Amazon Game Studios, a division of Amazon.com, today announced it will collaborate with Leyou Technologies Holdings Limited and Middle-earth Enterprises to develop and publish a Free-to-Play MMO game based on the fantasy literary work The Lord of the Rings, by J.R.R. Tolkien. No release date has been set for the game. Set in the world of Middle-earth as portrayed in The Lord of the Rings literary trilogy, the game will give fans around the globe a new, immersive game experience for epic exploration of the vast world of Tolkien.
In addition to the game development collaboration, Amazon Studios is now separately developing a new Amazon Original TV series based on The Lord of the Rings for Prime Video which is unrelated to the game. Amazon Game Studios and Leyou will jointly develop the game for PC and consoles, and Amazon Game Studios will market and publish the title globally with the exception of China, which will be managed by Leyou. The collaboration brings together Amazon’s technology and talented MMO developers, and Leyou’s expertise in designing Free-to-Play games and operating live-service games.
The Amazon Game Studios leadership team includes veteran developers who helped create of some of the world’s most popular MMO games. Amazon Game Studios is also home to New World, an in-development sandbox MMO game set in an alternate 17th century world.