The Lord of the Rings War in the North Returns on Modern PCs With New Legacy Edition

Aspyr has surprise-released The Lord of the Rings War in the North Legacy Edition, bringing the 2011 co-op action RPG back to modern PCs with improved graphics options, new quality-of-life features and better compatibility. The studio also hints that more classic Lord of the Rings games could return in the future.

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Aspyr Media is resurrecting one of the classic The Lord of the Rings games, providing fans with yet another opportunity to enjoy one of the franchise’s less popular action RPG titles. In particular, the studio has unexpectedly released The Lord of the Rings: War in the North – Legacy Edition, the updated version of a co-op action RPG from 2011 that was previously delisted and became challenging to play on new computers. Furthermore, Aspyr has made it clear that this might not be all and suggested that even more classic The Lord of the Rings games will come to the market soon.

This news appears at the right time for Aspyr Media. Being part of Embracer Group, the studio has recently faced criticism in connection with some of its releases, such as the troubled remastering of Deus Ex and the controversial Tomb Raider content. In addition, the studio has faced questions from the fans regarding its alleged utilization of AI technologies. Thus, the resurrection of War in the North can be seen as a rather positive move by the developers.

War in the North Is Back After More Than a Decade

Released back in 2011, The Lord of the Rings: War in the North is a video game that was developed by Snowblind Studios – the people behind games like Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance and Justice League Heroes. Later, Warner Bros. bought Snowblind Studios, and in the future, they were merged into Monolith Productions.

What distinguished War in the North from other works dedicated to J.R.R. Tolkien's universe was its emphasis on a three-player cooperative action RPG setting. In this game, instead of rehashing the plot of Peter Jackson's movies, the game had its own storyline taking place parallel to the events of the movie trilogy. People could select their character and explore the world of Middle-earth while battling waves of enemies in an action RPG style of the Diablo game.

Unfortunately, the game did not become a commercial hit. While reviews upon launch were rather positive but still mostly mixed, with the game getting a score of around 6/10 on average, it also underperformed commercially and was eventually pulled from the digital stores.

Not anymore thanks to the release of the Legacy Edition!

Legacy Edition Is More Than Just a Simple Re-Release

Even with the new title, The Lord of the Rings: War in the North – Legacy Edition is not a true remaster of the game. Instead, Aspyr has improved the existing game in a series of changes aimed at making the experience smoother and more comfortable in the context of today’s technology.

First of all, graphics settings have been adjusted, which will give PC owners more control over setting up the game in terms of current hardware capabilities. Also, there have been added some extra save slots, which makes the management of the progress much easier compared to the original version.

Combat system has received a useful addition in the form of a lock-on option that can be used to target enemies. User interface has been improved by adding additional information and character progression now allows upgrading your character during levels.

All these changes are not really significant enough to make the core of the game different, but at least, they solve some issues that are often encountered when playing old action RPGs after such a long break.

Steam Players Are Already Responding Positively

Curiously enough, the reception seems to be quite positive in this case. After its unexpected release, The Lord of the Rings: War in the North – Legacy Edition got an overwhelming number of positive reviews from Steam players, making up around 95% of the reviews as of this moment.

In comparison with the original reception of the game, this is quite a change. Although War in the North was never regarded as one of the best Lord of the Rings games, the time seems to improve the opinion about it. Now fans of this old game can play it in the modern version, whereas those who never tried it will be able to experience it without all the issues of the original release, such as compatibility and availability issues.

This also proves that some licensed games from the past may have their second chance even many years after being originally released. This game, which was overlooked in a crowd of other games released in 2011, looks much more attractive today, particularly when it comes to the lack of recent Lord of the Rings action RPGs.

Aspyr Hints at More Classic Lord of the Rings Games

More intriguing than War in the North might be the information about Aspyr's future plans.

In a press release that accompanied the unexpected launch, Aspyr called War in the North its “first” Lord of the Rings game and stated that gamers should expect further releases of classic titles in the future.

This language indicates that Aspyr may have struck an agreement with Warner Bros. that will enable it to go back to other games in the franchise's back catalog. Such a move would mean that some other lost Tolkien games might make a comeback to modern platforms.

The list of games that Aspyr and Warner Bros. may want to revive is impressive. Over the years, the Lord of the Rings franchise has included various kinds of titles, ranging from action games to strategy games and role-playing games, as well as several movie tie-ins. Many of these old games are hard to find nowadays due to their licensing issues or delisting and compatibility problems.

Such a project may therefore turn out to be highly valuable for the preservation of video game history.

The Price May Be a Tougher Sell

However, while the game's re-release itself is good news, the price of the Legacy Edition can be an obstacle to recommending this title right away, especially considering the fact that at $20, people will have to spend quite a bit of money on something which is not considered either critically acclaimed or commercially successful and dates back about 15 years ago.

This may be much more attractive during sales on Steam, as old games usually get big discounts there. For instance, if War in the North – Legacy Edition gets a 75% discount sometime in the future, it will definitely become much more accessible for all those fans craving for a Middle-earth action adventure.

Unfortunately, if people are seeking an action RPG featuring Lord of the Rings characters, there aren't too many choices now.

Original Developer Credits Deserve Recognition

There is another significant criticism regarding the launch, which is not related to the improvements in technical aspects of the game.

According to the Steam page, the credits for both developer and publisher belong to Aspyr Media. The company is behind the update of this game for modern platforms, but the original War in the North was made by Snowblind Studios.

This is important. Remaking old games allows to keep their legacy, but one must also remember about the history of their creation. Snowblind Studios contributed significantly to the development of War in the North, and forgetting about it would mean to erase part of the history of the game.

With more and more companies revisiting old games, accurate crediting becomes an important step in preserving their legacy.

With all of the issues that exist with Aspyr recently, the return of The Lord of the Rings: War in the North cannot be seen in any other way but positive for Tolkien enthusiasts. While the Legacy Edition of the game doesn’t really change much about the actual title, it introduces some useful updates and allows to get a game that was previously delisted. Overall, it seems to be well-received by players, which was not true of the original release of the game.

The real issue is in the future of such initiatives. The statements of Aspyr definitely give enough hints that War in the North is not just a one-time thing, but rather a first title in an effort to bring back classic Lord of the Rings titles.

If Aspyr will stick to its plans, Tolkien fans will have the ability to get a hold of some long-forgotten Middle-earth games without buying old consoles or dubious second-hand games. At least now War in the North - Legacy Edition shows how it can be done.