Electronic Arts (EA) is working on a free-to-play (F2P) mobile game based on Middle Earth.
According to EA's recent announcement, it is developing The Lord of the Rings: Heroes of Middle-Earth, a new F2P mobile game that brings the magic of The Lord of the Rings (LOTR) to new and existing fans.
This game is EA's first LOTR game since 2006.
The Lord of the Rings: Heroes of Middle-Earth
According to EA's announcement, The Lord of the Rings: Heroes of Middle Earth is a new F2P mobile game jointly developed with Middle-Earth Enterprises, a division of the Saul Zaentz Company, and EA's Capital Games, the developer of Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes.
The game is said to bring "the fantasy and adventure" of LOTR to new and existing fans in a strategic, social-competitive experience.
It will also be the first mobile game developed by EA that is "inspired by the storylines, locations, characters and lore from LOTR and The Hobbit."
EA said the game would feature "immersive storytelling," turn-based combat, deep collection systems, and a wide roster of characters from across the vast universe of The Lord of The Rings and The Hobbit. It would also allow players to battle through iconic stories from the world of J.R.R Tolkien and fight against the great evils of Middle-Earth.
The game would require a persistent internet connection and will include in-game purchases, better known as microtransactions, once it is released.
EA also added a line in its announcement saying that the game includes random items. Although it didn't clarify what mechanic the game would use, the game will probably involve another set of gacha mechanics similar to the one found in the EA Star Wars: Battlefront series and other games such as Hearthstone, Raid: Shadow Legends, and FIFA 22.
As such, you'd be forgiven to think that the game sounds similar to Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes (even the title is similar). But, instead of Jedi, bounty hunters, and Sith Lords from the Galaxy far, far away, it will feature characters from Middle-Earth, such as Gondorians, Hobbits, and Orcs.
The Lord of the Rings: Heroes of Middle-Earth is expected to enter its limited regional beta testing phase this summer.
EA's History with LOTR Games
EA had previously developed more than a few games based on LOTR. These games inlude The Battle of Middle Earth series, which are real-time strategy games, The Lord of The Rings: The Two Towers and The Return of the King, which are action hack-and-slash video games, and its Battlefront-esque game, The Lord of the Rings: Conquest.
The games, with the exception of Conquest due to its by-the-books approach, as IGN points it, were critically acclaimed and were fondly remembered by gamers at the time, according to Kotaku.
With gamers praying for a new LOTR game in the tune of The Battle for Middle Earth III, this game could take off the edge of the pain of waiting for an announcement to arrive.
