Tales of the Shire is a The Lord of the Rings-themed take on Stardew Valley

By Tomas Franzese Published April 22, 2024

A Hobbit gardens in Tales of the Shire. — Private Division

Private Division revealed a new game set in the Middle-earth universe called Tales of the Shire: A The Lord of the Rings Game. The title, developed by Wētā Workshop Game Studio, is a cozy life simulator set within the world of the books by J.R.R. Tolkien.

In 2022, No Rest for the Wicked publisher Private Division first teased that it was working on a game based on The Lord of the Rings with Wētā Workshop, the visual effects studio whose initial claim to fame was working on Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings film trilogy. Wētā Workshop has technically had a game studio since 2014, but Tales of the Shire will be its most significant release yet.

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Tales of the Shire is meant to be a relaxing life sim where players go about their day in a town of Hobbits called Bywater. It looks like it will draw inspiration from games like Stardew Valley, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, Fae Farm, and Bandle Tale: A League of Legends Story. It’s a cozy game where players can customize their home, explore, farm, fish, and cook every day in between conversations with the Hobbits that inhabit Bywater. The ultimate goal is to throw an amazing Bywater Festival for the Shire where characters like Gandalf can potentially show up.

It definitely seems like it will be a breath of fresh air for The Lord of the Rings games following Monlith’s gory Middle-Earth action titles and 2023’s disastrous The Lord of the Rings: Gollum. Tales of the Shire: A The Lord of the Rings Game will be released for PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch sometime during “the second half of 2024.”

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A former Gaming Staff Writer at Digital Trends, Tomas Franzese now reports on and reviews the latest releases and exciting…

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Gaming

Tales of the Shire is very serious about second breakfast

A hobbit chops food in Tales of the Shire.

There have been plenty of Lord of the Rings video games created over the past two decades. Many of those focus on epic fantasy action, retelling the story of the original trilogy or at least playing around in its surrounding events (with mixed results). While that makes for a fun literary fantasy come to life, the franchise has always left a market untapped. Fighting is fun, but what about players who simply want to live out a quiet hobbit life?

Tales of the Shire: A The Lord of the Rings Game is set to deliver that fantasy. Rather than focusing on bloody battles against orcs, it's a cozy life sim that lets players enjoy a leisurely life in a hobbit hole. It’s a dream come true in its own right. I got to see a bit of how that works at Summer Game Fest, where I tried out a sunny, 30-minute demo. While it didn’t give me a full sense of its life simulator elements, I at least learned one important thing: Tales of the Shire is as serious about cooking as its hobbits are.

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After so many years of support, it might feel like there's nothing left that needs to be added or changed in Stardew Valley after you've mastered the essential tips and tricks. This farming sim lets you live your best life in the quiet countryside with your own farm, villagers to meet and date, Easter eggs to find, and quests to complete either alone or in co-op.

Multiple updates have only expanded the number of things to do in a game you could already spend hundreds of hours in, like finding the legendary Meowmere. But the developer behind this game is just one person, and even an entire team couldn't match the output of the entire modding community. Given the meteoric success this game has had and sustained for so many years, there have been hundreds of mods created by passionate fans that change the game far more than any cheat could. These mods can make your humble little farm life feel completely fresh, as well as smooth out a couple of lingering rough edges in the game. We've farmed up the absolute best Stardew Valley mods you should try for yourself.
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