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V-E-ME Day: LotRO Europe announces launch date for free-to-play
It's been a long time coming, and after some legal hemming and hawing, Codemasters announced that Lord of the Rings Online in Europe will be finally launching the much-anticipated free-to-play version of the game. On November 2nd, LotRO will open its doors to free players across Europe. This comes after a two-month period of limbo for EU players, which began two days before the update launched in North America. Codemasters had cryptically announced that F2P would be put on hold for what turned out to be contractual reasons. Fortunately, it seems as though the red tape has been cut, and players are free to sample the same blessed bounty as their NA comrades. This update also includes the new region of Enedwaith, the LotRO store, Volume III: Book 2 of the epic storyline and the Harvest Festival. Interested players can sign up for their free-to-play account at LotRO EU.
LotRO F2P launch day roundup
Volume III, Book 2: The Ride of the Grey Company is upon us, a massive Lord of the Rings Online patch that is functioning as a virtual relaunch of the game. In addition to adding loads of new content, Turbine is transforming LotRO into a hybrid subscription/free-to-play model in the hopes that this choice will draw fresh crowds to the game. The company's even opened eight new servers for the launch -- four for US and four for EU. Unfortunately, we have received word that Codemasters is going to release the patch in Europe "later than expected." Hit the jump for a roundup of our LotRO F2P news and discussion!
Hobbits like gifts and you do too: Win 500 LotRO Turbine Points and get into the head start!
This is Iago Glennudh, and he's here to welcome adventurers to the new version of Lord of the Rings Online, complete with a free-to-play option. He may be an odd hobbit with a bit of plant life growing in the dirt behind his ears, but Iago is nothing if not generous. Turbine handed him a wheelbarrow full of Turbine Point codes, and instead of keeping them, Iago wants to share them with you! Each one of these codes is worth 500 Turbine Points to spend in the brand new LotRO store on anything from cosmetic outfits to expanded storage to zone content. Even better, these codes allow their owners to get into the current head start of the new patch instead of waiting until Friday! Read on to learn how you can be one of the lucky winners!
The Road to Mordor: Frugal free-to-play
Two weeks! Two weeks, people! Why are you just sitting there, all calm-before-the-storm-like, instead of following my lead and running around like a chicken with its head... well, you know. Two weeks until Volume III Book 2 launches (and a little earlier for current subscribers), and I am psyched. There certainly is something for everyone here: a F2P version, store options, a new zone, instance scaling, more dungeons, DX11, the wardrobe, a revamped beginner experience, three new servers, the next chapter in the epic story, class tweaks, a haunted cellar, and, of course, demonic goats. Did I miss something? I probably did, but it's kind of crazy around here. One of the highlights I'm anticipating is all of the new (and returning) players giving LotRO their time due to the multiple payment options, including F2P bliss. I'm always a huge fan of options in my games, and I truly feel that the implementation of this free-to-play model will benefit a wider range of players than the current subscription core. Mmm, that Kool-Aid tastes great! If you're thinking about heading into LotRO in two weeks but are unsure how much "free" will come with your F2P, when you'll be hit with the big catch, or whether you'll be forced to subscribe at some point, I have some great news for you. There are a variety of routes you can take to experience a good chunk of Lord of the Rings Online without denting your bank account. Read on for five valuable strategies to save a buck while saving Middle-earth!
The further adventures of Captain Vault and the amazing LotRO!
As we barrel toward the September 10th release date of LotRO's Volume III Book 2 update and F2P craziness, Turbine's devs are rushing to cover as many of the changes as possible in their detailed dev diaries. The first diary covers the changes to the metal-clad captain class, which is receiving an overhaul thanks to player feedback and extensive fine-tuning. Ken Burd explained the rearrangement of two traits lines, Leader of Men and Lead the Charge, which have been reworked into tank and DPS specialties, respectively. Burd also discussed the changes to heralds, standards and armaments. For everyone else who isn't a captain (and, OK, captains too), games systems engineer Ransroth gushes over the improved vault system. In an attempt to make the vault easier to peruse, Turbine is changing the bank UI to resemble the shared storage UI, which results in an easier-to-read interface. When beta testers responded negatively to the new vault interface, the devs worked to find a solution to mimic the old structure of multiple chests. Vaults 2.0 also come with a number of spiffy tools, such as dynamic filtering, sorting, automatic stack merges, and searches. Both the captain revamp and the vault improvements are scheduled to hit the servers in a little over two weeks.
The Road to Mordor: Touring the fall's new content with Turbine (part one)
It just may be the dream of every MMO geek to command the attention of his or her favorite dev team, bombard them with questions, and be shown secrets previously kept behind closed doors. Well, my friends, today that dream came true for this geek, as Turbine graciously sat down with Massively for over two hours to conduct an all-access tour to the fall's hot new LotRO content -- including the details behind the controversial and anticipated F2P switch. Aaron Campbell (Producer), Allan Maki (Senior Designer), Elliot Gilman (Senior Designer), Brian Aloisio (Designer), Joseph Barry (Designer) and Jonathan Rudder (Lore Guru) were on hand to fly me through the new content -- and reveal a few big surprises. To say that I had questions is an understatement; I fear that I sounded a bit like a six-year-old who peppers parents with unending "Why?" queries. Expecting to hear "no comment" a lot (after all, this content is in beta), I was surprised when the Turbine team enthusiastically answered all of my questions and then some. This is a team who know this F2P move is bringing some apprehension and concern, and they're trying to assuage that with as much information as possible. So join me as we go through the first part of this tour, looking at an enhanced new-player experience, instance scaling and the addition of Enedwaith to Turbine's Middle-earth.
The Road to Mordor: Enedwaith Exploration Expo
E3 is always an exciting time full of announcements, reveals and hundreds of journalists attempting to leech every last drop of information from crafty studios. It's pretty much insane, and if your head isn't exploding from all of the news, trailers, screenshots and surprises, then I'm going to have to ask you to hand in your gamer card. For Turbine, this year's E3 has been a crucial moment in the company's history. Not only are we seeing them under the Warner Bros. banner in public, but they had to step up and both defend and build off of the revelation of Lord of the Ring Online's new business model. They were smart not to save the announcement itself for E3, because the gaming public and the press needed a bit of time to both digest the news and get past the initial emotional reaction so they could bring the studio thoughtful questions. Turbine's undoubtedly enjoying its fair share of press coverage at E3 because of this, and that's saying something considering all of the other heavy-hitters like Star Wars: The Old Republic, Final Fantasy XIV and Warhammer 40K that are making appearances. No matter what your feelings are on the F2P model, Turbine's got a lot more for LotRO gamers than just that -- in fact, they've been bombarding us with so much good new stuff that it's hard to know where to start. So let's take a quick tour through 10 exciting additions and updates to the game that they've revealed.
