Lord-of-the-Rings-War-in-the-North
Latest
Warner Bros. Humble Bundle on the way [update: confirmed, live]
Update: Humble Bundle confirmed it's launching a WB Games bundle that's expected later today, featuring six games: F.E.A.R 2: Project Origin, F.E.A.R. 3, Lord of the Rings: War in the North, Scribblenauts Unlimited, and the Game of the Year Editions of Batman: Arkham Asylum and Arkham City. Each game purchase is redeemable through Steam, but you'll have to pay over the average to unlock Scribblenauts Unlimited and Arkham City. Update 2: The WB Games collection is live and kicking on Humble Bundle. It'll run for two weeks, ending on November 19. Original Story: Warner Bros will become the latest big-name company to take center stage in a Humble Bundle, going by an apparently premature update (deleted but screen-capped above) on the Scribblenauts Facebook page. The series' official account listed Scribblenauts Unlimited as one of six games included in a bundle raising money for DC Entertainment's We Can Be Heroes charity campaign, but said bundle isn't live (yet). We've reached out to Warner Bros. for comment. If accurate, Warner Bros. would follow EA, Double Fine, and THQ as one of the rather more recognizable names to get in on the Humble Bundle act. The site partially raises money for charity by featuring downloadable collections of games at pay-what-you-want prices, such as the weekly sale on games by Worms dev Team 17 that it's currently hosting.
12 Days of Joyswag: Lord of the Rings: War in the North (Collector's Edition)
Another year, another 12 days of holiday giveaways! Between now and Christmas Day, we're doing the one thing that makes us feel truly alive: giving. Specifically, we're giving you fine folks some of the swag we've managed to collect in our cluttered home offices. And the good will and merriment doesn't stop here! Don't forget to follow us on Twitter and Facebook for even more chances to win! Here, on day two of our history-making giveaway, we're unloading two particularly large packages from the ol' home office. The Lord of the Rings: War in the North Collector's Edition not only includes a copy of the game (on Xbox 360) and an art book, but it also includes ... a massive quiver. And lucky us, we've got two of them. Find out how you can adopt these needy Collector's Editions just after the break.
Warner Bros. makes cuts across Seattle studios
A WB Games representative this evening confirmed to Joystiq that the publisher has "had to make reductions" across its Seattle-based studios this week. The layoffs were apparently a result of the publisher's "continual review of our business operations and fluctuating market conditions," and no specific studios were named in the comment. We first heard of potential firings at the company from 3D Realms co-founder George Broussard's Twitter account, which puts the cuts at "60ish" folks in the studio's Seattle studios (which includes Monolith Productions, Snowblind Studios and Surreal Software). The latest release from WB Games Seattle was this week's Lord of the Rings: War in the North.
The Joystiq Show - 011: Now Playing Battlefield 3
It's a game explosion this week and you better get used to it, because the season only gets crazier from here. Up first, Richard, Ludwig and Griffin share their experiences with Lord of the Rings: War in the North, Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception, and Sonic Generations. Guess which one of these games features the protagonist kissing a human woman. Battlefield 3 takes the hot seat this week with some tough love. Arthur joins in to explain why a game with so many issues deserves the score he gave it. Alexander and Ben also get in on the multiplayer love-fest. And Spoiled Rotten is back. Chris assembled his own team of villains to discuss the ins-and-outs of Batman: Arkham City. But beware, you're about to get punched with spoilers. Part 1 (1:27) - Now Playing: Lord of the Rings: War in the North, Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception, and Sonic Generations Part 2 (54:07) - Roundtable: Battlefield 3 Part 3 (1:41:36) - Spoiled Rotten: Batman: Arkham City Get the podcast: [iTunes] Subscribe to the Joystiq Podcast in iTunes [Zune] Subscribe to the Joystiq Podcast directly in the Zune Marketplace [RSS] Add the Joystiq Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator [MP3] Download the MP3 directly Host: Richard Mitchell (@SenseiRAM) Producer: Jonathan Downin (@jonathandownin - Game Thing Daily) Production Coordinator: Richard Mitchell Music: Trash80, Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception, Battlefield 3, and Batman: Arkham City Stream the show after the break.
The Lord of the Rings: War in the North review: Middle-earth revisited
As I type this, sitting behind me on a shelf, right next to Master Chief, there is a Ringwraith action figure. Downstairs on the bookshelf sits a hardbound edition of The Lord of the Rings (fashioned itself after the Red Book of Westmarch). I have read The Hobbit. I even read The Silmarillion. Point being: I'm a fan of J.R.R. Tolkien and The Lord of the Rings, which makes it difficult to approach The Lord of the Rings: War in the North with anything less than trepidation. To put it bluntly, wedging a non-canonical story into the most well-known piece of fantasy fiction of all time is no small task; turning said story into a video game perhaps doubly so. Fortunately, like the One Ring itself, War in the North possesses some surprising qualities. Unlike the Ring, however, it begins to tarnish after a few hours.
A cavalcade of nerds discuss fellowship in this War in the North dev diary
Who do you trust to tell you what you need to know about Lord of the Rings: War in the North? The game's producer? A fan of the franchise, perhaps? How about Samwise-effing-Gamgee himself? All speak their minds in the War in the North dev diary posted above.
LOTR: War in the North dev video brings the Posehn
If you're looking for information on the upcoming Lord of the Rings game, War in the North, go ahead and skip 3:10 in the above video. If you'd like to know what comedian Brian Posehn thinks of Tolkien's legacy (much more pressing info, really), skip to 1:04.
Lord of the Rings: War in the North boss battle will not be the end of this fellowship
Boss battles are usually all about pattern recognition, but with Lord of the Rings: War in the North's Barrow-Wight Lord, the strategy is more about killing his friends -- of course a Lord would make his servants fight for him! Even in death, old habits are hard to kick, it seems.
Lord of the Rings: War in the North shows the power of three in new trailer, screens
The Lord of the Rings: War in the North doesn't need a ring to defeat its foes; it has the power of three. Three different beings, to be exact -- after all, if it were the power of three rings, that would defeat the purpose of that whole "one ring" thing Sauron won't shut up about.
Warner Bros media roundup: Mr. Freeze, impostors, Orcs and monsters
Warner Bros Interactive went gritty at Gamescom this year with new screens from Batman: Arkham City, Gotham City Impostors, Lord of the Rings: War in the North and, most gruesome of all, Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster. We still can't believe they're marketing those fluffy, brightly colored puppets to children. The humanity, WB. Check out all the WB galleries from Gamescom right here -- if you dare.
Lord of the Rings: War in the North begins November 1
The official Lord of the Rings: War in the North Facebook page has declared November 1, 2011 as the beginning of operations in North America. The armies of man, elves and dwarves will arrive in Australia and Europe on November 2 and 4, respectively. Those who have already decided to enlist should take a look at the retailer specific pre-order bonuses and pick one that suits them best. Sadly, none of them come with Middle Earth's sparkling cider and three shot glasses ("regular cups" for all you hobbits out there). [Thanks, Spencer.]
Lord of the Rings: War in the North trailer remembers the trilogy
Hey, do you all remember the Lord of the Rings film trilogy? Remember how much you loved -- err, still love them? This trailer for War in the North certainly hopes you do; it focuses largely on how the new, Snowblind-developed title ties into the films.
LOTR: War in the North gets obligatory CE, retailer-specific pre-order bonuses
As Lord of the Rings: War in the North preps for an autumn assault, Warner Bros. is deploying an extravagant Collector's Edition and pre-order incentive to help gather recruits. The Collector's Edition, which costs a whopping $130, includes a Ranger of the North Quiver Case, art book, a behind-the-scenes DVD on the game's music, three songs from the soundtrack ... and the game. Those who pick up the CE for Xbox 360 receive a Ranger of the North Avatar outfit for Xbox Live, while PS3 purchasers get a War in the North Theme Pack. You'll also have to contend with pesky retail-specific pre-order bonuses for the standard edition, which we've listed after the break. %Gallery-127735%
Lord of the Rings: War in the North preview: Death from above
We last saw Lord of the Rings: War in the North back in March, and the mechanics haven't changed much in the version seen on the floor of E3 earlier this week. It's still a three-player co-op game, featuring an elf caster, a human rogue and a dwarf fighter beating down some of the familiar baddies from the Lord of the Rings franchise with a nice layer of RPG on top. The game's not incredible, but it's a more than serviceable action title, made better with a few good friends to play with. This latest preview focused on a slightly different objective than last time -- in the short part of the demo I played, my cohorts and I had to defend a set of elven brothers that were casting some magic to break open a fortress door, with a few waves of enemies rolling in after us. Fortunately, we weren't alone -- while my companions depended on their weapons, and my axe, we had one other secret weapon up our sleeves: A giant eagle.
Lord of the Rings: War in the North preview: Three amigos
Good friends are hard to come by and when a menace like the Dark Lord Sauron threatens your realm, you have to put aside your differences and do what's right. Lord of the Rings: War in the North celebrates the idea of fellowship, telling the story of a trio of adventurers (a human, elf and dwarf) as they participate in that titular northern war. Since this is a Warner Bros. game, developer Snowblind Studios has access to not only the book rights but the film rights as well. This allows Snowblind to kind of play between both versions of the story, creating what it hopes is a good union between the two. %Gallery-118547%
Lord of the Rings: War in the North introduces a heroic trio
Forget about Gimli and Aragorn -- it's all about the "Ranger of the North," the "Loremaster of Rivendell" and the "Champion of Eriador" in Lord of the Rings: War in the North. Get acquainted with the heroic trio in this latest trailer for the game.
Joyswag: The Lord of the Rings: War in the North-themed JRR Tolkien birthday toast kit
Did you know today was Lord of the Rings scribe JRR Tolkien's birthday? If you did, you probably also know that fans of "The Professor" toast his birth at 9pm your local time. It's true! Read all about it here on the Tolkien Society's website. To celebrate the occasion (oh, and we guess to promote the upcoming Lord of the Rings: War in the North video game), Warner Bros. sent over the above kit, replete with L-sized shirt, sparkling cider and three shot glasses that would look at home in the land of Middle Earth. Since we don't keep this stuff (and everyone on staff is allergic to non-alcoholic beverages) we're going to send this to one of you. Obviously, you won't get it in time to toast The Professor, but something tells us he won't mind if you're a few days late. Find out what you've got to do after the break and, if you're reading this at 9pm your time, a toast: to The Professor!%Gallery-112390%
Lord of the Rings: War in the North trailer displays orcish brutality
We feel like Orcs caught a bad rap in Tolkien's flagship fantasy franchise. Sure, they're not the nicest of dudes -- but do they deserve to be senselessly butchered, like in the trailer for Snowblind Studios' action-RPG Lord of the Rings: War in the North, posted below? We certainly don't think so.
Lord of the Rings: War in the North announced by WBIE; Snowblind developing
If you've been nervously tapping your fuzzy Hobbit toes in anticipation of the project behind the trademarked "Lord of the Rings: War in the North," then prepare for a delicious second breakfast of information. Warner Bros. Interactive has officially announced the game which, as it turns out, is an RPG from Champions of Norrath / Justice League Heroes developer Snowblind Studios, due for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360 in 2011. It sounds like it will be familiar gameplay to fans of those games, as well. Snowblind head Ryan Geithman calls it "a natural evolution of the acclaimed RPG gameplay that Snowblind has consistently delivered over the past years." In this online co-op RPG, up to three players will take part in the War of the Ring, visiting areas and meeting characters from the films and uncovering "unseen lands, story elements and characters from Middle-earth." The game will receive a full reveal in PlayStation: The Official Magazine's May issue, which will be on shelves April 6. Head past the break for a trailer.
Trademark registered for 'The Lord of the Rings: War in the North'
The mighty trademark digger at Superannuation has unearthed The Lord of the Rings: War in the North. The trademark was applied for by the same company that handled Aragorn's Quest, which could signal another one of Warner's Ring offerings, designed to appeal to families as well as "hard-core RPG fans." We'll be sure to communicate what's happening in the war to the north when we learn more.
