New games this week: Lord of the Rings: Conquest

by Justin McElroy { Jan 12th 2009 at 9:45AM }

Just as in the climax of The Two Towers, the evil forces of Saruman and the post-holiday game drought were about to overwhelm us, when Lord of the Rings: Conquest hopped astride Shadowfax Gandalf-style and rode down a hill to our rescue. Unlike in the film, we did not cry like the mothers of scarlet fever-infected children while we watched it.

If you're a PC gamer in the mood for something a bit more action-oriented, you'll be happy to hear that Mirror's Edge has finally reached your platform of choice. If you're not a PC player, it looks like it's Middle Earth or nothing.

Gallery: Lord of the Rings: Conquest

Xbox 360:

Lord of the Rings: Conquest

PS3:

Lord of the Rings: Conquest

PC Games:

Deal or No Deal
Neighborhood Games

Nintendo DS:

Lord of the Rings: Conquest
Moon
Personal Trainer: Math
Jumble Madness

PC Games:

Lord of the Rings: Conquest
Cartoon Network Universe: Fusion Fall
Delta Force 10th Anniversary Collection
Mirror's Edge

Tags: ea, joystiqfeatures, lord-of-the-rings-conquest, newgames

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Night Elve @ Jan 12th 2009 9:49AM

Man ... January and February are really bad months for my gaming economy since I don't have money to buy games right now :'(

DonkeyBarf @ Jan 12th 2009 9:50AM

2 sections for PC Games? Are the offerings so bad this week that we need to flesh out the bullet points?

Levi @ Jan 12th 2009 10:01AM

I'm guessing the one with Neighborhood Games is supposed to be Wii

copa @ Jan 12th 2009 9:59AM

You know, if I was the archer, I probably wouldn't stand on the front lines of battle with no armor in front of the enemy soldiers with big-ass swords.

It just seems like bad strategy to me.

Doug @ Jan 12th 2009 10:04AM

lmao, just noticed that.
Also, yeah get ready for the dry spell everyone. Hopefully, Resistance Retribution and RE5 will be so kick ass.

Night Elve @ Jan 12th 2009 10:05AM

Yeap =/

Levi @ Jan 12th 2009 10:17AM

dry spell? We have a few good looking PSN games coming, RE5 and Killzone 2 from here to the end of Feb., which is prett good. Plus, if you've beaten that slew of holiday releases already, I commend you. I have yet to finish LBP or Fallout 3, I just bought HL2 ep 1&2, as well as BioShock during that Steam sale, haven't finished any of them.

AwesomeTown @ Jan 12th 2009 10:21AM

If we include all platforms, then don't forget SFIV, Dawn of War II, Star Ocean IV, Halo Wars, Mad World, and of course Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection.

Pretty busy few months if you ask me.

baby sea tuna @ Jan 12th 2009 10:52AM

Plus DLC for Fallout, Fable, LBP, and some others. Yeah, I'm definitely not worried about not having anything to play over the next 2-3 months.

Dr Jeckyl and Mr ESC. @ Jan 12th 2009 11:10AM

At least I have time to play more Dead Space and after that all the 5 games I have never opened.

SoCoolCurt (PSN: KillaKornbread - XBL: SoCoolCurt) @ Jan 12th 2009 11:35AM

well i still have games left from November that i haven't finished yet. i'm trying to play them one at a time and finish them but this Tales of Vesperia is so frickin long lol. i know im on the last act in Resistance 2 and i was about 3/4 of the way through LBP's story mode when i stopped playing that. and i still have Blue Dragon and FFXII on back catalog for the next drought. im just hopin i can finish them all before Killzone 2. they're cutting back hours at work, so i should have some time as long as i dont hang out the whole time.

Vcize @ Jan 12th 2009 11:44AM

I'm pretty sure I wouldn't run out of stuff to play even if they released no games for the next 3 years. Not even close, really, given how much time goes into Gears and a backlog in the dozens.

GenBanks @ Jan 12th 2009 2:40PM

I for one am glad to have a dry spell. I have so many uncompleted games from the September-December period that I have no hope of playing them all for any significant length of time.

A small sample of games I haven't completed / am not tired of which I received or bought during that period:
Fallout 3, Far Cry 2, Spore, Red Alert 3, Pure, King's Bounty: The Legend, Left 4 Dead, Warhammer Online, Civ Colonization, WoW Wrath of the Litch King, Spore, Call of Duty World at War, Prince of Persia, World of Goo, Witcher Enhanced Edition, Mount & Blade, Multiwinia, GTA IV PC...

And that's just PC games. There's also LittleBigPlanet and Resistance 2 on PS3 and Fable 2 and Gears of War 2 on xbox 360.

Not to mention the hordes of older games I have on Steam and from GoG.com which I havent finished or which haven't gotten old in multiplayer yet, like Team Fortress 2, Company of Heroes, World in Conflict.

Although come to think of it, the reason I'm so behind is probably more to do with the fact that I spend more time procrastinating on the internet than actually playing.

GenBanks @ Jan 12th 2009 2:41PM

Oops, that wasn't a small sample, that was all of them. Got carried away. Also, I put Spore twice.

xFenixKnightx @ Jan 12th 2009 10:12AM

Gameflying that sucker along with PoP. Saving mah moneez for KZ2 and SFIV w/gamepad. Just bought MK VS DCU for PS3 (which was the first time I've ever purchased a multiplat game for PS3 instead of 360) this weekend. That game is fun and gorgeous. The DC story and characters are really great which was surprising.

Midway dropped the ball for not making a demo before release. I think it would have made a difference. I went to my buddies house and he had it and I was pleasantly surprised as I had NO intentions of buying or renting but I ended up really liking it. It's worth a look IMO.

Vcize @ Jan 12th 2009 11:47AM

You a SF player Fenix? I suck at it, but I picked up SF2 on XBLA and have been addicted.

I broke down and got MK vs. DC for the 360 because that's what my friends had it for (plus no matchmaking on the PS3 version, which makes no sense since it's so much more of a PITA to meet up with friends there anyway) and was pleasantly surprised with how well it works on the awful 360 d-pad. I've yet to try and pull off a move and had it not work, unlike on SF where the game makes the button presses a lot tighter and the controller can leave you hanging.

xFenixKnightx @ Jan 12th 2009 12:36PM

Yeah I got HD Remix when it came out. Love it, got all 200G on it. I love that outta maybe 30 matches maybe 1 or 2 have lag. Its so smooth and just a great game. My friends won't play with me because I always beat the crap outta them which is pretty Teh Ghey. :( But yeah I love the game, the soundtrack is awesome. I saw you on it the other day we need to go at it so I can see what you got.

I got MK VS DCU on PS3 for 2 reasons, my sons. I knew if I got it on 360 I really wouldn't let them in my media room and play it with me. Since its on PS3 we're all in the family room having a blast. The wifes not too happy about this.

Vcize @ Jan 12th 2009 3:27PM

I'm terrible at HD Remix. It's the first SF game I've ever played, heh.

Alvin @ Jan 12th 2009 10:30AM

why does the 360 version have the "only on xbox 360" sign?

blindfromthesun @ Jan 12th 2009 10:37AM

lol, noticed that myself. Good eyes.

xFenixKnightx @ Jan 12th 2009 10:42AM

For shits 'n giggles...

I also want to know why the 360 version has a scissors cutting pattern on it?

Alvin @ Jan 12th 2009 11:19AM

@ xFenixKnightx
LOL that's right and wierd!

Alex @ Jan 12th 2009 12:41PM

To piss off the knowledgeable.

Alien Lord @ Jan 12th 2009 10:34AM

I might get Conquest once it drops to about $40 but not before that

J-Link @ Jan 12th 2009 3:30PM

Same here, I thought the demo was decent.

samfish @ Jan 12th 2009 10:35AM

My wallet isn't complaining. I'm still playing Tatsunoko vs Capcom, mostly. At this point I think it'll tide me over until MadWorld or SFIV...whichever comes out first.

blindfromthesun @ Jan 12th 2009 10:43AM

Same here. Liked the demo and all but it doesn't look AAA to me. In other words no must buy sticker. $40 sounds a bit better. Still waiting for Mirror's Edge to drop down in price as well.

Killzone 2 and Street Figher IV should be worthy contenders for Feb, though Halo Wars is worth a second (or third) look.

Debating whether to get the 360 or PS3 version of Resident Evil 5...I figure since the game has co-op I'd get the 360 version, however the PS3 just got hooked up to the big screen...

Alien Lord @ Jan 12th 2009 12:48PM

play RE5 on 360 for the achievements, nothing beats achievements.

Duke @ Jan 12th 2009 1:17PM

..or he could play it for the trophies on the PS3.

Puffles @ Jan 12th 2009 10:41AM

"If you're not a PC player, it looks like it's Middle Earth or nothing."

What about Moon? It's getting amazingly good reviews.

Levi @ Jan 12th 2009 3:37PM

Really? I was wondering how it would turn out. Dementium was kind of lame, but Renegade Kid showed a glimmer of real talent, so Moon has been on my radar since it was announced.

blindfromthesun @ Jan 12th 2009 10:45AM

Grr...I was trying to reply to Alien Lord. Oh, well.

ScottG13 @ Jan 12th 2009 10:49AM

If Gamefly sends it, I'll give it a try.

umm....hello??? @ Jan 12th 2009 10:51AM

ummm...no deal on ANY of this game's releases...

dabamf @ Jan 12th 2009 1:55PM

Agreed!

dabamf @ Jan 12th 2009 11:54AM

I saw a gameplay video of LOTR:C at IGN; it looked very repetitive! You keep casting the same spells (or using the same attack) over and over again, and some annoying little hobbit keeps telling you the same command over and over and over again until you follow it, regardless of whether you're being attacked at the time. Eff that.

j.howlett @ Jan 13th 2009 10:39AM

for a second i read Elf that

The Dark Wayne @ Jan 12th 2009 12:22PM

I cant decide about LotR, I kinda of want to get it, the demo was enjoyable but I cant tell if it was 60 bucks enjoyable. I admit I'm also tempted to buy it for the preorder sword, but i dont know if that's enough

J-Link @ Jan 12th 2009 3:32PM

Just get it pre-ownedlater on, I wouldn't spend full price but if it's as good as Battle Front, then its worth it.

Jimmyjimjim @ Jan 12th 2009 1:32PM

A definite buy for me. I played the demo all weekend and had a blast. Only multiplayer I've seen that really rewards teamwork.

J-Link @ Jan 12th 2009 3:33PM

What about Team Fortress 2?

Mike @ Jan 12th 2009 7:06PM

I really hope you mean TFC... TF2 doesn't use teamwork very much.

I'd stick to L4D for this example lol...

J-Link @ Jan 12th 2009 3:34PM

This was actually quite fun, I just hope the finished version has more classes, this and the fact it's LOTR, will help me to buy it.

AngryJoeShow @ Jan 12th 2009 4:11PM

I cant wait for this game! So much so In Fact that I Made a Parody Video Preview for the Game:

Its got the One Ring, an Epic Special effects battle on a screen screen, and some funny jokes....

Check it out while we wait for this game!

Lord of the Rings Conquest Parody Video (Top Reasons this Game will KICK ASS!)
http://angryjoeshow.com/?p=702

-AngryJoe