Publisher: Vivendi Universal
Ages: six & up
Parental
Advisory:
Violence
As you would expect, Vivendi Universal's The Hobbit is based on J.R.R. Tolkien's classic prequel to his famous The Lord of The Rings series. The game offers a fun combination of role-playing, stealth, combat and puzzle solving and asks players to lead the brave Bilbo Baggins on his adventure through the Middle-Earth.
Players explore the magical world of Middle-Earth as Bilbo Baggins accompanied by the powerful wizard Gandalf and a party of dwarves. The game plays much like any good action/roleplay game and does a great job of recreating the characters and settings of the book. And throughout, it closely follows the well known story.
The game only offers a single-player experience and features platform sections, as well as stealth challenges, and treasure chests that may only be unlocked by completing a series of time-based puzzles. Bilbo can jump, grab ledges, shimmy and climb ropes and ladders. During Bilbo's quest to retake the Lonely Mountain, he will acquire items and knowledge, and use weapons such as Sting, his legendary sword; battle hordes of orcs, goblins, wargs and more; and use the power of the Ring to become invisible and sneak past enemies.
The graphics are attractive and present a cartoon/fantasy-style world that contrasts with the darker image depicted in the recent movies and other video games. The Hobbit features lots of violence and combat, but it's mostly bloodless.
Fans of The Hobbit will enjoy the competent video game that recreates the settings, characters and plot of the book. Experienced roleplay and adventure gamers, on the other hand, may wish for more from the game.
2/9/04 www.daytrum.com Editorial Staff
