The Lord of the Rings: Gollum was released on May 25th and quickly plummeted to become regarded as the worst game of 2023. From widespread miserable reviews to an overwhelmingly negative commercial reception, the action-adventure stealth game was shot down even before it had hit shelves around the world.
However, according to a recent report published by a German outlet – Games Wirtschaft – it seems that Daedalic, the developer of the ill-fated Gollum game, isn’t done with Lord of the Rings. Recently, Daedalic received a sizeable grant from the German government to ‘work on games’, and apparently, none of that money went towards the development of Gollum.
Down But Not Out
Gollum may not have been so precious, but it seems like Daedalic isn’t willing to surrender the potential of Middle-Earth just yet. In the report published by Games Wirtschaft, it was revealed that Gollum was ‘the first of several games based on the Lord of the Rings license’ being developed by Daedalic Entertainment.
There’s a follow-up project in the works, it was claimed, that’s codenamed ‘It’s Magic’, which will emerge in 2024 as yet another expansion of the Tolkien Universe. There isn’t much known about the title, but given the codename, it could have something to do with the Elves, some of the most magical beings in the Tolkien Universe.
Following a journey that saw Gollum being delayed several times, Daedalic finally released the game on the 25th of May, and within hours, the developer had published an apology, expressing its remorse over how terrible a game it really is.
Despite that fact, the German Ministry of Economic Affairs has seen fit to grant Daedalic a subsidy worth €2 million, to bolster the development of more titles set in the Lord of the Rings universe.
In the report that accompanies the grant, it was revealed that the player will be transported ‘into a lush world full of mythical creatures and magic’ that hasn’t been seen before. It’ll feature ‘completely new regions’, and the player will influence the events of the world with ‘his role and abilities’.
Interesting.
Did you play Gollum? Do you think it’s really that bad a game? Let us know.
For more Insider Gaming news, check out our coverage of the KOTOR remake that’s still in development, per the Embracer Group.
