The Lord of the Rings: War in the North

Forget Frodo and the One Ring. This tale is set in the north where the Dunedain dwell and an mysterious ally of Sauron is preparing to make his strike.

Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and Snowblind Studios are teaming up to create this untold story by piecing together the whispers and references of the northern lands from Tolkien's Middle Earth.

While much attention and focus has been placed on the journey of the One Ring, the assault on Middle-earth hits all corners of the map. War in the North turns our attention towards an integral part of the storyline that is grounded in details within the books and various appendices. This is not someone else’s fight. This is your own effort to forage a way through the dark, dangerous, and unknown landscape, defending all that is yours. This is your war.

War in the North is an Action/Fantasy RPG with 3 person co-op play. You'll play as part of a party consisting of an elf, human, and a dwarf. Whichever spots are not filled by co-op play will be filled by the game's AI which the game developers are saying is quite intuitive. Friends can hop in and out of the game without interrupting game play. Fans should be ready for a bloodier LotR game as this game has been rated M (first in the LotR series) and boasts an all new and grittier look that will be more true to the books. 

The Lord of the Rings: War in the North will be released in 2011 on the PS3, X-Box 360, and PC.
For full news, updates, and trailers check out the official site.
The video below contains gameplay and developers talking about the untold story.