Post originally by Justin Bacon at 2004-03-31 16:56:01
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I found it interesting that you felt the game distanced you from the world of Middle Earth. What I, personally, found so amazing about the game is that:
(a) It featured very flexible, easy-to-learn gameplay.
(b) You could still tie the mechanics directly to the game world.
I mean, you can literally use Shadowfax to race to Minas Tirith. But you can also use Shadowfax to race across Mordor.
Sure, everything is modeled using a core set of mechanics. Thus the journey through Moria and the long march across Mordor are both modeled as long traveling lines. But this is an RPG site, so the concept of modeling diverse elements on a core mechanics isn't all that foreign to us.
The game's reply value is also very high, IMO. I'm very impressed by the fact that there are a variety of successful tactics for every board and across the game as a whole. I've had the game for about two years now, and in that time it's seen about 10x as much gameplay as all my other boardgames combined.
Post originally by Shannon Appelcline at 2004-03-31 21:48:04
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I've played the game maybe 5 or 7 times since it was released. I don't own a copy, but more than one friend does. I totally agree about its replayability. I also like how it plays differently with different numbers of players.
And, I also agree on different tactics. In this last game we just jammed across Mordor without bothering with any of the secondary lines, which I'd never seen before.
But, I just don't agree that the game is that well tied to the world. Maybe our players just aren't creative enough, but my general experience is that no one every notices what card they play, just what icons they have of what type, and that defeats much of the purpose of the cards representing specific things.
Post originally by NickX at 2004-04-01 01:55:24
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I'm with Justin on this one. Our group found the awesome artwork to be highly evocative of the setting. With the LOTR soundtrack playing in the background, our sessions usually consist of several attempts to finish the quest (never succeeded when Sauron started at 12...) and we all really got into out characters. Thanks to the movies, we even started talking like the hobbits and Gollum and even like some of the supporting characters! Quite fun when you have characters doing unlikely things.
Probably because my group consists mainly of role-players, we hardly ever noticed the mechanics. As always, YMMV.
Thanks for the great review, Shannon. I always enjoy your insights into game design and the clear overview of things.
Post originally by Justin Bacon at 2004-04-01 18:40:26
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NickX wrote:
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Probably because my group consists mainly of role-players, we hardly ever noticed the mechanics. As always, YMMV.
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That's my experience, too. Ultimately, it's a board game which models Middle Earth and THE LORD OF THE RINGS using a simple set of well-designed mechanics. If you choose to just focus on the mechanics, then it won't evoke the world (any more than focusing on the mechanics of D&D or EXALTED will evoke a world); but if you focus on what the mechanics are *representing* the world will be evoked.
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Thanks for the great review, Shannon. I always enjoy your insights into game design and the clear overview of things.
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Ditto. Also, if you guys haven't tried the expansion packs (SAURON and FRIENDS & FOES), do so. They're a lot of fun. Personally, I enjoy playing the game with a variety of combinations (since each combination is a unique and fun experience).
Post originally by Mark Buckley at 2004-04-02 00:11:51
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Note that there is a tweak for Friends & Foes (The Black Gate card) which stops killing all the monsters being a bit too easy, covered on Boardgamegeek at:
http://www.boardgamegeek.com/article/9628
Additionally, if you fancy a real brain twister, try "Iron-Hobbit" LOTR as played at BayCon (that's Exeter, UK, not San Francisco!) for a few years:
Sauron starts at 10. If ANY hobbit is lost, game over, you all lose. Certainly makes you think long and hard...
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