Please support Game Informer. Print magazine subscriptions are less than $2 per issue
Troy Baker Shares His Lifelong Lord Of The Rings Fandom For Middle-earth: Shadow Of Mordor
We recently had a chance to chat with Troy Baker, the performer behind Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor’s protagonist Talion, about his and the game’s role in the universe of Lord of the Rings. We asked Baker a simple question: are you a Lord of the Rings fan? Baker detailed how he has had an appreciation for the Tolkien universe for a long time.
I am. When I was kid, maybe nine or ten, I would go have sleepovers at my grandparents' after my parents would get tired of me. I slept in my dad’s old room and there was a bookcase with original first editions of Hardy Boys, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Lord of the Rings, and The Hobbit. I asked my dad, “What is that?” because I had never heard those words before. He was like, “I think it’s time,” and he pulled down The Hobbit and was like, “Start with this one.” It was a little book and Lord of the Rings was like… agghh! And that was my first introduction,
It’s crazy almost 30 years later, that kid... there is no way I could have looked ahead and said, this is where I am going to be. And what I love is on that bookshelf, there is a little small space between The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. This is where that book would slot. And for us to actually add to the lore is a big honor.
Troy Baker has played prominent roles in a number of video games including The Last of Us’ Joel, BioShock Infinite’s Booker DeWitt, and Delsin in Infamous Second Son, among many others, as well as many more games to come.
Earlier today, a new trailer was released for Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor revealing the identity of the wraith that lends Talion his impressive powers.
I’d like to ask you to support Game Informer’s continued coverage of games with a subscription. For less than two dollars per issue, we mail you a full year of 10 print magazines, each with cover stories and preview features filled with exclusive details about the most exciting upcoming games. We profile and interview game creators. We look back on the rich history of gaming, and we celebrate what’s next.
Here on the website, we offer much of our content for free, including game reviews, daily news, videos, event coverage, and more – all with minimal ads.
We do so with a small editorial team, alongside contributing paid writers from around the world – over 65 individuals from 9 countries around the world, just in the last couple of years.
It’s not possible without support.
In a time when game makers and games coverage have faced hard struggles and layoffs, the future of this 30+ year magazine and community is at risk. Our new standalone magazine subscription is the number one way you can keep us alive – and we believe you’ll get a pretty fantastic gaming magazine in your mailbox every few weeks for your trouble.
Thank you.
