Having an actor do custom call-outs for the Hobbit would be so cool, I really hope it gets done.

I played one of the Lord of the Rings xbox games (the two towers, maybe?) and it had most of the original actors for their character's voices. It was, literally, the best thing about the game. Hearing John Rhys-Davies, Ian McKellan, etc do original lines from the game was simply amazing, so immersive, and it felt like an expansion of the movie rather than an offshoot game.

Even hiring a SINGLE actor (for Gandalf, Thorin, Smaug, or Bilbo) would be money well-spent, as that character could essentially be the 'narrator' of the game, making all the pinball-related call-outs. It would be a real selling point.

I doubt we'd see anything other than a tidbit at the Expo, but probably some sort of an update when the next pre-order payment is due.

I think it is a wise move to hold off a while before showing off all of the bells and whistles. Just seeing the new movie trailer was exciting for me!