Google has teamed up with the Swedish design and communication agency, North Kingdom, to create a new interactive browser experience for the final film in Peter Jackson's The Hobbit trilogy; “The Battle Of The Five Armies.” The experience, dubbed “A Journey Through Middle Earth,” takes the form of an interactive map of Middle-Earth, with all 27 locations featured in the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings films on display, awaiting your clicks. The map, which has been available for a while, has been updated recently to include a new peer-to-peer battle game, which takes its cues from online battle arena games such as the wildly successful “Dawn of the Ancients” franchise.
The map itself has also been updated to include tidbits of information on certain locations and characters from the franchise, some of which feature clips from the movies and even original voice work from the actors. The artfully rendered map, that can be enjoyed by long-time Tolkien fans and newcomers alike, doesn't just let users visit exotic locations such as Mount Doom, The Shire and Rivendell either. The experience allows fans to explore a “Heroes' Journey,” by selecting a character from the franchise (Gandalf or Bilbo for example) and tracing their unique adventures across the map. These journey's act also like interactive movies, and are perfect for fans wishing to refresh their memories before hitting the local cinema and visiting the magical realm of Middle-Earth one last time.
The experience takes the form of an interactive map of Middle-Earth, with all 27 locations featured in the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings films on display
Ellison-Taylor, project manager at Google Chrome, said “Completely new for this year’s version is a peer-to-peer battle game where you can challenge your friends to a test of skill.” He also adds that the experience “Was built primarily using the latest web technologies,” and has been “Touch optimised for laptops, phones and tablets, bringing you a stunning interactive experience across all your devices.”
A Journey Through Middle-Earth – A Chrome Experiment
The game begins with players selecting one of five locations from the franchise (I myself opted for Helm's Deep, obviously), they can then select a race (human, dwarf or elf) and whether they want to play for the good or evil armies, before being given a grand, Tolkienesque title and being cast into battle. It's a simple, but disarmingly compelling game, which users can also play with their friends online via a simple multiplayer system.
David Eriksson, chief creative officer at North Kingdom, said the project was an “Overwhelmingly exciting one” for the agency, because they were challenged with pushing the boundaries “Of what is possible in a digital experience,” whilst also “Drawing inspiration from the world of Tolkien and the drama world that has been built up throughout 14 years of epic films.”
“We wanted to ensure that the experience would honour the film’s storyline and capture the imagination of the fans.” Afredo Aponte – North Kingdom
Afredo Aponte, North Kingdom's user experience director, added; “In a fast moving world, where people, technology and businesses collide, the only way to go, for a brand, is to create meaningful solutions with product, service and experiences.” He believes that “As tech has disrupted everything, the only way you win is by focusing on the user,” and what the user wants, now more than ever, is content they can really feel involved in. Aponte also added that they didn't take the license lightly. He said they “Wanted to ensure that the experience would honour the film’s storyline and capture the imagination of the fans that would transport them to the vibrant world of Middle-Earth.” He's also enthusiastic about the potential of Chrome, stating “It is unique for a browser-based experience to pack so much into what has conventionally only been possible in something like an app, which Chrome makes possible.” He believes “This project showcases how a holistic approach with attention to user behaviour, creative ambition, and technological advancement can create new value and audience relationship for entertainment and technology while pushing the mobile web forward.”
The Hobbit – The Battle of the Five Armies – Official Trailer
The experience is available now through Google Experiments, a platform that allows the coding community show off their web experiments built in HTML5 and JavaScript. The website has been optimised to run on the Google Chrome browser across all devices.
Benjamin Hiorns is a freelance writer and musician from Kidderminster in the UK. His favourite Hobbit/LOTR character is easily Gimli (son of Gloin). How about the rest of you?
