Creative Assembly's Total War: Warhammer trilogy has finally come to a close, and the developer is now in the market for another fantasy franchise to adapt, such as Lord of the Rings. Up until 2016, the Total War series had only explored major historical periods like Ancient Rome or the reign of Napoleon Bonaparte. When the studio announced that it was going to be exploring Games Workshop's Warhammer series through Total War: Warhammer, not many fans knew what to expect from a franchise that was known for its historical periods. After three titles, Creative Assembly has shown fans that it knows how to handle a fantasy IP just as well as a historical era, and it should be given the chance to try it again.
One of the biggest names in fantasy is J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings series. The works of Tolkien have spawned six successful theatrical movies, and Amazon has recently begun expanding the world of Middle-earth through The Rings of Power. Several video games have also explored this vast world, but few have shown the battles in all their glory. Creative Assembly has seemingly mastered the art of depicting giant battles, and it also knows how to navigate a pre-established franchise. By combining those two points of experience, the studio may be the perfect fit for a new trilogy of strategy games across Middle-earth.
Lord of the RIngs Needs More Video Games
The Lord of the Rings is one of the most popular fantasy worlds around, and it has recently returned to the spotlight through The Rings of Power. Fantasy fans have enjoyed the adventures of Frodo and Sam, and they showed up in droves to watch Bilbo help reclaim the Lonely Mountain alongside the Dwarves of Erebor. The series has continued to be lauded as some of the best fantasy that film has to offer, and it has become a staple of popular culture. However, that same adoration does not seem to have carried over to the video game industry.
The stories of Middle-earth have not made a huge impact in the video game industry like it has in film, and that needs to be rectified. A couple of titles have adapted Middle-earth to major success, like Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor and LEGO The Lord of the Rings, but these games are too few and far between. A lot of Middle-earth games seem to be relegated to mobile platforms, and non-mobile players only have The Lord of the Rings: Gollum and The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria to look forward to right now. While these games could be major hits, there does not seem to be a lot of hype around either of these projects as fans seek other types of experiences.
Total War Lord of the Rings Could Be Great
While Frodo and Sam's journey is the primary focus of The Lord of the Rings, Middle-earth isn't short on giant battles for viewers to enjoy. The series has continuously delivered large-scale wars that are a feast for the eyes. The Battle of Helm's Deep, the Battle of the Five Armies, the Battle of Isengard, and the Battle of the Morannon are all iconic fantasy battles that the films brought to life on a grand scale. While it is great to witness these battles unfold, it can be even better if fans are given the chance to actually control the trajectory of Middle-earth's greatest fights.
The big draw of the Total War series is that it gives players control over giant armies and lets them duke it out against their enemy on expansive battlefields. They can do this through skirmish battles or as part of a large campaign that sees them try to fight across a landmass so that their faction comes out on top. Creative Assembly has used this framework to bring players across history and the Warhammer universe, engaging in some of the biggest battles around, and this same model could be a great treat for Lord of the Rings fans.
The battles in Total War Lord of the RIngs could give players control over some of the largest factions on Middle-earth and let them live out their perfect fan-fiction. They could pit the armies of Numenor against the Orcs, Sauron's army against Gondor, the Dwarves against the Silvan Elves, or even Morgoth's forces against Sauron's forces to see who is more powerful. It could get pretty wild, and it would give Lord of the Rings fans a chance to tell their own stories in J. R. R. Tolkien's world.
The campaign of Total War: Lord of the Rings could bring players to the various ages of Arda and allow them to shape the future of this giant world. The first game could focus on the First Age of Arda and let them do battle against the forces of Morgoth, or control Morgoth's army and lay waste to Middle-earth. The second game could whisk players off to the Second Age of Arda and recount the events that are currently being adapted in The Rings of Power, and the final entry would move on to the Third Age of Arda to finally let them participate in the War of the RIng as well as the events of The Hobbit in fun-filled Total War fashion.
A Total War: Lord of the Rings game would give players control over the forces of good or evil and let them participate in these iconic fantasy battles across a Middle-earth playground. Their actions could shape the trajectory of the world, and fans of the franchise may love having such large-scale control. It seems like a great next step for Total War after the end of the Warhammer series, and it could spawn a brand-new trilogy of fantastical strategy games for Total War fans to spend hours strategizing in.
Total War: Warhammer 3 is available for PC.