As an unemployed person this is huge

Some ideas strike you like a hoof to the head. Ten years ago, our team was inspired with a brand-new idea: revolutionize gaming with a controller unlike any other. This April 1, we’re introducing R.O.A.C.H., a controller to make your next adventure in the Continent more realistic and tactile than ever before.

Ride off into the sunset on R.O.A.C.H. today: thewitcher.ly/ROACH

French article too: https://www.quechoisir.org/action-ufc-que-choisir-jeux-video-l-ufc-que-choisir-assigne-ubisoft-en-justice-suite-a-la-fermeture-du-jeu-the-crew-n175318/

First some background on who the source of this story is since I doubt many are familiar with him

Ryszard Chojnowski is a Polish localization expert. In 1996, he collaborated with CD Projekt RED and later worked on Polish localizations for major companies such as Blizzard, Ubisoft, Electronic Arts, and Epic Games. He has contributed to the localization of titles including Diablo II, Baldur's Gate, BioShock, Fortnite, and many others.

Now on to the story itself

Chojnowski claims to have heard the rumor a couple of months ago. He did not believe it at first, but there have been more whispers about it recently. This should be the third-person The Lord of the Rings action game that was first unveiled by Insider Gaming back in September 2025. According to that report, the project was partially funded by the Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) with around $100 million. Its goal is apparently to compete directly with the likes of Hogwarts Legacy, which was the best-selling game in 2023, and multiple studios are said to be involved in its development.

In truth, Internet sleuths had already discovered earlier this year that Warhorse might be working on a separate project beyond the inevitable Kingdom Come: Deliverance 3. There are job postings seeking experience with Unreal Engine, and the studio's historical RPG series is notoriously powered by CryEngine.

UE part makes me sad given how amazingly optimized KCD2 was. But this project would be a big deal if it's real.

(April 1, 2026) SHIFT UP (CEO Hyung-Tae Kim) announced that it has completed the acquisition of Japanese game developer UNBOUND Inc. by acquiring all of its shares.

UNBOUND is a PC and console game development studio led by Shinji Mikami, who is known for his work on global hits such as the ＜Resident Evil＞ series, ＜Devil May Cry＞, ＜The Evil Within＞ series, and ＜Okami＞, and a team of veteran developers. The team bring together those with acclaimed experience both in and outside of Japan, attracting significant attention from the global gaming industry.

Currently, UNBOUND is developing original PC and console-based IPs targeting the global market.

Through this acquisition, SHIFT UP has successfully integrated world-class development talent and expanded its new PC and console-based pipeline. Furthermore, the company plans to directly handle the publishing of UNBOUND's upcoming titles and gradually build its own global service capabilities.

Shift Up is the nikkei/stellar blade studio in case anyone is wondering.