The Lord of the Rings: The Third Age Review

[@BobExcalibur]

The Third Age was designed by a team that would shortly afterwards go on to make the Dead Space games as Visceral. When you have that in mind the level of attention to details, derivation on an established gameplay formula and generally very high quality polish all start to make sense.

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

True. Such a great game.

[@Walamonga1313]

Really? Wow that makes me even angrier at how EA killed Dice and Visceral. I adore The Third Age and the first Dead Space

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

@@Walamonga1313 EA are terrible for gaming man.

[@ataridc]

Nothing makes sense. Not any more.

[@NinjaSushi2]

@@nordicwarriorgaming4953 Welcome to EA where Everybody's Angry!

[@alwaysdrunk5461]

I played this game 15 years ago and it was one of my favorites. I loved the way heroes like Gandalf, Aragorn etc have been portrayed, with everyone being unique. Loved the turn based combat as well

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

I agree its a great game. God Bless.

[@squidcorps]

This, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King games all deserve 100% effort remasters.

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Personally I don't want remasters, the originals are fine with me.

[@DrayLoco]

@@nordicwarriorgaming4953I don’t see how a remaster would be a negative at all. More people can play and appreciate it ion modern systems

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

@@DrayLoco The game works on 360 and can be played in HD. Charging full price for a HD remake would be a rip off.

[@DrayLoco]

@@nordicwarriorgaming4953 yeah I think I’ll emulate it on my pc in 1080p. I wonder if you can play the Xbox version on series X in 4k that would be awesome

[@xXLunatikxXlul]

Imagine a complete remake in graphics. A completely overhaul would be great and I'd definitely pay full price.

[@luigitheboar8699]

I bought this one along with The Return Of The King/Two Towers as a kid. Always felt myself being more drawn to the hack and slash of the latter two. However, replayed this one when I was older and really enjoyed it. Great game.

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Sure is bro. Awesome game.

[@mino1999]

I remember getting this as a Christmas gift from my mom, one of my most memorable gifts ever actually :)

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Awesome. Such a great gift.

[@MasterXehanort96]

Playing this game as I type this message. That's wild lol. Great game tho, would absolutely love a remake or a remaster even. My favorite of any LotR games

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Yeah this game is great. Its a shame we never got more LOTR games of this kind.

[@NinjaSushi2]

Remaster please.

[@NinjaSushi2]

Scratch that. This game was complete crap and that's why it's never had a remaster or a remake or re-release for that matter.

[@TacticalDingus]

I wish turn based style RPGs like this were a thing still. If it ain't broke don't fix it. All these developers try to take this and put a twist to it. I think this style of combat is perfect

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

I agree. God Bless.,

[@ikesours6558]

I know. When ya break down rpg... Role Playing... nothing symbolizes that better than turn-based. It's fine to have modifications to the formula and I get the allure of action rpgs but it's just a different species.

[@fryze09]

It's the game I didn't deserve when it came out, now it is one of my favourite genres of games

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Same here.

[@JakOTheShadows]

I spent so many hours levelling under that bridge in Eregion as a kid

[@fvkijay]

Playing this on Dolphin with upgraded textures is a sight to behold. What a phenomenal game.

[@JohnGudmann]

Great video! Your mention of Evil Mode is a total blast from the past. I remember loading the game up for my second playthrough and giving Berethor one of the strongest weapons in the game. I went through most of that playthrough one-shotting many of the enemies 😅

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Thanks bro. Yeah playing through the game with a new sword is badass. The early orcs don't stand a chance lol.

[@TheRogueJedii]

Wait, there is NG+ in this game??

[@JohnGudmann]

@@TheRogueJedii not quite, but you can play Evil Mode for later stages of the game, and then choose a save file from the start of the game to deliver your unlocked items to. It has a lot of the same benefits of NG+ though, because your characters become hugely overpowered with the items they get.

[@sealstorm1935]

Fond memories grinding in Moira unlocking every skill and abilities.

[@alucardxx142]

I played it when it was released and felt in love with the story and the charactera, combat system etc

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Great game.

[@thepriorstone4064]

You didn’t mention the best part of the final boss: you go from the battle of Pelinor Fields, watch a few cutscenes, then boom your fighting Sauron

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Yeah it felt a bit rushed.

[@Testperson001]

I sunk soooo many hours into this game. Loved it so much and happy to see it isn't just my nostalgia glasses that remember this game as awesome.

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Same here. God Bless.

[@Boombig247]

I play this game 10 years ago and I think I should play it again

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Yeah why not. Great fun.

[@GabrielShakkori]

I remeber playing this game on gamecube in 2005 and having tjr full game guide. Ot was the first turn based rpg I beat and to this day is one of few. I'm going back and playing the game now and I'm 27 I'm even thinking of using this game as an excuse to finally make a retrospective

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Nice. I am one year older than you so we pretty much come from the same generation. This game was amazing back then and I still like it.

[@markymark2791]

Loved this game was one of the first rpgs I ever played as a child. The helms deep fight was a nightmare the first time around the end where they throw the trolls at you was impossible for me 😂

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Yeah the trolls would often stun my guys and it make them very annoying to try to beat, particularly on a first play through lol. Great game for the most part but takes some getting used to. God Bless.

[@reloadingdontshoot1]

Playing this again on the Dolphin emulator; started this week. Now I remember why it's one of my favourite LOTR games along with Return of the King

[@Toshiro93]

I was never able to complete it - when I got to Helm's Deep, I got stuck and within a few days, my playstation broke and from there I lost the desire - but I remember that the idea of ​​a turn-based RPG was interesting, especially considering how the story took place in parallel with the films. Here, in my opinion the definitive game based on Lotr should be a fusion between The Third Age and The War in the North: opt for a turn-based system, but allow the customization of the characters, including their creation from scratch (choosing between elves, dwarves , men and orcs) and having a plot parallel to the events of the films, but well written and articulated.

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Great idea. Sadly it will probably never be made.

[@Lorscia]

I used to play it on my PS2 when I was a kid. I wish they resume it and make it a PC version, which as far as I am aware was never made. I would buy it on Steam without hesitation.

[@michaelpeacock4228]

This, along with the two direct movie tie-ins for the PS2 and the GBA, was a golden age for LOTR games. For solid beat-em-ups and hack and slash titles, I had Two Towers and and Return of the King. But for a Western game to feel so much like a SOLID JRPG, while still retaining the feel of a decidedly traditional Fantasy story, was magical! I wish that someday a studio lets go of their ironclad grip, and gives us a remaster of this! (Also, the GBA version was pretty damn fun, too! Kind of like a "Fire Emblem" sort of tactical RPG!)

[@GreyThinkMedia]

The song they chose for the log in screen was epic. The lighting of the beacons.

[@HIGHDRONER]

Maaan i loved this game when i was younger. I had this on my ps2 and i really want to play this gem again. too bad i lost it somewhere a long time ago

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

You could probably find the game cheap in a second hand store somewhere.

[@HIGHDRONER]

@@nordicwarriorgaming4953 not even the flea market had it even though it had a whole lot of other games. Might go to an old games site or something and use an emulator if I have the time

[@8rboy]

I remember the first time I played this game and I just couldn’t beat it. I was too young to understand english and my reasoning skills were not good enough, so naturally I didn’t like it. Came back to it a few years after that and gave it another go and boy was I blown away! I loved it!

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Yeah its one of them games that once you understand its mechanics, comes a blast to play.

[@wyldescooter]

Awesome review! I just bought the game and wanted to see what I was getting into. This review got me excited. Should be fun. Thank you

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Thanks bro. Glad you enjoyed it.

[@Walamonga1313]

This game was Final Fantasy X before I played FFX. Great games both of em. FFX has a better story and music, but TTA has the better progression and gameplay imo. I've played tons of LOTR games, but the Third Age is easily my fav one. It's the only one that's felt like the epic journey that LOTR is. The new characters were actually interesting too and I liked the angle this original plot took. I also HATE grinding in games, but TTA is one of very very few games where I've actually enjoyed grinding. Why? Because of how learning new skills works. It's a fantastic system, use skills to learn new skills. So simple and fun. Not to mention all of em have sick animations and useful effects. Then add onto that thr fact "random encounters" aren't even random since you've the meters and enemies on screen. This game is one of the best RPGs I've ever played, and that's saying a lot considering I've played tons of amazing JRPGs and a couple WRPGs EDIT: Oh and one last thing. I played this game so much that my disc died. So I had to get a second copy lol. I still have both on my shelf.

[@GabrielShakkori]

This and Megaman X Commanf mission were my rpgs growing ip

[@Testperson001]

I remember on my first playthrough I only used some characters for their weapon attacking moves and others for magic and once I could play in evil mode and realised he had powerful leadership abilities I started a new run where I did the inverse focus for all of my party and it was a whole new game all over.

[@craigfunk3453]

Its great how most characters have 2 completely different skill sets you can choose to focus on, berethor and Morwen have it harder as berethor's early to mid tier leadership skills are to effective to really pass up on while morwen's thief craft isn't enough on its own to warrant a singular focus. I always build berethor for his leadership but its whether I set up his sword skills for damage or debuff/support that matters. Morwen you can go damage or a speedy focus on her 3 different axe skills that apply DoTs to lockdowm and bleed out your opponents. Idrial, until Moria and the early nimble crafting elfstone kinda needs to be your healer, but her sword craft is always weaker than other characters going physical, but she always has smaller turn delays for her sword craft and she can be useful to wear down opponents through a flurry of attacks meant to strip away their ability to really hurt anyone

[@thepaper888]

Picked this up at a thrift store, can't wait.

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

That's great man. Its fun.

[@freddiejohnson6137]

This is one of those games where you can't believe there wasn't a Lord of the Rings game like it before or since as it pretty much is the perfect setting too. It was also really unheard of at the time for a non Japanese developer to make an RPG like this as in many ways it takes a lot of inspiration in its battle menus from Final Fantasy 10. The game feels epic as well, I have the Gamecube version and its one of those games I can play and just enjoy. My only gripe is on modern TV I get a very obvious interlaced picture which crts would have hidden because of scanlines, not sure if this is an issue with other versions?

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Yeah its definetly underrated for sure. They could definetly have made other LOTR games just like it with updated visuals. I'm not sure about the interlaced picture, I played the Xbox version on my Xbox 360 since its backwards compatible and it plays in HD pretty fine from what I can see. Though there is one level in particular "Minas Tirith throne room" where the screen blacks out for some reason. I think I forgot to mention that in the review.

[@NinjaSushi2]

After beating the game about the only fun part was the gameplay in grinding which by the end of the game was useless and pretty much it sucked. You can just use a few items to make anybody easily as fuck and then the game is boring or the boss can use a few skills against you that TPKs you in three turns.

[@coryczerwinski5432]

Appreciate this video very much. I'm currently playing this game and am at 38% completion. This video is helpful because the game just got really hard. Thanks for the guidance

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

No problem, thanks for watching. God Bless.

[@creatureTHEcritter]

Oh man i miss the days of coming home from school watching cartoons and playing games like this. Simpler times😢.

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Same here bro. God Bless.

[@senyorlimpiogaming]

I remember playing this game on a borrowed Playstation. I recall enjoying it a lot but not getting too far as I had to return the console before finishing it.

[@lastigesoma6126]

I played this so much as a kid on the gamecube. Just recently started playing it again on dolphin and i love it xd

[@Walamonga1313]

Same, I played the shit out of it. And recently tried it on Dolphin (cause PCSX2 version is broken), what can I say: it still holds up. It's still just as fun. Shame I can't replay it yet since I'm busy with so many other games

[@Elfofthedungeon]

my childhood right here

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Same here. God Bless.

[@monster2slayer]

played it with a friend as a teen. had a lot of fun, even though i usually dislike turn based combat.

[@dustypirate28]

I loved the gameplay and visuals of this game, but even 12 year old me was cringing at the dialogue and some plot points of the game. From ripping off scenes from the movie (Elegost’s tracking a body 5 feet away & the Morwen/Berethor romance) to randomly ripping off & inserting lines from the movie (Gothmog’s time of the Orc line) there was some moderately strong cringe.

[@GabzAugustoBR]

this game was the bane of my existence when a kid. I asked for an action LotR game but my parents bought The Third Age instead. I was 6, never played RPGs before and the game wasn't available in my language. So after some time my parents noticed I wasn't playing it and tried to scold me for wasting money and asking for games I don't even touch. I communicated them that I disliked the game and it wasn't the same one I asked. They got really mad. Till this day I remember it as me trying to not make them fell like they wasted money by trying to play it a lot of times without success and not saying it wasn't the game I asked for until they asked why I wasn't playing it. But I failed because they remember it as me wasting their money by not playing the game I asked for lol

[@alexbennett8076]

Never played this one before but it seems like I might have to try it out

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Its awesome IMO.

[@devinfrench4924]

Tbh as a noob of this genre on his second playthrough, honestly just upgrade strength and spirit, thats it... Idrial tho needs JUST SPIRIT

[@LordMax1991]

I really love this game and every now and then i get my PS3 out to play it. What i liked were the animations of the hero attacks like Aragons or Gandalfs which looked exactly like the attacks from the return of the king game. Overall a very good game with a decent story and good rpg elements

[@aiis6821]

I cant believe this people went on to make Dead space... And then die by EA's hand

[@miniblasan5717]

Still got that game on PS2, but I haven't played the game since I were around 20 y.o so somewhere 10 years ago and I bought the game back in 2001-2005 so the disc is definitely 15 year old or more. And I got the Swedish version of Lord of the Ring: The Third Age so it gives all of Nordic and English subtitles.

[@aes1373]

As a teenager and even now I wish it wasn't turn based but rather direct hack and slash like the Return of the King or Two Towers. Wish someone would come out with a mod for that.

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

That would be very interesting. Same story but more traditional action adventure style gameplay.

[@mimief7969]

Adored this game! I especially loved Morwen.

[@luccirobbins6675]

Too bad the Middle Earth property has changed licenses with so many different companies. Would love a remaster of this game as well as the movie tie-in games, The Hobbit and War In The North.

[@MrZoora23]

Wish i could find a game similar to this. I've played this game once a year for the last five years cause i can't find anything similar

[@KarmaSpaz12]

Final Fantasy X. Although, there's nothing really like this in a similar visual style.

[@pokerus4511]

Swear this game is basically Final fantasy X but LoTR

[@sotosaxaios8784]

This was one of my crushes back at the time! Loved it so much!

[@TheFoolTohru]

Thank you for this! This game is amazing! If only we got a Pc Port.

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

I agree its such a great game. God Bless.

[@alexandruabrudan]

Use an emulator. It's worth it. I'm playing it right now on pcsx2 emulator. I only bough a PS joystick

[@ElvisMarrero]

Which version did you review? Im planing on getting it but cant decide if ps2 or gamecube

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Xbox. That's the only version I have played.

[@Sanguivore]

The animations in this game look *insane* for a 2004 game!

[@VortexKiller2]

3:13 Moria mountain man Hadhod, my favourite character so far

[@SageOfHeaven]

I like how you use the Iron hills theme music.

[@thepaper888]

Command menu reminds me of ffx.

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

May have been an inspiration.

[@dimitarmilushev817]

Guys, does anyone know what the red sign means, right next to the queue list that appears before I hit during battle?

[@hoihoi13]

I never knew this game and would like to play it now. Is it still available in any forms on console or PC?

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

I have it on Xbox, its backwards compatible with Xbox 360. There is a PS2 version and a gamecube version. Also a game boy advance version for what its worth but I have only ever played the Xbox version. As far as I know there was never a PC release.

[@dawoodwilliams3652]

The easiest way to play it, would probably be get the PS2 rom and emulate it on PC, That's how i"m going to play it, tested it out and the emulation is flawless. if you choose to upscale and play at a higher resolution, it looks like a remaster.

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

@@dawoodwilliams3652 I think it looks great on Xbox 360.

[@DrayLoco]

The game has amazing graphics and the voice acting is great. Definitely gonna be playing this thanks for the video

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

No problem. Its an underrated gem for sure. One of those games that went under the radar when it first came out, but became known as a bit of a classic years later.

[@topcthepainclan2004]

Great game, was blown away at how good it looked back then

[@jjwhy321y3]

Bought a Gamecube to play this (along w 2-3 other games). It's awesome.

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

It sure is pal. Great game.

[@theMylo]

I remember having this game and not knowing what to do

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Its a very fun game if you take the time to get used to it in my opinion.

[@mogueraguh]

Someone please make a hacked save file for early game on ps3 virtual mc

[@brozb4chorez831]

is this an emulation or did u have some sort of setting im not aware of? it looks so clean when you play it vs when i do ! awesome video too!

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Thanks bro. I was playing the original Xbox disk on my Xbox 360, the game is backwards compatible with it. It allows you to play the game in HD.

[@philbecker4676]

I just wish I'd realised as a kid you were SUPPOSED to use special moves rather than save them up and maybe I wouldn't have died so often.

[@djtoxicdhg]

How's it going bro? Hope life has bin treating you well lately.

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Not bad bro. You?

[@djtoxicdhg]

@@nordicwarriorgaming4953 prity good bro life is peachy 🍑

[@djtoxicdhg]

@@nordicwarriorgaming4953 just found out my job just got yunyinized and I just got a 1.50$ a hour pay rais wich is sick as fuck especially sins I work soo meny howers now I'm really getting that money honey lol

[@GabrielShakkori]

@@djtoxicdhg hell yeah man congrats

[@Nobody-dc8dp]

What's better Third age or KoToRII?

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

KOTOR 2 IMO. In my top 100 favorite games list I have KOTOR 2 at 34 and Third Age at 46. God Bless.

[@waalex11]

Oof. I liked this as a kid, and was thinking of buying it again on PS2 for nostalgia since I sold the GameCube version I had as a teen, but seeing this, I'll pass. I might play it again on PCSX2 though.

[@ataridc]

Imagine if all these games where you're assisting the fellowship behind the scenes are canon and it turns out Frodo and the fellowship actually did very little

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

LOL Yeah that would be funny.

[@mateuszmalag878]

I love this game but.... it beat me. Pelennor fields and that pricks who never let me do my turn where driving me crazy. They had 6-7 turns and my only one I have gotten in a while I needed to waste to heal. After few tries and houres of that endless circle sadly I gave up.

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

I had that same problem too. Then I realised that all I had to do was use the leadership ability unlocked by Berethor called "stand fast" that way your entire party becomes immune to stunning. The reason you don't get a turn is because the Mumakil's stomp attack causes stun.

[@mateuszmalag878]

@@nordicwarriorgaming4953 Well thanks for advice, now I just need to buy a game and ps2 once again and try it :D Last time I bought ps2 few years ago just to play third age, two towers and return of the king so maybe someday :)

[@subestimado2128]

Story was garbage, graphics were really good for the time but are showing their age, but what brings me back to it 18 years after its release is its replayability. Each play through is going to be different depending on the strategy you want to use.

[@juliosingapu8657]

Sorry to all but I’m not really a fan of the turn based game, it’s too long especially when it comes to powering up characters, resurrecting characters and so forth. Instead of 3 on 3 fights that take up to 10-15 mins I’d be in the battle alongside my army

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Its all good. These types of games are not to everyone's taste. God Bless.

[@GabrielShakkori]

This was "my" ff10

[@NinjaSushi2]

I started up the game last night and I forgot how great of a game this was. For an original Xbox game that came out twenty years ago it plays wonderfully well today. Edit: This game sucks ass. I just beat the game and it's fucking stupid. Pretty much the whole game is easy until you get to any of the boss fights and then the last few fights of the game there's nowhere to save and a cheese you to death. You're supposed to have immunity to fear and somehow the Eye of Sauron can put fear on to all your dudes and then he hits you till you die. This game plenty of times will knock out your whole team or stun everyone or paralyze everyone or mobilize everyone or root everyone or do some bullshit that doesn't allow you to fight back and you just sit there and watch your team die. Even at like level 85 I was kicking everybody's ass until the end. Besides the computer teasing you to death the story progression is awful and retardedly cheesy and it uses the dumbest tropes. The item progression was an afterthought as well as Morwen and Eoden. That's honestly hard to imagine that the team that made this garbage would go on to make Dead Space because they clearly gave no fucks about this game.

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

I agree. The game still holds up very well. God Bless.

[@NinjaSushi2]

@@nordicwarriorgaming4953 God bless you too!

[@ImmortalArch7]

If you use Berethor and Idrial in tough fights you won’t die if you know HOW to play!

[@natethegreatreviews]

Great video. I subbed to the channel:)

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Thanks bro. God Bless.

[@TheRogueJedii]

Super amazing game, underrated

[@mfsports1368]

I wish you could play this on ps5

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

It works on 360 and can be played in HD. Which looks great.

[@TheRoguePrince0]

this is the lotr version of kotor

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

True it has some similarities.

[@talkingfights]

great vid

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

Thanks mate.

[@Blackunit99]

imagine a remake of this!

[@NinjaSushi2]

This game sucks ass. I just beat the game and it's fucking stupid. Pretty much the whole game is easy until you get to any of the boss fights and then the last few fights of the game there's nowhere to save and a cheese you to death. You're supposed to have immunity to fear and somehow the Eye of Sauron can put fear on to all your dudes and then he hits you till you die. This game plenty of times will knock out your whole team or stun everyone or paralyze everyone or mobilize everyone or root everyone or do some bullshit that doesn't allow you to fight back and you just sit there and watch your team die. Even at like level 85 I was kicking everybody's ass until the end. Besides the computer teasing you to death the story progression is awful and retardedly cheesy and it uses the dumbest tropes. The item progression was an afterthought as well as Morwen and Eoden. That's honestly hard to imagine that the team that made this garbage would go on to make Dead Space because they clearly gave no fucks about this game.

[@nordicwarriorgaming4953]

I disagree completely. First of all, you must take the time to understand how to properly play the game, or the concept of turn based RPGs in general. You mentioned your entire party being stunned and missing turns, yes this happens, very easy way to fix it. Pay attention to your leadership abilities, Berethor has a very useful ability called "Stand Fast" That makes your entire party immune to being stunned, there are also items that can assist you in this regard and some of them can even remove an enemies armor or resurrect a character and even your entire team on occasion. I also doubt very much that you took the time to properly level up and balance your characters statistics, because if this is done right then the game is considerably easier. On a first playthrough it is very challenging, particularly if you don't fully grasp the concept. But with patience and experience, like all the best RPGs it is very manageable. But I respect your opinion. God Bless.

[@slowcomet]

ffx

[@rebelslave2861]

My word this game looks solid, the 6th generation was something to truly behold, look at them animations its madness they just don't make them like this anymore... Don't shoot me for emulating this lol