As a hardcore Lord of the Rings fan, I think fondly of the days when the series would receive dozens of new games based around the IP. There were certainly some misses, but a ton of great titles as well. In recent years, however, the series has stagnated slightly. Recent gaming adventures within Middle-earth, like Return to Moria and Tales of the Shire, while nice concepts, left a lot to be desired from many fans, myself included, hoping for another story-focused action or adventure-oriented title.

The latest entry in this genre was the travesty Lord of the Rings: Gollum, but before that was Shadow of War in 2017, which showed a lot of promise before Warner Bros. decided to abandon the series for some ridiculous reason.

Fortunately, there have been some exciting announcements this week that a new full-fledged AAA RPG is in development for The Lord of the Rings. The report comes from Insider Gaming, which states that the game seeks to capture the concepts of Hogwarts Legacy. Essentially, an open-ended RPG telling an original story set within the universe of The Lord of the Rings. Certainly an exciting prospect, though as of now, there are few details regarding which studio is even in talks to develop the game with the financial backing of Embracer Group, the current owners of the digital rights.

That being said, I hope this does turn out to be set in stone. The Lord of the Rings: Online is a good comparison for how this kind of game would expand on but also honor the source material; players can explore Middle-earth, take part in important events, and face foes from throughout the world’s history. I’ve always been intrigued by The Lord of the Rings: Online and have heard it offers a great experience to fans, but unfortunately, the game suffers from its overall age, with lots of server issues and outdated mechanics.

The fact that it’s an MMO also makes it less approachable for the average fan who might want a more streamlined gameplay experience with less of a grind. Hopefully, this rumored upcoming game can offer that experience in a polished format, but only time will tell.