Dwarf survival game The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria will be released in 2023

Developer Free Range Games is working on a game called The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria. It is a survival and crafting game in which players take care of a dwarf settlement. Return to Moria is out exclusively on PC via the Epic Games Store.

In Return to Moria, the dwarves want to re-enter the mines of Khazad-dûm and must survive there while building a settlement. The player creates his own dwarf and has to manage aspects such as sleep, hunger, temperature and sound. The game can be played alone or co-op with up to eight players, although it is not yet clear from the gameplay and descriptions whether players can control one or more characters. The actual mines are procedurally generated, which means that each world is unique.

Players must survive in Return to Moria by building, crafting and, of course, mining. The mined raw materials can be converted into weapons, building blocks and magical amulets. Mining resources, on the other hand, does make noise, and as fans of the movies will know, that can awaken unwanted scum from the depths of Moria. The player must therefore take into account attacks from orcs and other monsters.

Speaking of Peter Jackson’s films, The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria takes place years after the events of the renowned films. The game takes place in the Fourth Age, the movies in the Third Age. Sauron has already been defeated and the Fourth Age is therefore seen as a peaceful period in Middle-Earth. It is not clear to what extent Return to Moria interfaces with the events of the films.