The lost dwarven kingdom deep in Khazad-dûm is one of the first striking moments of the Fellowship’s journey early in The Lord of the Rings. As the hobbits and their companions run from the Balrog, many in the audience never give a second thought to the mines of Moria, but the developers at Free Range Games sure did. The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria tells the tale of dwarves reclaiming the kingdom in the form of a survival game full of building, crafting, and multiplayer fun.
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Taking place after the main story in the Fourth Age of Middle-earth, Return to Moria tells a story never before told in Tolkien’s world. Players can build their own dwarf adventurer from scratch and then take a crack at the mines in search of ore, jewels, and all the other precious metals that dwarves love. The game takes inspiration from megahits like Minecraft and Deep Rock Galactic, presenting a procedurally generated environment to explore filled with artifacts straight out of Middle-earth’s long history.
The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria made its debut during the Epic Games showcase as a part of Summer Game Fest. It will debut on the Epic Games Store exclusively in 2023, and it’s only set for a PC release initially.
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In other Middle-earth news, those who can’t wait to jump into the famous fantasy realm can soon load up their phones and check out EA’s upcoming collection-based RPG Heroes of Middle-earth. There’s also a highly anticipated stealth game on the horizon that puts Gollum in the spotlight as a playable character.
