I Played Tales of The Shire! First 90 Minutes & Thoughts so Far!

[@JoshGamingGarden]

I will be discussing everything about this game with another content creator on The Gaming Garden Podcast this week! Make sure to subscribe to the podcast channel: www.youtube.com/@GamingGardenPodcast

[@Lunicia]

I know many people don't like the artstyle but I'm somehow digging it lol? I feel like the low poly characters kinda match the hobbits well. But I could also imagine a more rounded, softer look, which seems to be what people would prefer.

[@malloryjordan6764]

I am feral about this game, im glad they delayed release to polish more, i love when devs admit they need more time to work on a project. I love lotr and i cannot wait to get my hands on this. I love it so much. The concept is chefs kiss!!! I hope they don't crunch the team and just take their time working on it to make it wonderful

[@Phantomsangel]

I agree. I'm hype about it too lol. I really hope they can smooth out the frame rate.

[@csaey4472]

I enjoyed how offended you actually got at Old Noakes shenanigans lol, your reactions matched your character's dialog choices perfectly 😂

[@BlingBlingDubuLove]

The graphics look a bit rough but still is pretty unique. I’m looking forward to the cooking because the mechanic seems involved and engaging. Guess that makes sense for a community that builds itself on sharing food and such. Will keep following this game!

[@aster.cotton]

10:27 He said "sparkling waters" meaning the water is sparkling and pretty. He doesn't mean the carbonated kind xD

[@CloudySkiesGaming]

idk why but your cheerfulness in this video is extra contagious. Also loved the hook!

[@josie_the_valkyrie]

Always happy to see you in the comments. 😊

[@CloudySkiesGaming]

@@josie_the_valkyrie 🥺🫶

[@CloudySkiesGaming]

@@josie_the_valkyrie that's so sweet! 🥺🫶

[@juiceboxgeo]

sooo excited for this. ive never read or watched anything from the series, but this makes me want to in preperation for!

[@MiguiMonkey]

I love how the French sometimes come out 24:32 😄 Josh, you are adorable and always entertaining to watch! It's only now that I get to watch this fully because of unfortunate events, and I need to work on things for my portfolio. It's so nice to have something to watch and relax after a long day! I'd still play this one though, just because it looks a bit like Fable haha! I want my hobbit fantasy~ 🦶

[@JoshGamingGarden]

Haha, thank you very much Migui! Good luck with your portfolio work!

[@MiguiMonkey]

@@JoshGamingGarden Thanks, Josh! The channel and the community motivates me to also do my best! You are all amazing!

[@bodid50]

I’m really excited about Tales of the Shire-the cozy aesthetic of the Shire, with Hobbits fishing, gardening, and cooking meals, sounds perfect! I’m not too concerned about the graphics or character designs; for me, it’s more about how well the game captures that peaceful, laid-back vibe. My main concern, though, is longevity. Like with many cozy games, what will keep me coming back after the first few hours? I don’t want a game that I play for 2-3 hours and then feel like I’ve seen it all. I hope they introduce features that engage players for the long haul, keeping things fresh and rewarding over time. Some co-op elements would be amazing too, allowing friends to share in that Shire life together. I’m really looking forward to seeing how they expand on this promising foundation!

[@Shayofavonlea]

I can't wait for this! The "Shared Meals" mechanic reminds me of my favorite part of Immortal Life where you can make your friends' favorite foods to invite them to a banquet!

[@Hal_Evergreen]

I'm really excited for this game. The Hobbits have always been my favorite part of Tolkien's world, and I love the idea of a cozy game centered around their culture and love of food. I love the art style and don't even mind the character designs. They're quirky, as they should be. Hopefully the devs will take their time polishing it up, because it looks very promising.

[@girlytomboyx]

Thank u for sharing the video and the gameplay! This got me very excited for the game, and looking forward to more polishing and optimised. I agree with u about the character creation, I feel like there need to be more musculine options, especially the eyes and the eyelashes. Hopefully there will be more choices at launch. I like that fishings is simple, and I love that there is a book of all things, fishes at what seasons & time of day, foraging etc, I'm a big fan of foraging in games and just collecting and making notes of things in journal so I love that it's in the game and even more so, in LotR style fonts! I'm a bit sad that it's only Bywater map, I'm hoping that in the future we can expand it and add in Hobbiton and BagEnd (where Bilbo and Frodo lived) I love that some NPCs share same family names as the LotR characters like Del Brandybuck is related to Merry Brandybuck, and Willow Took is related to Pippin Took. I feel like this game have massive potential, we have so many LotR games but they all have combats so it's really nice to have a LotR game that have farming, fishing, foraging and cooking. The Shire is a perfect place for a cosy game. The biggest win is gridless furniture mode! There will be endless videos and screenshots from players showcasing their hobbit home and garden with their decoration, I can't wait. I will be buying this game, as a fan of LotR and LotR related games.

[@RaisinBug]

The gardening tutorial just when you're about to pass out was too funny 😂

[@maiasim1560]

I have read the Lord of the Rings series about 10 times and the Hobbit about half that amount. I have the extended edition of all the movies and am now watching the Forgeing of the Rings series - so I guess you could say I know a bit about the LOtR universe - I can't wait for this game!

[@kiwi310343]

Is the game accurate to what you have read and watched?

[@maiasim1560]

@@kiwi310343 Pretty much - the hobbits do love gardening cooking and eating to the extreme. The landscape is spot on to what is in the book. Rounded homes that fade into the surroundings.

[@OrganizationZero1]

Omg, Gandalf's fabulous, lush, long, black eyelashes 💅

[@the-gaming-doc]

The fact that the surnames are actual hobbit families, amazing I can't wait omgosh

[@christabird]

I don’t mind the graphics, I feel like they fit the world, I just hope they don’t stutter too bad on my PC 😬

[@TheBabyCaleb]

Looks bad in my opinion, not a fan of the graphics. The environment is fine, but the hobbits look straight out of a 2002 video game

[@LittleWerewolfPlushie]

I was watching someone say why they thought that game sucked, I understand why they didn't like the game graphics, but they started complaining about forced diversity....

[@djmckay4869]

Very excited for this game. Will be buying it the day it releases. Have wanted a game like this for years!

[@DragonWistArt]

This game looks great to me, even on the laptop. I think its a good representation of the source material :)

[@AliciaGarcia-qy9hk]

the look of this reminds me of the hobbit video game i played on gamecube from 2003 😂 i’m a big lotr fan but not too excited about this game. thanks for playing it, sounds like the set up took you on quite an unexpected journey!

[@Tiarys]

Man, the way it played on your laptop is how most games play on my desktop right now 😅 New computer soon, tho, but it gave me an honest view of what it'll be like for me 😂. Gotta say, the dialogue is killing me a bit, but I hope it'll get more polished before release. Still, I'm intrigued and will be looking forward to it's release!

[@StarParrot]

Oops my Bad the Green Dragon was where the Hobbits were singing and dancing at the Beginning of Fellowship of the Ring. The Prancing Pony is where the Hobbits meet Aragon. It’s been so long since I saw the movies or read the books 😅

[@Lexi-M]

I think what could make this game interesting would be a good story.

[@piperbird7193]

I think that's where I'm a bit hung up on it too. Is it just a bunch of random quests, or is there an actual game here?

[@revannia]

I have the game on my Wish List, and will probably get it. The world looks beautiful and should be fun to explore. The characters don't look quite right, but that's not a big deal to me. I'm not big on cooking in games so it'll depend on if it's the only way to progress the story and relationships. I need to see more of the game before deciding.

[@helen4787]

Hi i like the artstyle & more exciting after seeing gameplay.

[@anitacrumbly]

i'm so excited for the game and love the look and decor of the scenery the ability to decorate down to the little knick knacks is amazing and that items can be placed outside. The only real issue I have is the look of the hobbits themselves I was hoping for samwise gamgee, tukk, or frodo not the scary hobbits that was given here (they remind me of 80's tiny creature horror I'm sorry but they do) . I saw the artist rendition for a hobbit and it looked great but something about bringing it to 3d it just didn't work.

[@MarynBlr]

I will definitely buy this one. It looks really relaxing. 😊

[@Phantomsangel]

Despite not looking the best, I still want to play the game. I really wish they will fix the frame rate though. It's been a while since I saw a game run like this the whole time. Not a fan of the character models, he does look cute when he walks though.

[@JoshGamingGarden]

The framerate is mostly due to my laptop, that's not what I usually use to play games and it's a bit old.

[@sowol16]

You're the first person I've seen pronounce the wētā right. Its a word in my language and people say weta and don't pronounce it with the macrons which changes the meaning completely.

[@Midnitethorn]

I am sad I can't start a Hobbit family, but I like look of the game. I hope it comes out on PC

[@iisacoco9]

This means no romance system at all? 🥺

[@thegreatleaderjimpickens7919]

best tales games i've ever played

[@EricN73158]

Josh, you gotta learn how to read where the birds are telling you where to go. To me it looks like they are sitting on parts of a street sign that point in a direction. For example, you walk down a path and you reach a split you can pick to go 3 other ways (4 way path) if the bird is sitting on the sign that is pointing North you need to walk North. You seem to go the way where the bird is sitting. If you reach that 4 way path and the sign is on the left of where you walked in from you seem to turn left but not look at the sign the bird is sitting on. Lets say left is West but you need to go North, the bird will be sitting on the sign pointing North but you will walk West. You need to slow down a bit and read the sign and understand how they work.

[@anitacrumbly]

it also said the way the beak was pointing is where to go which I think if he had read that at least he wouldn't have gotten as lost.

[@EricN73158]

@@anitacrumbly I feel kinda bad because the devs did a really good job (IMO) to keep the user interface looking so clean and nice. I can see it being a bit confusing but maybe no its not confusing at all just need to slow down a bit lol.

[@anitacrumbly]

@@EricN73158 i always feel this way when people not specifically youtubers but even the general public doesn't slow down and pay attention or is too scared to explore to find their way around. I've noticed this lately that people are scared of exploring and need a lot of hand holding i'm not sure why. games have always been here are the keys to move now figure out the rest but in the last year or so it's been very much like people need an arrow or sign pointing to the door in front of them saying "open" in order for them to feel comfortable opening it.

[@madelineroberson3569]

I was really excited for this game and still am. I think it’ll be fun but I’ll let other people try it out before I buy haha. I never buy on release anyways. I only have a switch so if the performance is too bad I might just skip.

[@josie_the_valkyrie]

Massive Tolkien fan. I have hardcover versions of all of the books, and even still have my original copy of the Lord of the Rings from childhood. I also have physical versions of the extended editions of the Jackson films, along with the the old Rankin Bass films. And obviously I adore life and farming sims. So, all things considered, this game I should be extremely hyped about. And I was. But, if I'm being honest, this looks quite rough. I really strongly dislike the art style, and the graphics look mid-to-late 2000s. March is not that far away, I don't know how they'll get it working properly on Switch. Sorry for the long rant. I'm just very disappointed at the moment. I'll not be buying on release.

[@Jasper_4850]

Graphics remind me of the fable games.

[@iselineverland]

This looks so cozy😍

[@KyleBonnVA]

I was one of the people concerned with how the Hobbits look, but they look SO much better already! I don't know if it's the resolution or lighting or what, but the game is looking great!

[@StarParrot]

The Green Dragon was where Gandalf and the Hobbits met Strider/Aragorn

[@erikaflowers6055]

I think they met strider at the prancing pony, and the green dragon is a place they went in The Hobbit

[@StarParrot]

@@erikaflowers6055 ha ha you’re right I corrected myself later on 😅

[@shamiratasnim]

this game is coming out on March 25 2025

[@boopienook]

Game looks nice, that frame rate though

[@JoshGamingGarden]

You can blame my laptop for the framerate 😅 As I said it's not the PC I usually use for content, and it actually performed better than I expected!

[@msemma4316]

I just don't think the character style is appealing enough to me to play this game..... Character design is pretty important to me and I just don't find them cute.

[@eli-o2z]

would have loved to watch this, but youtube blocked it.

[@JoshGamingGarden]

what do you mean blocked? 😯

[@lunaria33games]

Ok, so before I didn’t care to get this game also cuz the characters looked weird. Seeing this gameplay though the characters look a bit better and the game seems pretty fun and chill. Now it’s only the matter of the price 🤔. If the price is right I might become a hobbit like everyone else 😄

[@kappa8837]

Damn the hobbits got beat with the ugly stick

[@brittanyxxbabyxx2186]

I remember watching LOTR with my brother I was in awe that’s when I fell in love with fantasy then became obsessed with Dragon Age/ D&D/Baldurs gate . In a month I’m going to a renaissance festival to go LARPing❤️ so excited for this game

[@sophieinspired]

They do look a little bit ugly 😂 when I first saw the trailer I was like hell naaaah but now that I saw some gameplay of the mechanics etc and knowing that they are still working on it, it‘s a maybe 😅 the dialogues seem a bit off tbh and the problems to get it running is a huge red flag though. As always thanks for sharing josh 💖

[@Mike-or2cv]

Frame rate and camera is tragic.

[@angelasmith3948]

I think Josh is having issues with the game. Watched Caito play and she had no issues with frame rate.

[@FireFlysNeverDie]

I really am not a fan of the hairy feet patches lol. Wish they were optional

[@piperbird7193]

I keep seeing this and I'm not sure why? Hobbits have hairy feet. So if we're playing as hobbits, our feet would be hairy. Same as elves having pointy ears or humans being boring.

[@FireFlysNeverDie]

@@piperbird7193 Maybe, just to my eyes, it doesn't translate well in game format visually. I think elf ears are cute but the hairs look sort of out of place to me. But I think a little beard on a lady hobbit can be cute, for example! It's hard to explain!

[@piperbird7193]

@@FireFlysNeverDie that's fair!

[@anitacrumbly]

@@piperbird7193 right, like its part of the lore though I do think they could have made the characters cuter like sam kinda soft and round features

[@neroflame13]

it's like watching hogwarts mystery artsyle and character expressions. it's a no from me for this one.

[@mariannelafrance5079]

I was so excited for this game and I really don’t like how it looks :( I’m so sad. It looks like a really old game but not old enough to be retro…

[@stellarhyme3]

This isn’t my type of cozy game at all.

[@CrobatmanIamthenight]

What do people expect from the characters There hobbits????

[@JoshGamingGarden]

I think it's not the fact that they're hobbits, just that the 3D models are a bit low poly or rough.

[@anitacrumbly]

ya i was expecting more round and soft features since they are you know hobbits. Angled features like low poly seem to suit more action adventure or dark horror. maybe they can try to make low poly to work if they fixed the faces to be less creepy. I'm still gonna play cuz everything else seems awesome I'm just sad the hobbits faces aren't nice to look at.

[@Zahri8Alang]

Hey, at least they dont look like Conco4d characters HAHHAHAIHUIIHIOOOOHOOO

[@Laxypants]

I love The Shire! Looking forward to this game. Great video, despite the bugginess it had when you were playing it. 😄

[@iirose7]

same

[@adrianinha19]

I like the color pallet but nothing else. Even the dialogue feels so unnatural

[@mattjrudd]

It looks like a mobile game. The characters are very ugly. Why are there no shadows?

[@anitacrumbly]

he had to have graphics on optimized because he was playing on his laptop if you watch another video of someone playing this early look you will see the graphics are amazing for atmosphere, houses, etc. but unfortunately the characters look the same

[@mattjrudd]

​@@anitacrumbly It's not the graphical fidelity that bothers me so much as the art design, although I think the lighting could definitely use some work.

[@loktron90]

Was ist delayed? Last thime.they Said fall of 2024

[@angelasmith3948]

Yeah, March 2025 is the new date

[@loktron90]

@@angelasmith3948 thank you :) Well there are enough Games this year so no problem. If the use the time good

[@DanielKing-dk5nr]

The graphics are not for me, I won't be buying it.

[@anitacrumbly]

you should watch one more video of someone playing it, josh said he wasn't able to get the graphics as good as he would h ave liked because he was playing on his laptop because I've been watching others and the atmosphere, the houses, greenery, forests, hobbit houses etc. all look amazing the one downside is still the hobbits faces for me.

[@Chad-ug5mb]

Nah they'll had woke people developed this game and jesus why the hobbits runs so woke 🤣

[@anitacrumbly]

you again chad, you've been making the rounds on all these hobbit videos don't you have something better to do with your life than trying to sus out "woke" animation which btw isn't a thing. It's also not possible to run woke unless you mean running while awake then in that case everyone should run while awake less accidents that way. lol

[@Chad-ug5mb]

@@anitacrumbly I'm not stalking any hobbit videos lmao. You are paranoid. I'm just saying, the hobbit run so gae. When they're showcased the developers, they're woke people 🙄. Woke developers plague the game industry for awhile bc it's better to hire a woke person than a straight person bc you can get more hours from a woke person than a straight person. Straight person has more responsibility than a woke person like taking care their family 😤. If you ever has a child, then you know it's a lot of time to take off from your life. Most woke people don't think about making a family. Making a game takes a lot of time and energy so it's better to hire a woke person than a straight but it's going to back fired like the hobbit game. It's just business ☕️

[@Chad-ug5mb]

@@anitacrumbly I'm not stalking any hobbit videos lmao. You are paranoid. I'm just saying, the hobbit run so gae. When they're showcased the developers, they're woke people 🙄. Woke developers plague the game industry for awhile bc it's better to hire a woke person than a straight person bc you can get more hours from a woke person than a straight person. Straight person has more responsibility than a woke person like taking care their family 😤. If you ever has a child, then you know it's a lot of time to take off from your life. Most woke people don't think about making a family. Making a game takes a lot of time and energy so it's better to hire a woke person than a straight but it's going to back fired like Ubisoft stocks lol. It's just business ☕️

[@sephinarose420]

Being honest about the game and the challenges is so refreshing.

[@8-bitsteve500]

If the PC version looks that poor, I can't imagine how dreadful the Switch version will be lol!!!

[@JoshGamingGarden]

Keep in mind these are the LOWEST graphical settings since I had to play on my laptop. It does look better with high settings.

[@anitacrumbly]

@@JoshGamingGarden i feel like you should pin your comment because so many people don't understand this and are calling it quits because of the poor graphics either from not listening or not understanding you had to play on lowest graphics.

[@Laxypants]

I think I’ll play this on Netflix rather than Steam. Not sure about this one just yet. 😅