Lord of the Rings: War in the North

by Warner Bros

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B003DNH95K
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.3 x 0.6 inches ; 3.2 ounces
• Media: Video Game
• Release Date: November 1, 2011
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (111 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,028 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)

Product Description

Platform: Xbox 360 | Edition: Standard

Amazon.com

The Lord of the Rings: War in the North is a co-op Action RPG, from the developers of Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance, that immerses you and your friends in a brutal new chapter in the War of the Ring. Set in Middle-earth during the time of the War of the Ring, but separate from its events, War in the North is inspired by both the Lord of the Rings books and movies allowing players to draw their swords, notch their axes, bend their bows and raise their staffs against a wide range of deadly enemies and traverse both established and never-before-seen locations. The result is a journey that is both epic and intimate, familiar yet unexpected.

Become One of the Unknown Heroes on Middle-earth

"With his far reaching rich hand Sauron might have done great evil in the North. Yet all that has been averted because a handful of heroes stood in his path." - Gandalf the White

Action RPG Lord of the Rings adventure firmly based in Tolkien lore and co-op gameplay.
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Face off against Sauron's deadly Black Númenórean lord, Agandaûr.
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In The lord of the Rings: War in the North you are one of these heroes. Inspired by events from the famous book trilogy and their retelling in Peter Jackson's films, the game features stunning visuals, brutally realistic combat, a unique and compelling new story, and innovative cooperative gameplay that pits you and your friends against the dark forces of Middle-earth. In this game you will form your own fellowship and fight against Sauron's forces at the North.

Playable Characters and Co-op Gameplay

The gameplay in The lord of the Rings: War in the North is all about cooperation. Players will take on the role of either Eradan, a Dúnedain ranger, Andriel, an Elf or Farin, a Dwarf. Each will have special abilities tied to their race - for example, a Dúnedain can combine different objects to create unique items for use or sale in-game; Elves possess superior sight, which will lead you to shortcuts and recognition of trouble ahead; and Dwarves have the ability to notice weaknesses at the walls and break them in order to find secret caves with different loots. Each race with have character class possibilities as well as legendary weapons. Once characters are established, they must band together in multiplayer action, working together to combat hordes enemies. These enemies include goblins pouring from their strongholds in the Misty Mountains, Uruk-hai from Isengard, savage wargs in the wilderness, giant spiders infesting Mirkwood, massive trolls and most dramatic and dangerous of all, bosses like Agandaûr, a deadly Black Númenórean lord who long ago was tempted and turned by the lies of Sauron.

Along your journey you will also cross paths with Lord of the Rings characters familiar and not so familiar, fulfilling little known but important events of the wider War of the Ring. These include: Aragorn's scouting party of the North, while Frodo recovers in Rivendell from the wound he suffered at Weathertop; missions with the Elven sons of Elrond, Elladan and Elrohir; the responsibilities of the wizard, Radagast the Brown; encounters with the great eagles of the Misty Mountains and more.

Key Game Features

• A brutal new The Lord of the Ring adventure set during, but separate from the main events of the War of the Ring
• An exciting main story campaign coupled with dozens of side quests
• Cross paths with your favorite Lord of the Ring heroes, as well as more obscure characters
• Classic Action-RPG action that centers on co-op gameplay and character development
• Three playable races - Dúnedain (man), Elf, Dwarf, each with its own storyline and unique quests
• Multiple character classes including Mage, Scout and Warrior
• Magic abilities including active (fire, lightning and ice spells) as well passive (morale bonuses, protective shields/wards) spells
• The ability to craft items and potions
• A special Challenge Mode consisting of missions and maps built especially for co-op gameplay and not tied to the main campaign

Additional Screenshots

Middle-earth races & classes. View larger.

Frightening foes. View larger.

Powerful allies. View larger.

Multiple magic types. View larger.

Product Description

Unseen lands from the world of Middle-earth are awaiting in this visceral action-adventure RPG. The Lord of the Rings: War in the North is set against the backdrop of the famous trilogy, yet forges its own distinct path with a new story and an exciting take on the popular genre. It gives players the unique opportunity to explore previously untold stories in the realm of Middle-earth during the journey of the ring. Innovative cooperative gameplay pits you and your friends against the dark forces of Middle-earth.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

41 of 42 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars War In The North: Fun Hack 'n' Slash November 7, 2011

By EnglishPete

Platform for Display:Xbox 360|Edition:Standard

Fun: 4.0 out of 5 stars   

I have just finished my first play through of this in solo mode and it's a pretty solid game. It's a linear hack 'n' slash that is done pretty well. The mechanics are simple enough, no big combo buttons to hit. I played as the Ranger and he ended up pretty well balanced as we killed our way through Aganduar's minions.

The Graphics are pretty darn good and the atmospheric music works well.

Contrary to many reports, you do need to think a bit in combat as just charging in will have you down and out pretty quick.

There is plenty of loot to sell and swap around your team and it's easy to manage that part.

For those of you who are looking for RPG elements, then this really doesn't contain them, the plot is linear and the interaction with the NPC's either furthers this plot or provides background info on LoTR, but does not allow you to change the storyline.

Neither is this a 'free world' roam, you go in a line as guided by the game.

There has been a lot of concern about the AI not levelling the other characters. It actually does so automatically, neither it, nor you need to apply the points they gain unless you wish to switch to that character, I found my companions quite smart and capable of looking after themselves and me. The AI is also smart enough to gather it's own loot for these characters and equips the best equipment for them, so if you can't remember what they have and give them an inferior 'gift' the AI won't equip it :-)

Overall, I enjoyed my 14 hours in Middle Earth (familiar characters and the law made it quite plausible).

This is not and never was intended to be a 'Skyrim', but it is, none the less fun.

Once you 'beat' the game, you can play through again with the same character and continue levelling on the next difficulty or select a new character and start again, or even select a new character and start again with all their equipment they had as AI in the first play through.

If you like a simple game, that passes the time, come wage 'War in the North'.

35 of 38 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars 5 stars for co-op November 3, 2011

By Scott

Platform for Display:Xbox 360|Edition:Standard

Fun: 5.0 out of 5 stars   

This is a pretty basic game, it's a hack and slash RPG. It's fun, challenging and the loot keeps things pretty interesting. I bought this specifically for the co-op option, there is a good chance I won't be playing this at all on single layer (not to say that wouldn't be fun). My wife and I had a blast with Baulder's Gate on the PS2 and we've never really been able to find anything that was close enough to that game since then (well, SHE hasn't).
The fighting is quick and fluid, the conversations with the villagers are not tedious. Getting in and out of the leveling menus is easy and.from what I can tell the re-playability on this will be decent because the skill tree looks like it can't be filled in one game. The game is not an open world style, but there are side quests that you can pick up in the towns you visit and you'll find these items along your path.
The game is challenging as well, despite my protests we are playing this first round on easy and I've still died a few times. But still, I'm not exactly sweating the battles with the big guys either.
If I were rating this for a single player I'd probably put it at 4 stars, still a great game but I'd want a little more depth in a single player campaign.
Oddly enough the cut scenes remind me of last gen graphics but the game play graphics are beautiful. One of the first times I've seen something like that happen.
I'm actually thinking about getting this game as a gift for someone for Christmas so we can play the three player co-op.

43 of 48 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars A Gamer's review of Lord of the Rings 10 hours in.... November 7, 2011

By T. Burns

Platform for Display:Xbox 360|Edition:Standard

Fun: 5.0 out of 5 stars   

Hello and thanks for checking out my review of this game by Snowblind Studios.. This game has people split down the middle. Is it worth a play through if you are on the fence about this game? Maybe this will help a bit. Think Baldurs gate (with bigger enemies of course) mixed with some dynasty warriors, then throw in a little horde mode (ala GOW) for the challenge missions (which you try to last through multiple waves of enemies including boss characters.

The Lord of the Rings : War in the North is set as a companion piece beside the Lord of the Rings trilogy. It overlaps the plot of the movies at many points and allows you to mingle with most of the main characters from the movies and books. This is an UNTOLD story within the LOTR universe and as such should have a special attraction to those who are big fans of the original story. You will choose between 3 playable characters, a dwarf, a magician elf, or a Ranger (archer). Each character has their own skill tree associated with building up special skills and or improving base ones. All three of your characters are participating in the loot gathering and leveling process. You can ONLY play with one of them at any given time and are NOT allowed to switch between them throughout the levels. Therefore you will have to wait until the end of each level to assign points and to decide which character to use. This can be a bad mix as you will have to take EACH CHARACTER INDIVIDUALLY to the shops to sell, and buy new items. The same poor design applys to the skill tree. You would have thought the developers would have allowed for an easier way to manage the party. It is important that you continue to develop these secondary characters even if you focus on one (as I did with the Ranger). The reason is that you will need the powers of the other characters beefed up for specific boss fights. So this is A MAJOR deduction for me. You will be wizzing along with the story and then realize that it's time to take care of the party which slows the pacing down. But I did like the skill trees as well as the loot options found throughout the towns you visit.
I thought the character development was important as this may be a game saver to those who care (like i do) but for those who don't care about the story.. and are looking for the next technological marvel... Pass on this game like the black plague. It is buggy and you will likely get ticked off at your party members as they are not the best teammates in terms of strategy or efficiency you will scream for them to get out of your way at least 10 times). But the game is not apologetic about what it is or what it attempts to do. If it was released 5 years ago it would be considered a top tier title but is shadowed by some pretty impressive competition this holiday. And despite its rather poor technology it is a fun and satisfying dungeon crawler. But it is far from perfect. I liked the damage system which allows you to see the combos you are pulling off and rewards you for stringing more of them together. I also felt that the combat was simple AND YET SATISFYING. I disagree with the reviews on acuracy of hits. It is accurate enough for this type of game.

Graphics in the game are good.. NOt great. But you will enjoy the larger Boss battles as well as some of the extremely satisfying environments. There will be some points you will be impressed and others you will feel like a different development team was subbing in at some point. But the title is one of VERY FEW LICENSED LOTR GAMES THAT SUCCEEDS IN MAKING THE GAME FUN AND WORTHWHILE. I am 10 hours in already and have opened up several towns as well as some challenges that change up the flavor. I found myself playing these "challenges" several times and was having fun. It reminded me of some of the Borderlands DLC maxies

*****It is a violent game and the action can offer decapitations as well as arms and legs being serated.. I would not allow a child to play the game if you want to avoid this.. BUT IF YOU CHANGE OPTIONS SETTINGS YOU CAN TURN OFF THE GORE and there are little other concerns from a language/conceptual angle *****

So to summarize... I am not verified because I rented it.. And am keeping it out for an exptended time. I feel it is worthy of a purchase but not at it's current price. Maybe on the first couple of price drops snag it or do as I have and try it out first. I think it's dated feel hurts it as a top tier title worthy of release date spending. The game is worth a playthrough for ANYONE looking for a good CO OP dungeon crawler. It does the license justice and stays true to the LOTR mythos. It is a blast to combo up 5 or 6 enemies (think batman arkham) and then use a quick finishing move to finish off an orc. AS A CO OP GAME THIS GAME IS FANTASTIC TO PLAY WITH FRIENDS!!!!! That should be enough for some to try it out as the co op is done very well indeed. I would bump up the fun factor a ton when playing with buddies.

best LOTR property I can remember on a CONSOLE.. Enjoy!