Electronic Arts announced that The Lord of the Rings, The Third Age roleplaying game is under development for a planned fall 2004 release. The epic quest, in which players will take on the roles of new characters choosing their own path through Middle-earth while interacting with the heroes and villains of the trilogy, will be available for the PlayStation 2, the Xbox, Nintendo GameCube and Game Boy Advance under the EA GAMES brand.
Based on New Line Cinema and Peter Jackson's acclaimed film adaptations of J.R.R. Tolkien's classic The Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Lord of the Rings, The Third Age videogame allows players to adventure through Middle-earth, building a party of heroes as they journey. Players battle on the side of the Fellowship, but can unlock additional encounters where they fight on the side of Sauron as they progress. In the game, players will interact with the characters of the Fellowship in a unique structure, taking on individual quests while intersecting the major events of the film trilogy that drive the story forward. Parties will traverse through both familiar and seldom-glimpsed locations, using an innovative turn-based battle system as they fight, encountering the demonic Balrog in the Mines of Moria, defending the fallen city of Osgiliath, or trying to destroy Helm's Deep.
The Lord the Rings, The Third Age, is being developed by EA's Redwood Shores studio, the same studio that developed the hit The Lord of the Rings; The Return of the King game. The Game Boy Advance version is being developed by Amaze Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a Griptonite. For more information on EA's The Lord of the Rings games, follow the download tab above. For a first look at some images from the game follow the Screens tab above.
Under an exclusive licensing agreement with New Line Cinema, EA has the rights to create and publish interactive entertainment games based on the movie trilogy. A real-time strategy game for the PC, The Lord of the Rings, The Battle for Middle-earth, is under development for release in the fall of 2004.
