Tales of the Shire, the upcoming cosy life simulator set in the world of The Lord of the Rings, has been teased with the release of brand new key art starring a group of Hobbits, and a tiny armoured goose. At this stage, the game is targeting release for PC and consoles in 2024 – and while we haven’t seen any tangible gameplay yet, there’s plenty of reasons to get excited about the upcoming game.
As described, Tales of the Shire invites you into a world where “your cosy Hobbit life awaits.” The easiest comparison to make is to Stardew Valley, and based on newly-released key art, there’s reason to believe Tales of the Shire could be just as wholesome and moreish.
The new art features a group of Hobbits – some kids and a few adults – picnicking by a lakeside stream. An elder Hobbit is fishing in the stream, and appears to have caught a trout. One Hobbit appears to be foraging for vegetables, while the others enjoy various fruits, jams, and pies. A chicken runs through the picnic, while the aforementioned armoured goose appears to be relaxing and gazing at the sky.
Read: Cosy Lord of the Rings game ‘Tales of the Shire’ releasing in 2024
In the distance, you can also see an array of Hobbit holes, and a bridge crossing the flowing stream.
For now, it’s all Weta Workshop and Private Division have revealed of the upcoming game, and we can’t make too many assumptions based on what we’ve seen. That said, it would be fair to assume that cooking, fishing, farming, and foraging will be part of the game, based on the key art.
There may also be some element of animal rearing and crafting, with themed activities inspired by the fantasy world of The Lord of the Rings and the wholesome, cosy realm of the Shire (which is largely untouched by the greater wars and violence of Middle-earth in the tale of The Lord of the Rings – in the films, anyway.)
The release of the key art suggests Weta Workshop and Private Division may be gearing up for a more complete reveal shortly, expanding on the details included in this new image. For now, we’ll have to remain patient to see what’s in store – but in the meantime, there’s plenty of cool little details to analyse and anticipate. Stay tuned for more on Tales of the Shire in the coming months.
