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The Lord of the Rings: War in the North
ign.com • • technology
Key Points:
- In November 2011, Warner Bros. released The Lord of the Rings: War in the North the same week as Bethesda’s highly anticipated Skyrim, leading to the former's commercial failure.
- Christian Allen, then design director at WB Games Seattle, advised against launching War in the North alongside Skyrim but was overruled due to quarterly revenue pressures.
- The simultaneous release caused War in the North to be overshadowed, receiving minimal marketing and few reviews, with many comparisons unfavorably made to Skyrim.
- After the game's failure, developer Snowblind Studios was merged with Monolith Productions, which later produced successful titles like Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor before Warner Bros. closed Monolith in 2022.
- Allen, reflecting on the recent re-release of War in the North, expressed satisfaction that the game is now receiving a proper release and recognition.
