Parents' Guide to The Lord of the Rings: Gollum

At a time when prequels are all the rage, especially when they fill in gaps we didn't know needed to be filled, comes this odd and ultimately unsatisfying companion to J.R.R. Tolkien's classic fantasy tale. Set before the titular adventure begins, The Lord of the Rings: Gollum has Frodo and Sam's future companion trying to find The One Ring for Sauron (and also find himself). As interesting a character as Gollum/Sméagol may be, he's not a swordsmith like Aragon, a good shot like Legolas, or a magician like Gandalf. Which is why he instead has to rely on his ability to be quiet and sneaky, as well as his climbing skills, as he makes his way around Middle-earth. But when that fails he turns to strangling those who get in his way.

It's too bad this stumbles more than a dead tired Frodo trying to climb Mount Doom. As interesting as it may be to jump and climb to get past some orc guards, free climbing up rock cliffs and orc-made structures, these parts are never as clever or varied as similar moments in, say, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor or Horizon Forbidden West. You also don't always have options when it comes to solving problems, as there's often only one right way to proceed, while at other times the solutions are made painfully obvious by how the game always tells you which buttons you can push in a given situation. Add to that awkward moments when you have to choose between being the bad guy Gollum and the good guy Sméagol, and how the enemies vary from being terrible at their jobs and supernatural competent, and you'll understand why The Lord of the Rings: Gollum is hardly the return of the king.