Hi tom.
while I wouldn't say no to an escape from moria type of game, one of the
intrinsic problems about such a game is that like peter jaxon, you'd really
have to tinker with the population of moria and locations within it. For
example, the journey is relatively unevently until the fellowship reach the
chamber of mozabul, where they are attacked by a host of orcs and a cave
troll. After this they go down many flgihts of stairs, get to the hall of
fire, meet the balrog and cross the bridge and are then pretty much out.
this means if for instance you wanted a level of the characters fighting
goblins while jumping across a river, or traversing a deep treasury full of
precious items, much less encountering dragons and other enemies besides
orcs, trolls and the balrog you'd have to alter things quite a bit.
This is one reason I so admire the eamon game Thror's ring, because it
manages to stay true! to the descriptions of moria in lotr, but also departs
from the beaten path into the depths of moria and shows you some quite
unique things.
Myself, if I wanted to create a side scroller based on Tolkien, I'd probably
do it in some section of middle earth where I have full control.
for example, if I wanted to set a game in Moria, rather than doing it with
the fellowship, who's route is fairly strictly laid out by tolkien, I'd do
it with Balin's doomed expedition. In the game you could play as either
Balin, who would have the best ranged attacks, ori, who would be the
strongest close range opponent, and Oin who would be an alrounder but would
have the advantage of carrying his own light source (tolkien states in the
hobbit Oin could make a light out of everything).
during the game, you'd first have to fight your way through Dimril dale and
fight off orcs around the great gate, thus having levels set on the surface
and partially in caves. You could then explore moria, finding it's deep
treasuries, (tolkien does hint that the expendition found durin's axe),
finding underground rivers, complex mazes and anything else a game designer
would want being that we know the dwarves explored moria very thughrlyy.
In the end however you would find yourself in the chamber of reccords,
fighting a great battle.
that is just one example, there are lots of others in Tolkien's world. For
instance we never learnt about gandalf's first! trip to moria that he
mentions in Lotr, or yet Arragorns, both of which could be interesting
stories in themselves.
Getting out of moria, a game set among the campeignes of Gondor's forces
along the banks of the anduin would be awsome I've always thought.
Beware the grue!
Dark.
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