Amazon Games vice president Christoph Hartmann has set expectations on when we can expect to learn about their next AAA projects.
As reported by Video Games Chronicle, Variety asked the executive about the company’s upcoming Tomb Raider and The Lord of the Rings video games. This is what Hartmann said:
“It’s not going to be tomorrow, but it’s not too far away. As I said, we’re getting into a much more regular cadence of shipping games. That’s all I’m allowed to tell you right now.
It’s all about quality. You don’t want to just be rushed out. That’s doesn’t work. It has to be triple-A quality, because the bar is so high.”
This statement comes at an interesting time for Amazon’s gaming division. While their Luna streaming service remains in operation, Amazon has made other moves, to play publisher and developer on other platforms.
Earlier this month, the company revealed New World: Aeternum, the console version of what is ostensibly their most successful video game endeavor so far. This MMO basically tells a fictionalized account of the Age of Exploration, set in a fictional island in the Atlantic Ocean called Aeternum.
Last week, Amazon also revealed a new partnership with Xbox, that will see Game Pass run on Amazon’s Fire tablets and set top boxes line. This was a surprising, but potentially fruitful collaboration. Microsoft can piggyback on Amazon’s market share with tablets and set top boxes, and Amazon gets new content to make selling points for their products.
So it’s not like Amazon isn’t already making moves to increase their reach in the industry. But obviously, those are not their only projects. But we need to get some clarity on these Tomb Raider and The Lord of the Rings video games.
In December 2022, Amazon announced a new deal to make a Tomb Raider video game. Amazon did not acquire the rights to the Tomb Raider IP, which now lie with Crystal Dynamics. But Amazon Games is partnering as publisher for Crystal Dynamics’ next Tomb Raider video game. This is expected to be Amazon’s first single player narrative game.
And then, in May last year, Amazon announced they would be making a new The Lord of The Rings video game. They are partnering for this one with the company that acquired the rights to make The Lord of The Rings video games, Embracer, via Middle-Earth Enterprises. This The Lord of The Rings video game will be closer to Amazon’s wheelhouse, an MMO that will be made by New World’s developer, Amazon Games Orange County.
If the announcements for these games are coming this year, it isn’t likely that they will come with release dates as it’s just too early. But it may be just about time to show the public what Amazon Games has been brewing.
