Great Game, at least in the RTS part. TBS... Not so much.
Each faction have their own power, for example, Men have the largest pool of heroes combined with economic powers, Elves having very powerful ranged units (some say overpowered, but they can be countered by cavalry tactics or siege engines), Dwarves with high defenses and mechanic warfare. In the Evil side, Mordor has pachyderms (oh yeah), goblins with the cheapest infantry ever, and of course the mighty Isengard with demolition that can take out a fortress with one blow. The One Ring is special in the fact that it allows for the summoning of ultimate heroes (one can have more than one gollum supposedly or none at all, depending on the map), Sauron or Galadriel. Their epic troop dispelling powers are notable and fun to see, although they take exorbitant amount of resource and ridiculous amount of time.
The basic gameplay is relatively free of economic management save for buildings of resource buildings that generate resource for the owner. The mechanics discourage run-on economies, although money maps are possible through the additon of outposts. So the main management comes in micromanagement of heroes/elite units (cavalry in most part) and macromanagement of units and production. Fast paced due to its requirement in logistics save for troop supplying, this allows a player to focus on the battle.
Heroes, although the concept itself is widely used, nevertheless is a plus to the gameplay. One can design their own heroes and actually use them in a skirmish or multiplayer battles, upload their maps created via world builder, adding into the customization capability that is almost always a plus in any game. A hero can be designed to fit the player's style: A hero may be equipped with reinforcement skill and leadership to bolster the army, or be equipped with some offensive skills for anti-hero or anti-cluster capabilities. The most unique abilities belong to the corrupted men, who have stealth, coercion, and other subterfuge benefits. Overall, the RTS by itself may get a 9ish. Gameplay is good, not to mention excellent graphics and sound that adds to "genuinely Tolkien" image.
Unfortunately, no games are perfect. Turn Based Strategy for one has many flaws, such as overwhelming lack of territory management, little Hero management in the campaign map, and no naval warfare (which are rare but possible in the RTS mode). The War of the Ring also has nothing to do with the ring, a huge logical jump, not to mention lack of Ring Heroes or campaign like element. Campaign, although the maps may be significantly different, but the objectives are all generic: destroy the enemy or bring a unit to the spot, requiring more devastation along the path. The BGMs, although they have the "Tolkien" realness, are not very great and does not create the dramatic mood when they should.
Overall, this game is the better of EA's games. Worth playing, but not completely inspirational.