The Two Towers: MUD Game Full of Lord of the Rings Characters

Whether you have loved "The Lord of the Rings" shortly after learning to read or you were recently introduced to Hobbits and Elves when the movies came out, the MUD (multi-user dungeon) game "The Two Towers" may be a great game for you. This text adventure is full of Hobbits, Elves, Orcs and various other characters and creatures found in the Lord of the Rings. The game can be found at http://www.t2tmud.org/ and has been on-line since 1994.

Unlike the early text adventure games from the 1970's and 80's, these games are interactive, thanks to the internet. When you first arrive in Middle Earth, you need to decide if you want to adventure for good or evil and develop your character based on the world Tolkien created. As the game begins, you find yourself in one of the many towns and have to learn your way around. There are handy maps that can be found at the website, so you don't have to do all your mapping, another improvement on the old text games.

You will discover quests and characters from the books (called Non-Player Characters, or NPC's), and characters created by other players. Many of the players are willing to help you learn your way around. As you play, you earn gold, train skills and "level". You form friendships with other players and can eventually join a clan or guild. You can even help defend your lands with the army.

The quests can be a real challenge, but with patience most can be solved fairly easily. There are some quests that involve the Ring of Power and Gollum which are more involved. While more and more of the video games out there are graphic intensive, the text adventures can be equally intense. Players can find themselves so caught up in the game they are literally shaking at the completion of a challenging quest.

The game is free to play, but they do accept donations toward the cost of the servers. It is completely run by people who love the works of Tolkien and try to make it as true to the books as possible. You can access the game through the website, using a java connection or through software (they provide links at the site). So, if you've ever dreamed of being a ranger, wizard, Hobbit, or even an Orc, stop by and visit Middle Earth.