Tales of the Shire is the Lord of the Rings answer to cozy slice-of-life games like Stardew Valley. Putting you in the leathery soles and hairy feet of a Hobbit, you’ll be sprucing up your own Hobbit-hole, going out on relaxing excursions, and trying to please all the fellow Hobbits you meet. Good news too, as we finally have our first proper look at gameplay and an updated release window for the LOTR game.
Set in the Hobbit town of Bywater, Tales of the Shire tasks you with helping the townsfolk achieve official village status by throwing the best Bywater Festival in the Shire’s history. The life sim and management game tasks you with making your own Hobbit, decorating your own Hobbit hole, and heading out into Bywater for cooking, fishing, foraging, gardening, and every other idyllic menial task the Hobbits are known for.
Much like Stardew Valley, you’ll also be able to strengthen your relationships with the Bywater locals by helping them out, or sharing meals with them. If you’re yet to go to New Zealand and see Hobbiton for yourself, the vibrant and cozy style of Tales of the Shire is definitely the next best thing.
You can check out the first gameplay of Tales of the Shire: A The Lord of the Rings Game below.
Developed by Wētā Workshop Game Studio, a subsidiary of the physical effects studio that worked on the LOTR film trilogy, Tales of the Shire wants to turn the first act of The Fellowship of the Ring into an entire life sim, and it looks delightful.
“We’re excited to provide players with the opportunity to fulfill their fantasy of living their own humble Hobbit life in the Shire,” head of product at Wētā Workshop Kelly Tyson says. “Tales of the Shire brings a cozy new dimension to the way fans can experience Middle-earth, with plenty of wholesome, Hobbit-centric gameplay to win over newcomers to the genre.”
Tales of the Shire is set for launch in the second half of 2024 on both PC and consoles. You can wishlist the game on Steam right now.
If you can’t wait for Tales of the Shire and want more like it, we’ve got all the best farming games and relaxing games to get stuck into in the meantime.
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