It is a very sad time because this is it.  This concludes the Lord of the Rings trilogy.  There are no extensions to be had, no sequels possible.  There are side-stories from Universal and other LotR offerings, but this is the last movie you'll ever get to see, and the last game to be based on the movies.

Before you immerse yourself in EA's grand finale to the Lord of the Rings trilogy, it is advised that you consider what you're getting yourself into: a series of small spoilers.  This is a stellar game, but it reveals some plot points that, if you're like me, you would rather wait until the movie's out to see.  I wouldn't let myself watch the ending because of this.  The Two Towers didn't spoil too much, but I had seen that movie before playing the game.  It was tough to resist the final game sequence, but hopefully the end result will be a much more rewarding movie experience.  If you want to entirely avoid the spoilers, hold off until you've seen the movie.  This game will still be here, and it'll be just as entertaining as it is now.

For the millions of gamers who want to know everything, or for those of you who just can't wait to see another glimpse of The Return of the King, there is no better time to play this game than now.  The Return of the King seamlessly blends the movie and the game worlds together.  It's a game you're playing, but it feels more like a gigantic interactive experience.  Glancing at a few screenshots will tell you that the graphics have been severely improved, but what they fail to show is what makes this game a masterpiece.

You begin your journey as Gandalf, who is fighting in the ferocious battle that took place at the end of The Two Towers.  This level sets the stage for the rest of the game, and since every Lord of the Rings fan knows how it turns out, I'm going to avoid spoiling The Return of the King by using it to describe the gameplay.

The game literally throws you into the action.  You aren't given a silly description of your mission (are such things really necessary in this day and age?).  The only option is to attack, and through fighting you figure out that that is your mission goal.  New weapons, like giant catapults, are highlighted with a blue ring to attract the player's attention.  When you examine the area you'll see that the weapon can be used (usually only once).  When a fireball is launched, the camera smoothly glides along with it, showing how much destruction you've caused for your evil foes.

The cinematic effects continue when you approach a latter, or trigger some major game event.  The camera will shift to a more appropriate, movie-like position, demonstrating not just the power of today's game consoles, but also the power that Electronic Arts has as a game developer.  With the exception of The Two Towers, no other movie game on the market has been given the full red-carpet treatment.

Lord of the Rings fans will be in awe when the battles really pick up.  Dozens of characters on screen, all of them battling, bows, fireballs and other objects flying through the air.  The tiny details, the major details – there's just so much to see!  And you're always a part of it.  You can, at any time, walk up to an enemy and start hacking away at him.  You don't have to wait for your comrades to be near death, nor will they sit around and force you to do all the work.  It's a team effort between you, the gamer, and the game's impressive AI (artificial intelligence).  As of late, video games have found their way into museums as being a "work of art."  True, games are, but only those that sell well or receive an endless amount of critical acclaim have been placed in museums.  Even if The Return of the King wasn't fun it would still be worthy of being in a museum.  Graphically and physically it does what no other game has done before.

To better mesh the game with the film, EA created CG versions of some of the movies' most exciting sequences.  At some points you'll see a clip from the actual movie, which will then turn into a CG clip, and then into one made from real-time footage (polygons).  It's a really cool way to immerse the player into the action.  They did it with The Two Towers, but this time it's even more realistic, making it all the more effective.

Eyes will be popping out of their skulls when they see The Return of the King in action.  Most notably are the lighting effects, the background textures, and the character detail.  The lighting is unbelievable – fire effects unlike any other.  You haven't seen fire effects this good since Splinter Cell was released, that's for sure.  The explosions are nearly on par with the Rogue Squadron series.  Among the characters, Frodo and Sam are the most realistic.  They all look great, but Sam's facial detail is incredible.  His polygonal model looks just like the real actor in the film!  All of the animation is silky-smooth, whether from a real-time sequence or during actual gameplay.  However, the frame rate of the film sequences (the ones taken from the actual movies) is still lacking.

"Live the movie.  Be the hero."  That's what EA says.  If you're smart, you'll listen.  These guys have a knack for bring the best of reality (sports, racing, etc.) and fiction (The Lord of the Rings) to life.  The Return of the King is the perfect way to reward yourself after seeing the film.  If you don't mind spoilers, it's the perfect way to prepare yourself for the King's release.  This game is incredible.  It has a ton of extras, hidden content, and a DVD-like menu system that, as if the game needed it, makes The Return of the King seem more like an interactive movie.

Gameplay: 9
This is the game that Lord of the Rings fans have been waiting for!  As Vertical Horizon once sang, "It's everything you want, it's everything you need – it's everything inside that you wish you could be."  Living the life of a Hobbit may be awful, but you'd be lying if you said you've never dreamt of being in Middle-earth.  Personally I'd do just about anything to visit the set of the movies.  I don't know what I'd do if I could actually live in their world (assuming it was real).

EA's Return of the King game is about as close as you're going to get to being inside of the Lord of the Rings universe, and as far as technology goes, it's the best way to do it.

The interactive battles are nothing short of being an astonishing work of art.  They'll take your breath away, both in how the game is played and how it looks.  At times there are so many enemies on the screen that you won't know who to attack first!  It's EA's answer to Rogue Squadron, but with great ground battles in place of the space battles that the RS series is acclaimed for.

Graphics: 9.5
The next step in movie-game-making?  The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King has more graphical beauty than most GameCube, Xbox and PS2 games combined.  The characters look extremely realistic.  I'm not sure if it's face-capturing that they used or some other technique, but it looks better than any movie-game on the market.

Sound: 9
The Return of the King's breathtaking soundtrack came directly from the film.  You've heard most of the songs before, and if you're like me, you can't get enough of them.  The composer is a pure genius, using a large mixture of sounds to create several tracks that blend perfectly together.  If this soundtrack was new and had been composed exclusively for the game, it would have been the first time I had ever given a "10" to the sound category.

Difficulty: Medium
There are several difficulty levels, so if you don't want to be challenged, you don't have to be.  By that same token, if you want to get your butt kicked, you can!

Concept: 8.5
EA's new slogan could be, "Where movies come to life."  The Return of the King takes you deep inside the Lord of the Rings universe.

Multiplayer: 8.5
Cooperative two-player mode for your gaming pleasure.

Overall: 9
The Lord of the Rings gaming experience to end all Lord of the Rings gaming experiences!  That's what this is.  Few new movies are worth watching, and even fewer movie-based games are worth playing.  The Return of the King blows 'em all away by taking the best elements of the film and converting them to an amazing, interactive game world.  It's exciting battle after exciting battle.  There are several playable characters, including Gandalf, Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, Sam, and Frodo.  A fool’s hope these heroes may have, but hours of joy await those who attempt to help turn the tide.