Amazon Games and the Embacer Group have announced an upcoming open-world MMO game based on The Lord of the Rings.
Amazon Announces Lord of the Rings Open World MMO
You might be getting a sense of deja vu. Didn’t we read that Amazon was making an MMO based on The Lord of the Rings previously? That is correct but this time around Amazon are both developing and publishing the game itself. However, it’s not alone in this new endeavour as the title is a collaboration with Middle-earth-Enterprises, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Embracer Group AB.
The game is described as an MMO able to capture the immersive and captivating realm of Middle-earth in an open-world game. Based on the works of author J.R.R. Tolkien’s iconic fantasy world, The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. Currently, in the early stages of development, the project will be led by the talented team at Amazon Games Orange County studio. Upon completion, the game will be available worldwide for both PC and consoles.
Once Again into Middle-earth
Previously Amazon Games had plans for an MMO based on LOTR, however it was reported plans fell through in 2021 ultimately leading to thecancellation of development. The MMORPG was in partnership with Leyou Technologies which was bought by Tencent. The game was also reportedly expected to be a AAA featuring “lands, people and creatures never seen before”. It was expected to be a free-to-play title which could have complicated how the game was expected to be monetised.
This time Amazon will be developing the title under their own studio Amazon Games Orange County for both PC and consoles. According to the VP at Amazon Game Christoph Hartmann the game will be a “fresh take” on The Lord of the Rings. According to IGN, Hartmann confirmed this is a completely new project, and won’t be using any materials from the previous one.
Bringing players a fresh take on ‘The Lord of the Rings’ has long been an aspiration for our team…
Christoph Hartmann, VP, Amazon Games
With development being quite early on it might be some time before we see any gameplay for the game. So far there are no details on specific consoles or how the game will be monetised.
Whether this new project has the same scope as the previous project is currently unknown. But this isn’t Amazon’s first venture into multiplayer games. Amazon’s own homegrownNew Worldwas launched in September 2021. It had a massive launch but interest started to fizzle out when the game didn’t quite have the content players expected from a large-scale title. Amazon has since been adding further content to the game including newfree expansions,expeditions, and this year added a newBattle Pass and seasonal events.
Amazon has also brought the extremely popular online Action-RPGLost Arkdeveloped by Korean studio Smilegate RPG west. The game has seen further classes such as theSlayer, new worldbossesand more. Amazon has also announced they would be publishing the Korean MMORPG, the cross-platform titleThrone and Liberty, expected to arrive in now the second half of 2023. Amazon is also working with Bandai Namco to bringBlue Protocol west.
The Embracer Group earlier this year shared they hadfive projects currently in the works, and this looks like one of the titles that were previously announced. We were wondering if they had an MMO in the mix and it seems that Amazon is the one to be taking on that task once again. They are collaborating on the Tomb Raider series with the Embracer Group.
What are your expectations for an MMO based on The Lord of the Rings? Let us know in the comments below.
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