Popverse's top stories of the day

• X-Men was "the most disappointing creative experience" Jonathan Hickman has ever had, the Marvel writer reveals
• MEMBERS ONLY: Popverse Jump: Spy x Family is going to end with Loid realizing he loves being a dad or I'm going to riot
• WATCH NOW: How to be a D&D Dungeon Master, according to Wizards of the Coast's game director James Wyatt and principal game designer James Wyatt

Tales of the Shire: A Lord of the Rings Game will allow gamers to experience everything delightful about a Hobbit's existence. And we mean everything. As we recently learned at PAX East 2025, the game will give players the ability to create their Hobbit character from head to (literally) toe, as a feature of the game will be customizing their famously fuzzy Hobbit feet.

Backing up a bit here - in case you weren't aware, Tales of the Shire is a cozy game set in the world of J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. According to its own website, the upcoming game invites players to "live the cosy life of a Hobbit in the wonderfully serene landscape of the Shire. Discover, decorate, and share in this idyllic corner of Middle-earth." 

Now, you'd think that the "decorate" there is only referring to your Hobbit hole, but you'd be wrong.

Speaking at PAX East's The Rise of Cozy Gaming panel presented by The Slow Burn Podcast, content creator and panelist Payton's Corner explained that she "wouldn't call [Tales of the Shire] a farming game [as it has been billed], I would call it a gardening game. A game that's all about looking at your little Hobbit feet."

Eliciting some laughs from the crowd, Payton continued "I love it! I love the hairy feet; you can customize the hairy feet."

That wasn't just speculation either - Payton's Corner got to experience Tales of the Shire early, so she knows what she;s talking about. And out of the many things we assume she remembered about the game, it was this tiny but lovable feature that came up during the panel.

"If you've ever played a game," Payton concluded, "And thought, 'You know what would really sell this? If I could add hair to the feet. If I could decide how much hair is on the feet.' This could be the one for you."

It sounds like the one for us, Payton. Tales of the Shire: A Lord of the Rings Game comes to consoles (and, we assume, some wild corners of the internet) July 29.

Whether you're Shirefolk, Elven, Dwarven, or something else, there's a good reason to love Lord of the Rings. We do! With that in mind, we have a dragon's horde of goodies for you from a Lord of the Rings reading guide, a Lord of the Rings watch guide, details on the upcoming animated film Lord of the Rings: The War of Rohirrim, a full the Lord of the Rings reunion panel you can watch, how the OG Hobbit actors stay in touch every day on a groupchat, and the true message of the Lord of the Rings film trilogy, according to Gimli himself - John Rhys-Davies.