The unreleased online role-playing game set in the world of Lord of the Rings has been canceled.
According to Bloomberg, the MMORPG was in development by Amazon Game Studios in collaboration with Chinese video game holding company Leyou Technologies Holdings Ltd. A spokesperson from Amazon announced the cancellation in a statement, saying, "We love the Lord of the Rings IP, and are disappointed that we won't be bringing this game to customers."
First announced two years ago, the game would have been set in Middle-earth and was intended for release as an online game on PC and all major consoles. No release date had been announced. The cancellation was reportedly due to Leyou being acquired by Tencent Holdings Ltd. in Dec. 2020 and contract disputes between Amazon and Tencent eventually led to the game adaptation being canceled. A spokesperson from Amazon confirmed they had "been unable to secure terms to proceed with this title at this time."
Following the cancellation of its 2018 team-based brawler Breakaway, Amazon Game Studios also abandoned its free-to-play third-person shooter Crucible in 2020, which had been in development since 2014. Following multiple delays, Amazon Game Studios' upcoming project, an MMO set in the mid-1600s called New World, was scheduled to be released on Aug. 31, 2021.
Amazon's television subsidiary is currently developing a Lord of the Rings series for Prime Video. The series, which cost nearly half a billion dollars to produce, is scheduled to release its first season in 2021. One of the show's actors Tom Budge recently announced that he left the show due to creative differences over the portrayal of his unnamed character.
Produced by Amazon Studios, The Lord of the Rings stars Robert Aramayo, Owain Arthur, Nazanin Boniadi, Morfydd Clark, Ismael Cruz Córdova, Ema Horvath, Markella Kavenagh, Joseph Mawle, Tyroe Muhafidin, Sophia Nomvete, Megan Richards, Dylan Smith, Charlie Vickers, Daniel Weyman, Cynthia Addai-Robinson, Maxim Baldry, Ian Blackburn, Kip Chapman, Anthony Crum, Maxine Cunliffe, Trystan Gravelle, Sir Lenny Henry, Thusitha Jayasundera, Fabian McCallum, Simon Merrells, Geoff Morrell, Peter Mullan, Lloyd Owen, Augustus Prew, Peter Tait, Alex Tarrant, Leon Wadham, Benjamin Walker and Sara Zwangobani. The series is expected to premiere on Amazon Prime Video in 2021.
Source: Bloomberg