Timon | 28 Jul 2025
Tales of the Shire: Your own Hobbit hole awaits
- "Tales Of The Shire": The essentials at a glance
- What is Tales Of The Shire about?
- Tales Of The Shire: The cosy side of the Third Age
- Release: When will Tales Of The Shire be released?
This time it’s not 13 dwarves: "Tales Of The Shire" knocks on the door of your Hobbit hole. As a life simulation, this Lord of the Rings game introduces a new genre to the franchise. Here’s what we know about Tales Of The Shire so far.
From "The Hobbit" in 1982 to more recent titles like "Middle-earth: Shadow of War" (2017), the list of Lord of the Rings games is long. Now, Tales Of The Shire brings something completely new to Tolkien’s world: a life simulation where you can build and decorate your very own Hobbit hole. But that's not all: we’ll also show you how to style your real-life home in the cosy spirit of Bag End.
1. Tales Of The Shire: The essentials at a glance
- Tales Of The Shire will be released on 29 July 2025.
- It’s the first life simulation game in the Lord of the Rings franchise.
- Your tasks include furnishing your Hobbit hole, gathering supplies and exploring the area.
- The game is developed by Wētā Workshop and published by Private Division.
- Tales Of The Shire will be available for PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4/PS5 and Xbox One/Xbox Series X/S.
2. What is Tales Of The Shire about?
Many fans are wondering: what kind of game is Tales Of The Shire? It’s actually quite different from previous Lord of the Rings titles. Tales Of The Shire is a life simulation in which you create your own Hobbit character and live in a village called Bywater. You’ll not only design your Hobbit hole just the way you like it, but also manage everyday life in the Shire. That means gardening, fishing, gathering resources and exploring the area. You can also cook meals and complete quests.
You can watch the gameplay trailer for Tales Of The Shire here.
"Of course, there are community stories too," explains Creative Director Stephen Lambert in a PlayStation Blog interview. "You’ll meet people and help them with their tasks." However, that’s not essential for enjoying the game. "You can also just live your own little life and go about your day in peace." One of the game’s core elements is food. "Food is a key part of Hobbit life, so it had to be a major part of the game too. Players will find recipes, grow ingredients, shop, fish or stock up on supplies." Cooking isn’t just about throwing everything together — you’ll measure, season and stir. Sounds like the perfect game for all Hobbit foodies!
Your very own Hobbit hole: how to set it up
What’s fun in Tales Of The Shire also works in real life. Want to create your own Hobbit hole? You’ll find everything you need in our Lord of the Rings shop.
3. Tales Of The Shire: The cosy side of the Third Age
In terms of chronology, Tales Of The Shire is set during the Third Age of Tolkien’s world – after the events of "The Hobbit" and before "The Lord of the Rings". The focus is deliberately not on epic battles en route to Mordor, but rather on the peaceful life in the Shire, before the first Ringwraith ever wandered into the tranquil countryside. This makes the game quite different from most previous Lord of the Rings video games, which tend to revolve around combat or strategic warfare. You could say: while earlier games dove straight into the action, Tales Of The Shire draws more from Tolkien’s rich, detailed descriptions at the beginning of the first "Lord of the Rings" volume.
4. Release: When will Tales Of The Shire be released?
Tales Of The Shire is set to launch on 29 July 2025. The game had previously been postponed several times; Wētā Workshop and Private Division first officially announced the Lord of the Rings title back in September 2023.