More than 65 years ago JRR Tolkien published the three volumes that laid the foundations for the modern fantasy novel. And it is that this English linguist lover of Beowulf never imagined what his books based on European folklore would unleash. Several adaptations, movies, and Oscars later, Middle-earth continues to draw like it did on day one . While we wait for the premiere of The Lord of the Rings series on Amazon Prime, which will arrive on September 2, 2022, how about we play some games with these board games inspired by this universe? These are the best we have at the moment, although we have no doubt that many more will appear as soon as elves and hobbits come back into fashion from 2022.
Card and Board Games
Trivial – The Lord of the Rings
If you are someone who has read the original JRR Tolkien books several times, you have the trilogy in various formats and you know The Two Towers in extended version by heart, surely there are not many gifts from The Lord of the Rings that will surprise you. However, you can recover all that time invested with this fantastic Trivial . Although, if you know the books cover to cover, you’d better let yourself win a bit early in the game. Just pretend you don’t know the questions in elvish. That will be enough so that your family and friends do not quickly flee from the game.
French deck – The Lord of the Rings
If you are a super fan of the saga, but your friends are not so much, you can resort to this officially licensed deck of cards . So, if your group of colleagues don’t feel like playing board games, but do want to play poker, you can put the theme of The Lord of the Rings even in the soup.
Lord of the Rings Chess Set
Are you bored of the classic chess board? Here’s a really cool one set in Middle Earth . The interesting thing is that the white and black pieces are different: the white pawns are hobbit warren doors, while the black pawns are eyes of Sauron. Come on, the whites represent The Community and the blacks the army of Sauron . It is a very good gift for those readers who liked the strategic plots of the books.
Monopoly: The Lord of the Rings
There have been numerous Lord of the Rings themed editions of Monopoly. On this occasion, we have a board completely adapted to the trilogy . The pawns are the members of the Fellowship of the Ring, and the squares represent the journey across Middle-earth.
Like all Monopoly games, it is designed for 2-6 players ages 8 and up. And as usual, you can play with the classic rules of life or use a series of new rules that are included in this version . And it is that in this edition of Monopoly, there is the unique ring . The player who obtains it will gain a series of special powers, but each turn spent with it will have to give more account to Sauron. Will you be able to take control of the board without ending up as Gollum?
RPG and Strategy Games
Devir – The Lord of the Rings
This cooperative game is celebrating its 20th anniversary. It already has more than 850,000 copies sold and is produced by Devir, one of the leading companies in distributing board games. Card illustrations are by John Howe. In addition, the game has been improved with new components to play with the whole family.
What is the game about? Well, basically, we will have to become a member of the Fellowship of the Ring as it passes through the most emblematic places in Middle-earth. You will have to cooperate with your companions, resist Sauron’s temptation and try to reach Mount Doom safely, which will not be easy at all. This family edition is intended for 2-5 players and for an average player over 12 years old .
The Lord of the Rings: Journeys in Middle-earth
This board game from Fantasy Flight Games creates unique adventures with every playthrough . It is prepared to play alone or with up to 5 players . It has a mobile app —totally essential— that will make you explore the vast landscapes of Middle-earth and face challenges. Each Fellowship of the Ring character in this game brings their own stamina, wisdom, verve, and cunning stats to take on this game in a thousand different ways. The games, of little more than an hour, are totally cooperative and with very interesting mechanics. If you are used to this type of board games, the medium difficulty of this board will hook you.
The Lord of the Rings Journeys in Middle-earth: Shadowy Paths
It is an expansion game for the base game Travels in Middle-earth . If you already had the previous one, with this expansion you can add new heroes, enemies, terrain elements and objects, as well as a new campaign made up of more than ten scenarios.
The Lord of the Rings – Winds of War
There are no two without three, and that is that Fantasy Flight Games has created a second expansion for the base game Travels in Middle-earth . And who can blame them for anything? When you find your favorite game, any additional expansion seems little. In this one, called Winds of War , he focuses on the lands of Rohan and Gondor . Like Shadow Paths , it brings new heroes, enemies, board pieces, additional terrain tiles, and new items. In addition, it adds a new campaign to the base game made up of 15 scenarios .
Devir – The Search for the Ring
In this board game, from 2 to 5 players , two sides are created: one player will take Frodo Baggins, the Bearer of the Ring; the other players will be the pursuing Nazgûl. While some attempt to retrieve the Ring for the Dark Lord, the Bearer of the Ring must secretly travel from Hobbiton to Rivendell to decide the fate of the One Ring.
