Despite the novels releasing in the 1950s and the Peter Jackson-helmed movies hitting theaters two whole decades ago,TheLord of the Ringsis still one of the most popular franchises in the Western world, especially when it comes to the fantasy genre. There are only a handful of fantasy series that have managed to reach the Mt. Doom-like heights ofLord of the Rings, and for good reason. The tale of an unlikely band of heroes coming together to defeat an all-out villain is a universal one, and one that still resonates just well all these years later.
When it comes to video games, theLord of the Ringsfranchise has had its fair share of outings. From surprisingly great licensed movie tie-ins to bloody and brutal action games,Lord of the Ringshas had a strong presence in the video game industryfor decades. Interestingly though, 2012’sLEGO Lord of the Ringsisn’t considered to be the franchise’s best offering, with some disjointed level design, awkward voice acting, and an odd lack of charm. TheLord of the Ringsseries is primed for another LEGO installment, and withLEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Sagapaving the way, there’s some real potential here.
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A Definitive Lord of the Rings Collection
A potential newLEGO Lord of the Ringsgame should takeThe Skywalker Saga’s biggest selling point, and run with it. The game should use the books, the movies, and everything in between, collecting everything together in one definitive collection that both fans and newcomers alike can enjoy.
While the three movies,Fellowship of the Ring,Two Towers, andReturn of the King, should obviously be the crux of the game, it should also ensure that nothing is left out. Scenes fromthe Extended Cutsshould be implemented, as should a handful of sequences that are unique to the book, to ensure that thisLEGO Lord of the Ringsgame is a celebration of the franchise as a whole.
With only three, admittedly huge, movies to draw from, a newLEGO Lord of the Ringsgame could bring much more focused content to the table thanThe Skywalker Saga. While some have argued thatThe Skywalker Sagacondenses the movies a little too much, omitting some pretty necessary details in some Episodes, a newLEGO Lord of the Ringswould have plenty of wiggle room to include as much detail as possible,
Of course, the series' large cast should all make an appearance in the game. WithLEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Sagaincluding well over 350 playable characters, there’s no reason that aLEGO Lord of the Ringsgame shouldn’t do the same, with characters hailing from all corners of Middle-Earth.
Taking The Skywalker Saga’s Refinements One Step Further
To make a newLEGO Lord of the Ringsgame really stand out from the crowd, the gameplay would have to take the refinements made byThe Skywalker Sagaand enhance them even further. For instance,The Skywalker Saga’s revamped melee combat, making it a little more complex with a combo mechanic, would be perfect for aLEGOLord of the Ringsgame, where most of the characters use close-range combat.
To make the combat mechanics even more engaging, a potentialnewLEGO Lord of the Ringsgamecould ensure that each weapon has a different set of animations and functions. To go one step further, the game could even introduce a fully-fledged RPG gear system, whereby players unlock new gear as the game progresses, with higher tier weapons doing more damage and having unique effects.
A newLEGO Lord of the Ringsgame could also add some more variation to the standard LEGO gameplay formula by introducing some different sections of the gameplay that use completely different mechanics. For example, during the large-scale battles like Helm’s Deep, the game could switch to an RTS-like mode of gameplay, where players command groups of soldiers across the battlefield, similarly to the Ground Assault missions inLEGO Star Wars 3: The Clone Wars.
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Showing The Hobbit Some Love
TheLord of the RingsprequelHobbittrilogyisn’t remembered all that fondly by most fans, but nevertheless, it’s still a part of the franchise. It deserves a spot in a potential newLEGO Lord of the Ringsgame. With aLEGO Hobbitgame already out, the groundwork is already there, with general mission layouts and story beats ready to be drawn from.
Much likeStar Wars' prequels and sequels,The Hobbitshould be included in a newLEGO Lord of the Ringsgame, along with the entire cast of characters, and the locations unique to those movies. Regardless of how fans may view the more criticized trilogy, it would undoubtedly add quite a bit of content to the game.
One Does Not Simply Build Into Mordor
The most important element to take away fromLEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Sagais its pseudo-open-world design. InThe Skywalker Saga, players can travel between a vast array oficonicStar Warsplanets, all of which have large hub areas that are home to hundreds of collectibles. A newLEGO Lord of the Ringsgame should take this general design, and make it even more immersive.
Rather than having to travel between planets via a ship, and being forced into several loading screens, a newLEGO Lord of the Ringsgame should make its open-world one, gigantic seamless experience. If fans wanted, they should be able towalk across the entirety of Middle-Earth, from The Shire to Mordor, and every stop in between, with no loading screens breaking the player’s immersion at any point.
Of course, cutscenes and story missions would be used to break up the experience, but when free-roaming, the whole of Middle-Earth should feel like a real, liveable place. This should be reinforced by the NPCs, who like inThe Skywalker Saga, should be littered plentifully around each city environment. Fans should be able to seeGondorian soldiers walk around Minas Tirith, and Orcs scuttle through Isengard.
As an added bonus, it would also be pretty incredible to see Middle-Earth in different time periods, such as during the Age of Numenor, whenthe upcoming AmazonLord of the Ringsshowwill be set, or during the First Age, when the Silmarillion is set. After beating the game’s main story, players should be able to see how Middle-Earth changes following Sauron’s defeat, with certain factions and cities expanding or changing in the game world.
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