Nothing Has Beaten This Forgotten Strategy Game In 20 Years

Strategy games have evolved immensely over the years, with a far greater range of titles within the genre adopting drastically different gameplay styles. There are the likes of Crusader Kings, which offers a robust role-playing model within a strategy framework, Fire Emblem, which is a far more character-focused affair that still prioritizes its best-in-class turn-based tactics gameplay, and then the likes of Iron Harvest, which continues the legendarily good control point style of real-time strategy game. This level of variety is phenomenal, but it also often means that even amazing titles have a harder time standing out as they’re competing with a swathe of niche and hugely popular titles.

Among all of the very best strategy games are those that get left to the wayside. These are often better than their vastly more popular counterparts, but they don’t get the attention they deserve for whatever reason. Such is the case for the legendarily good 2006 real-time strategy game, The Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle-earth 2. Lost to time due to a plethora of reasons, this iconic strategy game achieved something that few other games in its genre have accomplished since. It is absolutely time that this underrated masterpiece gets the flowers it deserves, and perhaps even a much-needed comeback.

The Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle-Earth 2 Deserves Far More Praise Than It Gets

The Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle-earth 2, for those not in the know, was a real-time strategy game akin to the likes of Dawn of War. It saw players capture a series of resource nodes across the map, build up a base to generate new units, and then attempt to destroy their opponent while protecting their own assets. Lots of games have used this style of gameplay to varying degrees of success, but Battle for Middle-earth 2 was the perfect distillation of it. Its various factions, while perhaps not offering the level of asymmetrical gameplay as Starcraft, catered to the Lord of the Rings’ fanbase and delivered enough unit variety and abilities to keep things feeling fresh.

Where Battle for Middle-earth 2 really succeeded was in both its implementation of customizable heroes and engrossing progression. Players could create their own unique Lord of the Rings heroes and villains, design their look, choose their skills and stats, and then bring them out onto the battlefield. It still gives players all the expected heroes and villains to play as, but this level of customization added a compelling level of creativity and immersion that I’ve not seen from similar strategy games, while, frankly, in my opinion, making it the very best Lord of the Rings game. There was also a strong sense of progression mid-battle that isn’t present even in Dawn of War, a game that I believe is equally strong in many regards.

The flow of battle remains the same, and you’ll gradually generate more and more resources to create better buildings and unlock stronger units. However, on top of that level of progression, players can also unlock abilities from a tree of skills, including the option of summoning units like Tom Bombadil, uncovering the fog of war in certain areas of the map, or slowing down enemy units. These skills could turn the tide of battle and transform a lowly band of soldiers into an unstoppable fighting force if used at the correct time. Sure, it isn’t exactly the most mind-blowing accomplishment, but it added a level of much-needed complexity to an otherwise well-trodden formula. The trouble is that all of this brilliance is hard to appreciate now, considering the game is completely inaccessible.

Battle for Middle-Earth Deserves a Comeback

Battle for Middle-earth 2 was relatively well-received at launch, but I think it is in hindsight that its best qualities have come to the forefront. We don’t really get many games like it anymore. The closest modern comparison I can think of is Dawn of War 4, a new entry in a series that hasn’t had a game in nearly a decade, and even its previous entries didn’t utilize this formula. As a result, games like Battle for Middle-earth have been deeply missed, and its gameplay style has become more appreciated. The same happened with Dawn of War, and, as aforementioned, it is now getting what is ostensibly a full revival that is a return to its golden age.

Battle for Middle-earth is absolutely a dead gaming series that deserves a comeback. Both games in the series, their incredible campaigns, excellent gameplay, and more are completely inaccessible due to expired licenses. You cannot purchase them digitally, and EA has, perhaps a little understandably, no interest in continuing to pay to keep them around. As that is unlikely to change, and out of a desire to see more games that adopt this style of real-time strategy gameplay, it would be great to get a new entry in the Battle for Middle-earth series.

This is also without mentioning that, despite there being so much potential for phenomenal Lord of the Rings games, we haven’t gotten a good one in a very long time. A new Battle for Middle-earth would rectify that, as it was a strong series when it came out that truly understood the Lord of the Rings IP and delivered experiences that capitalized on their very best aspects. Their campaigns, while still adhereing to the large-scale warfare, told a more intimate narrative while the conquest campaign mode in the second game allowed players to basically take over all of Middle-earth.

I can see, especially if Dawn of War 4 performs well, there being a desire for Battle for Middle-earth to return in the future. Of course, that may be wishful thinking on my part, and there may not be the love for it that I believe there is. Sadly, as aforementioned, there isn’t really a legal way for that love to grow organically in 2026, as both games have been delisted from all digital storefronts. If you can get your hands on a copy of Battle for Middle-earth 2, especially, then I highly recommend you do, as it is a phenomenal strategy game that pushed the genre forward in a deeply profound way. Perhaps my dream will come true, and we’ll get a Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle-earth 3, but even if we don’t, my trusty boxed copy of the second game will continue to deliver countless hours of endlessly fun real-time strategy fun within the engrossing world of LOTR.

Do you think The Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle-earth deserves a comeback? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!

5 Things The Next Lord of the Rings Game Needs to Learn From Recent Mistakes