Lord of the Rings Online - One Year Later

[Arep]

Its no secret to anyone who knows me that Lord of the Rings Online is my all-time favorite MMO. With the expansion coming out this fall I wanted to take the opportunity to look back at the last year (and change) and also give a small preview of what is to come when Mines of Moria is released. Please use this thread to discuss my article.

[Arep]

I just wanted to add that over the last two weeks the folks in the US/Oceanic TOG guild downed Thaurlach the Balrog (arguably the toughest enemy currently in-game) not once but twice!

[Chewbacca]

Good review Arep. I've been a Tolkein and a closet RPG fan for decades, thought the movies were ok, and have been sorely tempted to try a MMO. If I did, it would be LOTRO without a doubt.
I just get scared that it would suck my soul and take up my precious time......

[hotsoup]

Arep. Great review with almost no spoilers and i couldn't agree more with many of the things you have said!

I played LOTRO since launch and am still loving it. I took a short break to test AoC and will be back in LOTRO in a few days.

The only things i guess which could have been added was the clothing / cosmetic skins which adds even more variety to the character customisation process as well as hair-cuts and facial air add-ons.

In addition, the fact that during launch and post launch, servers were lag free and the community is the absolute best in terms of helpfulness and maturity.

The fact that Turbine listens to their players' suggestions and act appropriately is also another bonus.

All games should have a life-time subscription option as well as it reduces the "need for speed-leveling" so that one can get the most out of their sub fees within a short time.

But of course, there are just too many positives about this to warp everything up in a review in order to keep it succinct

@ Chewbaca, if you are really a fan of Tolkien's works and somewhat a fan of the movie, you probably would like this game. I have known many fans of the novels to rant that the good Professor would turn in his grave if he know that Lore-Masters exist, how magic is handled, how certain monsters are "created" just for the game (like the Earth-kin and that giants do not exist) etc. There are frequent debates in the Forums on the Lore section about such things. For me, i loved the books, having read the 3 main novels at least 3 times as well as the Simarillion and Books of Lost Tales 1 and 2, and am intend to start on the Children of Hurin (but fell asleep reading The Hobbit) and i take it all with a pinch of salt. My mindset is that the game is adding to the richness of the Lore which the Professor had created and might have intended. Moreover, whatever Turbine adds, they would run it through Tolkien Enterprises first for approval.

If you do decide to join, let me know. I will see if i can get a 10-day buddy key for you to test drive the game
There is a TOG guild on the Elendilmir server which i am on and will be joining once i get back to the game...gotta get my Lore Master to 50 in time for the expansion!

[RedPh0enix]

Great review, Arep.

I've been dabbling in LOTRO for the past couple weeks and I'm getting more and more sucked in. (Guild Wars is starting to act like a jealous girlfriend ) This is a much different game then GW and I've just started getting used to the crafting side of the story. I like that the game and quests don't seem particularly linear in nature. I would recommend this game to anyone. As I get used to the interface and game play style, I like it even more. I like that there is a day and night system.

Travelling is a bit time consuming, especially when I'm used to the mapping system of GW. But that is about my only beef with this game.

[WrrLor]

Indeed, great review Arep. I played open beta and then on and off for about the first 6 months...your review makes me want to come back and try again. There is a certain beauty to the game, and a calm feeling...in certain areas. It feels like a leasurely stroll through a game, not a rush to get to max level.

Bah, so many good games....so little time to play. If you see a tubby little dwarf named Worrlor running around sometime asking for TOG folks, send me an invite.

[Dhimmi]

well arep, your excellent review of the game, pushed me over the edge to try it, as an hardcore fan of ME, i feared turbine couldnt delivery a good game without taking to much freedom... well after your review im kinda reassured it worked all out fine

[Brog]

Originally Posted by Chewbacca

I just get scared that it would suck my soul and take up my precious time......

I avoided all MMO's for that very reason, but being a sucker for anything Tolkien I just had to give this a try and was instantly hooked. As a long time gamer but new to MMO's I was surprised at the gameplay depth and huge amount of content that is apparently standard in the MMO genre so, yes, if you want to see and do it all an MMO can become a huge time sink.

But Turbine tries to include something for every kind of player in each update, raiders, PvMPers, PvEers, and especially casual players. Stuff like the Music system, housing, Chicken Play, events like the current Lithe Festival and associated Inn League quests, as well as various emote, title and eating deeds are all available at very low levels (5-10), and The Great Barrow (one of the best instances in the game IMHO) is low 20's. So even if you can only log in once and a while it won't be like you are on rails and can't experience content until you are max level.

Of course there are plenty of incentives for leveling like the Moster Play at level 10, costume/cosemtic gear system at level 20, horses at 35, and PvMP as a Freep (Free Peoples) at 40. The trial is free so you really should check it out, but will take most of a day to download, install, and update.

Arep! Great article. See you in game you wooly-footed ale hound!