Skyrim and Financial Report to Blame: WB Games Veteran Explains Why The Lord of the Rings: War in the North Failed

The specialist warned managers about the problems, but they didn't listen to him.

This summer, Aspyr Media released The Lord of the Rings: War in the North - Legacy Edition on PC via Steam, as well as consoles. The original version of the game was removed from sale many years ago.

TLOTR: War in the North was originally released in November 2011 — shortly before the release of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. Christian Allen, who has 24 years of experience in the industry, noticed the re-release. He previously served as Design Director at Warner Bros. Games.

According to the specialist, The Lord of the Rings: War in the North should not have been released alongside Skyrim:

Wow, that's cool. Fifteen years ago, I fiercely argued and opposed releasing [War in the North] at the same time as Skyrim.

In those years, War in the North was actively compared to TES V: Skyrim — and these comparisons were not in favor of the Lord of the Rings game.

Christian clarified that he is not a developer of this game, but simply "was part of the studio's leadership team." He suggests that such a release date might have been chosen due to a financial report:

Motives related to quarterly revenue figures influence decisions much more than people think. This is a big problem for stock-value-oriented organizations. It's probably not easy for a manager to make such a decision: "This game will perform better if its release is postponed until March, but then my bonus will be cut by 50%."

Christian Allen is very happy that The Lord of the Rings: War in the North has now received a new release in the Legacy Edition format.