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Hi there! FakeKraid here, attempting my very first LP. My game of choice is one that early 90's DOS game buffs might be familiar with: Lord of the Rings, Vol I, produced by Interplay for IBM PC in 1990.
This game ? based on, you guessed it, Tolkien's Lord of the Rings books ? was supposed to be a trilogy, but only the first two volumes were released. I played this game a lot as a kid (especially during the dark years when my parents took my NES and SNES away :smith
but I'm not really knowledgeable about 90's computer games, so let's Wiki-attack!
Wikipedia posted:
quote:
?The game was released in 1990 for the IBM PC (MSDOS) and the Amiga. It was followed by The Lord of the Rings, Vol II: The Two Towers. It was originally for the Commodore 64, but the production team switched to the newer platforms.?
?The PC game is an RPG wherein the player, after an opening cinematic, takes control of Frodo Baggins just outside of Bag End. From here, the player gradually "recruits" various members of the Fellowship, and while the game can be completed by following the novel for the most part, many side-quests also exist to entertain the player. The game world was quite large and featured a cast of characters from both the text and outside of it; character interaction is carried out through "questioning" other characters by typing keywords in a box. The player can swap whoever leads the "fellowship", equip other party members with a range of weapons and armour, distribute skills among the group, cast spells, and perform various skill-based actions. While following a somewhat linear plot, gameplay is quite open and players can revisit old areas and, potentially, discover new situations and characters, creating a fairly dynamic game world. The game also includes a day/night cycle, in which enemies such as the Nazgul make more frequent appearance outside of daylight hours, and other enemies receive strength bonuses in the dark.?
?Departures from the book include new characters and shifts in items to create player "quests"--such as finding the pieces of Anduril scattered across the lands west of Rivendell to reforge Aragorn's sword, whereas in the book Aragorn had all fragments. The most significant change is in the climax, where Frodo and Sam are carried off by a Nazg?l to the tower of Dol Goldur, and the rest of the Fellowship must solicit the help of the Elves of Lothl?rien and Radagast the Brown, a wizard, in order to infiltrate the tower and save Frodo before the Witch-king carries him away to Mordor. Strangely enough, events in Lothl?rien are actually quite true to the book, including the mirror of Galadriel and a quest to find all the gifts she gives the Fellowship.?
That's what Wikipedia says, and Wikipedia is infallible. 
Well, maybe. I know there's a day/night system, but I never noticed enemies appearing more (as far as I remember all encounters are scripted); there might be strength buffs, though ? the game's combat system is so ludicrously unbalanced (you'll see) that it would be difficult to tell. The rest is accurate as far as I know. Overall, it's a pretty good game, and I'd go so far as to say it's arguably the best Lord of the Rings video game ever made, since the vast majority of them outright suck.
As I said, this is my first LP attempt ever. I will try to keep a fairly regular update schedule, but I work full-time, so no promises. Still, my job leaves me with...down time, let's call it, so I shouldn't have too much trouble. The LP will be screenshot format; I really don't think there's anything in this game worth making a video out of.
If anybody has anything to say ? encouragement, warnings, advice, direction, or random Mars Volta lyrics ? I'm game to listen.
TL;DR: This is a Let's Play of Interplay's The Lord of the Rings, Vol I for the IBM PC from 1990. I'm doing it narrative-style unless I get begged not to by thousands of crying children. Hope you enjoy it. It's my first try, so be gentle.
Now, without any further ado, Let's Play Lord of the Rings, Vol I! 
As soon as we decide that yes, in fact, we are sure we want to start a new game, we are treated to a several-minute, slightly-animated opening cinematic. I am going to spare you the animations, which were good for the time but are distinctly underwhelming now, and just give you stills. If you want to listen to the music that plays, uh, here, it's on YouTube.
It's not really that good. But it's not ear-bleedingly awful, either. It's also one of like three or four musics in the game, and by far the longest, if I remember aright. Tellingly, there's a 'Stop Music' option in the in-game menu to cut it off whenever it starts up. Oh, right. The cinematic.
Somewhere in the Shire...
Massive smoking was taking place. The good stuff.
After the birthday feast came Bilbo's speech. Most of the company were prepared to listen to anything and cheer at every full stop. ?I have called you all together for a Purpose.? Bilbo said. ?I regret to announce that this is the END. I am going. I am leaving NOW...?
Bilbo vanished. The guests at the feast were speechless, some were angered by the trick.
It can safely be said that this writing is not as good as Tolkien's. I hope his angry ghost doesn't make trouble over it. 
...found a magic ring that could make him disappear! Bilbo used this ring to leave the Shire forever. That very same ring was part of the inheritance that Bilbo left to Frodo. ...A ring that Frodo ignored for several year...
I bet you Frodo is wondering how that Ring got in his ear right now. 
?I have searched for the answer to Bilbo's ring for many years.? Gandalf explained, ?There is one more test...?
This is a clumsy animation of the Ring flying out of Gandalf's hand into the fire. I'm not doing an animated GIF, go home. I like to picture Gandalf keeping Frodo off with a hand on his forehead while Frodo flails helplessly like an old Looney Tunes cartoon. After the dust settles...
One Ring to bring them all and in the Darkness bind them.
Oh my God, what an unexpected twist! It was his sl ? I mean, Bilbo's magic ring turned out to be a horrible artifact of pure evil that corrupts anything it touches! Who could have seen it coming... 
Frodo looks like he's been up to some of that good stuff himself. I wonder how much of this he's actually taking in.
?It is a long story. In Eregion, thousands of years ago, the great elven smiths made magic rings.?
?Power to dominate and control all things that surrounded them. In the furnaces of Mount Doom, Sauron created the One Ring, to rule all who wore elven rings and rule Middle-earth.?
?Then he took some time off to pose for every single heavy-metal album cover ever.?
?Prince Isildur cut the Ring from Sauron's finger and took it as a trophy. However, Isildur was slain in battle, and the Ring fell off his finger into the Great River, where it long lay.?
?Then Bilbo met Gollum and won the Ring in a contest of riddles. Gollum was enraged to lose ?his precious?. Gollum swore an oath: ?Baggins! We hates it for ever!? he shouted.?
That Wretched Creature used to be my friends' nickname for Snarf in the original Thundercats cartoon. True story. The Snarf in the new one is way better. :english101:
?...hobits have his Ring. He will be sending forces to take the Ring from you, so he may become the unchallenged master of Middle-earth!?
Frodo seems remarkably unconcerned here. I guess he must be high.
Oh, wait. He just figured it wasn't his problem. Our hero, ladies and gentlemen. 
Gandalf is having none of this shit.
?The Ring must be destroyed! It must be taken to Mount Doom, where it was made, and cast into its furnaces! Only by destroying the Ring, the foundation of Sauron's power, can we save Middle-earth!?
Frodo still looks pretty okay with all this. What is this sense of foreboding...
?...to Rivendell, the city of the elves. If I do not return by your birthday, leave without me. Make your way down the east road to Rivendell. Tell no one of your plans. Pretend that you are moving in with your relatives in Buckland. Do not go alone. Take those friends that you can trust.?
Actually, we're going to use it bunches. Sorry, Gandalf.
...and Gandalf does not come.
Well, that was certainly an opening cinematic. Next time on Bored of this Thing, Frodo decides this whole 'desperate flight from danger into danger' gig isn't really for him, and goes off to hunt wolves with his bare hands instead. 