Fine conclusion to an epic trilogy
Tolkien's wonderfully realised fantasy realm of Middle Earth, has long provided game makers with a rich source of material for their products, with games like The Hobbit proving immensely popular. The Crack of Doom is the final part in a trilogy of interactive fiction games based on The Lord of the Rings, and is preceded by The Fellowship of the Ring and Shadow of Mordor, and while this one might not quite be up to the standards of its predecessors, it remains an enjoyable adventure. The game concludes the epic trilogy in generally fine fashion, with players taking control of Sam as he travels through many of the locations made famous by the novels, including the wastelands of Gorgoroth, the gates of Cirith Ungol and the scorching heat of Mount Doom itself. Like the earlier games, The Crack of Doom is a graphical adventure that plays out via a first-person perspective, with text-based descriptions of your surroundings supporting the nicely detailed and evocative visuals and with actions carried out via parser system. For fans of the preceding games, this is a must play and makes for a satisfying conclusion to an epic journey, but newcomers are advised to start at the beginning to get the most out of the games. There are a few changes to the set-up here which, while commendable attempts at mixing up the formula, don't work quite as well as they should, such as the fact that you can now only play as one character, while the puzzles aren't quite as inventive as before. Nevertheless, The Crack of Doom remains an engaging and thrilling adventure into one of the greatest literary creations ever written and thus deserves to be played.
