Warhorse Studios, developers of Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, remained coy about rumors of a Lord of the Rings RPG during a Reddit AMA on May 1. The session was overshadowed by fan questions about AI replacing a translator. The team confirmed work on a new huge immersive RPG but revealed no further details.
Warhorse Studios held an Ask Me Anything session on Reddit's r/gaming subreddit on May 1, featuring senior staff including creative directors Viktor Bocan and Prokop Jirsa, and community manager Tom Grey. The AMA quickly became dominated by questions over claims from former English editor Max Hejtmánek, who in late March stated on Reddit that his role was made obsolete in favor of AI for translations. Fans pressed the developers on the issue, with one asking about job prospects as a translator; Jirsa replied, “Definitely. We are currently in the process of hiring new translators. Yes, actual humans. Plural.” A moderator later posted an official statement: “We do not see AI as a substitute for human work... Some team members find AI useful during early stages of production. However, we do not use AI-generated content in the final game and we have no plans to change this in the future.” Warhorse had previously told Kotaku on March 30 that it would not discuss individual situations publicly out of respect for privacy. Amid the AI backlash, fans also quizzed the team on rumors of a Lord of the Rings game, given parent company Embracer's ownership of the license. Community manager Tom Grey responded, “Obviously we can’t comment on future projects, at least not until we’re in the future (but if you have a time machine, please show us!).” Content director Ondřej Bittner added, “Voilá there is a response! But unfortunately not the one you hope for. We are hard at work on…something. I cannot disclose details but I can tell it is a huge, immersive RPG.” Bittner described the project as “an RPG true to our colours - huge, story-driven and immersive,” with a reveal expected in the near future. Rumors of the Middle-earth title surfaced in March, but the studio neither confirmed nor denied them.
