It’s time, my pretty little hobbits. We finally have a 2023 release date for LotR: Gollum: May 23.
Delayed over multiple years and plagued with questionable quality based on what those who got to play it said, LotR: Gollum has been a bit of a downward-facing roller coaster.
Recent reports, however, seem to be much more positive. A handful of journalists who got to play the recent version of the game praised the movement mechanics and the duality of the character (and the impact decisions you make have on how the game progresses).
General thoughts compare it to something akin to Styx, which was a solid stealth game itself, so the comparison isn’t anything to be ashamed of.
Check out the story trailer below.
2 Comments
Honestly, I would be very happy if this game ended up closely resembling Styx. I absolutely adored both of those games. They were a bit rough around the edges, but if you approached them in the manner that they were intended to be played (pure stealth), they were extremely satisfying. Taking the core gameplay elements from Styx, and then throwing them into a LOTR setting with Tolkien lore, sounds like a worthwhile experience. But I’m going to remain sceptical until I see the final product. From what’s been shown thus far, I’m not sure how this is going to pan out. It’s definitely a “wait for the reviews” situation. I’ll be especially intrigued to read yours, since you’re always spot-on regarding stealth focused games.
Also, I’m not a graphics snob or anything close to it (stil enjoying ps2 & og Xbox games), but something looks off with the Gollum character design. And other npc’s for that matter. But Gollum in particular just looks… I don’t know. I understand the developers might not want an exact replication of the Andy Serkis Gollum from the movie series, but their design choice here is bugging me. I can overlook that if the game is at least moderately fun. We shall see I guess.
You’re not wrong on the looks of Gollum character design; it’s a sort of uncanny valley stare where it’s just close enough to the films, yet.. Off. The expressions – again, especially in the eyes – just don’t quite seem right, compounded even more given Gollum is basically a person who changed into something akin to a monster due to his obsession with the ring.
The new UE5 capture tech (that we got to see featuring Senua from Hellblade 2 – another game I’m anxious to play) would probably have helped here, but at this point in production I don’t feel like they could justify another delay just to get it right.