The official gameplay reveal on next-generation consoles is still a few days away, but for now, some screenshots have been released.Daedalic Entertainment has released a collection of screenshots of its upcoming game "The Lord of the Rings": the game is PC, Xbox Series X, and PS5; they look pretty similar to what we'll see on the PS4 and Xbox One, but they may give us our first look at a major next-generation console game.

Daedalic shared the screenshots exclusively with German gaming magazine GameStar, and the screenshots have been circulating online ever since. More than 10 screenshots of the game have been published, most of which show a dark oak cave. The graphics have a slightly exaggerated cartoonish feel to them, making the screenshots all the more impressive.

Daedalic has not revealed whether these screenshots are from the PC, PS5, or Xbox Series X versions. In general, pre-release media uses PC builds whenever possible, so these screenshots may not fully represent what PS5 or Xbox Series X gamers will eventually see. Still, since the game will be released on all three consoles, the screenshots remain a pretty good indicator of the general graphic quality of the game.

The problem is that still screenshots cannot show the final capabilities of the PS5 and Xbox Series X. Screenshots cannot first show frame rates. Current consoles can run games at 4K, but often only at about 30 frames per second.

Furthermore, the biggest advances in PS5 and Xbox Series X gameplay may not be directly related to graphics. Instead, developers have been quick to tout the improved load times due to SSD storage. This could have a significant impact on the flow of the game, but will not be shown in the screenshots. (It can, however, easily be seen in live gameplay demos.)

Beyond that, Lord of the Rings: Gollum is a stealth/action game in which you control the main character from Tolkien's mythology. In the screenshots, Gollum is sneaking around an orc cave, evading the guards who need to find him. There is also an element of choice, as the player can respond to problems with either the mean and suspicious character of Gollum or the timid and fearful character of Sméagol. This will probably have some impact on gameplay, but what that will be remains to be seen.

In any case, these screenshots tell us what to expect from the next generation of console games, or at least their PC versions. The Lord of the Rings Gollum will probably not be a PS5 or Xbox Series X launch title.