Episode 45: The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
Retro Spectives28 Syys 2020

Episode 45: The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

The Lord Of The Rings is unquestionably the most impactful fantasy work ever written. And in 2001, Peter Jackson did what many thought was impossible, bringing Tolkien’s vision to the big screen in an enormously successful way. The movies were cultural phenomenons, praised by critics and fans alike, and for many is the definitive adaptation of the works of Tolkien.

With the success of the movie game companies were galvanised to create a video game based on it. Tolkien heavily inspired fantasy role playing games, of course, but this was an opportunity to capture the imagination of thousands of movie watchers. In fact, the game we played this fortnight - The Lord of The Rings: The Two Towers - was released several weeks before the movie, filled with footage and interviews that was only available from the game itself. Many people have fond childhood memories of this third person action rpg brawler.

But was Two Towers actually a well crafted video game that really complimented the movies, and made you feel like Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli? Or was it a cheap and nasty job, cashing in on fans and their hype for one of the best movie series ever made?

On this episode, we discuss:

  • How well does The Two Towers capture the spirit of the movie's story? Is it important for the story to get fully fleshed out in an action video game?
  • What does it mean for a video game’s combat to be ‘clunky’? Are fixed camera angles, low mobility options and delayed input combos intrinsically unfun, or do they have their merits?
  • How important are concepts like poise and hyper armor when designing and playing a third person brawler?


We answer these questions and many more on the 45th episode of the Retro Spectives Podcast!

---

Intro Music: KieLoBot - Tanzen K

Outro Music: Rockit Maxx - One point to another

LOTR: The Two Towers Soundtrack - Howard Shore

---

Is Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King a worthy sequel to this game? Are we wrong in our criticisms? You can suggest new games for us to play or tell us exactly why we’re wrong on our text based community discord server!

Jaksot(140)

Episode 12 - Pokémon Snap

Episode 12 - Pokémon Snap

Pokémon Snap was released at the height of pokémania in 1999. It offered to people’s imaginations a way to see Pokemon in full 3d in their natural environments, instead of poorly rendered sprites on t...

17 Kesä 201953min

Episode 11 - Tony Hawk's Pro Skater

Episode 11 - Tony Hawk's Pro Skater

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater blew everyone away in 1999 with its take on skating - the environments seemed crisp, the physics were unreal and it had a wonderful trick system tying it all together. But just ...

4 Kesä 201926min

Episode 10 - Megaman Battle Network 3

Episode 10 - Megaman Battle Network 3

Certain games defy easy description or understanding. They unite so many disparate ideas, many of which feed into one another, that explaining it in one sentence is both a simplification and completel...

20 Touko 20191h 34min

Episode 9 - Quake

Episode 9 - Quake

Quake is one of the most influential shooters ever made. While its contemporaries like Duke Nukem and Blood were dabbling in the illusion heavy 2.5D, Quake chose instead to feature fully 3D models and...

6 Touko 20191h 14min

Episode 8 - Silent Hill 2

Episode 8 - Silent Hill 2

Silent Hill 2 holds a special place in many people’s hearts. Its held up as a poster child for both its oppressive atmosphere and the multi-layered and surreal tale it tells, of the town and the peopl...

22 Huhti 20191h 20min

Episode 7 - Ape Escape

Episode 7 - Ape Escape

Ape Escape was a defining platformer of the Playstation 1 era, notably being the very first to require a dualshock controller to play. It truly pushed the limits of that controller, incorporating the ...

8 Huhti 20191h 5min

Episode 6 - F-Zero GX

Episode 6 - F-Zero GX

F-Zero GX is a Gamecube classic that sought to turn the challenge of the racing genre all the way to 11. It's a game where braking is actively discouraged, and if your speed ever drops below 1000km/h ...

25 Maalis 20191h 5min

Episode 5 - Red Alert 2

Episode 5 - Red Alert 2

Red Alert 2 proposes a question that every military nut wants answered: What would happen if the Soviet Union invaded the United States of America? Except the Soviet Union has mind control technology ...

10 Maalis 201947min

Suosittua kategoriassa Vapaa-aika

nikotellen
antin-matka
sita
the-harlin-show
ihan-oikeesti
unicast
rss-nikotellen
eturivi
rss-naapurissa
tahtitehdas
mutsiputki
oral-sex
kaikkea-hyvaa
everypodi
terkuin-jenna
himocast
rss-viihde-media
20-30-40-podcast
kasper-ja-mikko
junnut-pelissa