Ford of Rivendell writes: Jason and Bill Amend are up to it again this Sunday in Jason’s Dreams in FoxTrot; with a bit of LOTR, Star Wars, and X-Men. True “Geek” to the core… (actually I’ve had nights like that) :0) http://www.foxtrot.com/

Although the film version of The Lord of the Rings was a massive worldwide success, getting J.R.R. Tolkien’s prequel, The Hobbit, to the screen has proven much more difficult. With the rights finally sorted out after being tied up for years and a studio feud with Rings director Peter Jackson resolved, the project finally began moving forward in 2008—only to be stalled this year by the looming collapse of MGM, one of the two companies financing the production, should it fail to find a way out of its $4 billion debt. More..

Levi Buchanan writes: I admit, the title Middle-Earth Defense made me laugh a little. Probably because I spent so much time grinding on the ridiculous Xbox 360 action game Earth Defense Force. But this Lord of the Rings game is very much a serious tower defense affair. You play out seven battle scenes straight from the film trilogy – Weathertop Mountain, Mines of Moria, Helm’s Deep, etc. – but instead of rushing in with Aragorn, you instead spread the fellowship across the map to thin herd after herd of Sauron’s evil forces.

By now, you know how a tower defense game works, right? Middle-Earth Defense is built on the genre conventions, but Glu is making some key tweaks that stand to make this tower defender fresher than its contemporaries. More..

Come commune with your inner fantasy fan or gaming geek with “Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks: An Epic Quest for Reality Among Role Players, Online Gamers, and Other Dwellers of Imaginary Realms.” The award-winning travel memoir-pop culture investigation is a funny, poignant, and enlightening road trip through fantasy and gaming subcultures, from Dungeons & Dragons gamers and live-action role-players, to Harry Potter wizard rockers and World of Warcraft players. It also explores Gilsdorf’s own lifelong (and at times twisted) relationship to fantasy and gaming. Continue reading ““Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks” Hits Paperback”