The Battle for Middle-Earth 2: The Analysis

Today we like to present the non-german speaking community our analysis of the Battle for Middle Earth 2 Preview we found in Gamestar 09/2005. In this article we will analyze the points from the Gamestar Preview and will set them in purchase to LotR - Battle for Middle Earth, the Films and the book trilogy to give you a exactly as possible view on Battle for Middle Earth 2.


There will be a lot of innovations in Battle for MiddleEarth 2 but we will also see some well-known things.
For example there will be a fire-new campaign. Now you probably ask you, what for a campaign EA wants to offer after the dark ruler Sauron was defeated. The answer to this question lies in the books of the Tolkien Trilogy. In "The Return of the King" Tolkien speaks about a second campaign Saurons, which he accomplished parallel to the attacks on Gondor and Rohan:

The attack against the north of Middle-Earth where the dwarves and Elves fought against that dark rulor. So could be for example the grey mountains, Erebor, Esgaroth or also the iron mountains possible places for the new campaign. With it are safe the Auenland, break valley as well as Minas Morgul.

Apart from the new campaign there will be a conquest and strategy mode in those the player have to administer, similarly as in Rome - total war, approx. 40 provinces and its armies tactically skillfully. In the campaign you will find no more "Search and Destroy" missions.
The new parties will be the Elves and the dwarves for the good ones and the Goblins on pages of Sauron. Couse we have seen no Screenshots of Rohan and in addition we can see Theoden as well as Faramir in a Gondorsiege we can assume that Rohan and Gondor were folded up together will be beside the Elves and dwarves the third partie on the side of the good ones.


During the new dwarves abandoned on the defensive strength with powerful fortresses and close combat lie the strengths of the Elves naturally in the remote fight and in the magic. The Goblins are to play itself similarly as the GLA in C&C Generals: By fast Hit&Run attacks on spiders and scorpios as riding animals they surprise the opponents. Also of a kind of tunnel for surprise attacks is the speech - whether the designers copied something from the tunnel system of the GLA ? We don’t know yet.
On the Screenshots Warrior from Lorien are to see, also black riders and spider riders.


he black riders - Nazghuls on horses - will probably take part on the side of sauron for Sauron into the war. On which side the units from dark forest and Lorien will stand can be only assumed. We tap on the fact that they will support the Elves. There will be also the possibility of leading a dynamic campaign against a friend.
As perhaps you assume, some long-known heroes of the first part will not be represented in Battle for middle Earth 2. However new heroes will come. Like for example Elrond, Grima, the dwarf king Dain and Glorfindel also thereby. Also Arwen, Aragorns loving and Haldir will be able to lead the player into the battle.



Beside the new campaign and the new parties the play offers still another further highlight: The player will be able to provide similarly as in Spellforce his own hero with own Design, own sayings and close/remote combat attacks in the campaign and multiplayer fights. In the Ranking this possibility will be closed.




We can assume beside the Balrog, the army of the dead ones and Ents further "superweapons" will come. Like that the speech from dragons and the monster, which guarded the entrance of the mines of Moria, is. With formations of the attack-strong wedge formation up to the contactor series for the remote fighters it will give many possibilities for your units to set up. Also the adjustment of the units is to be simplified by simple Drag&Drop.


As a further innovation it will probably give sea-battles. In the Gamestar both of warships and of cargo boats one speaks. We will see, as this feature will take addect in the multiplayer games. A further highlight will be probably the new building of bases. The developers don’t give the player building sites and so many liberties its fortress after its own taste with towers, walls and buildings. Want you your fortress with towers or nevertheless with burning oil to rather defend? Or want you as commanders of the Goblins hordes of spiders to send as soon as the opponents into the proximity of your fortress to come? All and supposed many more (catapults etc..) will be possible - both in the Singleplayer and in the Multiplayergames.




The ingame graphic has been improved a little bit compared to the prequel. Although the game is using the same graphicengine, is it possible to enjoy new realistic ripples and wakes and perspectively correct shadows. Additionally there will be new weather-effects like snow or rain, wich you can watch very well on these screens. Normal mapping and specular maps are responsible for a new more plastic and impressive surface-representation.


Text editorship: BleedMage ; moby3012 ; Loedix
Picture editorship: moby3012 ; Wicht

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