Risk: Lord of the Rings Edition
by Parker Brothers
|
Our Price: $139.99 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $39.95 (click here) Category: Toy See more product details |
|---|
Toys and Games Reviews of Risk: Lord of the Rings Edition
Customer Review: Both versions worth a look...
Summary: 5 Stars
I have last year's release -- the one that seems incomplete due to the lack of Gondor and Mordor territories on the map. (An expansion was released in Europe. But since game publishers in the USA don't "like" expansions, well... the entire game was repackaged THIS year for the North American market.)I also have the new, expanded version... and the map is truly a marvel... Keep in mind, however, that it is larger and has many MORE territories than traditional Risk. (For many, this will be a PLUS; for others, perhaps not. It really depends on your gameplay preferences.)
In spite of the "incompleteness" of the first release, it still works and plays well. It is, in fact, a full-fledged Risk game. It has the same number of territories as regular Risk and the same number of "continents" with identical reinforcement values.
Ending the game when the Ring finally moves OFF the board shortens the game and forces a different kind of strategy. End game scoring: one point for each territory controlled; 2 points for each stronghold controlled (i.e. Helm's Deep, Moria, etc.); and reinforcement value points for each "continent" controlled. (Also, points are tallied for cards played during the game as well.)
The newer version, as impressive as it is, will take longer. The game now ends after the the Ring arrives at Mt. Doom and is destroyed. Same scoring applies as last year's version. More depth, more time, more cards, more options, and more complexity abound in the newer version. (If you like that, then this will be a very good thing. If you want a shorter game, last year's "model" may suffice.)
(A player can get pretty entrenched in Mordor!)
What version is Toys R Us going to send you? I don't know! But even if you only get last year's release, it's still an enjoyable game in spite of its seeming "incompleteness."
Customer Review: Excellent Game - EVIL Marketing
Summary: 5 Stars
a couple months ago i purchased the first version of LOTR RISK that boasted an expansion for the rest of Middle Earth. now i find out that rather than offering an expansion, Parker Bros. decides to release a full "Trilogy" edition! do they expect those of us who purchased the first version to go out an purchase the full version now? I DON'T THINK SO! although it is an excellent game, this is a case of product misrepresentation and EVIL marketing!what can we do as the consumer to "fight back"? well, i had planned on taking mine back to Toys 'R Us a couple days after Christmas and explaining that i purchased the wrong one and demand an exchange, even without the receipt. most corporate stores have to deal with thousands of returns after Christmas anyway, so they would probably cater to the customer's wishes. however, this would not be fair to Toys 'R Us, for it's not their fault that Hasbro/Parker Bros. decided to rip off their customers.
so, i have a new plan... to order directly from Hasbro by credit card, wait until i get it, then call back and tell them they sent the wrong one and that i wish to return the item and get it locally... then i'll send them back the original version. the only flaw in the plan that i can see is that they appear to be out of stock on the "Trilogy" edition, so i might have to go another route. too bad it's not just software, for we could just pirate copies of it! 8-)
anyway, we should not let Hasbro/Parker Bros. get away with this. i hope many people read this and decide to take action.
Customer Review: Very Nice Game, but the bord....
Summary: 3 Stars
First let me say I gave this game 3 stars and not 4 or 5 just because of the bord, so if the MAP bord is not as important to you this game is a 4 1/2 game.
For a good description of this game I would recomend the review titeled "If you like Risk you?ll love LOTR Risk" by matt_mn . He explains it very well and gives you an idea of how the game is played and what is nice about this game .
Cons:
MAP:
-some of the teretories are very small that it is hard to have 4 'soldiers' on them and still see if that terretory has a strong hold or a power point (a picture on the terretory usualy indicates that)
Instructions:
- Certain instructions in the manual are not very clear. Example:
1- in a 3-player game does each player place 1 leader or 2
2- Missions: if you capture a terretory with a power site, but you did that without your leader, can you move your leader later (in the other turns) to that point and still have a mission that mensions to capture a power site with your leader be completed??-- the reason why this is a bit confusing is because you can do that at the first turn of the game, but no mention if you could do that throughout the game.
Summery:
great game, with even more strategy than regular risk. Bord can be improved or made a bit larger for easier reading. And I guess some instructions are not clear enough that you might have to make some rules at the begening at the game.
Hope this helps.
Customer Review: A Great Game, but only includes the first two parts!
Summary: 5 Stars
I just got this for Christmas, and I absoloutely love it! The new rules add an entire layer of depth and strategy. For example, when me and my little brother and cousin play, the little ones just like to fool around and fill up Mirkwood with ALL of their batallions just for the heck of it. But they have fun. And when lots of older kids play, it's still fun, but on a totally different scale.NEW STUFF:Leaders. Now, you start the game with one leader. (It can be anyone--Saruman, an urak-Hai general, Shelob, Gandalf, etc.) Leaders give a huge bonus to an attacking or defending army--an extra point to add to your roll!! You can also sometimes appoint a second leader.Strongholds. Another new feature is in the form of numerous strongholds on the map, like Helm's Deep and Rivendell. They add a defensive bonus.Adventures. Every once and a while, you draw Adventure cards. Some have missions on them. If you get your leader to the required Sight of Power, you get--Boo-yah!--reinforcements! Good and Evil Territories. Some territories always belong to good, and some always belong to evil. This makes sense, and it keeps the game balanced. The Fellowship. The fellowship is represented by a remarkable ring replica which moves along the board--when it goes right off the map edge, the time is up and the side with the most points wins!Good and Evil. Up to four people can play--Two are good and two are evil.In short, a greta game. Too bad it doesn't cover any territory from Return of the King!Customer Review: Great game, with a LOTR twist!
Summary: 5 Stars
If you enjoy RISK, and are a LOTR fan, then you will love this game. Great board, wonderful graphics, and nice pieces (very intricate for such a massed produced game.) The basic rules are much the same as RISK, but with several twists that definitely give the game a LOTR flair. I particularly like how the One Ring moves along the board, following the same path Frodo and Sam take in the movie. Another nice feature, that separates this game from the original RISK game, is the fact that there are several "strongholds" that give an advantage to either the dark forces or the free peoples depending on the geographic location of the stronghold. Also there are "leaders" that can lend strategic advantages when attacking or defending in battle. Now about the seller: I purchased my particular game used from a private seller. The game arrived very soon (less than a week) and was well prepared and packaged for delivery. The cards were rubber banded together, and all the pieces were separated in their respective colors and placed in little zip-lock baggies. The nice thing about this particular seller, is that he included a little booklet that he himself created, adding several new rules and variants on game play, particularly on the attack and defense "strength" of several key characters that again adds a stronger and truer flair to the LOTR world. This game is definitely in my list of top 5.