A new MMO for The Lord Of The Rings is in the works from Amazon Games and will take fans of The Lord Of The Rings back into the adventures they demand
For those who have been hoping for another dose of The Lord Of The Rings in a video game form, get ready for a new MMO to hit you from Amazon Game Studios. Yes, the same company that is currently working on a streaming show is working on a new MMO for the PC and console gamers out there. Weirdly enough, it will not have any linking together besides the fact that it all takes place in The Lord Of The Rings universe. Maybe a good call as we have seen other show to MMO crossovers that have crashed and burned. At least this one has a nice and rich history for us all to complain about.
That is sadly all that is known for this MMO as no one has even gone out and given even an actual logo for anyone to use. It is an announcement that an MMO for The Lord Of The Rings is coming and who will be part of making it. Take that as you will, but I have a feeling it is so early on that if the show tanks we may never see this. Even if they are not linked, you know that there is some cross-promotion going to happen and one will feed the other. We could be surprised at the end of it all.
Amazon Game Studios, a division of Amazon.com, today announced it will collaborate with Leyou Technologies Holdings Limited and Middle-earth Enterprises to develop and publish a free-to-play massively multiplayer online (MMO) game based on the milestone fantasy literary work The Lord Of The Rings, by J.R.R. Tolkien. No release date has been set for the game.
Set in the world of Middle-earth portrayed in The Lord Of The Rings literary trilogy, the game will give fans around the globe a new, immersive game experience for epic exploration of the vast world of Tolkien. In addition to the game development collaboration, Amazon Studios is separately developing a new Amazon Original TV series based on The Lord Of The Rings for Prime Video unrelated to the game.
Amazon Game Studios and Leyou will jointly develop the game for PC and consoles, and Amazon Game Studios will market and publish the title globally with the exception of China, which will be managed by Leyou. The collaboration brings together Amazon’s game technology and talented MMO developers, and Leyou’s expertise in designing free-to-play games and operating live-service games.
“We’re committed to bringing customers games of the highest quality, both with our own original IP as well as beloved cultural pillars like The Lord Of The Rings,” said Christoph Hartmann, VP, Amazon Game Studios. “Tolkien’s Middle-earth is one of the richest fictional worlds in history, and it gives our team of experienced MMO developers – from the same studio developing New World – tremendous opportunity to play and create. We have a strong leadership team in place to helm this new project, and we’re actively growing our team to help build this incredible experience.”
“Bringing Middle-earth to life necessitates having the very best partners, and Amazon’s customer obsession, technology, and talented teams make it the ideal choice for a co-developer and publisher,” said Alex Xu, CEO of Leyou Technologies Holdings. “We believe our combined resources and expertise will result in a beautiful and compelling game that customers will love and play for years to come.”
“Who among us hasn’t wanted to take part in an epic adventure,” said Fredrica Drotos, Chief Brand and Licensing Officer at Middle-earth Enterprises. “More than 60 years after the publication of The Fellowship of the Ring, we’re delighted that Amazon Game Studios has partnered with Leyou to bring their respective expertise to build a much anticipated game that will immerse us in the beloved, epic world of Middle-earth, envisioned by Professor Tolkien.”
The Amazon Game Studios leadership team includes veteran developers who helped create of some of the world’s most popular MMO games. Amazon Game Studios is also home to New World, an in-development sandbox MMO game set in an alternate 17th century world.
Do we really need another MMO for The Lord Of The Rings or is this just using the IP as much as they can now? Do you suspect that there will be some of the more basic tie-ins from the show or will they be able to keep them completely separate? How do you think this will step away from what we already know or will it just dive in deeper there? Let us have all of those thoughts and more down in the comments and then feel free to discuss. When there is more for The Lord Of The Rings MMO, we will share it here. Just keep checking back so you do not miss out.