The 5 Worst Lord of the Rings Games Ever Made (But Are They All Really That Bad?)

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The Lord of the Rings is a hugely popular fantasy series, and it’s been adapted into many video games – often successful role-playing games, ranging from direct adaptations of the story to ambitious expansions like Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor. Lately, though, new Lord of the Rings games haven’t been very well-received. It’s been a long time since a truly outstanding game set in Middle-earth came out. But are the games considered the worst really as bad as people say?

It’s striking that the most recently released Lord of the Rings games tend to receive the lowest review scores. Is the quality of LOTR gaming really declining? Or is there another explanation? Older Lord of the Rings games were typically role-playing games (RPGs), which suited the fantasy world well. Newer games, however, have tried different approaches, incorporating elements from popular genres like survival and life simulation games. Perhaps some of these negatively reviewed games aren’t as bad as people say. I decided to investigate Metacritic’s rankings of the lowest-rated Lord of the Rings games to see if their reputations are truly deserved.

5) The Lord of the Rings: Aragorn’s Quest

Metascore: 58

While this game shares a similar Metascore with Tales of the Shire, its higher user rating of 7.4/10 puts it slightly ahead. Originally released in 2010 for the Nintendo Wii, it was later ported to the PS3 and Nintendo DS. Like many games from that era, it was somewhat hampered by the use of motion controls – it utilized the Wii’s nunchuck and, eventually, the PlayStation Move during battles, with varying success. Aragorn’s Quest aimed to present a fresh perspective on characters from the original Lord of the Rings trilogy, framing the story as Sam telling his son about Aragorn’s adventures.

Aragorn’s Quest attempted to blend the epic fantasy of Aragorn’s story with the more relaxed setting of the Shire. Players could experience gameplay in two ways: exploring the Shire as Sam’s son, or participating in action-packed sequences as Aragorn. Although critics weren’t impressed, finding the story and quests too basic and ultimately calling the game “forgettable,” it did gain a following among general players, averaging a 7.4 user review score. Younger gamers and those who enjoy sandbox-style RPGs with quests will likely find it enjoyable, and it’s a good option for cooperative couch gameplay.

4) Tales of the Shire: A Lord of the Rings Game

Metascore: 58

I still remember when I liked Tales of the Shire and almost nobody else did! That pretty much tells you where I stand on it – I consider it one of the worst Lord of the Rings games ever made. To be honest, most of the criticism is justified. The game was buggy when it first came out, and the story is pretty short. It’s advertised as a farming game, but you actually spend more time cooking than farming.

I’m not alone in thinking Tales of the Shire isn’t as bad as some say. While it has a low score on Metacritic, it actually has a ‘Very Positive’ rating on Steam. I believe the game isn’t necessarily bad, just made for a specific type of player. If you’re expecting the epic adventure of Lord of the Rings, you might be disappointed. But if you enjoy relaxing gameplay focused on things like cooking and gathering resources, Tales of the Shire could be perfect.

3) The Hobbit: Kingdoms of Middle-earth

Metascore: 56

Mobile games often get a lot of criticism from dedicated gamers, so it’s not shocking that one of the lowest-rated Lord of the Rings games is on mobile. The Hobbit: Kingdoms of Middle-earth wasn’t the first Lord of the Rings game for phones, but it was quite ambitious when it came out. It aimed to let players build armies and fight each other in a strategy game set in Middle-earth. However, it received negative reviews because it required a lot of repetitive effort to earn things within the game. Building your city became frustrating rather than fun, and many felt it was worse than other free-to-play city-building games.

The game wasn’t popular with players either. While it started with some good reviews, The Hobbit: Kingdoms of Middle-earth ended up with a low user score of 3.8/10 on Metacritic before it was shut down in 2017. Most complaints centered around aggressive in-app purchases. Though a small group of players—some on Reddit even called it the “best online game ever”—were disappointed when it closed, it generally wasn’t considered a great game, even compared to other free Lord of the Rings titles.

2)The Lord of the Rings: Conquest

Metascore: 55

Released in 2009, The Lord of the Rings: Conquest aimed to recreate the success of the Star Wars: Battlefront series within the world of Middle-earth. However, critics weren’t impressed. The game offered single-player and multiplayer modes with four different character classes, but struggled with unbalanced gameplay and classes that felt too similar. Weak graphics, sound, and a lack of returning actors from the original films further hurt the experience. Numerous bugs at launch contributed to the game’s low 55 Metascore.

So, was Conquest actually any good? Well, it has a 6.8/10 user score and I’ve seen some old Reddit posts where people genuinely enjoyed it, so it wasn’t a complete disaster. A lot of players said the combat was fun, even if it felt a little rough around the edges, and the online multiplayer stayed pretty active for a while – it’s a shame they shut the servers down in 2010. Honestly, a lot of us who played it back then thought it had a ton of potential and could have been amazing with a few tweaks, but those never happened. But the coolest thing? You actually got to play as Sauron! Despite not being a critical darling, Conquest still brings back some good memories for those of us who grew up with it as Lord of the Rings fans.

1) The Lord of the Rings: Gollum

Metascore: 33

Honestly, The Lord of the Rings: Gollum totally lives up to its awful reputation. It’s rare to see a game score that low, and this one really hit rock bottom. I didn’t even know Metacritic had an “Overwhelming Dislike” option until Gollum came along and unlocked it! From the start, the game was plagued with old-fashioned graphics, clunky gameplay, and a ton of technical problems. It just wasn’t a good experience, unfortunately.

Okay, so I had to try Gollum just to see how bad it really was, and honestly, it’s… something. It’s landed as ‘Mixed’ on Steam, which is better than a total disaster, I guess. People who are actually enjoying it say it’s buggy as heck, but still kinda fun. From what I’ve seen, the stealth gameplay and a few funny lines are the only real highlights. But let’s be real, it’s going to take a seriously awful game to knock Gollum off the top spot as the worst Lord of the Rings game out there.

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2026-02-06 01:44