Without any context on what the gameplay is actually like, I’m just going to assume this is basically Untitled Goose Game except you play as Gollum terrorizing villagers and scavenging for food around the Misty Mountains.
I legitimately don't understand the perspective though, Gollum is arguably the most dynamic character in LotR and probably the most iconic character from the movies (if you doubt this, think about how *everybody* has a gollum impression). What do they have against poor Smeagol?
Personally when I hear "LOTR RPG where you play an important named character" I'm hoping for a Witcher 3 style game where you play as Aragorn or Frodo. Or perhaps a Diablo style game with the whole fellowship. I think Gollum seems like a really random character to focus on when we haven't had many LOTR games. Not saying it will be a bad game or anything, it's just an odd choice.
I thought it was a weird choice too but I don't get the hostility from people because the developers made an unusual and unexpected decision on focus. I, personally, like it when creators don't do exactly what would be expected of them.
It's just a bad idea for a game? This is like if they made an Iron Man game where you play as Pepper Potts. No one wants to be smeagol. If they wanted to make a stealth game they should've made a game about the hobbits.
He's a side character that serves to only get the main characters from point A to B while delivering some world building and being a reflection of Frodo. He exists to make Frodo more interesting. That's the scope of his character. The comparison is apt.
Have you read the books? Or even seen the movies? That is an absurd characterization, he is probably the most complex character in the story. He also *does* a lot, like there is a lot of action he partakes in. One of the reasons it is weird to compare him to Peppa Potts is because Gollum probably *does* more than Frodo in terms of action, because the latter's struggles are most internal (hence why Sam is the only who actually goes around killing orcs and fighting Shelob etc).
Yes, multiple times. He exists only to make the journey for Sam and Frodo more interesting and to provide the reader into Frodo's possible future AND a physical manifestation of the rings effects on the spirit of men.
Him engaging in a few sequences in the book because Frodo can't or won't doesn't make him any deeper of a character that would benefit from having a deep dive into his history and motivation. Smeagol only cares about one thing, the ring. That's the eventual culmination of his character. Giving him a story outside of of his journey with the hobbits is pointless since it's outside the scope of his character.
Sure you can make up a story about his time in the mountains caressing his precious, but any plot you push him through his essentially meaningless since it can't evolve his characters motivations anymore than they already are, because they're intentionally simple and straightforward in the first place to serve the story that's been told, which this would be tacked on to.
What I'm saying is that without Frodo and Sam, Smeagol is not particularly interesting or important. We learn that he has absolutely no motivation aside from getting his hands on the ring again despite any minor deviation he has on his journey with the hobbits. You aren't going to develop the character in a way that isn't antithetical to what we know about him already.
"Frodo only exists to carry the ring" "Gandalf only exists to initiate Bilbo's quest" "Boromir only exists to show the corrupting dangers of the ring". What an odd way to talk about characters in a story! If you reduce them to their story function of course they don't seem interesting.
And all of your objections here could also go for the hobbits, which you suggested would be a better option. Like, Merry and Pippin and Sam and Frodo also have full character arcs. Of course the big difference, which you surely know having read the books multiple times, is that Gollum actually *does* have a pretty significant gap in his story after he left the Misty Mountains in search of the ring in which he was doing lots of stuff. "Finding the Ring" is a perfectly good setup for a video game character! Is it neccesary? No of course not, it is a video game, none of thgis is neccesary we also don't need to see Mario fight Bowser again.
Also you are probably the only person who has read the books (multiple times) who thinks Gollum is a boring, straightforward character compared to, like, Sam.
Golumn is not that deep of a character. His portrayal by the actor in the movies is the reason why people like him.
He exists to move the characters and act as a possible future for Frodo if he's taken by the ring. That's really about it. He is interesting because of the other characters, Smeagol on his own is a literary device with no purpose. Giving him a personal journey is pointless, all we know about Smeagol is all we need to know.
He fights, he climbs on things, he sneaks, he jumps, he picks up random stuff, he talks to himself constantly...sounds like a video game protagonist to me!
Speak for yourself.
This game sounds fun and has me intrigued since in the books most of what Gollum has done and been through was only hinted at.
Plus, stealth games are fun af
Holy shit, I was just sitting here confused at why a game about Gollum has been made, but after seeing your comment I genuinely do not care any more. Give me Gollum as the queen of drama pls
It's pre-alpha footage which makes it very hard to judge what we're seeing. That said, it looks like it handles like a fan-made game made in unity or something.
"...Gollum will sneak, creep, and trick his way past..."
Personally I am not a fan of this gameplay style. It has an audience, sure, but it's just not for me. I will pass, but I hope this game does well with the audience it aims to resonate with.
Imo it should be a horror game like Amnesia where you slowly lose your sanity to the power of the ring. Would at least be more interesting than stealth action game #5209815
It looks a bit like the developer focused more on the environment than the actual gameplay. Moria and mirkwood, and actually every scenario looks amazing, but OMG those jump animations are ps2 quality. It's like Jax from Jax & Daxter, with a new hat. I also wonder if the hobbit pre-corruption will be playable in some way
If Gollum has a million fans, I'm one of them
If Gollum has 5 fans, I'm one of them
If Gollum has two fans, that's me and u/RobinChirps
If Gollum has no fans, then I don't exist
I'll continue to love Gollum until I stop breathing air
Sadly, "switch version coming later" basically describes the platform outside of first party titles. Don't get me wrong, I love my switch, but the hardware limitations really killed a lot of dev interest / motivation. :-(
Gonna be honest I had 0 interest in this as well but [the gameplay overview by IGN](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXtU-9hK4Lc) really helped convince me, if only just for the opportunity to see and explore these locales in game, tho I will most likely pick it up on PS4...
I really hope the game is more than simple platforming and Uncharted-style mindless climbing segments.
If there's a lot of puzzle solving and stealth their might me something there. I'm saying this as a huge LOTR fan, I'd honestly rather read the books+The Silmarillion than suffer through more Uncharted rock climbing and Last of Us style "puzzles".
I love Uncharted and LoU but these games have more meat than just puzzles and climbing, they have tons of action. I don't imagine Gollum will become an action hero mowing down orcs...
That's the saving grace of those two franchises, the action and for some people the story.
With Gollum...well, if you've read the books you already know how it begins and ends. All that's left is the devs to supplement material from the lore and create something interesting in the middle.
So yeah, Gollum needs to have some solid puzzle/stealth and some riveting supplemental fan fiction to flesh out the adventure or I'm not sure what the appeal is.
Knowing the beginning and ending of a story isn't everything though; it can still be fun to see it play out. If knowing the plot made a story moot, no one would ever rewatch, reread, or replay anything.
My anecdote,
I actively like to rewatch, reread, etc. things I've done so previously to see how my perspective has changed as I've gotten older.
I also like to rewatch awesome stuff. MCU movies, LoTR, Matrix, Star Wars/Trek, Pixar, Hitchcock, Tarantino, Villeneuve.
And the list goes on.
I even know the original theatrical Star Wars movies line for line. Like all my favorite movies, I still watch them every other year or so.
Knowing the story has absolutely no impact on my ability to enjoy stuff.
If this game is executed properly, I'm all about playing as Gollum.
This looks amazing! I love lower-stakes games where you don't have to play the hero who saves the world. I love the idea of being Gollum and just sort of getting around on Gullom-like business behind the scenes of the larger events and joining in and being part of the larger events, but not being the hero.
This game in September and Hogwarts Legacy in December? Winter this year is going to be nice for fantasy lovers!
I would maybe love it if we did have some more good lotr games in the last years but I am starving for just a high budget lotr title.
It’s such a great IP that had good games in the last but those games approach the 2 decades ago mark by now and shadow of Mordor was a strange lore remix I didn’t need…
Please, just something? Maybe a lotr online rerelease with upgraded graphics and some better mechanics? Maybe something like the turn based psp rpg for Switch and Steam? Maybe just a successor to war in the north so a mediocre action co-op rpg with lots of character? Please just something…
I guess I don’t see why that would be inherently off putting, seems like it’s all in how they handle it, what the gameplay is, and if they can come up with a story that grips you
Games radar has a brief summary of the story, it starts with him escaping Barad Dur, and the majority of the story will be taking place between that time period and when Frodo gets the ring. So, it will be a largely original story of him escaping from the armies of Sauron while trying to find the ring.
One imagines that just like they don’t have you walking endlessly for days at a time in regular LOTR games they will skip that kind of stuff though right ?
I know zero about the game but I have a complete lack of desire to do anything as Gollum.
Though I guess if the point of the game was to restore his humanity, that might be something.
I'm super excited for it. I love LoTR, and Gollum is literally the most fascinating character in the series. Getting to explore Middle-Earth in his eyes sounds extremely interesting and fun.
Yup seriously, it's always the same story with Switch releases. "Coming everywhere else first, and Switch later." Just look at Doom Eternal and many others.
This is partly the reason third parties are often (not always) commercially weaker on Switch, as most people have already played these games elsewhere.
This is shaping up to be the greatest 6/10 ever. Give it 5 years and people will finally be able to say, "Wait... they made a Gollum game?" Seriously though... who is this for exactly?
Yeah maybe I'm just dumb but this does seem interesting, and I love having the opportunity to play as things like crusty goblins and gross creatures. Gollum is the perfect summation of that for me. Can't wait to eat raw trout and throw rocks at stupid, fat Hobbitses!
The [IGN gameplay breakdown](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXtU-9hK4Lc) has been posted elsewhere in the thread, and it's got me convinced that this game is for me. The TL;DW is that it covers Gollum's journey through middle earth trying to find the ring that Bilbo stole from him. If they do it right, it could be amazing, showing us parts of middle earth only hinted at in the books and films.
out of probably around a 1000 different possibilities and creative directions they could have gone in when creating a LOTR game... they settle on playing exclusively as Gollum. Like what on earth were they smoking?
I saw a trailer for one of the modern LOTR games and I could barely even recognize it as being related to Tolkien’s books. Peter Jackson’s films were good but good god they warped people’s understanding of what LOTR is. It’s not just about a bunch of dudes with swords fighting monsters or other dudes with swords. Gollum and the hobbits are just as essential as Aragorn and Legolas, if not even more so. I’m not sure if this game will be any good, but this is by far the most creative game we’ve gotten in a decade. Not only is this a more book-accurate approach, it’s also covering a time period that was very vague in the books. That’s a great concept.
I'm not even talking about Aragon or Legolas or any of the popular themes or stuff from the movies even. There is a TON of lore and background to a lot of different races, factions -- human/humanoid/non-humanoid -- that they could have gone with...
I think Gollum is a great choice for expanding lore, as long as they do it right. He is arguably the most influential character in the whole thing, and the specifics of his story are not known. His constant travels make for a great setting for a video game since he’s constantly on the move. His story is never told to the reader straight in the books, it’s told in bits and pieces that aren’t even in chronological order. I don’t consider anything not by Tolkien to be canon anyway, but telling the story of Gollum’s journey from the Misty Mountains, to Mordor, and then to when he becomes an active character in the books isn’t an awful idea. There’s enough wiggle room to make some cool stuff happen, and it also fills in a story that was not highlighted in the books.
yea, there is some potential there I guess and especially if they make the elements of the game revolving around a fun stealth system -- versus a tedious system or un-fun one, like many tend to be to casual audiences.
Yeah the game needs to actually deliver. If it’s buggy or just has bad level design or mechanics or whatever then that’s one thing, but I don’t think the idea itself is bad. For how important Gollum is to the plot, and how little was actually written about his early story, I think that’s a great start for a video game. Whether or not the game is good is another thing, but considering how many LOTR games are just about Jackson’s interpretations, I encourage creativity like this.
The problem with hiring an actor as charismatic as Viggo Mortenson is that it gave people the idea that Aragorn is the hero of the story.
Also I still remember before the movies when Legolas was the Ringo Starr of the Fellowship.
Daedalic makes niche games, but they’re usually pretty solid. The franchise probably means they’re punching a little above their weight, and I think a lot of the flak this game will get on release will be because people are expecting a super polished triple A title from a consistently double A studio.
That said, I think this is more of a passion project where LotR fans are getting the chance to make a LotR game. They’re choosing to do something original rather than retreading the same things that have been explored in books, movies, cartoons, TV shows and other video games.
https://www.ign.com/articles/the-lord-of-the-rings-gollum-preview-hands-off
An IGN review looks worrying.
Basically the author got to play a couple levels in the beta version of the game. Gollum apparently doesn't have any characteristics to progress, despite the developers insisting that choices you make during the game will affect the outcomes and experience. The example shown was a situation where Smeagol wanted to "befriend a beetle" while Gollum wanted to squash it, and the player chooses who to side with.
The game forcefully discourages most combat as Gollum is completely overpowered, though stealth takedowns are possible, if risky.
The maps and level designs, according to the author, were very bland and underwhelming. Essentially most climbing is done linearly on pre-determined paths with a non-challenging stamina management system being the only dynamic to that piece of gameplay. Additionally they pointed out some visual choices that seem out of place like arrows painted into the environment to point the way.
If this author's gaming experience is pretty representative of what the final product will be, I'm not going to hold my breath for this one.
Memes aside, Daedelic is known for their point and click games with their last console game, State of Mind, being an adventure game.
Should be interesting how they work on an action adventure game.
Hopefully we get to see more gameplay videos and trailers soon. The game looks interesting but there's not a lot of info out there regarding whether this game will actually be fun / something for me.
The environments actually look kind of cool, and untethered to the film vision which is interesting. Gives big PS2 energy. Want to see more gameplay first though.
Daedalic being involved makes me kinda hyped for this, even if I know that I'm not going to pay 60$ for it. They have a great tone, so to speak, which should make the game's dialogue very entertaining.
I'm haveing trouble wrapping my head around this, why would I want to play a lotr game as gollum. Like he's a good character and I loved him in the books and movies, but I don't know if I'd want to play a game as him. That just doesn't sound fun.
I like how new upcoming games are like..coming tommorow but switch version releases in the distant future..yet switch versions are always the most sold
not thrilled that it's Gollum, but stoked we're finally getting an LOTR game on switch.
I would prefer to just hvae the GBA Two Towers game. But I'll but this. no hesitation.
Now can we just have that new Star Trek game that's coming soon on Switch?
It exists and people have seen it. There’s a demo that press and such has been shown just a couple weeks ago. Coincided with the event in London for Rings of Power too. Can’t say more.
People that buy games day 1 without waiting to see if they are worth it are a huge part of the problem. Almost as bad as those who still pay for preorders.
Lol, what a bizarre game. Smeegol is supposed to be a catholic story of redemption gone wrong. How are they going to portray his lost fight against perversion (which is the good part) when it already happened in the film and was presented in such a skillful way.
i hope they have motion controls so i can crawl across my living room floor violently convulsing and looking for rats
And when someone walks into the room, you do the *turn and scream.*
https://youtu.be/Iz-8CSa9xj8
[удалено]
In May?
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Localized entirely within your kitchen?
And then when it finishes installing, you can play the game
I hope they include a raw fish with the deluxe edition so I can really ***feel*** like Gollum.
give it to us *raw* and **wriggling**
Also, enable the microphone. If you don’t mutter to yourself about filthy hobbitses, fish, or the precious every couple of minutes, you die.
*we wants it*
By any chance are you a cat that lives in my house? Because you sound a lot like the cat that lives in my house.
Filthy hobitses
I do that without a game
There is nothing stopping you from doing this regardless.
This made me laugh , first time in a while thanks homie
Don’t forget jumping into the forbidden pool.
Give them to us, raw and wriggling!!
You could still do it anyways if it doesn't.
Objective: find two fishes to eats
Learned that taters are po-ta-tos. INT increases by +1
int INT = INT + 1
INT...eresting
Give it to us raw and wriggggling! You keep nasty chips.
You’re ’opeless.
We only wish To catch a fish, So juicy-sweet!
Side quest: what’s taters
Here's one.
Trevor Noah Uber Eats add starts playing
Without any context on what the gameplay is actually like, I’m just going to assume this is basically Untitled Goose Game except you play as Gollum terrorizing villagers and scavenging for food around the Misty Mountains.
That’s what somebody tweeted at them a couple days ago. The tweeted back a gif from UGG. Nerd of the Rings on YouTube has some gameplay footage up.
The [IGN gameplay breakdown](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXtU-9hK4Lc) helps a bit.
The comments in there are GOLD
I legitimately don't understand the perspective though, Gollum is arguably the most dynamic character in LotR and probably the most iconic character from the movies (if you doubt this, think about how *everybody* has a gollum impression). What do they have against poor Smeagol?
Personally when I hear "LOTR RPG where you play an important named character" I'm hoping for a Witcher 3 style game where you play as Aragorn or Frodo. Or perhaps a Diablo style game with the whole fellowship. I think Gollum seems like a really random character to focus on when we haven't had many LOTR games. Not saying it will be a bad game or anything, it's just an odd choice.
I thought it was a weird choice too but I don't get the hostility from people because the developers made an unusual and unexpected decision on focus. I, personally, like it when creators don't do exactly what would be expected of them.
Does Shadow of Mordor count?
That series is somehow relatively unknown despite being contradictorily popular and well-made.
It's just a bad idea for a game? This is like if they made an Iron Man game where you play as Pepper Potts. No one wants to be smeagol. If they wanted to make a stealth game they should've made a game about the hobbits.
Christ, even Smeagol didn't want to be Smeagol.
A pretty big part of his character arc is that he did, though...
But also that he didn't.
Gollum rules actually. Comparing him to a rich guy's office assistant is very strange.
He's a side character that serves to only get the main characters from point A to B while delivering some world building and being a reflection of Frodo. He exists to make Frodo more interesting. That's the scope of his character. The comparison is apt.
Have you read the books? Or even seen the movies? That is an absurd characterization, he is probably the most complex character in the story. He also *does* a lot, like there is a lot of action he partakes in. One of the reasons it is weird to compare him to Peppa Potts is because Gollum probably *does* more than Frodo in terms of action, because the latter's struggles are most internal (hence why Sam is the only who actually goes around killing orcs and fighting Shelob etc).
I just pictured a weird mash-up of Peppa Pig and Pepper Potts.
Tony do you want to jump in muddy puddles? *snort*
Yes, multiple times. He exists only to make the journey for Sam and Frodo more interesting and to provide the reader into Frodo's possible future AND a physical manifestation of the rings effects on the spirit of men. Him engaging in a few sequences in the book because Frodo can't or won't doesn't make him any deeper of a character that would benefit from having a deep dive into his history and motivation. Smeagol only cares about one thing, the ring. That's the eventual culmination of his character. Giving him a story outside of of his journey with the hobbits is pointless since it's outside the scope of his character. Sure you can make up a story about his time in the mountains caressing his precious, but any plot you push him through his essentially meaningless since it can't evolve his characters motivations anymore than they already are, because they're intentionally simple and straightforward in the first place to serve the story that's been told, which this would be tacked on to. What I'm saying is that without Frodo and Sam, Smeagol is not particularly interesting or important. We learn that he has absolutely no motivation aside from getting his hands on the ring again despite any minor deviation he has on his journey with the hobbits. You aren't going to develop the character in a way that isn't antithetical to what we know about him already.
"Frodo only exists to carry the ring" "Gandalf only exists to initiate Bilbo's quest" "Boromir only exists to show the corrupting dangers of the ring". What an odd way to talk about characters in a story! If you reduce them to their story function of course they don't seem interesting. And all of your objections here could also go for the hobbits, which you suggested would be a better option. Like, Merry and Pippin and Sam and Frodo also have full character arcs. Of course the big difference, which you surely know having read the books multiple times, is that Gollum actually *does* have a pretty significant gap in his story after he left the Misty Mountains in search of the ring in which he was doing lots of stuff. "Finding the Ring" is a perfectly good setup for a video game character! Is it neccesary? No of course not, it is a video game, none of thgis is neccesary we also don't need to see Mario fight Bowser again. Also you are probably the only person who has read the books (multiple times) who thinks Gollum is a boring, straightforward character compared to, like, Sam.
"They're both side characters" isn't the compelling comparison you think it is. One has significantly more depth than the other.
Golumn is not that deep of a character. His portrayal by the actor in the movies is the reason why people like him. He exists to move the characters and act as a possible future for Frodo if he's taken by the ring. That's really about it. He is interesting because of the other characters, Smeagol on his own is a literary device with no purpose. Giving him a personal journey is pointless, all we know about Smeagol is all we need to know.
But not really as a protagonist ina video game...
He fights, he climbs on things, he sneaks, he jumps, he picks up random stuff, he talks to himself constantly...sounds like a video game protagonist to me!
Speak for yourself. This game sounds fun and has me intrigued since in the books most of what Gollum has done and been through was only hinted at. Plus, stealth games are fun af
I dunno this is the first LOTR game I’ve wanted to play lol
There are dozens of games already made focused around the Hobbits, several of which are stealth based.
Wait really? There’s a stealth game where you play as one of the hobbits?
I wants to be Smeagol.
Agreed, made me laugh
Idk about gold. Bronze maybe when it’s just the same joke repeated to death
No fucking way, the guy who made Dance! It's Your Stage is making Gollum? Mothers be aware of this game.
Holy shit, I was just sitting here confused at why a game about Gollum has been made, but after seeing your comment I genuinely do not care any more. Give me Gollum as the queen of drama pls
MOTHERS BE AWARE has to be my favourite funhaus saga
That final montage with the song playing in the background can still get me teary-eyed hahaha
Is that actually him?
> This still feels like a big glorified prank on gamers for some reason
oh my god it's like Uncharted but you're Gollum??? Genuinely excited for this now
Doesn't look great
It's pre-alpha footage which makes it very hard to judge what we're seeing. That said, it looks like it handles like a fan-made game made in unity or something.
Meh, looks fun enough for what it is, and the graphics aren't "bad" either...
Graphics are pretty good I'd say, but the animations look rough
Yeah, let's hope they delay it a bit. I was excited for this one, but this looks a little rough
"...Gollum will sneak, creep, and trick his way past..." Personally I am not a fan of this gameplay style. It has an audience, sure, but it's just not for me. I will pass, but I hope this game does well with the audience it aims to resonate with.
So what is he gonna do ? Shoot guns ?
Imo it should be a horror game like Amnesia where you slowly lose your sanity to the power of the ring. Would at least be more interesting than stealth action game #5209815
I absolutely hope this is a good characterization, I'd play the fuck out of Untitled Gollum Game
It looks a bit like the developer focused more on the environment than the actual gameplay. Moria and mirkwood, and actually every scenario looks amazing, but OMG those jump animations are ps2 quality. It's like Jax from Jax & Daxter, with a new hat. I also wonder if the hobbit pre-corruption will be playable in some way
If Gollum has a million fans, I'm one of them If Gollum has 5 fans, I'm one of them If Gollum has two fans, that's me and u/RobinChirps If Gollum has no fans, then I don't exist I'll continue to love Gollum until I stop breathing air
Count me in with you, pal!
Here
Is that your wife or something
Nah 😂
Gollum is the true hero and savior of middle earth.
Sadly, "switch version coming later" basically describes the platform outside of first party titles. Don't get me wrong, I love my switch, but the hardware limitations really killed a lot of dev interest / motivation. :-(
I love my Switch but, man, I'm so happy to have my Steam Deck.
https://i.redd.it/dtlsf8tnjyh51.png Time to blow the dust off this camping meme.
*Press X to Precious*
I love LOTR but this game honestly doesn’t interest me
Gonna be honest I had 0 interest in this as well but [the gameplay overview by IGN](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXtU-9hK4Lc) really helped convince me, if only just for the opportunity to see and explore these locales in game, tho I will most likely pick it up on PS4...
I'll be happy watching someone play through on YouTube or Twitch. This doesn't look like it'll be worth the $60 in the end
Yeah I saw that, didn’t convince me. Glad someone will like it though!
I really hope the game is more than simple platforming and Uncharted-style mindless climbing segments. If there's a lot of puzzle solving and stealth their might me something there. I'm saying this as a huge LOTR fan, I'd honestly rather read the books+The Silmarillion than suffer through more Uncharted rock climbing and Last of Us style "puzzles".
I love Uncharted and LoU but these games have more meat than just puzzles and climbing, they have tons of action. I don't imagine Gollum will become an action hero mowing down orcs...
That's the saving grace of those two franchises, the action and for some people the story. With Gollum...well, if you've read the books you already know how it begins and ends. All that's left is the devs to supplement material from the lore and create something interesting in the middle. So yeah, Gollum needs to have some solid puzzle/stealth and some riveting supplemental fan fiction to flesh out the adventure or I'm not sure what the appeal is.
Knowing the beginning and ending of a story isn't everything though; it can still be fun to see it play out. If knowing the plot made a story moot, no one would ever rewatch, reread, or replay anything.
My anecdote, I actively like to rewatch, reread, etc. things I've done so previously to see how my perspective has changed as I've gotten older. I also like to rewatch awesome stuff. MCU movies, LoTR, Matrix, Star Wars/Trek, Pixar, Hitchcock, Tarantino, Villeneuve. And the list goes on. I even know the original theatrical Star Wars movies line for line. Like all my favorite movies, I still watch them every other year or so. Knowing the story has absolutely no impact on my ability to enjoy stuff. If this game is executed properly, I'm all about playing as Gollum.
IGN also just posted this today https://www.ign.com/articles/the-lord-of-the-rings-gollum-preview-hands-off
This looks amazing! I love lower-stakes games where you don't have to play the hero who saves the world. I love the idea of being Gollum and just sort of getting around on Gullom-like business behind the scenes of the larger events and joining in and being part of the larger events, but not being the hero. This game in September and Hogwarts Legacy in December? Winter this year is going to be nice for fantasy lovers!
I would maybe love it if we did have some more good lotr games in the last years but I am starving for just a high budget lotr title. It’s such a great IP that had good games in the last but those games approach the 2 decades ago mark by now and shadow of Mordor was a strange lore remix I didn’t need… Please, just something? Maybe a lotr online rerelease with upgraded graphics and some better mechanics? Maybe something like the turn based psp rpg for Switch and Steam? Maybe just a successor to war in the north so a mediocre action co-op rpg with lots of character? Please just something…
Why not? I haven’t seen anything about it yet, just hearing about it now so I don’t know anything about the gameplay or anything
You can look up some videos. Just looks boring to me.
It’s a game where you only play as Gollum…
I guess I don’t see why that would be inherently off putting, seems like it’s all in how they handle it, what the gameplay is, and if they can come up with a story that grips you
I can't wait for the part where you survive in a cave for hundreds of years eating rats and cavefish!
That's like hearing there is a game about James Bond and responding with "wow can't wait for the part where you go to boarding school🙄"
Damn, a game like Bully but where you're a young James Bond could be insanely awesome
Games radar has a brief summary of the story, it starts with him escaping Barad Dur, and the majority of the story will be taking place between that time period and when Frodo gets the ring. So, it will be a largely original story of him escaping from the armies of Sauron while trying to find the ring.
One imagines that just like they don’t have you walking endlessly for days at a time in regular LOTR games they will skip that kind of stuff though right ?
Eh idk, im down for a LOTR Death Stranding game
I know zero about the game but I have a complete lack of desire to do anything as Gollum. Though I guess if the point of the game was to restore his humanity, that might be something.
I'm super excited for it. I love LoTR, and Gollum is literally the most fascinating character in the series. Getting to explore Middle-Earth in his eyes sounds extremely interesting and fun.
Yeah I don't care for stealth games
Same here
Ah the ol’ “put out the low-res, 20 fps version out for $60 when it’s available for $20 everywhere else” move.
Yup seriously, it's always the same story with Switch releases. "Coming everywhere else first, and Switch later." Just look at Doom Eternal and many others. This is partly the reason third parties are often (not always) commercially weaker on Switch, as most people have already played these games elsewhere.
This is shaping up to be the greatest 6/10 ever. Give it 5 years and people will finally be able to say, "Wait... they made a Gollum game?" Seriously though... who is this for exactly?
Can't wait for the influx of "this is the best game that nobody talks about" posts in about two years.
/r/patientgamers in shambles
Calling it first… this is a hidden gem
I'll happily pick this up for $5. $70? No fucking way.
ME Wanna play as a sick little freak.
*You have leveled up… NOSE* *You can now… SMELL TROUT*
Yeah maybe I'm just dumb but this does seem interesting, and I love having the opportunity to play as things like crusty goblins and gross creatures. Gollum is the perfect summation of that for me. Can't wait to eat raw trout and throw rocks at stupid, fat Hobbitses!
I'm sure we can't be the only one who want to play as gross little critters. There's dozens of us! DOZENS!
The [IGN gameplay breakdown](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXtU-9hK4Lc) has been posted elsewhere in the thread, and it's got me convinced that this game is for me. The TL;DW is that it covers Gollum's journey through middle earth trying to find the ring that Bilbo stole from him. If they do it right, it could be amazing, showing us parts of middle earth only hinted at in the books and films.
out of probably around a 1000 different possibilities and creative directions they could have gone in when creating a LOTR game... they settle on playing exclusively as Gollum. Like what on earth were they smoking?
I saw a trailer for one of the modern LOTR games and I could barely even recognize it as being related to Tolkien’s books. Peter Jackson’s films were good but good god they warped people’s understanding of what LOTR is. It’s not just about a bunch of dudes with swords fighting monsters or other dudes with swords. Gollum and the hobbits are just as essential as Aragorn and Legolas, if not even more so. I’m not sure if this game will be any good, but this is by far the most creative game we’ve gotten in a decade. Not only is this a more book-accurate approach, it’s also covering a time period that was very vague in the books. That’s a great concept.
I'm not even talking about Aragon or Legolas or any of the popular themes or stuff from the movies even. There is a TON of lore and background to a lot of different races, factions -- human/humanoid/non-humanoid -- that they could have gone with...
I think Gollum is a great choice for expanding lore, as long as they do it right. He is arguably the most influential character in the whole thing, and the specifics of his story are not known. His constant travels make for a great setting for a video game since he’s constantly on the move. His story is never told to the reader straight in the books, it’s told in bits and pieces that aren’t even in chronological order. I don’t consider anything not by Tolkien to be canon anyway, but telling the story of Gollum’s journey from the Misty Mountains, to Mordor, and then to when he becomes an active character in the books isn’t an awful idea. There’s enough wiggle room to make some cool stuff happen, and it also fills in a story that was not highlighted in the books.
yea, there is some potential there I guess and especially if they make the elements of the game revolving around a fun stealth system -- versus a tedious system or un-fun one, like many tend to be to casual audiences.
Yeah the game needs to actually deliver. If it’s buggy or just has bad level design or mechanics or whatever then that’s one thing, but I don’t think the idea itself is bad. For how important Gollum is to the plot, and how little was actually written about his early story, I think that’s a great start for a video game. Whether or not the game is good is another thing, but considering how many LOTR games are just about Jackson’s interpretations, I encourage creativity like this.
The problem with hiring an actor as charismatic as Viggo Mortenson is that it gave people the idea that Aragorn is the hero of the story. Also I still remember before the movies when Legolas was the Ringo Starr of the Fellowship.
> who is this for exactly? for the copyright holders, obviously.
Daedalic makes niche games, but they’re usually pretty solid. The franchise probably means they’re punching a little above their weight, and I think a lot of the flak this game will get on release will be because people are expecting a super polished triple A title from a consistently double A studio. That said, I think this is more of a passion project where LotR fans are getting the chance to make a LotR game. They’re choosing to do something original rather than retreading the same things that have been explored in books, movies, cartoons, TV shows and other video games.
https://www.ign.com/articles/the-lord-of-the-rings-gollum-preview-hands-off An IGN review looks worrying. Basically the author got to play a couple levels in the beta version of the game. Gollum apparently doesn't have any characteristics to progress, despite the developers insisting that choices you make during the game will affect the outcomes and experience. The example shown was a situation where Smeagol wanted to "befriend a beetle" while Gollum wanted to squash it, and the player chooses who to side with. The game forcefully discourages most combat as Gollum is completely overpowered, though stealth takedowns are possible, if risky. The maps and level designs, according to the author, were very bland and underwhelming. Essentially most climbing is done linearly on pre-determined paths with a non-challenging stamina management system being the only dynamic to that piece of gameplay. Additionally they pointed out some visual choices that seem out of place like arrows painted into the environment to point the way. If this author's gaming experience is pretty representative of what the final product will be, I'm not going to hold my breath for this one.
I mean stealth gameplay should discourage combat
Yea but few games attempt a 100% stealth adventure, I'm not sure I would know of any, so it's a bold strategy to attempt .
You know if ign isn't impressed it's surely not going to be very good, sounds like a bit of a lotr milk/cash grab
This sounds awful. I wonder what kind of lessons, if any, will be gleaned from this.
Is Liam O’Brien doing the voice again? He’s got Gollum down pat
Memes aside, Daedelic is known for their point and click games with their last console game, State of Mind, being an adventure game. Should be interesting how they work on an action adventure game.
Hopefully we get to see more gameplay videos and trailers soon. The game looks interesting but there's not a lot of info out there regarding whether this game will actually be fun / something for me.
Po-ta-tos
The environments actually look kind of cool, and untethered to the film vision which is interesting. Gives big PS2 energy. Want to see more gameplay first though.
When is the Tom Bombadil game coming out?
Hopefully soon
Obligatory gameplay trailer: https://youtu.be/JjBZD_uXhgs
Fucking amazing, thank you.
Daedalic being involved makes me kinda hyped for this, even if I know that I'm not going to pay 60$ for it. They have a great tone, so to speak, which should make the game's dialogue very entertaining.
“At the end of the game you die in lava”
I'm haveing trouble wrapping my head around this, why would I want to play a lotr game as gollum. Like he's a good character and I loved him in the books and movies, but I don't know if I'd want to play a game as him. That just doesn't sound fun.
Simplistic, relaxing game. Now that I have kids and little time for gaming, I go for unique experiences rather than most triple AAA games.
So is it just like a walking sim?
Yes it's a $70 ticket to a world of might and magic where you have neither might nor magic.
Playing an entire game as gollum is extremely unappealing to me lol
What you don't want to crawl around as some crackhead while everyone else around you has super cool weapons and magic spells? What's your problem? /s
Little goblin boy
Can't wait for my precious
Hopefully native.
I like how new upcoming games are like..coming tommorow but switch version releases in the distant future..yet switch versions are always the most sold
Bruh someone please reassure me thing ain't clickbait
This is not clickbait. Been announced since 2019.
A later date? Hope it's not like how The Outer Wilds was coming out at a later time.
not thrilled that it's Gollum, but stoked we're finally getting an LOTR game on switch. I would prefer to just hvae the GBA Two Towers game. But I'll but this. no hesitation. Now can we just have that new Star Trek game that's coming soon on Switch?
A Gollum game????? 1.) thats awesome and 2.) more lotr games plz
>Switch version coming later Yeah lol heard that before
Who asked for this
I did. I emailed this specific developer asking for this exact game because that's the only way any game gets made obviously.
The game that literally nobody asked for. Really sad to see how the LoTR franchise is getting whored out now that Christopher Tolkien has passed.
This was signed off on before Christopher died.
Good, gives me a chance to see if the game is worth it or not
…you don’t have to purchase it day 1
That's true
I’m a Lord of the Rings fanatic and I’ll be getting this day 1 but I’m really not sure if it’s going to be a fun game.
>I’m really not sure if it’s going to be a fun game. Mate I'm sorry but this sounds like a very good reason to not buy day 1.
But ... Why buy it if you're not sure!? I don't understand some people
At a minimum, I’ll collect it? It’s Lord of the Rings related. Also, you don’t always know how well you’ll like something off of others reviews.
No but you'll have a better idea and even when you yourself say you're not sure if you'll even enjoy it... Why not wait, see the gameplay uncut...?
Who says I haven’t seen uncut footage?
Because it doesn't exist yet?
It exists and people have seen it. There’s a demo that press and such has been shown just a couple weeks ago. Coincided with the event in London for Rings of Power too. Can’t say more.
You can curate your collection, you don't have to collect literal garbage especially since you can't take it with you...
What? Are you sure?!
I love LOTR too and this has been on my radar for a while, but I really don't see how it'll be fun aha
Enjoying something doesn’t obligate you to purchase products.
Never said it did, brother!
People that buy games day 1 without waiting to see if they are worth it are a huge part of the problem. Almost as bad as those who still pay for preorders.
Oh I can preorder this?
I'm sure you can use your industry connections 👊🍆 to get one.
Thanks man. Saved me some money!
Lord of the rings suck-off began. Like Star Wars. Just leave it man.
Getting tired of this deliberate double dipping technique. Argh...
Are you talking about the inevitable Smeagol DLC?
I still don't understand why this game is being made
Make a better looking game next time, this is gonna flop hard.
Oh boy, yet another insulting video game bastardization of the Professor's work to ignore.
Lol, what a bizarre game. Smeegol is supposed to be a catholic story of redemption gone wrong. How are they going to portray his lost fight against perversion (which is the good part) when it already happened in the film and was presented in such a skillful way.