The Hobbit fairly successfully blends the gameplay of Mario and Zelda -- and that can only be good.
Surprisingly, you won't feel like living in a hole because you bought this
Graphics (12.5%) - 8
Controls (15%) - 8
Variety (25%) - 7
Replay (25%) - 8
Sound (7.5%) - 8.8
Depth (15%) - 7.5
OVERALL - 7.74
Graphics - 8
The worlds are surprisingly lush and colourful. Items are displayed in a different style and a clearly visible, which is both a good and bad thing. The many bright courage gems spread around are a bit of a detractor from the environment, and the character models in game are a little stiff. The short CG sequences spread throughout the game are phenomenal.
Controls - 8
Controls are simple, but effective. You rarely feel out-of-control when in combat and collision detection is solid. However, jumping rope-to-rope can be a hassle. There are also a few spots in the game where you can be stuck and have to restart from your last save-point (which fortunately are many and well-placed).
Variety - 7
The Hobbit is broken down to basically retrieving items, opening chests or fighting a boss. Enemies aren't all that varied either, but the quest is a good length, and things don't actually feel all that repetitive. What are bothersome are the poisonous spiders taking a lot of health simply because of the poison.
Replay - 8
You get a lengthy quest (I can't be sure how long, as there is no counter) and it feels like it may be worth another run through, although that depends on your collection and habits. There's definitely fun to be had, as well some challenges. However, the next-to-last level is a real drag. What would have been nice is to be able to watch the story sequences individually after you have beaten the game -- sadly, that is not an option.
Sound - 8.8
The voice-acting is solid all-around, and particularly good from a few characters. Music is also well-done and appropriate, although sometimes the scores are a bit short and loop a bit too often.
Depth - 7.5
There are several ways to go about your business in The Hobbit, and there are also optional quests, but ultimately the fighting is hack-n-slash and the goals repetitive. But there are strategies involved, especially, I've found, when spiders are involved.
Overall - 7.74
No game could do justice to the greatness of the novel, but for what it's worth, The Hobbit is definitely worth a look from any fan of the book. It's refreshing compared to the lack-luster and empty movie and comic based games to see a game where the developers had their hearts in the right place. The story is well covered and the adventure is lengthy and fun. It's not stand-out in any area, and isn't going to amaze you, but it fairly successfully blends the gameplay of Mario and Zelda -- and that can only be good.