Aspyr has confirmed that more classic Lord of the Rings games are set to return following the surprise re-release of The Lord of the Rings: War in the North, suggesting the publisher has bigger plans for the franchise.
The Lord of the Rings: War in the North – Legacy Edition recently brought the 2011 action RPG back to modern platforms, but it appears this won’t be a one-off. As highlighted by IGN, Aspyr has confirmed that fans can expect additional classic games from the franchise in the future.
“Fans can look forward to even more classic releases by Aspyr from the beloved franchise in the future,” the company said.
Aspyr hasn’t revealed which Lord of the Rings games it plans to revive, meaning there’s currently no confirmation that any particular title is being remastered or re-released. However, there’s no shortage of older games that fans would like to see return.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, The Third Age, Conquest and the Battle for Middle-earth games are among the most fondly remembered releases from the franchise’s extensive gaming history. Many of these titles remain unavailable to purchase on current-generation consoles and modern PC storefronts.
Some of those games could also be more complicated to bring back due to their original publishing and licensing arrangements, so Aspyr’s statement shouldn’t be taken as confirmation that every classic Lord of the Rings game is now on the table.
War in the North’s return does provide an indication of how Aspyr could approach future releases. Rather than completely rebuilding the game, the Legacy Edition preserves the original experience while updating it for modern hardware.
Aspyr has considerable experience in this area, having previously revived older games from franchises including Star Wars and Tomb Raider. Its involvement could now give several long unavailable Lord of the Rings games another opportunity to reach modern audiences.
For now, Aspyr is keeping the identity of its next Lord of the Rings release secret. But with the company explicitly confirming that more classic releases are planned, War in the North appears to be just the beginning.