 As cinematic director of The Battle for Middle @-@ earth II , Richard Taylor was responsible for designing the game 's opening and closing sequences , as well as campaign and mission introductions and endings . As the first Electronic Arts video game to be given free rein on material from The Lord of the Rings universe , several lands , characters , and creatures from the books appear visually for the first time in the game 's cut scenes . Taylor considered it essential to use good graphical and audio combinations when telling a story , and he was pleased to have Weaving on the project as the primary storyteller . 
