For fans if the J.R.R. Tolkien Lord of the Rings series of novels, it should be no secret the number of games that also followed the source material in the past couple of decade. Most recently with Monolith Productions’ Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor and Middle-earth: Shadow of War, the franchise proves to be turning in a thriving audience each game.
But what came out of left field happens to be the upcoming MMO RPG from Amazon that is to take place in Middle-earth. Developed by Athlon Games, the 2019-announced project would tell a unique story set in the universe well beyond the series of literature written by Tolkien. At the time of reporting, there appeared to be a bridging between the game and the upcoming Lord of the Rings television series that Amazon is also helming.
However, it seems that the project might already be done for. In a report from Bloomberg, it is reported that the upcoming online MMO is to be cancelled “due to a dispute by Tencent.” The Chinese holding firm in late 2020 acquire Leyou that owns Athlon Games. In a statement, an Amazon spokesperson explains that negotiations between itself and Leyou were squandered.
“We have been unable to secure terms to proceed with this title at this time. The Amazon Spokesperson goes on to include, “We love the Lord of the Rings IP, and are disappointed that we won’t be bringing this game to customers.” Thankfully, there is still Daedalic Entertainment’s Lord of the Rings: Gollum which is scheduled to release next year.
Upon glancing over Amazon’s track record, this is fairly ordinary for the retail conglomerate’s video game division. Most recently, arena shooter Crucible faced the boot as developer Relentless Games moves on to work on development for MMO RPG New World. You can read the full report by heading here.
Are you upset by the disappointing turn of events for the Lord of the Rings MMO RPG?
Source: Bloomberg
