Electronic Arts has renewed the license to launch additional games within the world created by J.R.R. Tolkien’s epic literary fiction, The Lord of the Rings, through 2008. EA has developed games based on film versions of The Lord of the Rings since 2001. To date, the feature film trilogy has grossed more than US$3 billion worldwide. By moving ahead with this popular license, and the development of an all-new title scheduled for release in 2008, EA says it will continue to give gamers the most engaging experiences in the realm of Middle-Earth.

“The Lord of the Rings is an incredible canvas to create epic games,” said Frank Gibeau, EA’s executive vice president and general manager of North American publishing. “We look forward to our next project with New Line Cinema and Tolkien Enterprises scheduled to ship in 2008.” With EA and New Line Cinema’s continued partnership, fans can look forward to new, in-depth and compelling interactive adventures inspired by the books and movies of The Lord of the Rings. EA was granted the rights to video games based on the trilogy of books by Tolkien in accordance with an agreement with the Saul Zaentz Company D/B/A Tolkien Enterprises, in addition to a separate agreement which allows for games based on the New Line Cinema films.