NetEase Teams Up With Warner Bros. on ‘Lord of the Rings’ Mobile Game

ABOUT US

CX Tech is Caixin Global's real-time tech news portal, featuring 24-hour news, short-form analysis, and roundups from business and tech media in China.

TRENDING: GPT Weekly: CoreWeave Secures $6.3 Billion Nvidia Order; Tencent Cloud Shuns Price War in Intensifying AI Race; Huawei Unveils Three-Year AI Chip Roadmap as Nvidia Faces Setbacks in China

LATEST: GPT Weekly: CoreWeave Secures $6.3 Billion Nvidia Order; Huawei Unveils Three-Year AI Chip Roadmap as Nvidia Faces Setbacks in China; Tencent Cloud Shuns Price War in Intensifying AI Race; China’s Regulator Ramps Up Push to Curb Food Delivery Subsidy War; Chinese Robot Startup Unitree Gears Up for Market Debut; China Enforces AI Content Labeling Rules to Curb Misuse; Tech Brief (Sept. 2): China Rolls Out Mandatory AI Labeling; Meituan Enters Open-Source AI Race With LongCat Model; Tech Brief (Aug. 29): SenseTime Reports Strong AI Growth; All Hail the Driverless Taxis as China Eyes a $183 Billion Market; Tech Brief (Aug. 27): Cambricon Reports $128 Million Profit, Stock More Than Doubles Since July; Tech Brief (Aug. 26): Musk’s xAI Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged AI Market Monopoly; Exclusive: NetEase’s Youdao CEO Explains How AI Agents Could Build a Future of Virtual Teachers; Ant Group Teams up With Top Beijing Hospital to Launch AI Healthcare Lab; Didi and Meituan Clash in Brazil as Food Delivery Battle Goes to Court; Google Denies Rumors It Is Resuming Full Services on Chinese Mainland; China Proves a Winner in the Gaming Market as Growth Hits a Five-Year High; China’s Booster Robotics Lands New Funding as it Hits a Winning Streak; Amazon to Shut Down Shanghai AI Lab Amid Strategic Shift; Cover Story: A New Gold Rush Begins in China’s Hard Tech Sector

By Ding Yi / Jun 16, 2020 12:41 PM / World

Photo: VCG

“Lord of the Rings” fans will have reasons to be cheerful.

Chinese gaming stalwart NetEase has forged a partnership with Warner Bros Interactive Entertainment to co-develop a new mobile strategy game based on the popular trilogy of books by J.R.R. Tolkien, which were also adapted into a successful film series.

The new officially licensed game, named “The Lord of the Rings: Rise to War”, will include iconic characters, familiar to fans of the books and the films, and visually appealing renditions from the original trilogy, according to a company statement Monday which did not provide a release date.

The move seems to send a clear message that NetEase is expanding its horizons and targeting an international audience. Last week, The Guangzhou-based firm completed its secondary listing in Hong Kong, with capital raised set to be used for global expansion and innovation.

“We are thrilled to be able to work with Warner Bros Interactive Entertainment again to deliver another exciting game for global players,” NetEase founder and CEO Ding Lei said in a statement.

The tie-up with Warner Bros. comes a week after NetEase announced the establishment of a Tokyo-based console game studio, which also be seen as part of its plans to go global and a switch to a multiplatform strategy.

A NetEase executive said that the company aimed for 30% of its total revenue coming from overseas markets during an interview with Reuters in May last year, when the Chinese company announced partnerships with Pokemon and Marvel to release new games for the Chinese market.

Contact reporter Ding Yi (yiding@caixin.com)

Share this article

Open WeChat and scan the QR code