Francesco Nepitello, co-creator of the classic Lord of the Rings board game War of the Ring, tells Wargamer he “would love to see a new version of the game with 2022, 2023 standard of figures”. In an exclusive interview with Wargamer about his new game – CMON, Dune: War for Arrakis – Nepitello said War of the Ring was “a fantastic game” with minis that were “awesome at the time when the game came out” – and he’d love to see it return with more modern miniatures.
“I love War of the Ring, of course, it’s a fantastic game,” says Nepitello – “sorry if I say so!”
“And that game was a very fortunate coincidence of many things,” he adds. “The game still sells after 18 years.”
But CMON’s Dune: War for Arrakis, which was also designed by War of the Ring creators Nepitello and Marco Maggi, demonstrates just what can be done with board game minis these days. “There’s no comparison,” he says.
“War of the Ring is less costly than other games of the same weight, possibly as a counterpart for having less ‘modern’ miniatures”, he explains, adding “as the designer of the game, I would love to see a new version of the game with 2022, 2023 standard of figures.”
There’s been no hint as yet that a third edition of War of the Ring is actually in development – but, if there was to be, Nepitello says a re-released War of the Ring with updated minis would likely cost more than the game’s current retail price of $90 / £79. By comparison, depending on your pledge level, Dune: War for Arrakis costs between $110 and $160.
“War of the Ring profits… by being extremely cheap for that type of game, because you’re not getting a game with 200 or so figures like that for the price it has,” says Nepitello.
“I’m sure that we could do so much better by now with with the figures – but not at that price.”
War of the Ring – which enjoys pride of place in our guide to the best board games for couples – was first released back in 2004, and got a second edition in 2011.
Dune: War for Arrakis ended its Kickstarter campaign on September 23, having raised a cool $1.3 million from 11,449 backers in just eight days – though it’s still open for late pledges.
The main ‘Harvester Pledge’ option costs $110, getting you the core box, plus a bunch of stretch goals including extra minis. The ‘Caryall Pledge’, meanwhile, also includes the two already announced expansions: Smugglers and The Spacing Guild.
If you’re looking to nab a new boxed treasure for your game night, but Dune and Lord of the Rings aren’t your speed – check out our guide to the best board games around.