Tales of the Shire Review - Cozy, LOTR Fun With Big Problems

Hobbits from J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings universe, Middle-earth, have what could be the coziest lifestyle ever created, and Tales of the Shire attempts to bring that relaxation to the masses with one of the most relaxing, play-at-your-own-pace games to release in a while. 

Unfortunately, the calm and surprisingly deep atmosphere, fun yet simple gameplay loops, and in-depth customization are held back from shining like the star it should be in a few unfortunate areas. 

Hobbits are creatures who spend their days with life’s simplest comforts, and they’re incredibly fond of food. Players start the game as a new Hobbit in an area called Bywater, an already-established part of the Shire.

After they arrive in Bywater, preparations begin to try to establish the area as its own Village. To do this, an appraiser will need to verify its status. This results in a variety of different quests and, ultimately, waiting around. 

During this, players are able to grow closer to the other Hobbits through cooking and hosting meals. To prepare for these meals, players have to forage, fish, and farm for ingredients. 

Tales of the Shire Cooking Is a Cut Above

Cooking is easily the focal point of Tales of the Shire, and its depth attests to that. Everything from picking combinations of flavors and seasonings in ingredients to using a variety of kitchen tools to achieve the perfect texture is satisfying, especially when you finally achieve exactly what you’re trying to make seasoned to perfection. 

Unfortunately, the meal sharing isn’t as straightforward as it should be. What should happen is that players write letters to Hobbits to invite them to a meal. The next day, the Hobbit will write back what they’re craving that day for a meal, and players make the meal and start the event whenever they want during the day.

As a reward for a meal well done, Hobbits will share recipes with the player.

However, there was a problem that caused the game to crash after most of the meals I tried to host that weren’t part of the main story. To get around it, I had to ignore the meals that I planned, which ended up with some Hobbits who are surprisingly good at holding grudges. 

The developers are working on ironing out problems before Tales of the Shire launches, so this could be solved by the time the game is released. However, it was something that had a pretty big impact on reviewing the game since I couldn’t get too close to the other Hobbits or unlock as many recipes. 

Besides that, the cooking system sets the tone of the game well. Yes, Hobbits have cravings and want specific flavors, but Tales of the Shire isn’t about perfection. The Hobbits of Bywater are happy to have a meal together, so long as they don’t hate the food, so things don’t have to be perfect.

It’s a small nod to the fact that nothing in Tales of the Shire asks for perfection and rigid solutions. Everything in the game is fluid and requires little to no hustling, and players get to see this from the very start.  

Foraging, Fishing, and Farming Are Also Well Done

While it’s hard to get too excited about foraging every single day, Tales of the Shire makes it surprisingly easy and entertaining enough. Traveling around the map for missions (whether you’re skipping around or walking at a relaxing pace) means passing by quite a few ingredients. It’s very easy to pick these up as you go. 

Fishing is also pretty relaxing. The actual fishing minigame isn’t too difficult, but it’s just hard enough to make sure the player needs to pay attention. Compared to other games in the genre, it’s a balance that works well. 

Farming in Tales of the Shire is a bit more in-depth than the other systems. Growing plants vary by season, like most farming-sim players would expect. However, a unique twist comes with how plants are grouped. 

Planting can be done freely in various farming spots. By planting an assortment of plants that get along with each other, players can speed up the process and harvest higher-quality plants. 

Hobbit Holes Are Truly the Coziest Homes

Part of living the Hobbit life is living in a Hobbit hole. In Tales of the Shire, the player’s Hobbit hole can be customized in a near-endless way. Players can tailor every part of the home to their desires, including minute details like the rafters, the transitional flooring, and the chandeliers. 

As you play more, the home expands until the Hobbit hole is a sprawling burrow. 

On top of it all, there’s a ton of furniture to gather from other Hobbits and from the furniture store in town. Not only is it all pretty stylish, but it can be placed and rotated freely in the home. This includes furniture for outside and the gardening areas, too. 

Additionally, the furniture comes from around Middle-earth. Finding various Mirkwood pieces for my Hobbit home was a pleasant surprise, and it felt like small easter eggs for Middle-earth lovers. 

Max Relaxation Doesn’t Fit Everyone’s Playstyle, Though

Tales of the Shire capitalizes on the fact that some people want to sit back with a game and relax. There are very few time constraints – even the events of each day aren’t dictated by times – and players can take everything slowly. 

In fact, it’s easy to feel like you’re playing a waiting game. However, the bigger idea is to slow down and enjoy the small parts of the game, which is truly the way of the Hobbits with foraging, farming, and fishing (and, of course, cooking). 

In that regard, Tales of the Shire really shines. It truly feels like you’re living the life of a Hobbit. Things like quirky dialogue and random events players can run into while running around the map are really well done.

However, this is held back by a few things. Beyond quests, it’s almost pointless to interact with NPCs at random. Players can talk to some NPCs at random, but there are no interactions and no meaningful dialogue that happens by doing so. It made the actual Hobbits feel a bit hollow. 

It’s also held back by several crashing problems. Talking to different Hobbits just to turn in quests would crash the game more often than not. This problem is supposed to be resolved before launch, but it’s worth noting that it caused a significant problem for me. 

Tales of the Shire Needs Work, But Has a Solid Foundation

Overall, Tales of the Shire offers a niche, yet lovely, experience if you can get past the bugs and you enjoy a more fluid, cozy gaming experience. For those who love Hobbits or Middle-earth, it’s a wonderful, cozy game that expands on the calm lifestyle of Hobbits. 

There is a lot to enjoy, from the core gameplay to the small details like dialogue. However, it’s easy to feel dragged down by the larger stability problems. 

Tales of the Shire was reviewed on PC with a copy provided by the developer over the course of 19 hours of gameplay - all screenshots were taken during the process of review.