Amazon’s Lord of the Rings MMO Reportedly Canceled Again
▼ Summary
– Amazon has cancelled its second Lord of the Rings MMO attempt as part of mass layoffs, according to a former senior gameplay engineer.
– The cancellation was announced by Ashleigh Amrine, who lost her job and confirmed the project’s end alongside peers from New World and the LOTR game.
– Amazon is shifting away from MMOs, with New World ceasing development after its latest update but remaining playable until at least 2026.
– Amazon’s first LOTR MMO was cancelled in 2021 due to a contractual dispute after Leyou’s acquisition by Tencent, and the second was announced in 2023 with Embracer.
– The Lord of the Rings Online continues to operate with a steady audience, offering an alternative for Middle-earth MMO fans.
Amazon’s ambitious project to create a new Lord of the Rings MMO has reportedly been canceled for the second time, a decision emerging from the company’s recent mass layoffs. This information comes directly from Ashleigh Amrine, a former senior gameplay engineer at Amazon Games, who confirmed her departure and the project’s termination in a LinkedIn post. She expressed that the team had been developing a game fans “would have loved,” adding a personal note about the talented colleagues affected by this decision.
The cancellation aligns with Amazon’s broader strategic shift away from developing MMOs. This change also impacts New World, another fantasy title from the company, which will see its development halted following the Nighthaven update. Amazon has committed to maintaining New World’s servers through 2026, promising a six-month notice before any changes that would make the game unplayable.
This marks the second attempt by Amazon to launch a Lord of the Rings MMO. The first project, announced in 2019 as a collaboration with Chinese firm Leyou, was scrapped in 2021 due to contractual issues after Tencent acquired Leyou. The revived version was announced in 2023 through a new partnership with Embracer Group, the current rights-holder for Middle-earth. Described as a “persistent open-world MMO adventure,” it was intended to cover events from The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings trilogy, though few additional details were ever shared publicly.
Reflecting on the team’s dissolution, Amrine noted the difficulty of seeing such a skilled and creative group disband. Her sentiments highlight the human impact behind corporate restructuring, which in this round of layoffs is expected to affect approximately 14,000 employees across Amazon.
For those eager to explore Tolkien’s world in a multiplayer setting, The Lord of the Rings Online, operated by Standing Stone Games and Daybreak Game Company, continues its long-running service. The game maintains a dedicated community, recently celebrated for creative in-game achievements like guiding low-level hobbit characters on a pilgrimage to Mount Doom.
(Source: Rock Paper Shotgun)
