J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, Vol. I (SNES)
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| J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, Vol. I | |
| Video game | |
| Publisher | Interplay Productions, Electronic Arts |
| Platform | SNES |
| Release date | 1994 |
J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, Vol. I is a video game produced by Interplay Productions for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES).[1] Although it was originally meant to be released on the NES[2] and the Game Boy, However those plans were eventually abandoned.[1]
Gameplay[edit | edit source]
The player begins the game as Frodo Baggins, with the remaining members of the Fellowship becoming playable throughout the game, with the exclusion of Boromir.[3] With the addition of extra controllers and the SNES Multitap, the game was playable with up to four players (requiring the player to have up to four of the playable characters first), With the inactive characters being controlled by the computer AI.
The gameplay revolves around completing a series of "fetch quests" requiring the player to explore vast environments to collect items relating to the game's story.[4] These items are often simple trinkets that have been misplaced by the game's non-player characters (NPCs). Like the book, the story begins in the Shire, the home of the Hobbits. The game's plot starts at Bilbo's Birthday Party, where the player must find Pippin,[2][3] who guides the player to various locations from the book, such as the village of Bree, the elven city of Rivendell, and the Mines of Moria. Unlike the book, the game ends on the fight between the Fellowship and the Balrog in the Mines of Moria (the first book ends significantly later).[3]
Although the game is entitled "The Lord of the Rings, Vol. 1", no sequel was ever released, due to poor reviews.
Reviews[edit | edit source]
The game was criticized in a 2004 1up.com review, citing the poor AI and number of "lengthy and boring" fetch quests[4] to be some of the games faults.
Based on 24 reviews of the game at GameFAQs.com, the game received an average rating of 4.875 out of 10.[3] Many reviewers described the game as "pointless" and "stupid", especially in regards to the game's "fetch quest" structure and poor A.I. which causes characters to "...frequently wander off and die, or [to] get stuck on the scenery [to be] left behind." The game was also criticized for its expansive environments being extraordinarily difficult to navigate. The game was originally bundled with maps of the major dungeons of the game but, due to most used-game retailers not requiring such materials as part of a trade-in, most people who purchased the game second-hand had no access to such information.
See Also[edit | edit source]
- J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, Vol. I for the PC.
- J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, Vol. II for the SNES.
External Links[edit | edit source]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 The Lord of the Rings, Vol. I at Tolkien Games (retrieved 18 March 2011)
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 The Lord of the Rings, Vol. I at Moby Games (retrieved 18 March 2011)
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Gamefaqs, The OTHER Lord of the Rings game (retrieved 18 March 2011)
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 1up, The Lord of the Rings Volume 1 SNES Review (retrieved 18 March 2011)
