My first impression

Iylmarion

Ok, I've been playing MMORPGs for 2 years now, and even though it's not a very long time, it is enough I believe, compared to what I have experienced, to form some kind of quick comprehension about games in general.

The titles I have played vary from Lineage 2 to WoW and Guild Wars, tried also Oblivion and Dark Age of Camelot. Each of these games has certain strong points, as well as certain deficiencies and weaknesses. The whole point of them all and of LotRo is focused, finally, in the question :"Do I have fun playing this game?". It's a simple question but if you ask people they have difficulty answering it. That could be explained by the fact that sometimes we do have fun, some others we don't, and sometimes we like it but we are frustrated by certain aspects/facts. So, in the end, it is a combinaton of those factors that actually make you feel nice about a game - or not .

To be completely honest, I was, shall we say, wary - maybe even prejudiced - when it came to LotRo. Being a fun of the book, I thought it could never live up to the story. Being a fun of MMORPGs (and being frequently disappointed withy them), I thought it would be just a game designed quickly and with no attention, just to draw fans of the book. Well, I think it is safe to say, I was mistaken. Lack of PvP was a major disadvantage for me (it still remains a disadvantage, they could have let people play Sauron's side like all the rest races and maybe add some balancing codes to deal with population inbalancies) as it is for many players - it is one of the things that critics of the game most often use to make a point. But, the game is so well designed, from what I 've seen so far, that it really makes a player immerse in the storyline and enjoy their time.

Graphics are very very beautiful, sound is subtle and follows the environment, the story and the facts, lag is almost non-existent, community is quite mature. The quests are interesting and build up and interconnect with the main story and that is, in my books, highly applauded and appreciated. Gameplay is easy to master and allows for actually enjoying the whole game environment.

It is not "The Perfect Game", there is still much room for improvement, but I got the feeling that the developers behind the game are on the right track. What they have achieved from the beginning, however, is quite a feat. I only started playing a while ago, but I think I'm here to stay.

 

Alan0n

I still feel LOTRO was made 5-10 years to early.  MMOs need to develop more to catch the feel of epic story like LOTR.   Great looking enviroment is one thing.  But the gameplay needs to support it and sadly it isn't atm. 

The orginal story is creating limitation to the game in some ways.  Just the orginal idea behind the hobbits is that they are not really hero material - still they end up as such.  I feel Turbine made bad mistake with the class selection.  Playing instruments in battles kinda says it all doesn't it?  Its not supporting the orginal story and should have been thought of more.   Some basics in MMOs were put into the game (like tanking) while others were skipped or not implemented correctly.

But ofc thats just my opinion.