While we sit and wait for Season 2 of Prime Video’sLord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, the Middle Earth fans who enjoy games will have something to chew on pretty soon. Today, on Durin’s Day, it’s the perfect occasion for for Free Range Games and North Beach Games to unveil the cinematic trailer forLord of the Rings: Return to Moria. The co-op survival crafting game will center around the dwarves and it will be led by longtime fan-favorite Lord Gimli Lockbearer, who will be voiced byJohn Rhys-Davies.
In order to hype up the game’s release and celebrate the actor’s return to the franchise, the team fromLord of the Rings: Return to Moriainvited Rhys-Davies for a conversation at
Nerd of the Rings, the largestYouTube channelin the world dedicated to all things middle Earth. During his participation, the actor celebrated the chance to play Gimli in a different setting and explore different aspects of the character:
“It’s always fun to come back and think of the ‘what-ifs’, and the chance to work on this game is an exploration of one of the what-ifs, isn’t it? Actors often create characters out of love and it’s very hard, sometimes, to let them go. Certainly, Gimli is, for me, a character that I really adore, and I’m very grateful for the opportunity to reprise him in a different context."
What Is ‘Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria’ About?
Lord of the Rings: Return to Moriatakes place in theFourth Age of the Middle Earth– so, a long time after the Prime Video series. Players will join Gimli at the Misty Mountains as they are summoned there and tasked with reclaiming spoils from their homeland. Moria was first introduced to audiences inLord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, in an era that the dwarves’ domain was basically a graveyard. In the game, the dwarves will have to work together to recover treasures from Khazad-dûm and restoring the honor of their race.
In an official statement, CEO of Free Range GamesChris Scholzrevealed that when the time came to cast Gimli’s voice actor, “there was only one name everyone wanted” and called working with the actor “an honor, a privilege and a dream.” Davies played the dwarf in the originalLord of the Ringstrilogy, and much like all other cast members, he became forever attached to the character he played in fans' hearts and minds. Having his voice in the game is certainly an asset that instantly takes players andLord of the Ringsfans there and back again to theearly days of the Middle-Earth.
Lord of the Rings: Return to Moriawill be released on October 24 for PC via Epic Games Store and PS5. You can find out more about the game at theReturn to Moriaofficial website. Check out the game’s opening cinematic below:
