{"id":119497,"date":"2024-09-22T21:38:12","date_gmt":"2024-09-23T02:38:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.theonering.net\/torwp\/?p=119497"},"modified":"2024-09-23T22:19:58","modified_gmt":"2024-09-24T03:19:58","slug":"tales-of-the-shire-preview-hands-on-a-charming-hobbit-lifestyle-game","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.theonering.net\/torwp\/2024\/09\/22\/119497-tales-of-the-shire-preview-hands-on-a-charming-hobbit-lifestyle-game\/","title":{"rendered":"Tales of the Shire Preview Hands-On: a charming Hobbit lifestyle game"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

For Hobbit Day 2024, Weta Workshop and Private Division shared a playable demo of their new cozy game Tales of the Shire, and Happy Hobbit got to play the game! The release date has also been moved to Spring of 2025, across all gaming platforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Playing, foraging, cooking and sharing in the Shire<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

So what’s the game like? After playing for around 90 minutes, Kellie writes: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Tales of the Shire demo is just enough to whet my appetite for more! The gameplay is intuitive and straightforward. The base options to customize your character\u2019s appearance give you enough choices to make them unique without being overwhelming, and there appear to be slots to unlock future clothing\/accessories. The premise of moving into Old Ruby\u2019s hobbit hole and slowly fixing it up as your character (originally from Bree) meets the folk of Bywater is reminiscent of other cozy games I have played, yet has its own unique Shire flair (I didn\u2019t have time to try out this feature, but you can furnish and decorate your hobbit hole!). I was surprised by how full of life and character the dialogue is as you interact with the locals (it made me laugh several times). Being a demo, I haven\u2019t yet explored much of the geography, but what I did contained serene and bucolic vistas that often made me pause to take it all in. The music, as well, is equally as atmospheric and soothing, often interspersed with periods of quiet and birdsong. These elements combine to create an engaging, calm, and immersive gaming experience. Shortly after I stopped playing to go water my own garden in real life, I found myself wanting to play more! The full game won\u2019t be out until next year, so I had to content myself with some rustic beef stew for dinner\u2026 because I just couldn\u2019t leave the Shire.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Other Tolkien influencers<\/a> and gamers<\/a> also got to play<\/a> the preview, and most of them spoke all of the character dialog in their own hobbity voices. It’s quite charming! Watch the Happy Hobbit demo play through below or on YouTube<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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