Just as the ever-popular kids’ building bricks have elongated the gaming lifespans of the Star Wars, Batman and Harry Potter franchises, it looks like the Lord Of The Rings is going to get the same shot in the arm, neatly coinciding with the release of the big-screen Hobbit movie.

Building on the ‘open-world’ advances made in the game structure of Lego Batman 2 this year, while also introducing an item creation system that puts even more power into your yellow clip-on palms, Lego LOTR displays all the charm and addictive qualities you would expect.

Collectables galore will keep you exploring these environments long after you’ve completed the main story.

3/5