How To Live Your Best Hobbit Life In Tales Of The Shire

One of the reasons that The Lord of the Rings is so popular is because of how versatile it is as a story. Yes, it’s also the very bedrock of fantasy storytelling as it’s understood today, but when looking at how it remains relevant, the fluidity it has between genres is a massive point in its favor. A dark, grime-and-blood-spattered beat-em-up in the style of the Arkham games where a Ranger fights orcs? Sure. Hell yeah. Make two. How about a game from the same IP where players take on the role of a Hobbit living in an idyllic village, hosting tea parties and baking pies? That’s also a recipe for success, it turns out.

Tales of the Shire takes on the seemingly no-brainer concept of combining a cozy life and farming sim with the world and aesthetics of the Shire from The Lord of the Rings, resulting in an incredibly comfy game that gives players attainable, tangible goals. Yet it also lets them enjoy life as a pie-baking Hobbit, keen on dinner parties and plucking flowers, rather than being a grand adventurer who has a bone to pick with every orc in existence. Players who are new to this title should keep these tips in mind, not strictly mechanical, but nonetheless fun ways to ensure they’re living their best Hobbit life in Tales of the Shire.

Experiment With Cooking

The Game Will Never Punish Culinary Trend-Setters

There are well over 100 recipes for players to pick up and try in Tales of the Shire, and each one can be further augmented by balancing the specific blend of flavors found in each dish and by managing the overall textures of the food for maximum Hobbit satisfaction. Cooking is the lifeblood of Tales of the Shire, foundational to the main story progression, side quests, character quests, and the main skill augmented by many of the town’s upgrades. Upgrades that are also earned by cooking.

However, that doesn’t mean, that the task needs to be a strictly utilitarian exercise in pushing forward in the name of progress. Cooking can be just as casually enjoyable in-game as it can be in real life. Sometimes it’s best to cook not for any particular quest, but simply to experiment, and try meals first before having to make them for a particular quest. There are so many immersive elements to look into with this game, and most of them revolve around cooking, so experiment and try them often!

Be An Extroverted Hobbit

Named Hobbits Always Have Something To Say

Wandering (or skipping!) around Bywater is going to be a major part of the gameplay in this title. With no real mini map or fast travel to rely on, players are going to be re-treading a lot of the same ground as they wander through the town during the game’s various seasons and times of day. What matters is how the game changes the minute details of the town as the main quest progresses further and further.

Speaking with characters in Tales of the Shire is not like in a Pokemon title, where characters repeat their one-liners for the whole game. The main characters of Bywater are intensely reactive and have very complex storylines, and as the main story progresses, talking to these characters is an immersive way for players to immerse themselves in the world, while also keeping abreast of any recent changes to the area.

Host Parties Often

Parties Are The Best Way To Utilize Food

If food is the heart of Tales of the Shire, then friends are the soul of the game. Bywater only stands on a foundation of friendship, and it’s important both mechanically and immersively to jump headfirst into this small community and its many inhabitants. Because of this, hosting dinner parties, breakfast get-togethers, and idyllic picnics is a fantastic way of not only boosting friendships in the town but also getting the most out of this game.

Deepening relationships with characters is best done at parties, especially if players serve food enjoyed by the NPCs in question. Regardless of how much strategic chili powder has been used to maximize the affection points gained from an encounter, simply idling and speaking with the Hobbits of Bywater has its own charm.

Make Your Hobbit Hole Your Own

Decoration Is A Satisfying And Enjoyable Part Of The Game

If there’s one good thing that money is used for in Tales of the Shire, it’s obtaining decorations for the Hobbit Hole the player calls home. Don’t be afraid to spend liberally and buy a wide variety of options for furniture and wall coverings to perfectly deck out the household.

The level of detail in this game is impressively realized in its decoration system, and players should be sinking their teeth into it at any chance they get. Players can find their unique flavor of cottage-core waiting for them in the perfect combination of furniture and accents found in their little Hobbit home.

Enjoy Hobbit Life At A Leisurely Pace

The Game Is Slow—Embrace It

Between main quests, side quests, and NPC-oriented quests, Tales of the Shire is certainly not short on content. The game’s pace is slow, and rather than trying to race against time and push through the content as quickly as possible, it’s better to take the slow nature of the game in stride.

Spending days doing nothing but fishing and farming, and putting the main quest on hold, is exactly what a Hobbit would do, so players should follow that same logic. Focus on parties and friendships for their own sake, not for the sake of quest completion. These things will make any main story progression feel more impactful when it does happen.