Electronic Arts announced today that it has signed an exclusive deal with New Line Cinema to produce video games based on the upcoming Lord of the Rings trilogy of movies. The deal gives Electronic Arts the exclusive rights to publish games based on The Lord of the Rings films on all next-generation video games consoles and handhelds. Scheduled for release in fall 2002, the first game will be based upon The Fellowship of the Ring and will be released alongside the second movie in the trilogy, The Two Towers. The remaining games and which platforms they will appear on will be announced at a later date.