2024 has been a pretty solid year for video game releases. AAA first-party titles likeAstro BotandIndiana Jones and the Great Circlemanaged to exceed expectations, and a plethora of innovativeindie games likeNeva,Balatro, andUFO 50have continued to break new ground for the industry at large. Now the final chapter of 2024 is coming to an end, and it’s time to get excited about the games 2025 is about to bring, likeTales of the Shire: A Lord of the Rings Game.
Announced back in September 2023,Tales of the Shire: A Lord of the Rings Gamewill see players live out their coziest Hobbit dreams. There’s a lot of potential in such a well-fitting premise, and fans will get to see if it can live up to expectations in March. And thoughTales of the Shireis far from the only game releasing early next year, it has a few tricks up its sleeve that should help it to stand out among the crowd.
Tales of the Shire Doesn’t Need to Worry About Its Early 2025 Release Date
Tales of the Shire Is Just One of Many Video Game Releases in Early 2025
2025 is quickly shaping up to be potentially one of thebiggest years in video game history, and it all starts in just a matter of weeks. While January will bring games likeSniper Elite: Resistance,Citizen Sleeper 2, andDynasty Warriors Origins, February marks the true beginning of 2025’s imminent landslide of long-awaited titles.
February 2025 is set to bringCivilization 7,Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2,Assassin’s Creed Shadows,Avowed,Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii, andMonster Hunter Wildsto the table, all within the span of mere weeks. And as if that wasn’t enough to last many players the entire year, March has another handful of anticipated games waiting in the wings, such asSplit Fiction,FragPunk,Atomfall, andKilling Floor 3.
Tales of the Shire: A Lord of the Rings Gameis set to launch right in the middle of this early 2025 onslaught, on March 25.
How Tales of the Shire Will Be Able to Stand Out in a Busy Period
ButTales of the Shiremight not need to worry about the overcrowded market it’ll suddenly find itself in. While there are many highly-anticipated video games set to release in early 2025, none of those could really be considered “cozy” video games. The vast majority are grand, open-world action-adventure titles, and the rest are strategy games, first-person shooters, or co-op adventures. The closest competitorTales of the Shiremight have isIvy Road’s farming gameWanderstop, which is releasing a whole two weeks before the Hobbit life-sim.
Along with its distinct genre,Tales of the Shirealso has strong brand recognition on its side. As its name clearly spells out,Tales of the Shire: A Lord of the RingsGameis based on the belovedfantasy world of J.R.R. Tolkien’s creation. That means fans can expect to see plenty of Easter eggs and references to the widerLord of the Ringsseries inTales of the Shire, including some cameos from some major franchise characters. NewLord of the Ringsgames are still quite a rare occurrence, soTales of the Shirewill probably stand out just fine come its March release date.
