'Lord of the Rings: War in the North' stays in the game with Combat Vignette trailer

(All rights reserved - Warner Bros. / Snowblind Studios)

Lord of the Rings: War in the North may be some way off, but Warner Bros is keen to remind gamers that the title remains a worthy contender in an increasingly busy genre.

Though War in the North is currently expected to arrive on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC in August, there is a glut of games with similar fantasy-action settings due out before then.

Hunted: The Demon's Forge and Dungeon Siege III are scheduled for June on the same platforms.

Dungeons & Dragons: Daggerdale is so far appearing "spring 2011" - most likely May - while the PC and Mac game Torchlight II has July staked out.

Meanwhile, Dungeon Hunter: Alliance is already available on PlayStation 3 as a PlayStation Network download.

Like War in the North, all allow players to hack, slash, and spellcast their way through waves of enemies together.

Most can handle up to four players online, while Hunted is designed for two and War in the North for three.

The latest War in the North trailer strips out the developer commentary that has accompanied previous clips.

That leaves the game's distinctive features to speak for themselves: Lord of the Rings' archetypal monsters, environments, characters and quests, and War in the North's insistence on the viscerality of combat.

Watch the Combat Vignette at youtube.com/watch?v=V-5TZX17UL4 or the official website, warinthenorth.com.