Kicks as much ass as Sauron on a bad day
Firstly, Gondor and Rohan have been combined into one army called The Men of the West, which makes them much more balanced. The sturdy footsoldiers of Gondor and the awsome cavalry of the Rohirrim make this a good team for newcomers or people getting back into the game. The heroes are also some of the best, and they is a lot of them, making for a formidable fighting force. Their walls are also very sturdy.
The two new factions, however, are much more interesting. The Dwarves are your traditional expensive, strong but slow fighting force and will outlive all but the best units. Their speed is made up for by the addition of tunnels so they can go from one place to the next very quickly. Their foot soldiers, phlanxes and axe-throwers, combined with their heroes (of which their are only 3 regretfully) make them a force to be reckoned with. They have quick support from wagons that can have archers on or get to hurl explosive barrels. They also have good siege and walls.
The Elves are also very cool. Whilst they have weak melee troops, which are only really good for holding the enemy back for a bit, they have astoundingly good archers, capeable of mowing down lots of enemy units very quickly. The downside is I think this makes them slightly imbalanced, especially as they can kill dragons relativley quickly, but it's something easily rectified and doesn't pose that much of a problem. They also posses a strong cavalry and great heroes. Their walls aren't a match for the other two good races though.
At this point I'll quickly mention the naval combat while I remember. Whilst good, it isn't ground breaking and will likey soon wear thin, although transport your units by sea in secrect and suprising your enemy is very satisfying.
And now onto my favorite teams. The evil factions in my opinion are exellent, with flashy units that just rock. But don't get me wrong, the good teams are also ace but I've always liked evil. Anyway...
Mordor is mostly unchanged except for a few new units and they are still the amazing fighting force they were in the original. One of my favorite things however are the Nazgul and the Witch King. You can get three Nazgul on horseback now, which is cool in itself but they can also go on foot which is something I missed in the first game. The Witch King can also dismount his fellbeast and kick ass from the ground. The 2 wraiths that come on fellbeasts cannot dismount however.
Isengard is also largley unchanged, but still cool. They are the only evil team that can get walls. The old heroes are still here with the addition of a Warg Rider hero and Wormtounge who is suprisingly good. Their units are still as awsome as they were before, and sieges with them are awsome with the Beserkers attaching onto the ladders.
Possibley my new favorite faction are the Goblins. Relying and superior numbers and speed (they can use tunnels like the Dwarves) they never cease to amaze me. Lacking any real siege appart from their trolls and mountain giants they make up for this by being able to scale walls! This is extremly cool to watch and never gets old. Their heroes too are also cool. They get a Dragon Lord who reaks havoc from above and the Goblin King who rides a giant scorpion (which occumpnied by spider riders is very effective) and Shelod who just rocks.
And now onto the hero creator, which while limited, is cool seeing your own custom hero reaking havoc.
The campain, while linear and short, is compelling and has some cool battles while the War of the Ring makes for some intense tactical desisions and battles.
Unfotunatley the AI can be very easy so I reccommend the harder difficulty settings. However this is one of my only gripes with the game.
The multiplayer, as mentioned in other reviews, is ace, and playing against your mates has never been as much fun except for perhaps Dawn of War. The new strategy elements also make games more interesting and they'res always plenty of people online.
The graphics and sound are also ground breaking, with voices from all the cast and music from the films. At the high detail setting the graphics will rock your socks off.
To finish, this is a game that will appeal to anyone who is a LOTR, RTS or fan of anything really. A must buy!
*Please rate the review*