Warhorse Studios has revealed what it’s working on: a Lord of the Rings role-playing game and a new Kingdom Come game.
In a post on social media, the Embracer-owned developer confirmed rumors that it was making a Lord of the Rings RPG, although it described the game as an “open world Middle-earth RPG.” The suggestion, then, is this game may not be set within the Lord of the Rings era of Tolkien’s fantasy setting. But it seems likely to follow the template established by the studio’s hugely popular Kingdom Come: Deliverance games.
Indeed, it’s easy to see why Warhorse is a great fit for a new Lord of the Rings game; Kingdom Come: Deliverance is a story-driven open world RPG set in medieval Bohemia (modern-day Czech Republic). And while the Kingdom Come: Deliverance games are pride themselves on their historical accuracy, you can imagine this Middle-earth RPG as Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 with a dash of fantasy thrown in to give it that Lord of the Rings feel.
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Speaking of which, Warhorse confirmed a “new Kingdom Come adventure” is in development. The assumption is this is Kingdom Come: Deliverance 3, but that’s not confirmed yet. It could be a spinoff of some description. “We’re excited to tell you more when the time is right,” Warhorse added.
The news comes as Embracer announced plans to spinoff Fellowship Entertainment, a new business unit designed to double down on the company’s biggest franchises. As part of the announcement, Embracer said it will “more actively be exploring” external partnerships around its well-known IP, such as Saints Row, Legacy of Kain, Deus Ex, Red Faction, The Mask, Thief, TimeSplitters.
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 launched last year to critical and commercial acclaim. IGN’s Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 review returned a 9/10. We said: “Armed with excellent melee combat and an exceptional story, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 is one part sequel and one part coronation, bringing a lot of the original’s ideas to fruition.”
While Warhorse has enjoyed significant success with Kingdom Come: Deliverance, it has come under fire recently for its use of generatve AI. Daniel Vávra, the previous director of Kingdom Come: Deliverance, stepped down from his role in February to focus on making a Kingdom Come: Deliverance movie.
Photo by Dimitar DILKOFF / AFP.
Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
