Warner plans multi-genre LOTR franchise
Starts with family action in Aragorn's Quest.
Warner Bros. has announced that it will be creating a series of Lord of the Rings games - based on both literary and film rights - that will span multiple genres and platforms.
The first of these will be The Lord of the Rings: Aragorn's Quest, a third-person action-adventure for "kids and their families" to be released for Wii, DS, PSP and PS2 this autumn.
Players will take the role of Aragorn in his greatest quests from the Lord of the Rings trilogy, fighting with bow, sword and spear on foot and horseback. The Wii version will allow two player co-op with Gandalf. It's set in "a colourful, action-filled rendition of Middle-earth that will appeal to new and dedicated fans".
The Wii version's being developed by Headstrong, which recently made the excellent and decidedly not family-friendly House of the Dead: Overkill. TT Fusion takes care of the other three formats.
As for the rest of the franchise, Warner promises "multiple games across many genres designed to appeal to a wide range of unique gamers, including hardcore RPG fans and families". So we can expect that a more serious RPG is in the works somewhere, too.