Lord of the Rings open-world game may have found the perfect developer, depending on who you believe

It’s been the dream of many; an Elder Scrolls-like open world game set in Middle-Earth, yet it has never come to pass, but rumours flown in by the Great Eagles say that such a game (or games) might be in development, though the Lidless Eye cannot parse just who is what to up.

The news first broke when Polish translator and journalist Ryszard ‘RYSŁAW’ Chojnowski said on the Tolkein Polska Podcast that he had heard a rumour some months back that Warhorse Studios, developers of Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, were working on an unannounced Lord of the Rings game, as reported by Wccftech, and linked it back to a LotR game in development that Insider Gaming had previously revealed.

Then, Insider Gaming reported that it is actually Crystal Dynamics, the developers behind Tomb Raider Catalyst and Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis, who are the ones working on the Lord of the Rings game with funding from the Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO), alongside Embracer and Revenge.

Insider Gaming goes on to say that Warhorse Studios “aren’t the studio working on this specific game”, but adds that “it’s possible they are also working on one”.

So, are we getting two Lord of the Rings games, or not?

Warhorse Studios would certainly fit the bill, as if you take KCD2 and replace the Cumans with Orks, add a few Hobbits and some Elves, you’re practically halfway to an excellent Lord of the Rings game as is.

As spotted in the Gaming Leaks and Rumours subreddit, Warhorse Studios appears to be working on an Unreal Engine-based project based on job listings posted by the studio.

Both Kingdom Come: Deliverance 1 and 2 were made using Crytek’s CryEngine, and other job listings point to them sticking with the Crysis engine for a presumed Kingdom Come: Deliverance 3, so presumably, an Unreal Engine-based project would be something entirely new.

It’s perhaps a bit of a stretch, but we could be looking at a case of Chojnowski crossing their wires and assuming the rumours he heard about Warhorse were linked to the ADIO-funded game, but he’s actually caught wind of something entirely different.

There is no verifiable way of checking this at the moment, so this is all speculative, but the fact that Warhorse Studios appears to be working on multiple projects at once at least suggests something is afoot.

Radio Times Gaming has reached out to both Warhorse Studios and Cystral Dynamics for comment, and will update you if we hear any more information regarding this story.

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