also be preparing Frodo to be strung and eaten, so you'll have to work dead fast against a timer. Don't worry, you'll have already seen her attacks before the battle begins. You'll have to distract her from Frodo and hit her weak spot (same as book/film) as she clambers about the multiple layers of the webbed lair. Young describes the battle as like 'skinning an onion', only without the tears and the general smell.

There will be twice the number of polygons for each character than in TTT, and probably more than twice as many enemies.

There will be four secret characters; the writer of the article is pretty sure that Gollum will be one of them. This is probably right, and if it is, it will look great! It is my personal opinion that Eowyn may be unlockable, but that's just me.

The environments will be bigger, and players will be able to interact with them and use them to kill certain enemies.

There will be three separate adventures: the Ring Bearers' journey, the Three Hunters' journey and Gandalf's journey.

Levels will include locations like Cirith Ungol, Minas Tirith, the Black Gate, and Isengard Forest (I assume that's the first level), which allows for multiple paths, so the game will be less linear than TTT.

[Shieldmaiden]

Wow! That sounds so cool! I also think that Eowyn is an unlockable character, along with Merry. That would make sense, considering that you get to fight the Witch King and all...
Here's an article that I found:

May 15, 2003 - Electronic Arts showed its ring hand today, providing gamers with the first hands-on playable of The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King, the second of three games based on the motion picture interpretation of J.R.R. Tolkien's epic trilogy.

The result? Unbelievable. It sent a tingling wave of raw energy bolting through my spine. Truly, it's everything I wanted in the first game brought to life, except bigger, deeper, and more dramatic and interactive than the first. And that's just in this single level!!! In all honesty, I have seen another two levels in the game, and they all look excellent. The characters all were created with excellent new models, their textures are more refined, and there are more characters than before.

Players can take on the role of six playable characters including returning playable characters Gimli, Legolas, and Aragorn. New characters include Gandalf, Frodo and Sam. There are four secret, unlockable characters and, right now, EA's development team is trying to get Gollum as a playable character (this is still very tentative, but EA is working on it). In EA's attempt to aim this game at its core audience, it's addressed all of the criticisms aimed at the first game. This new version offers more playable characters, a combination of linear and wide-open levels, interactive levels -- which enable players to grab and use weapons on the ground, launch catapults and more -- and better graphics.

But the real kicker is the two-player co-op mode. In a word: Wow. It's not like two-player co-op hasn't been done before, but playing LOTR with two-players. Hooo-boy. Playing with a teammate, gamers can join forces to play through all of the levels and finish the game. There is one screen and all action happens with what seems like twice the ferocity. Within minutes playing this, I suspect you will be hooked, just like I was.

The single level we played, called Minas Tirith Wall, is close to the level's end and features an intense, non-stop action experience with gamers playing in the role of Gandalf. The wall is being attacks with a full frontal attack of Uruk-Hai, giant Mountain Trolls and what seems like a swarm of orcs so large it actually exceeds the number of displayed on screen in the final level of The Two Towers.

The controls are exactly like those in the first game, L1 plus X enables you to shoot projectiles, Triangle is fierce attack, and players also have parry, block, and quick attack. Playing as Gandalf is awesome. He looks excellent: His model is highly detailed, with his white robes moving as he walks, runs and strikes, He long white hair is relatively staid, and his facial model shows off wrinkles, more detailed eyes, and facial structure.

In this level, Gandalf is provided with a slew of fluidly changing objectives. He first must fight off a slew of orcs from the mid-section of the wall. Orcs through up giant ladders (like in the first game), and Gandalf must kick them down while managing a horde of them on either side. His goals change, however, in this final orchestrated battle. He must find four different giant siege units, each that must be destroyed in a different way. In one section, he must ascend the stairs to a tower, launch a catapult at an enemy unit and attack a single and tremendously powerful Fellbeast, which swoops down on the unit. Using his magical projectiles -- beautiful streaming blue-white balls of trailing magic energy -- Gandalf blasts the beast until it dies, which causes a thundering crash and destroys a slew of enemy units. This effect, like so many interactive scenes in this new game, provides an incredible sense of sound, energy and awe in the gamer.

He must then find a rope than descends to a lower section of the wall, an outer walkway that leaves him vulnerable to attack. He runs along it to meet his objective, and then he trails back up the wall, only to fight off a whole new horde of orcs -- this time twice as many as before.

The unfortunate task at hand, however, is that giant Mountain Trolls are approaching the main gate with the biggest battering ram you have ever seen. Gandalf followed his troops down to the gate and just as it seems the massive wooden structures are about to fall, Gandalf raises his arms like a magic bird as if to lift off into the air, and the screen whites out for a cutscene.

Needless to say I am a Tolkien fan, and this impressed me more than anything I saw or played in The Two Towers. However, for those non-Tolkien fans interested in simply playing a kick *** action game, this The Golden Axe-style gameplay is undeniably solid, incredibly choreographed and filled with variety and depth one would expect to play in a Lord of The Rings game.
-- Douglass C. Perry

Sounds great, doesn't it?