Midway to co-publish Lord of the Rings Online

The Lord of the Rings Online is the first MMO to be based on the literary works of J.R.R. Tolkien, but don’t expect any famous faces from Peter Jackson’s motion picture trilogy to appear. In The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar players will adventure on their own or as part of a fellowship throughout an ever evolving re-creation of Middle-earth.

“We’re very excited to be working with Midway on this title,” explained Jeffrey Anderson, president and CEO of Turbine. “Midway’s extensive North American distribution capabilities should ensure a strong and broad based retail presence for The Lord of the Rings Online.“

“The Lord of the Rings series is the foundation for so much of today’s fantasy entertainment, and we expect Turbine’s MMO to be a faithful, thrilling recreation of Tolkien’s world,” said Steve Allison, chief marketing officer, Midway. “We are very pleased to be working with Turbine and look forward to leveraging our expertise to bring The Lord of the Rings Online to the vast legions of Tolkien fans.“

Turbine specialises in massively multiplayer online games and is currently adding the finishing touches to Dungeons & Dragons Online: Stormreach. There is no scheduled release date for The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar, but it is expected at some point this year.