The Lord Of The Rings trilogy has made cinematic history. One of the world's best-loved, most enduring, sweeping fantasy epics has been translated to the big screen with such loving perfection that it's impossible to foresee it being surpassed by any future release. Although I'm yet to see it, I have every confidence that The Return Of The King will surpass the incredible The Two Towers, which in turn surpassed the fantastic The Fellowship Of The Ring in every way and I'm delighted to say that the game of the final film has done the same with respect to the excellent game of the second. In short - it's awesome!

I've got my Lord Of The Rings movie soundtrack on and there are now two Gollums perched on my desk, the first is my excellent talking Gollum (with interchangeable Smeagol/Gollum heads) and the second is a lovely little sculpture that came with the extended version of The Two Towers, perfectly captured from that moment when Gollum catches a fish in the sacred pool and Frodo must trick him into being captured or watch him die. "We must go now?" "Yes, trust master." Sorry, getting carried away, it's just so great though, isn't it? Anyway, having established that I'm a fan [No kidding, get on with the review! Ed] I can honestly say that not only will this game delight fans of the films but it's also highly thrilling and enjoyable stuff for those who haven't seen them. Indeed, it raises the bar for the fighting action genre with its superb quality, its only drawback being the limited number of levels to play through.

For those of you not in the know, The Return Of The King follows three parallel storylines, as we see how each of the characters we've grown to care about in the first two films plays a vital role in defeating Sauron. The game follows suit, giving us three paths - the Path of the Wizard, where you play as Gandalf, the Path of the King, where you can play as Aragorn, Legolas or Gimli and the Path of the Hobbits, where you play as Sam, with Frodo being unlocked after the final level. Each level is as distinctive, exciting and spectacular as the last in its own way and the gameplay varies depending on the character you choose.

We begin at Helm's Deep, playing as Gandalf the White, a very powerful wizard who has arrived with the Riders of Rohan and turned the tide of the battle just when all hope seemed lost. This level serves as an introduction to newcomers to the game and a reminder for Two Towers veterans. There are six basic moves available that can be used in a variety of powerful combo attacks - parry (which is a blocking move), speed attack, heavy attack, push back, finishing thrust (where you stab and finish a downed opponent) and ranged attack, be it an energy blast, arrow or throwing knife. No combos are available at first but as you fight and gain experience your level increases and new powers can be bought. The excellent power-up system of the first game has been enhanced and is now divided into power-ups that are unique to a character and ones that are common to all the characters (known as fellowship ones). This means that instead of buying the same move for each character as you play the game with them, you can spend a little extra to buy the move for the whole fellowship. Although you have to save up more points to do it, this is a method that pays for itself and it's a great feature. Power-ups include increasing your maximum health, new combination moves, increasing the power of your ranged attack (often adding a flame or poison element that causes sustained damage to your enemy), an attack performed from standstill where you unleash a powerful move or energy blast and enhancing your special ability.

That's right, as if there wasn't enough variety already there are now special abilities; Gandalf has an energy shield that damages enemies on contact that he can create around himself for a limited time, Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli can all activate a power that makes it much easier to get into Perfect mode and Frodo and Sam can use their Elven cloaks to become invisible for a short time. This further enhances the differences between the three paths and adds yet another element that is, like the Elves of Rivendell marching into Helm's Deep, most welcome. When it comes to choosing your character, Gandalf is a formidable swordsman but his true strength lies in his staff, which can fire energy blasts and unleash a devastating ground attack (based on the moment where Gandalf slams down his staff when facing the Balrog in the first film). Aragorn is a strong warrior proficient with both sword and bow, so the best all-rounder, Legolas the elf is swift, excellent with the bow but not so powerful at hand-to-hand, whilst Gimli the dwarf is like a small rhino, charging around the place flooring everyone in his path. Sam, Frodo and the other hobbits (yep, you can unlock Merry and Pippin too!) all play pretty much the same but fans will enjoy playing through with them. They are agile and good little fighters, courageous to the end.

If there is one area where The Return Of The King excels more than any other, it is the way in which the graphics and sound combine to perfectly capture and reproduce all the atmosphere, tension and excitement of the films. Starting off at Helm's Deep there are orcs swarming all around and Gandalf must fight them off, before climbing a ladder to help Legolas out and then swinging nimbly down a rope to help Aragorn and set off some catapults, which thwart the orcs' final attempt to take the fortress. The sound of grunts, cries, the clanking of swords and explosions can be heard all around. Arrows swoosh from their bows and swish past your head or strike you with a thud. Every sound effect is totally authentic; from the groans of a dying Cave Troll to the screech of a Ring Wraith, everything is taken straight from the film. The voice acting is all performed by the actors from the films, further enhancing the atmosphere (indeed, Gollum's chatter in the Hobbit levels is particularly entertaining and he looks just like his on screen persona) and the addition of music again taken directly from the corresponding scenes in the film, the sound simply could not be any better.

The graphics are simply spectacular and superbly detailed in every respect. Every new level brings with it new thrills, sights and wonders. The first level for Frodo and Sam is escaping from Osgilliath, the city they were taken to as captives of Faramir. This level is full of chaotic action as orcs and men battle all around, walls explode and the city's buildings are largely in ruins. There is one moment where you run forward and the wall to your side explodes, chunks of rock flying in front of you and killing the hapless orcs caught in the blast. Then you climb a bell tower and send a bell hurtling down the stairs to break through the blocked door at the bottom, squashing a few orcs on its way. As you make your way through open areas a Ring Wraith circles above and if you don't find cover then before long Frodo will be overcome and give up the ring, thus losing the level. Meanwhile, Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas must walk the paths of the dead, travelling into an eerie cave full of spirits that attack you. At its end you face the mighty King of the Dead before running back out as the whole place collapses. The urgency and drama in this level is ramped right up, as rocks fall behind you and large chunks of ceiling smash all around. The sounds of the rocks are both cracking and booming, plus the whole screen shakes and your controller vibrates like crazy, completing the effect. This is a race against time, so spend too long defeating your enemies and the rock fall will catch up and crush you along with your enemies.

It's fair to say that the levels get better and better as you progress. Gandalf's next level takes him through the displaced woodland of Fangorn Forest, the vengeful trees that seek to destroy the Orcs of Isengard. At one point you end up in a huge clearing, watching in amazement as two massive Ents (living trees) stomp around, crushing and kicking orcs underfoot and you charge on in to lend a hand, whilst trying not to get trodden on yourself. You end up at Isengard and help an Ent break the damn, after which it cuts seamlessly to the moment in the film where Isengard is flooded. The way the graphics engine cut scenes blend with the film scenes is even more flawless than in the Two Towers game. Frodo and Sam end up in the very creepy lair of Shelob, a maze of spider-filled passages, culminating with Shelob herself, a massive spider that runs so quickly and scuttles with such realistic leg animations that it makes my skin crawl just thinking about it. When she climbs up the walls and is obscured by mist then comes pouncing down onto you it can be truly scary and made me jump and even cry out on a couple of occasions!

And on it goes - Gandalf gets a couple of levels at Minas Tirith, first on the battlements knocking down ladders, controlling the flow of orcs and protecting catapults from the circling Ring Wraith whilst commanding their fire to destroy oncoming battle towers, then into the city to help protect fleeing women from the onslaught of enemies. Aragorn ends up on Pellenor Fields, where he, Legolas and Gimli battle orcs and men and command catapults to stop the gigantic Oliphants (giant elephants) from trampling Eowyn and Merry, whilst simultaneously fending off the Witch King himself, the foul leader of the Ring Wraiths. Sam sets off to rescue a captured Frodo and makes his way through a tower full of feuding orcs and then everyone else meets up at the Black Gate to draw Sauron's attention whilst Sam and Frodo make for the Crack of Doom and the only fire that can destroy the One Ring once and for all, and Sauron along with it.

The gameplay has been tightened up and streamlined since the Two Towers and whilst the combat system (and indeed most of the combos) remain the same, the controls feel more responsive and the combos are definitely easier to execute than before. The same kill rating system is here, where as you inflict damage on your enemies a meter builds up. Your kills when the meter is low are Fair, then Good, then Excellent and when the meter fills you go into Perfect mode for a few seconds, during which time you can kill most enemies with a blow or two. Whilst it was quite tough to get into Perfect mode in The Two Towers, it's almost too easy here, as completing a "Bane" move (where you parry and then hit the finishing move button) puts you automatically into Perfect mode. A bane move finishes whoever is attacking you and once in Perfect mode you can go on a quick rampage and rack up those perfect kills. However, there is no Dark Lord holding a sword to your throat and forcing you to use the bane moves all of the time, so if you want to get them more skilfully then try using your range of combos. As before, taking a hit takes a chunk out of your power meter but a great change is that successful parrying increases the meter, encouraging skilful play and avoiding hits in order to help charge your meter (whereas in The Two Towers parrying merely wasted time as your power gradually depleted because you weren't inflicting damage).

Whilst on the subject of the moves, the animations are even more gorgeous and well done than before. Each character has a distinct style and the same move performed by different characters looks very different. For example, whilst when Aragorn performs the Bane of Saruman move and kills an Uruk-hai (extra nasty orc), he runs it through with his sword twice, whilst when Sam does it, he dodges three sword blows, knocking the Uruk-hai to its knees and then stabbing it in the back whilst it's off guard. The hobbit moves look just as cool as those of the warriors and being able to play the hobbits and Gandalf this time around adds real variety to the experience. The only real problem, as I've already mentioned, is this game's length. With a mere twelve levels to play through, veteran gamers will complete this in under ten hours. However, there are extra features to unlock in the form of mini-documentaries and interviews with the actors, plus the unlockable characters add a little bit and every level is so exciting that playing through it a couple of times (or more, in my case!) is an absolute pleasure.

The Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King is a gaming triumph. It provides intense, exciting action all the way as you fight your way through massive battle scenes set in a wide variety of locations lifted straight from the film. Rarely have graphics, sound effects, music, voice acting and the rumble pack in your controller ever been so beautifully combined to create such an immersing atmosphere, indeed, this rivals Halo in the scale of its battles and that feeling that you're just one warrior on a huge battlefield. The gameplay is spot on and whilst fans of the film should have this very near the top of their must have list, the rest of you should at least rent it, as it's one of the best action games of the year and without doubt the best game of a movie ever made; a fitting complement to the concluding part of the greatest trilogy ever to grace our cinema screens.

Reviewed by Geoff Holland for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).