The Lord of the Rings universe is getting a free-to-play online game from Athlon Games

Athlon Games, a Los Angeles publisher of console and PC games, said it signed a long-term licensing agreement with Middle-earth Enterprises to develop and publish a free-to-play online game based on The Lord of the Rings.

Athlon Games is working with a partner developer to create an online game set in the world of Middle-earth at a time long before the events of The Lord of the Rings, but in the same universe as that created by author J.R.R. Tolkien. The game will focus on areas outside what we’ve seen in the books or films, and that shows some thawing in what the Tolkien license owners are willing to do when it comes to more actively licensing entertainment such as games or other media. For instance, this deal for games comes on the heels of Amazon announcing last year it had a multiyear deal to do a TV show based on The Lord of the Rings in an estimated $250 million deal.