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The Hobbit (2003 video game)
Encyclopedia
The Hobbit is a video game published in 2003 by Vivendi Universal. It is a platform game
that features puzzles and fighting enemies.
is a Hobbit who lives in Hobbiton. One day a wizard named Gandalf
shows up at his door and invited Bilbo on a quest. Bilbo said no but accidentally invited Gandalf to tea. The next day he and thirteen dwarves arrived at Bilbo's door. While they discussed their quest, Bilbo was surprised and fainted. He had a dream of fighting Goblins alongside elves, humans, and dwarves. When he woke up he wanted to go on the quest and told Gandalf. Gandalf said yes, so Bilbo grabbed his walking stick and headed to the Green Dragon Inn and also helped Sandyman fix the bridge. When they left the group was cold and hungry and saw a light and they told Bilbo to investigate.
It turns out to be the camp fire of three Stone Trolls. Their names are Tom, William and Bert. After trying to steal a pocket book, Bilbo was rescued by Gandalf who led them to the elves at Rivendell, then across the goblin-infested Misty Mountains
, and after an escape from wolves and a rescue by eagles, the company continued across Mirkwood Forest encountering spiders and wood elves, and then to Laketown, and then to Erebor to slay Smaug
the dragon and reclaim the gold. Finally, the characters enter the Dwarven Stronghold, and look for the Arkenstone. When done, the final battle is fought, and then Bilbo returns home.
, the game has a jump feature, plus rope swinging, ladder climbing, etc. The game also features the use of the One Ring
, to sneak up on, away from, and past enemies. Each level gives the player a series of quests, some of which may be optional to fulfil. For instance, one of the optional quests in the Unexpected Party level is to find four children in a game of hide and seek. An example of a required quest would be to save the dwarves from the spiders.
At the beginning of the game, the player gets a small preview of what upgrades can be acquired later in the game. This is done via the Dreamworld level. After this, the player starts off in the Unexpected Party level with few combat abilities.
The player also can acquire a series of Quest Items. For example in Unexpected Party one of the optional quests is to collect provisions (sausages, tea cakes, etc.) for Bilbo's journey to Lonely Mountain.
score of 59/100 on the PS2 and 62/100 on the PC, with a user score of 8 out of 10.
Gamespot
gave it 6.5/10 whislt IGN
awarded the game 7.5/10
or an orchestra
.
The voice cast of the game includes Michael Beattie as Bilbo, Tom Kane
as the narrator, Jim Ward as Gandalf, Clive Revill
as Thorin, James Horan
as Smaug and Daran Norris
as Gollum. Additional voices are provided by Alister Duncan, Andre Sogliuzzo
, Andrew Abelson, Brian George
, Cam Clarke
, Candi Milo
, Clive Revill, Daran Norris, Dee Bradley Baker
, Grey DeLisle
, James Horan, James Arnold Taylor
, Jane Singer, Jennifer Hale
, Jim Ward, Joshua Seth
, Kat Cressida, Kath Soucie
, Michael Ensign
, Michael Gough
, Nathan Carlson, Oliver Muirhead
, Pat Pinney, Rob Dean
, Robin Atkin Downes
, Steve Staley
, Tom Kane, Victor Raider-Wexler
and Wally Wingert
.
Platform game
A platform game is a video game characterized by requiring the player to jump to and from suspended platforms or over obstacles . It must be possible to control these jumps and to fall from platforms or miss jumps...
that features puzzles and fighting enemies.
Plot
Bilbo BagginsBilbo Baggins
Bilbo Baggins is the protagonist and titular character of The Hobbit and a supporting character in The Lord of the Rings, two of the most well-known of J. R. R...
is a Hobbit who lives in Hobbiton. One day a wizard named Gandalf
Gandalf
Gandalf is a character in J. R. R. Tolkien's novels The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. In these stories, Gandalf appears as a wizard, member and later the head of the order known as the Istari, as well as leader of the Fellowship of the Ring and the army of the West...
shows up at his door and invited Bilbo on a quest. Bilbo said no but accidentally invited Gandalf to tea. The next day he and thirteen dwarves arrived at Bilbo's door. While they discussed their quest, Bilbo was surprised and fainted. He had a dream of fighting Goblins alongside elves, humans, and dwarves. When he woke up he wanted to go on the quest and told Gandalf. Gandalf said yes, so Bilbo grabbed his walking stick and headed to the Green Dragon Inn and also helped Sandyman fix the bridge. When they left the group was cold and hungry and saw a light and they told Bilbo to investigate.
It turns out to be the camp fire of three Stone Trolls. Their names are Tom, William and Bert. After trying to steal a pocket book, Bilbo was rescued by Gandalf who led them to the elves at Rivendell, then across the goblin-infested Misty Mountains
Misty Mountains
In J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy world of Middle-earth, the Misty Mountains is a mountain range, running for 795 miles from north to south, between Eriador and the valley of the Great River, Anduin, and...
, and after an escape from wolves and a rescue by eagles, the company continued across Mirkwood Forest encountering spiders and wood elves, and then to Laketown, and then to Erebor to slay Smaug
Smaug
Smaug is a fictional character in the novel The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien. He is a dragon, and the main antagonist within the story.-The Hobbit:...
the dragon and reclaim the gold. Finally, the characters enter the Dwarven Stronghold, and look for the Arkenstone. When done, the final battle is fought, and then Bilbo returns home.
Chapters
- Dreamworld: During the dwarves' visit to Bag End, Bilbo falls asleep and dreams he is at the Battle of Five Armies.
- An Unexpected Party: Bilbo is sent to the Green Dragon, and must do some jobs along the way.
- Roast Mutton: Bilbo is sent to investigate a fire-light.
- Troll-hole: Bilbo must explore the troll cave and find the troll key. Troll-Hole and Dreamworld are the only levels not named after chapters in the book.
- Over Hill and Under Hill: Bilbo ends up in a helter-skelter adventure trying to get back to the dwarves after an interesting fall.
- Riddles in the Dark: Bilbo is lost and must find his way through a goblin-infested dwarf mine, fix broken dwarf lifts, and rescue Balfor, a dwarf of the Iron Hills (originally not in the book).
- Flies and Spiders: Bilbo is lost and must find his way through a spider infested Mirkwood Forest. He also fights minions of the Wight lord. He must rescue the dwarves from being eaten by the three giant spiders.
- Barrels Out of Bond: Bilbo and the dwarves are not safe out of Mirkwood yet. The dwarves are captured by elves and Bilbo must find a way to rescue them, as well as a way to escape, while avoiding being seen by elves.
- A Warm Welcome: The dwarves and Bilbo escape to Lake-town, where they are welcomed. Bilbo performs numerous missions for the town guard which includes expelling a group of thieves and goblins from Lake-town.
- Inside Information: Bilbo must steal the golden cup of Thrór from Smaug without waking him, and get the dwarves across a chasm to reach Erebor.
- The Gathering of the Clouds: Bilbo must find the Arkenstone for Thorin. He must also power the rooms of Erebor.
- The Clouds Burst: This level is The Battle of Five Armies. Bilbo must fight or sneak his way through the battle to deliver a message to Bard of Lake-town, saying that the goblins of Bolg's army are coming at him from behind, as Bard is unaware of this. He also meets up with Corwin, Lianna, and Beorn, whom he must help.
Characters
- Bilbo: The main character and the only playable character. His weapons include Sting, a walking/fighting stick, and collectable rocks. Throughout the game, Bilbo collects scrolls that give him new or improved attacks. He appears in all levels.
- Gandalf: The wizard, who organizes the Quest of Erebor with Thorin. He is not a playable character, but gives Bilbo different jobs and helps him against the goblins at the end of Over Hill and Under Hill. He appears in a few levels.
- Thorin: An important dwarf and King under the Mountain. He gives Bilbo some of the tasks, like investigating the mysterious fire-light. He gives Bilbo instructions on opening the doors to the great rooms of the Kingdom under the Mountain. He also tells Bilbo to retrieve the Arkenstone from the locked treasury. He appears in most levels.
- Bard: The Captain of the Town Guard. He appears in Lake-town and the Battle of Five Armies. In Lake-town he gives Bilbo jobs to perform in service of Lake-town. The main problem that he wants Bilbo to help fix is that there are thieves and goblins causing mischief and even plotting to take over Lake-town. Bard wants Bilbo to track their moves and eventually to find the thieves' hideout. In the Battle of Five Armies, Bilbo must warn Bard of a goblin attack that Bard doesn't know of that is advancing on him from behind.
- Lianna: An elf of Thranduil's Hall in Mirkwood, Bilbo must heal her in the Troll Cave. She eventually helps Bilbo escape from Thranduil's Hall. She did not appear in the book.
- Corwin: A sad, heartbroken woodsman from Laketown. Bilbo meets him, and he says he is the only survivor of an attack of the spiders on his camp. Bilbo must retrieve an item for him. He then helps Bilbo get through a thick web. He did not appear in the book.
- Balfor: A dwarf of the Iron Hills who has been made a slave of the goblins. They force him to work the dwarf-built mining contraptions. Once Bilbo frees him, he kills the goblin guards, and tells Bilbo how to escape. He did not appear in the book.
Gameplay
Being a platformerPlatform game
A platform game is a video game characterized by requiring the player to jump to and from suspended platforms or over obstacles . It must be possible to control these jumps and to fall from platforms or miss jumps...
, the game has a jump feature, plus rope swinging, ladder climbing, etc. The game also features the use of the One Ring
One Ring
The One Ring is a fictional artifact that appears as the central plot element in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth fantasy novels. It is described in an earlier story, The Hobbit , as a magic ring of invisibility. The sequel The Lord of the Rings describes its powers as being more encompassing than...
, to sneak up on, away from, and past enemies. Each level gives the player a series of quests, some of which may be optional to fulfil. For instance, one of the optional quests in the Unexpected Party level is to find four children in a game of hide and seek. An example of a required quest would be to save the dwarves from the spiders.
At the beginning of the game, the player gets a small preview of what upgrades can be acquired later in the game. This is done via the Dreamworld level. After this, the player starts off in the Unexpected Party level with few combat abilities.
The player also can acquire a series of Quest Items. For example in Unexpected Party one of the optional quests is to collect provisions (sausages, tea cakes, etc.) for Bilbo's journey to Lonely Mountain.
Reception
The Hobbit received mixed to favorable reviews, with a MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
score of 59/100 on the PS2 and 62/100 on the PC, with a user score of 8 out of 10.
Gamespot
GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
gave it 6.5/10 whislt IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
awarded the game 7.5/10
Audio
The music was composed by Rod Abernethy and Dave Adams and recorded live with the Northwest Sinfonia in Seattle. The soundtrack won the "Best Original Soundtrack Of The Year" at the Game Audio Network Guild Awards held at the Game Developer's Conference in 2004. Most of the combat music is played with an acoustic guitarAcoustic guitar
An acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
or an orchestra
Orchestra
An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
.
The voice cast of the game includes Michael Beattie as Bilbo, Tom Kane
Tom Kane
Tom Kane is a prominent American voice actor with over 25 years of experience. He is most widely known for his animation work...
as the narrator, Jim Ward as Gandalf, Clive Revill
Clive Revill
Clive Selsby Revill is a New Zealand-born British character actor best known for his performances in musical theatre and on the London stage.-Early life and stage career:...
as Thorin, James Horan
James Horan (actor)
James Horan is an American character actor who has appeared in many television programs and films. He has starred in several soap operas, including Guiding Light as Det...
as Smaug and Daran Norris
Daran Norris
Daran Morrison Nordland , usually credited as Daran Norris, is an American film and television actor and voice artist. Since 1977 he has participated in more than 400 films, video games, and television projects. He is best known as Gordy from Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide, the voice of...
as Gollum. Additional voices are provided by Alister Duncan, Andre Sogliuzzo
André Sogliuzzo
André Sogliuzzo is an Italian-American voice actor, comedian, and actor.-Animated roles:* American Dad! – Dill* Avatar: The Last Airbender – King Bumi, Hakoda, Haru* The Batman – Duncan* Brandy & Mr...
, Andrew Abelson, Brian George
Brian George
Brian George is a British-Israeli actor and voice actor for Indian accents, who typically plays guest roles for characters of South Asian descent. Perhaps his most famous role is as Pakistani restaurateur Babu Bhatt on Seinfeld.-Early life:...
, Cam Clarke
Cam Clarke
Cameron Arthur "Cam" Clarke is a prolific American voice actor and singer, well known for his work in animation and video games. Clarke is well known for providing the voices of Leonardo in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Shotaro Kaneda in the 1989 original English-dub of Akira. He often voices...
, Candi Milo
Candi Milo
Candi Milo is an American voice actress and singer. She voiced many different animated characters such as the voice of Jacobo on Disney's The Replacements, Coco, Madame Foster and Cheese on Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends, Irma Lair on Disney's W.I.T.C.H., lead character Maya Santos on Maya &...
, Clive Revill, Daran Norris, Dee Bradley Baker
Dee Bradley Baker
Dee Bradley Baker is an American voice actor. He is noted as his long-running-role as Klaus Heissler in American Dad! and other various characters including Squilliam Fancyson in the hit TV series SpongeBob SquarePants, Nightcrawler in X-Men: Legends and Marvel: Ultimate Alliance...
, Grey DeLisle
Grey DeLisle
Grey DeLisle is an American voice actress, singer-songwriter, and comedienne. To date, she has released four solo albums and has featured on the tribute album Anchored in Love: A Tribute to June Carter Cash and film soundtrack of Loggerheads...
, James Horan, James Arnold Taylor
James Arnold Taylor
James Arnold Taylor is an American voice actor, Impressionist, and Announcer. He is the current voice provider for Fred Flintstone as well as Obi-Wan Kenobi in the TV series Star Wars: The Clone Wars and also the movie Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Johnny Test in Johnny Test...
, Jane Singer, Jennifer Hale
Jennifer Hale
Jennifer Hale is a Canadian-born American actress and singer best known for her voice over work in video games like Grandia II, the Mass Effect trilogy, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, Tales of Symphonia, the Metroid Prime trilogy, the Metal Gear Solid games, Brütal Legend, and Disney's...
, Jim Ward, Joshua Seth
Joshua Seth
Joshua Seth Freedman is an American entertainer and voice actor. He was born in Kent, Ohio and attended the New York University film school. He has voiced dozens of well known anime characters and is sometimes credited as "Jeremiah Freedman", but has retired from voice acting in 2005...
, Kat Cressida, Kath Soucie
Kath Soucie
Katherine Elaine Soucie is an American voice actress. She is sometimes credited as Kath Soucie, Katherine Soucie, Kath Souci, Kath E...
, Michael Ensign
Michael Ensign
- Early life :Ensign was born in Safford, Arizona and was raised in both the United States and England. He trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art and spent the first ten years of his professional career working in the theatre in Britain.- Career :...
, Michael Gough
Michael Gough (voice actor)
Michael Gough is an American voice actor and singer.-Television roles:*Dog from WordWorld* Don Diego de la Vega and The lead role in The New Adventures of Zorro* "Goof Troop" - Fester Swollen...
, Nathan Carlson, Oliver Muirhead
Oliver Muirhead
Oliver Muirhead is an English character actor known for often portraying pompous country gentlemen. In 1986, he also directed the musical pantomime A Christmas Held Captive. In addition to acting, Muirhead has also lent his voice to various animated series such as P.J...
, Pat Pinney, Rob Dean
Rob Dean
Rob Dean is a British musician, who rose to prominence playing guitar as a member of the British band Japan.-Biography:He is from Clapton, Hackney, London, England.-Japan:...
, Robin Atkin Downes
Robin Atkin Downes
Born in London, England, Robin Atkin Downes is an English actor who is one of the most prolific voice-over actors in Los Angeles. He is well known for his work in film, television and voice acting...
, Steve Staley
Steve Staley
Steve Staley is a voice actor who is also known as Steve Cannon. He is represented by Arlene Thornton & Associates.When he is not working in the booth, he teaches a voice acting class at Kalmenson & Kalmenson in Burbank, California....
, Tom Kane, Victor Raider-Wexler
Victor Raider-Wexler
Victor Raider-Wexler is an American television and film actor.-Career:Raider-Wexler started his career in the 1970s. He was the stage manager for the 1976 Broadway play Best Friend...
and Wally Wingert
Wally Wingert
Wallace E. "Wally" Wingert is an American actor and voice artist. He is originally from Des Moines, Iowa but he currently works and lives in Los Angeles, California. He is the current announcer for the second incarnation of The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, and the current voice of Jon Arbuckle in...
.