Turbine extends Tolkien partnership

Turbine Inc has announced it will be continuing its partnership with Tolkien Enterprises to continue working on videogames relating to The Hobbit or Lord of the Rings titles until at least 2014.

The developer, currently supporting its MMO Lord of the Rings Online (LOTRO) with a series of free content updates and additions, also has an option to extend the deal further until 2017.

Jim Crowley, president and CEO of Turbine, expressed his delight with the performance of the title so far, and that the company was looking forward to continued success as new movies based on The Hobbit - as well as a sequel - were released in the next few years.

LOTRO is currently available in five key regions globally, and is set during the events of the Tolkien trilogy, although while players will encounter various characters from the books, the overall world situation must remain static in order to maintain the persistent setting.