Amazon announced the cancellation of its announced The Lord of the Rings massively multiplayer online game (MMO) in May 2026, following extended development and significant layoffs in October 2025 [1, 2, 3, 4]. The MMO had been in early development since its reveal in May 2023 and moved into pre-production shortly before the layoffs halted progress [1, 4].
Before development was paused, Amazon had reassigned over 1,000 developers from its MMO New World to the Lord of the Rings project, reflecting a major internal shift of talent toward the title [1]. However, in October 2025, Amazon Games faced a broad wave of job cuts that included MMO projects and studio staff, part of wider company layoffs impacting 14,000 roles across Amazon [2, 4].
A former Amazon developer shared on LinkedIn that they were laid off alongside colleagues from both New World and the Lord of the Rings game, confirming the project's cancellation [1, 2, 4]. At the same time, Amazon had introduced a generative AI mandate in October 2024 aimed at evolving game development workflows, which coincided with the layoffs and cancelation of projects including the Lord of the Rings MMO and Project Trident [1, 3].
Despite the cancellation, Amazon’s head of games Jeff Grattis reassured fans the company remains committed to the Middle-earth universe. "Our creative team continues to explore a compelling new game experience that does justice to Tolkien's world; we are working closely with Middle-earth and remain excited about the IP," he said [1].
Amazon still holds the rights to develop games set in the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit universes through the 2023 deal with Embracer Group, maintaining its involvement with the Middle-earth intellectual property [1, 4]. The company has not revealed details about the new game but confirmed that the MMO is no longer in active development.
Amazon’s layoff and cancellation announcements in October 2025 mark a significant restructuring within its game divisions, shifting focus away from large MMO projects toward new concepts likely leveraging generative AI technology [2, 3]. The company has not set a public release date or timeline for its upcoming Middle-earth game but continues internal development work as of early 2026.
