WithThe Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria, Free Range Games and North Beach Games are taking theLord of the Ringsfranchise in a direction that it’s never been before. WhileReturn to Moriacertainly sounds promising, the development team would be wise to pull inspiration from recent successful titles, most notably,Valheim, which laid out a useful blueprint for future survival crafting titles to follow.
Theannouncement trailer forReturn to Moriahighlights a few key differences between the title and a game likeValheim.Most apparent is the fact thatReturn to Moriawill take place exclusively underground whereasValheimoffers a more expansive, open-world experience, but all the principles that madeValheimso successful can still be applied inReturn to Moriadespite these differences.
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Return to Moria Needs to Put Exploration and Adventure First
IfValheim’s success proved anything, it’s that even in a survival crafting title, base-building needs to be tied to exploration. WhileValheim’s recent Mistlandsupdate beefed up the game’s crafting,Valheimhas always woven its two central aspects together so tightly that neither can be neglected. In order to progress through the game, it’s necessary for players to explore, gather materials, and defeat difficult bosses, but it’s also essential that they have a strong base of operations from which to work.Return to Morianeeds to build from this same idea. After all,The Lord of the Ringsis the ultimate story of adventure, and any related title, regardless of the genre, should strive to pay homage to that.
ForReturn to Moria, adventure needs to be necessary to unlock better technologies and building components. For example,Return to Moriacould make it so that delving deep enough reveals a relic of the Dwarves' and Elves' friendship that existedduring the Second Age, which then grants the player access to Elvish architecture or other abilities. While there is plenty of lore to draw from,Return to Moriacould play relatively fast and loose with the canon material, as the history of Moria is not as fleshed out as other aspects of the franchise.
Return to Moria Needs Major Boss Fights
Return to Morianeeds to take notes fromValheimand include major, difficult boss fights, that constitute major milestones for the player.The Balrog that Gandalf encountersis slain in the Third Age after the Fellowship encounters it, but there’s an extensive compendium of creatures forReturn to Moriato draw from, and it’s not completely out of the question that there would be another Balrog lurking in the depths under Moria. It could be the case that defeating a Balrog gives the player fire-based powers or access to higher smelting temperatures, thus allowing them to craft better armor and weapons.
Even ifReturn to Moriawants to leave the Balrog out of it, it can still pull interesting monsterslike the Watcher in the Water, which in the interim between the Third and Fourth Ages could have slithered back into the waters beneath Moria. Since Moria is home to some of the most powerful beings that audiences ever see in theLord of the Ringsfranchise, the setting lends itself perfectly to the adventure-based, boss-central progression of a title likeValheim. As players delve deeper inReturn to Moria, they should face more difficult challenges, but also unlock greater rewards.
For what it’s worth,Return to Moriacould also structure a progression system around recovering ancient artifacts, much like Balin’s ill-fated expedition when he returned to Moria before the events ofFellowship of the Ring. Whichever direction the developers decide to go,Return to Moriawould hugely benefit from a system that delineates clear and obvious milestones of players' progression.
The Lord of the Rings: Return to Morialaunches for PC in Spring 2023.
