Lord of the Rings latest game is a must-grab but it’s not for Xbox or PlayStation

THE Lord of the Rings: Duel for Middle-earth is a two-player board game that is a Tolkein-themed reworking of the excellent 7 Wonders Duel.

One player takes the role of the Fellowship, while the other plays as Sauron and his forces.

You take turns drawing and playing cards of various effects with the aim of achieving one of three victory conditions.

First, you can complete the Quest for the Ring, where you progress along a track as the Fellowship attempts to reach Mount Doom while the Nazgul try to catch them.

Second, you can conquer Middle-earth by having at least one unit in all seven areas of the game map.

Third, you can form alliances with all six of the different races in the world.

The way the cards are laid out – as a pyramid on the table – means that the game moves very quickly in the early stages, as you build up an empire.

Once all the cards are exhausted a new set of more powerful cards is laid out on the table introducing new mechanics and more powerful abilities.

With a total of three card sets, as the game goes on each turn becomes more and more complex as both of you narrows in on one of the three victory conditions.

It makes it a very easy game to learn. The rules are pretty simple, and the early game goes by so quickly that you can easily get a grasp of the game’s flow before reaching the more complex sections.

You never run into a scenario where you feel like you have no chance of winning either.

In one of the games I played, I felt like I was dominating my opponent for most of it, but all it took was a few good late-game cards for things to suddenly become a very tight race.

That, combined with the fact that there are three ways to win means you’re never out of options, and when you take the time to devise a strategy, it always feels rewarding.

It’s not a carbon copy of 7 Wonders either, and some real improvements are made.

Duel for Middle-earth’s war map is a lot more satisfying to take over and control than 7 Wonder’s tug-of-war-style map, while still allowing for a swingy game where you can never sit safely on your laurels.

Despite having a reliance on RNG, with drawing cards from the pyramid, no victory ever feels entirely down to luck and it’s quite easy to change tactics on the fly if you don’t get the draws you were hoping for.

It makes for a game that is easy to pick up and play, has a nice layer of strategy without taking too long, and is quite moreish once you get into it.

Score: 4/5

If you want to read more gaming reviews, check out our Goat Simulator: Remastered review.