5 Lord Of The Rings Games That Are 10/10 Masterpieces

Published Aug 22, 2026, 7:00 PM EDT James is a gaming writer from London who has spent thousands of hours exploring titles from every genre. Though he has a particular affinity for multiplayer titles like World of Warcraft, Destiny 2 and League of Legends, he has also put thousands of hours into single-player experiences, from deep RPGs to epic PC strategies. When he's not playing or writing, he can usually be found supporting his beloved Brentford FC. Sign in to your ScreenRant account The Lord of the Rings fans have been treated to a bunch of genuinely brilliant games over the years, far more than fans of other fantasy IPs could ever hope for. Those have come in all sorts of forms, from genuinely involved strategy titles to high-octane action hits that really nail the overall vibe of Tolkien's universe. The recent and unexpected return of The Lord of the Rings: War in the North saw developer Aspyr Media confirm that they are far from done with the franchise, and that could see some classic older titles return in a whole new form. As such, we've rounded up five of the very best ever, to get you back in the mood ahead of whatever's coming next. The Lord of the Rings: The Third Age The Lord of the Rings: The Third Age is a very different prospect to anything else on this list. The game essentially functions as a PS2 era Final Fantasy clone, where you take control of original characters whose quest runs in parallel to the main story of the Fellowship. Along the way, you'll come into contact with major moments in the story, helping Gandalf to fight the Balrog and the like. It has satisfying combat and memorable dialogue that slots in well with the existing canon, and you could do a lot worse if you fancy a tunr-based option in Middle-earth. The Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle-earth II Anyone who grew up playing strategy games on the PC will likely have come across Battle for Middle-earth II at some point. The game allows players to live out their large-scale battle dreams, controlling hundreds of troops in the War of the Ring. You are able to choose either the good or bad side, and from there, you push the enemy back to your eventual victory in narrative-centered individual missions. The game has been stuck in rights hell for a long time, but it seems as though that could be changing, if Aspyr Media has anything to do with it. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King The last of the official movie tie-in games is also the very best of the bunch, combining satisfying hack-and-slash action with the incredible events of the Return of the King. The game gives players access to a lot more playable characters than its predecessor, and the events of the book/film lend themselves more readily to big action-focused levels. It also holds up brilliantly from a visual perspective, and a remake/remaster could be an all-time classic. Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor The only entry on this list that definitely won't be a candidate for the remaster treatment any time soon, it would be a crime not to include Shadow of Mordor among the best Lord of the Rings games. Though the story does stray from the existing lore quite significantly, it doesn't really matter, as its just so much fun to play. Combat is excellent and the Nemesis system is arguably the most groundbreaking advancement we've seen in games in a long time. The sequel has more bells and whistles, but this distills the concept better and more efficiently. LEGO The Lord of the Rings LEGO The Lord of the Rings would be on this list if all it had going for it was the map. Players are able to quite literally (as much as Boromir might protest) walk all the way from the Shire to Mordor uninterrupted, and there's something quite magical about that. Gameplay is what you'd expect from a LEGO game, but it's a great example of that nonetheless, and it's a totally different aesthetic for a universe that we have seen in more basic forms a lot. Movie(s) The Lord of the Rings (1978), The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim Created by J.R.R. Tolkien First Film The Lord of the Rings (1978) Cast Norman Bird, Anthony Daniels, Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Liv Tyler, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Astin, Cate Blanchett, John Rhys-Davies, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan, Orlando Bloom, Christopher Lee, Hugo Weaving, Sean Bean, Ian Holm, Andy Serkis, Brad Dourif, Karl Urban, Martin Freeman, Richard Armitage, James Nesbitt, Ken Stott, Benedict Cumberbatch, Evangeline Lilly, Lee Pace, Luke Evans, Morfydd Clark, Mike Wood, Ismael Cruz Cordova, Charlie Vickers, Markella Kavenagh, Megan Richards, Sara Zwangobani, Daniel Weyman, Cynthia Addai-Robinson, Lenny Henry, Brian Cox, Shaun Dooley, Miranda Otto, Bilal Hasna, Benjamin Wainwright, Luke Pasqualino, Christopher Guard, William Squire, Michael Scholes, John Hurt TV Show(s) The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Character(s) Frodo Baggins, Gandalf, Legolas, Boromir, Sauron, Gollum, Samwise Gamgee, Pippin Took, Celeborn, Aragorn, Galadriel, Bilbo Baggins, Saruman, Aldor, Wormtongue, Thorin Oakenshield, Balin Dwalin, Bifur, Bofur, Bombur, Fili, Kili, Oin, Gloin, Nori, Dori, Ori, Tauriel, King Thranduil, Smaug, Radagast, Arondir, Nori Brandyfoot, Poppy Proudfellow, Marigold Brandyfoot, Queen Regent Míriel, Sadoc Burrows The Lord of the Rings is a multimedia franchise consisting of several movies and a TV show released by Amazon titled The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. The franchise is based on J.R.R. Tolkien's book series that began in 1954 with The Fellowship of the Ring. The Lord of the Rings saw mainstream popularity with Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies.