Game maker Electronic Arts acquired the rights to the 'Lord of the Rings' trilogy. The company will now hold the exclusive right to make video games based on the three books by J.R.R. Tolkien and the three blockbuster movies based on them.
The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Right now, EA says it is working on two new titles based on the series. One will be a Middle Earth sequel and the second is tentatively titled 'The Lord of the Rings Tactics.'
The license was previously held by Vivendi Universal, but that company did not aggressively market the games or make full use of its rights. As a result, sales of its games were below expectations.
'Now that we are expanding our Lord of the Rings universe to encompass Tolkien's books, we'll be able to combine the visual impact of the films with those complex stories,' said Steve Gray, Executive Producer of The Lord of the Rings Tactics at EA. 'The RPG genre, in particular, is a great medium for story telling. We are delving into unexplored depths of Tolkien's works to deliver new, compelling and immersive experiences.'
No release date has been announced for the new games.
