The Lord of the Rings: Gollumis upcoming action-adventure title from Daedalic Entertainment. Described as a “Prince of Persia-like stealth action” game with “a branching narrative” set parallel to the events of the original books and movies, the game aims to tell the story of War of the Ring from the perspective of one of its strangest and most iconic characters.
Lord of the Rings: Gollumisn’t the only game coming out soon that’s based on a franchise best known for its books and big-budget movies. however. With two major franchises trying to reestablish themselves in narrative-driven next-gen experiences, there are a few different reasons to predict that one may come out on top over the other on the upcoming consoles.
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Hogwarts Legacy
Hogwarts Legacyis an upcoming RPG in development by Avalanche Software which will take players to the world ofHarry Potter. Its visual style is very clearly based on theHarry Pottermovies, with screenshots so far revealing that everything from the design of dangerous foes like trolls to the robes worn by students will take direct influence from the movie franchise.
This contrasts the less photo-realistic approach to the graphics inLord of the Rings: Gollum. Though both games look great it is clear thatDaedalic Entertainmentis going for a more stylized and at times even cartoonish aesthetic which diverges more from the movies. In this sense,Hogwarts Legacyis banking more on people who want to roleplay in the Wizarding World as it appeared in the movies, whereasGollum’s graphics market it as more distinct from the movie franchise despite the fact thatGollumtakes place at least partially during the events of theLord of the Ringstrilogy.
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Comparing Settings
The story ofHogwarts Legacy, however, isn’t based on the movies or the books. Taking place almost 100 years before the main events of theHarry Potterseries, the game will likely be able to take advantage of the freedom this affords the writers to give players more meaningful ways of affecting the world.
This is a tried and true method shown in games likeBioWare’sKnights of the Old Republic, which took place long before the events of theStar Warsmovies and was able to tell its own distinct story as a result. LikeStar Wars, the Wizarding World also appears to be relatively unaffected by technological progress, allowing the writers to tell a story which feels like the original while avoiding having to deal with the set events of the books.
One of the biggest questions facingLord of the Ringsfans is how thenewGollumgamewill allow players to make meaningful decisions in a world where players know Gollum’s ultimate fate. It is possible that if players succeed in helping Smeagol win out over Gollum in the end, Gollum’s final act could be interpreted as a heroic sacrifice to stop Frodo taking the ring, but ultimately fans will go into theLord of the Ringsgame with far more knowledge of the end of the story.
It will be a big challenge for Daedalic to create player choices which feel like they have meaningful effects without getting in the way of the main narrative from the books and movies. The game’s rival faces problems too. The developers ofHogwarts Legacyrecently made statements on some of JK Rowling’s recent comments, and the strength of theHarry Potterbrand hasn’t been tested as much in gaming. It remains to be seen which franchise will be able to get a stronger footing on thenext-generation of consoles.
The Lord of the Rings: Gollumreleases on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S in 2021.
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