The two solo campaigns (one for the good folk and one for the forces of evil) are each eight interesting scenarios in length. At this point in the game I can pretty much 'muhahaha' until I'm sick. Rather than being a limp film-license, it is a vibrant, colourful exploration of the terrain (PC games are all about good terrain) - it's an exploration that delivers pleasing alternative Middle Earths to us for pillage and plunder, or for pious defence. What appears from its deep dark pocketses are spiders and goblins riding giant scorpions, orc chiefs leading hordes of their lurching brethren, tentacle monsters summoned from below, blazing balrogs, shiny heroes clad in mithril and light, and even some plump little Hobbits. After seeing how weakly Empire At War delivered its now-familiar subject matter, it's gratifying to see an RTS that openly revels in itself.Д«attle For Middle Earth 2 takes the Tolkien universe and shakes it roughly by the trousers, just to see what shiny things fall out which might be of use. It's a nice big cave troll of an RTS: never too fast or clever, but awesome when beating drums or upgraded with armour. While never genuinely challenging or surprising, BFME2 does deal its blows with feeling.

As the game of the film it has considerable inherited potential to work with, and while it might only have waded through the shallow edge of the genepool in its first iteration, it is now completely submerged - and growing stronger like an orc gestating in verdant sludge. This latest real-time enactment of the Middle Earth conflict is a healthy improvement on its predecessor.

Battle for middle earth 2 full game