Gaming News - March 2005
Westwood, MA (March 22, 2005) - Turbine announced today that it has
finalized a deal with Tolkien Enterprises and Vivendi Universal Games (VU Games)
that grants Turbine the exclusive right to develop and publish massively
multiplayer online worlds based on The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit literary
works. As part of the agreement, Turbine will own all of the game assets to the
upcoming multiplayer online role playing game (MMORPG) The Lord of the Rings:
Middle-Earth Online. All publishing responsibilities previously assumed by VU
Games for the online license have been transitioned to Turbine effective
immediately.
“As the exclusive publisher, Turbine looks forward to bringing J.R.R. Tolkien’s
vibrant worlds to online gamers around the globe,” said Jeffrey Anderson,
president and CEO, Turbine, Inc. “Turbine has been instrumental in the direction
and production of Middle-Earth Online, its service and the community since day
one. Together with Tolkien Enterprises, we intend to produce the best possible
representation of these outstanding literary works and ensure a long and
exciting future for Middle-Earth Online.”
“We are pleased to be working with Turbine,” said Albert M. Bendich,
Executive Vice President of The Saul Zaentz Company, which does business as
Tolkien Enterprises. “We are confident that, under Turbine’s development,
Middle-Earth Online will faithfully bring-to-life the realms of Middle-earth for
Tolkien fans everywhere to explore and enjoy.”
From Turbine:
With their new relationship, Turbine and Tolkien Enterprises are committed to
doing what's best for Middle-Earth Online and the community (
www.middle-earthonline.com ), which has already swelled to about 100,000
registered fans. As a result of this commitment, Turbine’s production team is
considering changes to make the game even better than before. Turbine will
launch Middle-Earth Online in 2006. Specific details and dates regarding the
game’s development will be announced in the near future.
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