- The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II: The Rise of the Witch-king
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The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II: The Rise of the Witch-king 
Developer(s) EA Los Angeles Publisher(s) EA Games Engine SAGE Version 2.01 Platform(s) Windows Release date(s) November 28, 2006 Genre(s) RTS Mode(s) Single-player, multiplayer Rating(s) - ESRB: T
Media/distribution CD, DVD The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II: The Rise of the Witch-king (LotR: BFMEII: RotWK) is a real-time strategy computer game published by Electronic Arts, based upon the fantasy book The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien and the film trilogy based on the book, directed by Peter Jackson. First announced during the San Diego Comic-Con of 2006, The Rise of the Witch-king is the official expansion to The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II, which was published by the same company and released in 2006, for Windows. The Rise of the Witch-king was shipped to stores in the United States on November 28, 2006 and was officially released on November 30, 2006.
According to the Guinness Book of World Records Gamer's Edition, this game has the longest video game expansion pack title ever.
Contents
Gameplay changes
The game features a new faction, Angmar, bringing the total number of playable factions to seven. It also comes with a new campaign based on Angmar, consisting of eight missions telling the rise of the Witch-king of Angmar and the fall of the kingdom of Arnor.
New units were added to all six existing factions, as well as both new and improved buildings and heroes. Every faction except Angmar also received an elite hero unit. Elite heroes have a small amount of health and a large amount damage, but there are a small amount of them in each battalion. They only replenish their numbers in a healing structure.
Major improvements were made to the War of the Ring mode, including army persistence from RTS mode to the World Map, the introduction of an economy to the World Map, and the introduction of siege weapons to the World Map. Fourteen new territories and battle maps were added, as well as a new region, the Forodwaith. Four hero armies were also made available per faction. The Rise of the Witch-king also added two new historical scenarios for the War of the Ring mode, including the Fall of Arnor and the War of the Ring.
Create-A-Hero mode added two extra troll races, new weapons and armor customizations. Heroes were given a cost system tied to the number of powers given to them.
As of the New Year (2011), the game can no longer be played as multiplayer online. Playing in LAN is still a viable options for those who prefer to play in a specific place by the means of a router.
Critical reception
The game received favorable reviews from critics. On the review aggregator Game Rankings, the game had an average score of 78% based on 25 reviews.[1] On Metacritic, the game had an average score of 78 out of 100, based on 22 reviews.[2].
References
- ^ "The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II: The Rise of the Witch-king Reviews". Game Rankings. http://www.gamerankings.com/htmlpages2/934529.asp. Retrieved 2008-03-07.
- ^ "The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II: The Rise of the Witch-king, The (pc: 2006): Reviews". Metacritic. http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/pc/lotrthebattleformiddleearth2theriseofthewitchking. Retrieved 2008-03-07.
External links
W3D / SAGE / RNA engine games W3D engine SAGE engine Command & Conquer: Generals (Zero Hour) · The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth · The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II (The Rise of the Witch-king) · Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars (Kane's Wrath)RNA engine Categories:- 2006 video games
- Electronic Arts games
- Video game expansion packs
- Real-time strategy video games
- Windows games
- The Lord of the Rings (films) video games
- SAGE engine games
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