Independent developer Free Range Games and publisher North Beach Games are proud to announce that The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria, the only survival crafting video game set in the Fourth Age of Middle-earth™, the iconic fantasy world created by J.R.R. Tolkien, is available now digitally for Windows PC via the Epic Games Store. The game will see both a digital and physical release for the PlayStation®5 computer entertainment system on Dec. 5, and is scheduled to come to the Xbox Series X|S console systems in early 2024. Answer the call of Lord Gimli Lockbearer, and lead your band of Dwarves on an all-new adventure to reclaim their forgotten kingdom in the darkest deeps of the fabled Mines of Moria.
“The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria is a love letter to Professor Tolkien’s Dwarves, made by a development team of hardcore fans. We’ve stuffed it with as much lore, exploration, danger and joy as we could fit,” said Jon-Paul Dumont, Game Director, Free Range Games. “But this isn’t the end! With the support of our incredible community, this is just the start of our adventures in Khazad-dûm.”
“We are thrilled to launch The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria, and can’t wait for survival crafting fans to create their Dwarves and step into the Fourth Age of Middle-earth to explore the iconic world of J.R.R. Tolkien,” noted John Miller, CEO, North Beach Games. “Free Range Games was the perfect partner for this endeavor; Their vision for the project, dedication to the lore and expertise in the genre combined to create a deeply engaging and satisfying experience that we hope fans of both survival crafting and The Lord of the Rings will enjoy.”
The story of The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria takes players beyond the books and into the Fourth Age of Middle-earth, the fantastical world created by J.R.R. Tolkien. Summoned to the Misty Mountains by Lord Gimli Lockbearer (voiced in-game by actor John Rhys-Davies), players band together as a company of Dwarves tasked to reclaim the lost spoils from the Dwarven homeland of Moria — known as Khazad-dûm or Dwarrowdelf — in the depths below their very feet. Their quest will require fortitude and teamwork, delving deep into the Mines of Moria to recover its treasures in the hopes of one day restoring them to their former glory.
In The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria players will create their own custom Dwarf before venturing into the cavernous mines of Moria alone or together with a company of fellow Dwarves online. Each adventure into the depths will bring unique challenges and opportunities through the use of procedurally generated environments, creating nearly endless possibilities as players seek the deepest delves of the Dwarves. As they venture ever deeper, the Dwarves will need to ensure their metal is ready to meet the dangers that lie within, crafting resilient armors and finely honed weapons capable of protecting against and defeating all manner of goblin, arachnoid, or more mysterious foes they may encounter. Excavate the mysteries of the Misty Mountains, extract precious metals prized by Dwarves, rebuild and refire forges that have long since gone cold, and learn the secret of the Shadow that lurks within.
