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The Road to Mordor: LotRO's big battles are a big bust
Recently my journey through Helm's Deep came to a close as I finished all of the quests plus advanced the epic story as far as it could go. Overall, I loved the expansion: It had great pacing, beautiful scenery, memorable quests, and an obvious dedication to doing The Two Towers right. But there was one glaring fault that Lord of the Rings Online seemed to save for the last, which I discovered during my foray into the big battle system. Other than visiting them in a couple of press tours, I had been avoiding big battles (even though you can jump in one starting at level 10) because I wanted to experience them organically as part of the storyline. I wasn't necessarily anticipating them, but I wasn't dreading them either. "Mild curiosity" is perhaps the emotion that I identified within my breast, and as it turned out, that was wildly overpreparing for the experience that followed. Big battles are, I'm sorry to say, a big bust in LotRO. Sure, they have their positives and moments, but for a system that Turbine spent over a year to create and shoved aside instances and raids in favor of putting into the expansion, it should have been so much more. So what went wrong?
Lord of the Rings Online fully automates character transfers
It's been long in the process, but now it's finally here: Lord of the Rings Online has switched over to a fully automated character transfer process. "We are pleased to announce that as of today, Monday, March 3rd, automated character transfers are available to all players for both Free People and Monsters," Turbine posted on the forums. "This is something you have been requesting for some time, and we are very excited to have the service ready for you now!" Players can move characters between servers by purchasing transfer tokens through the LotRO Market website. One token is $24.95, three tokens is $69.95, and six tokens is $134.95. Unfortunately the new system will not take Turbine Points, nor will it allow players to transfer between NA and EU servers. Turbine said that players have a "limited time" to request a transfer with Turbine Points by contacting support.
Turbine outlines the path ahead for LotRO and DDO
Coming hot on the heels of yesterday's revelation about the future of Asheron's Call, Turbine posted a pair of producer's letters this morning to talk about where Lord of the Rings Online and Dungeons and Dragons Online are heading. Aaron Campbell has moved back to the LotRO team to be its executive producer and said that Update 13 will be coming soon. In Update 13, there will be a revamp of North Downs, additional quests in Fangorn Forest, support for multiple attachments in mail, and a new epic book that allows you to play as an Ent. "We're pressing forward to Gondor," Campbell promised. "We're digging in deep (but not too deep) to continue the journey through Middle-earth." As for DDO, Franchise Director Athena Peters said the team is getting ready to push out Update 21 on March 10th but is also looking beyond that to the second update of 2014. Update 22 will expand Three Barrel Cove into epic levels and add new guild airship amenities.
The Road to Mordor: When storm clouds gather...
When I think about the news swirling around Lord of the Rings Online lately, I feel a bit like Sam and Frodo getting their first glimpse of Mordor and Mount Doom. It's hard to think of cheer and happiniess when the view is full of heavy clouds and ash. I have several positive articles that I'd rather be penning this week, but I think it would be a mistake to avoid the questions and feelings that all LotRO players are experiencing right now, including me. It may not be the journey that I'd like to be taking, but it's the one that's needed right now. So let's sit down together, fill our tankards, and mull over just what's going on with our Middle-earth. Maybe in the talking and in the company we will find the solace and comfort that we need.
The Daily Grind: Do layoff announcements affect your MMO gameplay?
Yesterday's Turbine layoff announcement wasn't particularly surprising, given the fact that the firm has tied its MMO fortunes to a couple of third-party IPs and has been giving away access to its games for the past few years. Regardless of whether or not we believe Warner Bros. "normal strategic alignment" statement, layoffs are layoffs and they reflect negatively on an ongoing game service to some extent. What that extent is varies from player to player, of course, and that's where today's Daily Grind comes in. Do MMO studio layoff announcements cause you to rethink the amount of time or money you spend on a given game, or is it just business as usual? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Lichborne: More death knight depictions in pop culture
Every week, WoW Insider brings you Lichborne for blood, frost, and unholy death knights. In the post-Cataclysm era, death knights are no longer the new kids on the block. Let's show the other classes how a hero class gets things done. In the comments of last week's article, commentors came up with other pop culture sources of death knight inspiration. A lot of them are great suggestions, some of which I didn't write about mainly because I haven't played them lately, others because they weren't technically games. Still a lot of the suggestions were fun enough that it feels like a good idea to take another week and look at another set of death knights and death knight precursors in games, books, and other pop culture sources. Thanks to all of last weeks commentors for their suggestions and thoughts.
The Road to Mordor: How LotRO explores what it means to be a hero
Developers, journalists, and bloggers alike have spent gobs of time chewing on the concept of heroism in MMOs: what makes us heroes, how these games can be tailored to make us feel heroic, whether games should force us to be heroes, and whether heroism is a desirable trait for a gamer. What we can agree on is that, if nothing else, the term has been so widely used and abused that we don't even think about the fact that "hero" is often used synonymously with the term "player character." It's just accepted that we're all heroes in MMOs as a base characteristic. But am I a hero? At the start of an MMO, no, I am not. I am a blank slate. My character has no backstory inside of the game, no accolades under her belt, and no past adventures in which she showed herself to be anything out of the ordinary. That's another thing about heroes, apparently: They can't be ordinary. They have to become uber-elite and save the world, preferably on a weekly basis by beating something to death with an axe or immolating it with a fireball spell. Lord of the Rings Online and its dev team may not be innocent of trying to shove us into the roles of heroes and play to that allegedly universal fantasy, but what I do appreciate is that this game has made me truly consider what it is to be a hero and how most MMOs get it wrong.
Lord of the Rings Online community Q&A talks region revamps
The number 42 isn't just the answer to life, the universe, and everything; it's also the number of questions that Turbine addressed in a new LotRO community Q&A forum post. A majority of the questions had to do with upcoming content, in particular what's coming with Update 13. In addition to the revamp of North Downs, the devs are apparently working on retooling Misty Mountains and Trollshows, as well as adding "a small slice of new region content." A future Paths of the Dead update was teased as well: "You can expect to see the Paths of the Dead in some form. Aragorn's path through them is described rather specifically, but I think your character will have a different reason to enter and explore the Paths." So what other features are the team working on right now? It sounds as though Rohan housing might be a possibility as are catapults in the Ettenmoors. Kinships and housing will receive some cross-feature love, crafters could see a wider range of tradeskills, and mail and inventory are both being worked on at the moment.
Lord of the Rings Online to revamp North Downs and more
With its focus shifting from expansions to regular content in 2014, Turbine has announced that one of its upcoming projects is a revamp of Lord of the Rings Online's North Downs. During a recent in-game event, Community Manager Rick Heaton said that North Downs will be one of several zones to receive love in a future update: "Update 13 will see a few zones revamped. A few of have been asked for by many people. You will get some more information in the 20 questions, but I'll spill the beans since you going to read it next week. North Downs will be getting a once-over." North Downs was widely rumored to be the next zone to be reworked several years ago following the major revamps of Evendim and Lone-lands.
The Road to Mordor: The ins and outs of LotRO's mithril coins
Even though mithril coins have been in the game for the better part of a year now, we haven't really had a discussion about them in this space. I think it's time to do that, especially considering how Turbine keeps expanding the reach and utility of this handy-dandy (and expensive-wensive) currency in Lord of the Rings Online. Mithril coins were added in March 2013's Update 10, and their purchasing power expanded in subsequent updates. Basically, the mithril coin was a new type of currency that offered a quick and clean solution to buying goods and services in the game without the player's having to go through the LotRO store. Think of them as video arcade tokens, obtained with real money and used on the entertainment that you desire. Turbine saw these coins as a way to streamline certain pay-for-service portions of the game that had their own separate currencies (such as revival tomes and stablemaster writs). One unified currency for a variety of uses. I haven't seen a lot of chatter on these coins as of late, leading me to believe that their inclusion in the game is more or less accepted now. Some people find the coins irritating and an abuse of free-to-play moneygrabbing tactics. Others find them very useful and welcome in the game. I have a foot planted in both camps, and today we're going to look at the ins and outs of using mithril coins.
The Lord of the Rings cast as Hearthstone cards
If you're in the US you may very well be currently enjoying the Hearthstone open beta. If you're not, though, you've got to find some way to kill the time until open beta to hit your shores, and what better way to do it than with these Lord of the Rings-themed Hearthstone cards? Imgur user splatypus took the time to create a custom deck of Hearthstone cards based on the characters and iconic moments of the Lord of the Rings movies. While not particularly balanced in some respects, it's at the very least highly entertaining. My favorite card is at the very end, proving that people really do save the best for last. I'm glad this deck doesn't actually exist, because it would be frustrating to both play with and play against. But I'd probably do it at least once, if I could, just for the novelty factor. Thanks to splatypus for this fun, tongue-in-cheek bit of creativity. Commenters of WoW Insider: if you could create a themed Hearthstone deck of your own, what would it be about? What would be its flagship cards?
The Daily Grind: Do you like LotRO's mounted combat?
I realize that I'm like a year late to Riders of Rohan and Lord of the Rings Online's mounted combat, but I'm nonetheless enjoying it a fair bit. It's different, for one thing. And it's got customizable horses and plenty of room to ride them, for another. It lags a bit more than I'd like, even when there are no other players around, and that brings me to my point. I rarely see anyone participating in mounted combat, at least on the Landroval server around the Norcrofts, Wold, and Entwash Vale areas. It could be that everyone's at endgame and Helm's Deep, or it could be that I'm just playing at the wrong times. Or it could be any number of other factors, including the possibility that mounted combat isn't that popular with LotRO's playerbase. What say you, Massively readers? Do you like LotRO's mounted combat? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
5 Apps that would have made the Fellowship's trip to Mordor much easier
We already know that one does not simply walk into Mordor -- even though a pair of nasty hobbitses pulled it off just fine -- but a trip to the mountain of fire would have been a lot easier for the Fellowship if they had an iPhone handy. AroundMe For a crew of heroes as fond of the drink as the Fellowship is, an inn/pub/shop finder like AroundMe would have made their trip a lot more enjoyable. Sure, Frodo and his hobbit buddies had opportunities to relax a bit in Bree (before the party was crashed) and took a bit of a breather in Rivendell, but once they departed toward Mordor, it was all business. Call me crazy, but I think a few more detours to tucked-away pubs (or maybe even a smoke shop to stock up on some Longbottom Leaf) would have been well deserved. Yahoo Weather After leaving Hobbiton, it became immediately clear that Frodo and his companions were woefully unprepared for the varying climates the trip would have to offer. If they had access to the Yahoo Weather app -- which lets you check the current conditions and forecast for multiple locations at the same time -- they might have packed a few more layers for the journey. BigOven Lembas bread might be fine for the average man, but the hobbits have appetites that would make a troll blush. BigOven features more than 250,000 recipes, and can be filtered by whatever ingredients you have on hand. Samwise knows his stuff when it comes to wild edibles, and with a tool like BigOven he could have whipped up a nightly feast using whatever was available on the trail. Google Maps This one is a gimme. Google Maps is the go-to navigation app for iPhone users, and that's because it's everything that Apple Maps isn't. It's accurate, it's pretty (enough) and it won't tell you to drive off of a highway overpass. When it comes to a trip from the Shire to Mordor, Google Maps could have helped Frodo avoid several hazards, including the almost-lethal trip to Minas Morgul, which results in a paralyzed hobbit and an almost-lost ring. iTranslate Voice Despite the fact that almost every creature we see in Peter Jackson's LOTR movie trilogy speaks pretty good English -- including the orcs and Sauron himself - Middle Earth is filled with strange languages. With instant translation from iTranslate Voice, Frodo could have used diplomacy to bring Sauron's reign of terror to an end. You never know; after speaking with the dark lord in his own tongue we may have found out that the whole thing was just a big, terrible, apocalyptic misunderstanding.
Lord of the Rings Online renews license through 2017
Turbine has secured the license for Lord of the Rings Online -- for a few more years, at least. Community Manager Rick Heaton confirmed the license renewal on the official forums today: "I just wanted to drop in and address the concerns surrounding the license, again. We have said as far back as July of 2013, we plan to support LotRO for many years to come. I really want to be as clear as possible on this subject to avoid any further confusion or misunderstanding. The license was renewed." For more on the issue of LotRO and the license to Tolkien's works, you can check out last year's Road to Mordor column on the subject.
The Daily Grind: Are player councils a good idea?
Turbine recently announced a new Player Council for Dungeons and Dragons Online. The company previously put together a similar panel for Lord of the Rings Online, but thus far we've not heard much in the way of initiatives or results. Back in the day, Star Wars: Galaxies had its own version of player representation that never seemed to actually accomplish anything. EVE Online's Council of Stellar Management has been meeting for years now, and it's probably the most impactful of the ones listed here, though whether that's due to the actual CSM or the fact that EVE is one of the few MMOs permanently affected by player action is up for debate. The question I'm coming to is this: Do you think player councils are a good idea? Would you like to serve on one? Why or why not? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
LotRO not working on new dungeons, has no plans to merge servers
Lord of the Rings Online Community Manager Rick Heaton spent time answering various player queries during a recent "Take the Hobbits to Isengard" event, and an enterprising player recorded the salient details to pass along. Heaton said that despite demand from players, the team is not working on creating any new traditional instances, raids, or Rohan housing. He did comment that one of the older zones is a "possibility" for a revamp during 2014 and that there are no plans to merge servers. For players looking to jump from the old Codemasters servers to the other ones, Heaton reported that a "significant technical issue" has kept this from becoming a reality. If you're curious about how many people are playing the game, well, you're going to be curious for a long time to come. "Unless we can say we have 10 million players and are bigger than World of Warcraft, what's the point?" asked Heaton during the event.
The Road to Mordor: My 2014 wish list for LotRO
A lot of us Massively writers like to take the first column of the new year to lay out a wish list for our favorite MMOs. Of course, the other writers are total copycats because I've been doing this for years now and I think that they owe me royalties. Lord of the Rings Online faces a challenging year in 2014. We already know that it's going to be an expansion-free year with a different focus on development. In April, the game will be seven years old, which certainly puts it into middle-age in MMO years. And with some uncertainty over the future of the game's IP rights, some disgruntlement over the store and aging character models, and no word as to how populated or profitable LotRO is, it's made a few folks nervous. But it could be a tremendous year as well, full of possibilities for Turbine to make good choices. I'm still as in love with this game world as ever. I wouldn't be playing LotRO if I didn't find tremendous fun and value in it, and I have hope that 2014 will see the game get its second wind and strengthen as a whole. So without further ado, here is my wish list from last year to see what was fulfilled and what was denied, along with my 2014 wish list for features and changes that I'd like to see.
The Daily Grind: What's your favorite holiday event?
I don't typically do MMO holiday events, but last weekend I was roped into checking out Lord of the Rings Online's Winter-home shindig. Most of it was standard grind-for-reward-tokens stuff, but there was one bit set inside a theatre that was pretty memorable. Members from the audience were plucked at random to participate in a dev-scripted stage play, and depending upon how well you engaged the NPC audience with various character emotes, you could expect to be showered with either flower petals or rotten fruit courtesy of the player characters in the crowd. What about you, Massively readers? Do you do MMO holiday events, and if so, what's your favorite? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
LotRO players put on Winterstock 2014
A new player event is coming to Lord of the Rings Online this month: Winterstock! To fit the season, Winterstock will take place at the frigid (yet welcoming) Thorin's Gate on the Landroval server from January 17th through the 20th. The four-day event will showcase 19 bands playing in one-hour blocks during the afternoons and evenings for entertainment and amusement. Winterstock could be seen as the counterpart to summer's Weatherstock, which has been going on for years now. The event is hosted by the Lonely Mountain Band and is available to all. A full schedule of the band times is up on the LOTRO Players site.
Some Assembly Required: Virtual world roundup for 2014 and beyond
Just over two years ago there was a great disturbance, as if millions (or so) of voices suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced. Yes, something terrible had happened: a beloved virtual world was destroyed. And that left a number of sandbox refugees looking for a new place to call home. At that time, Some Assembly Required offered a roundup of the then available virtual worlds that could possibly offer accommodation, depending on what qualities players most desired in their games. But as things are wont to, they changed; a lot can happen in the MMOverse in 24 months, from additional features in existing games to new games to the loss of more worlds. So it's time to update this list of virtual worlds to reflect 2014 and beyond. Take a look and see what titles or titles-to-be have the sandbox features that best make a game a home for you.
