The Lord of the Rings: Duel for Middle-earth

The 2-player board game The Lord of the Rings: Duel for Middle-earth from Repos Production and Asmodee is officially available in stores. The game, which is based on 7 Wonders Duel but has been further developed in terms of gameplay and thematics, costs around 30 euros.

The Lord of the Rings: Duel for Middle-earth is one of Asmodee’s autumn new releases. At the SPIEL’24 in Essen, the Essen publishing and sales company had the board game with them. Fans were able to try out and buy the title on site in the exhibition halls. Many people took up the offer and the tables were full. The Lord of the Rings: Duel for Middle-earth is now also available to buy in stores. The price: around 30 euros.

Thematically and playfully great

The Lord of the Rings: Duel for Middle-earth by Antoine Bauza and Bruno Cathala is based on the conceptual predecessor 7 Wonders Duel. As with its predecessor, The Lord of the Rings version is also a pure two-player game – but that is exactly its great strength, because the gaming experience is almost perfectly balanced. When reworking the historical-themed duel game into a strategic fantasy title in the Lord of the Rings universe, the creators made just the right adjustments to turn a good game into an excellent one.

The Lord of the Rings: Duel for Middle-earth is fun and thematically well implemented. Photo: Volkmann

In the board game, the Fellowship of the Ring meets Sauron and his army – both factions fight for several possible victory conditions. The aim is to achieve a military victory through control of the world map. You can also win by bringing the ring to Mount Doom or by preventing your opponent from doing so. You also have the opportunity to get six different peoples on your side – this also means winning the game.

An important and new trick in further development is the strategy around the location cards. Although these are expensive to purchase, they allow you to carry out multiple actions around your forces and, above all, build fortresses that make it easier to gain control of the game board. Instead of a military bar in the original, there are now ring bearers. This is thematically appropriate and quite exciting, especially with a view to the later phases in the game.

Ultimately, The Lord of the Rings: Duel for Middle-earth is not a purely visually different copy of the original, but rather a playful further development. This is extremely successful and makes the duel game a real and better alternative even for non-fans. More options and therefore more strategy, a great look with outstanding illustrations and simple rules as well as a manageable playing time of 20 to 30 minutes per game make The Lord of the Rings: Duel for Middle-earth a title that is currently difficult to ignore.

* = affiliate link. If you purchase via one of the links, we receive a portion of the purchase price as a commission. There are no additional costs for you, but you can support our portal by doing so.

Last updated on October 19, 2024 / Affiliate links / Images from the Amazon Product Advertising API. Images from Amazon PA API.