Have you ever wondered what Lord of the Rings would be like if it crossed over with Minecraft? We’ve seen plenty of games inspired by Lord of the Rings and plenty inspired by Minecraft but soon we’ll have a fusion of the two of them set somewhere LotR fans will be very excited about.
Revealed during the Epic Games Summer Showcase the new game, The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria, sees the Dwarves of Middle-earth try to not just reclaim their homeland of Moria but also restore it.
The game is being made by Free Range Games and published by North Beach Games.
What’s the story of Return to Moria?
According to the press release we received the story of Return to Moria “takes players beyond the books and into the Fourth Age of Middle-earth, the fantastical world created by J.R.R. Tolkien. Summoned to the Misty Mountains by Lord Gimli Lockbearer, players take control of a company of Dwarves tasked to reclaim the lost spoils from the Dwarven homeland of Moria—known as Khazad-dûm or Dwarrowdelf—in the depths below their very feet. Their quest will require fortitude, delving deep into the Mines of Moria to recover its treasures.”
The game is also procedurally generated, which means all adventures will be different. The game is also multiplayer which means you can play, craft and get up to all kinds of hijinks with friends whilst exploring the caves.
What Else Do We Know?
The press release we received broke down the key game features for the game. You can read them all below!
- “Experience the Fellowship of the Dwarves like never before, with the rich lore of the iconic fantasy world from J.R.R. Tolkien interwoven into the very fabric of The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria.
- To survive the treacherous Mines of Moria players must conserve resources, hunt, and gather for food and manage their sleep, temperature, and noise levels. Utilize dynamic light systems for safety and to blaze a path further into the darkness. Battle unspeakable evils and survive hordes of monstrous Orcs in visceral combat, while uncovering the secret of the Shadow that looms within the mountain.
- Find solace from the darkness. Reveal and clear new locations to create architecture on a grand scale. Get creative and construct bases from scratch or build upon the existing environment. Beware the evils which seek to destroy Dwarven progress.
- Restore the long-lost ancient kingdom of Khazad-dûm to its former glory, recovering Dwarven landmarks as the story progresses. Resurrect old mines and refire their forges to yield their untouched resources.
- Delve into the depths of the Mines of Moria. Procedurally generated environments are abundant with resources and fraught with mystery and danger, providing a unique experience each and every time.
- Adventure alone or band together with friends in online cooperative multiplayer with up to eight players.
- Craft and loot legendary Dwarven armour, tools, weapons and structures. Rebuild ancient forges to strengthen, repair and enchant gear. Upgrade and unlock new technologies and fantastical machines.
- Discover ancient magic items including swords that glow when Orcs are near, maps of long-dormant Mithril veins, books with forgotten crafting plans and amulets that give strength or wisdom.
- Establish mines to unearth deposits of precious resources such as iron, gold, and quartz; and fantastical materials such as Mithril. Access crafting stations and forges to convert ore to ingots and upgrade gear. But be prepared, mining is loud and can awaken what lurks in the darkness.
- Players become part of Dwarven Legend as they create their own Dwarf in the custom character creator. Dwarves can be customized in a variety of ways to create a unique Dwarven identity. Then, during gameplay, players can find and craft armour and weapons to further enhance their unique style.”
When Does Return To Moria Release?
The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria is due to release in Spring 2023 the game, for now, will be a PC exclusive on the Epic Games Store. Whether it stays exclusive will remain to be seen. It definitely sounds like an exciting game though, especially if you’re a Lord of the Rings fan. Are you excited? Make sure to let us know over on our socials!
Check out more from FragHero below, including this awesome Harry Potter in Minecraft that someone built!
Feature image credit: Warner Bros / Microsoft