Battle For Middle Earth 2 Review

[Puzzlemaker]

Hi everyone, I had the sudden urge to review this game, so here goes.


For those of you who have never played:

Battle for middle earth 2 is an RTS, for those of you who havn't played it. You can play as mordor, goblins, isengard, elves, men, dwarves, ect.

Each "unit" you create is actually a battalion of guys, ranging from 10 to 20 depending on what you built. This leads to large, crazy battles. You also get "Ring Powers", which as special powers that you can use. You can unlock them by winning in combat. An example of such power would be Heal, which heals everyone in a selected area.

You also get heroes. They are like WC3 heroes, you can level them up, ect. Your units can also level up, but only to a max level of 5, instead of the heroes 10.

Oh, and one more thing: The resource gathering is the coolest idea I have ever seen. You build a resource-gathering object, and it gathers resources from the ground nearby, if it isn't already occupied by another resource gathering building. This means you have to controll parts of the map in order to gather resources.

Now for the actual review:

This game is both fun and incredibly boring. The units are balanced, and require quick tactical desisions; to counter these horsemen I have to move these pikemen over here, and I need to use my ring power here so these guys can win, ect.

Heroes, at lower levels, also are fun to fight with and against. They can be beaten, and you have to use your hero powers well to survive. I will get into higher-level heroes later.

Now, let me explain how a normal game goes.

• Part one: The Rush
  
  When you start the game, if you don't have a no rush rule, then you immidietly start building resource gathering buildings and units. You send the units out, and by then they also have enemy units. You build as many units as possible while still expanding your base, sending men to the front lines to die.
  
  Fun Level: High
  
  
• Part two: Post-Rush
  
  After the initial hectic rush, you have defined your territories, and now the real game begins. You can build an assortment of units, and have gotten a couple of ring powers. The battles require quick thinking and smarts, good use of your ring powers, and good use of your units. You can also build one or two heroes by now, and you use them with your army. Most victories and defeats happen here.
  
  Fun Level: Very High
  
  
• Part three: Stalemate
  
  If you have a no-rush rule, skip right to this. You both have large armies and most of your heroes. You send these armies, banners waving in the air, heroes charging in front, at the enemy. The enemy counter with an army of his own, and the clash of the century begins! Your trolls run forward, bashing at his horsemen charging at your men. Your pikemen prepare for the onslaught, as your archer open fire and-
  
  Wait, lets skip to the end.
  Everyone dies. Your heroes are busy killing each other, and any survivors are mopped up by base defenses or ring powers.
  
  It drags on. And on. And on.
  
  Fun level: Low
  
  
• Part four: The Grind
  
  Armies arn't important anymore, you spend all your resources reviving your fallen heroes. And uber-ring powers can destroy an army in one shot.
  
  Someones heroes eventually gain the upper hand at some point. Let the slow grind of death begin. Slowly, they manage to destroy you building by building, gaining more levels as they do so untill they are unstoppable. It takes while, but they destroy your entire base single-handedly.
  
  Fun level: NONE
  
  
  
  My verdict: Fun, needs to be balanced. Play Tournament, an online mode where there are no rules, such as no rush. Games are fast and furious.
  
  Also, don't play any helms deep maps. What ends up happening is the guys in helms deep just put a couple of archers up and build heroes. The archers quickly get to the max level, and so do the heroes, and you skip right to the grind.