released in North America, EA announced the game would also be coming to Xbox, set for release around the same time as the GameCube port. As with the GameCube version, the Xbox version would be a direct port of the PlayStation 2 version. Reception The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers received "generally favorable reviews" across all systems; the Game Boy Advance version holds an aggregate score of 78 out of 100 on Metacritic, based on fifteen reviews; the GameCube version 82 out of 100, based on thirteen reviews; the PlayStation 2 version 82 out of 100, based on thirty-two reviews; and the Xbox version 79 out of 100, based on seventeen reviews. Game Informers Matthew Kato scored the PlayStation 2 version 9.25 out of 10, calling the gameplay "every bit as fast and furious as Mark of Kris, without some of the thinking involved." IGN's Douglass C. Perry scored it 8.3 out of 10. Although he was critical of the game's length, he declared "as a game on its own merits, The Two Towers is a solid beat-em-up that's definitely worth owning." GameSpot's Ryan MacDonald scored it 8.1 out of 10. He too was critical of the length, but called the game "a traditional action game with a terrific gameplay system that encourages you to battle it out like there's no tomorrow." GameSpy's Benjamin Turner scored it 3.5 out of 5. He was critical of the FMV footage, and concluded "The Two Towers isn't the best action game you'll ever play, but it is the best action game based on The Lord of the Rings. For fans looking for a way to play their favorite books or movies, this is the best bet at the moment." Eurogamer's Kristan Reed scored it 7 out of 10. He had mixed feelings about the integration of film footage; "the quality of these recreated scenes isn't always as good as it could be, thanks to some less than cutting edge rendering. That said, it's still a nice way of introducing a new scene." His biggest criticism was that the game was too short, although he praised the "DVD extras" being linked to level progression. He concluded "it's fun while it lasts, but requires relatively little skill." The PlayStation 2 version also received some non-video game publication attention. For example, The Cincinnati Enquirers Marc Saltzman scored it 4.5 out of 5, calling it