Seeing how nobody paid them much attention last year, the Germans from 4HEAD Studios (The Guild series) have once again announced their Beowulf project today, a third-person action-adventure with role-playing elements rooted deep within the Vikings era - as expected, after all, from a game based on the old epic poem with the same title.

The game Beowulf prides itself with a next-gen graphics technology, similar to the one used in the Gothic III and The Guild 2 RPGs, and as for the gameplay, its unique combat system promises to emulate the techniques of medieval sword-fencing:

"The fighting system is based on a simulation of the physics of blade weapons. Fighting in real-time, the player has full control over his game character's weapon, allowing him to directly determine in detail every single movement that the game character makes. Instead of limiting combat to a pre-defined set of moves and combos, this game gives the player total freedom to develop his own fighting style."

By adopting the Beowulf saga - known to have deeply inspired Tolkien's writings, the devs are hoping to attract plenty of Lord of the Rings fans with their fantastic game world and rugged characters. More details and some historical curiosities can be found on the official website, while the first screenshots can also be seen in our local gallery, next to some older artworks.

(N.B. Archive text, links removed)