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Lord of the Rings Online: Lord of the Rings Online: Going Free to Play
SBFord
Former Associate EditorMember LegendaryPosts: 33,129
Lord of the Rings Online is one of the more popular subscription-based MMOs on the 'Net today. Recently, however, Turbine announced that LOTRO will be moving to a free to play model beginning this fall. MMORPG.com's Garrett Fuller caught up with Turbine to talk about the changes and how they will change the game
Lord of the Rings Online will offer the epic storyline for free up to the Mines of Moria expansion. The in game shop expands from there and players will be able to buy content packs. Once you purchase a pack, every character on the account will have access. Turbine is also very serious that the Free to Play model is not a Pay to Win model. They sell no gear in the game shop and nothing that can disrupt the balance of the game.
Read the rest of Garrett's interview with Turbine.
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Comments
Hmm..same as - >> http://www.mmorpg.com/gamelist.cfm/game/45/view/news/page/1/read/17149/Lord-of-the-Rings-Online-Turbine-Announces-Free-to-Play.html
With Warner Brothers now on board it will be interesting to see what becomes of these games.
That is what makes me worry about LOTRO's future.
How the community will react no one can tell
Lines like that make it sound like the author hasn't exactly followed the discussions on this, don't they?
Way to ask the hard and probing questions there!
I think I can tell...Well at least with My little community I can...So far no one in My Guild has a problem with it whatsoever and at least 2 Guildies are going to come back and play when it goes F2P...
Introducing LOTRO to folks via F2P should work out to everyones benefit...If you want more people to play the game with that is...I know a year and a half ago I introduced LOTRO to 5 SWG Guildies and all of them liked the Game enough to Subscribe for at least a Year...Most are still Subbing and all 5 will be playing when it's F2P...It's a good game...People will try it out and like it...It's a bold move by Turbine, but the game is good enough to pull it off...
Allowing someone to pay money to progress faster than others, comes awfully close to selling an "I win" button.
Only if there's something to win. Since LotRO isn't a competition, there's nothing to win.
As to the first part of your comment; if we take out the 'to pay money' part, how is this different than someone running a macro to level overnight? Sounds like that would be an "I win" button in your mind too.
I know I plan on playing again when it goes F2p as I didn't find it worth a full months sub before. With that in mind I found the comments in the OP to mirror my thoughts.
SWG (pre-cu) - AoC (pre-f2p) - PotBS (pre-boarder) - DDO - LotRO (pre-f2p) - STO (pre-f2p) - GnH (beta tester) - SWTOR - Neverwinter
I tried the game again about a month ago. Going F2P is not going to make the classes fun to play.
Just can't get into it, I really tried because I love the graphics, community and, of course, the whole Lord of the Rings lore.
I know, like an above poster, that in the kinship I'm a part of, noone is planning on leaving over the f2p switch. In fact, several kinmates who had stopped logging in are now back - some on lifetime accounts who hadn't checked in in ages, others who re-subbed to see how the game is now.
On the other hand, there are many people, long time players, who have sworn they will un-sub when the game officially goes f2p. That is their choice and I understand their fears. There are many egregious trends in f2p MMOs, but I'm hopeful that Turbine will sidestep most of them and avoid "pay-to-win" store items. Since I'm on a lifetime account, I can simply watch as it unfolds.
Since it apparently slipped by, my point was that the community already HAS reacted. You could describe it as "mixed" or any number of other ways, but not "no one can tell".
Given a chance to actually ask Turbine folks some serious questions, say about the various position backflips they have done or some solid answers about where the game is going in terms of content rather than payment methods, the "reporter" decided to basically take a pass and settle for fluff questions that might as well have been a Turbine news tweet.
You don't have to be hostile or confrontational to ask serious questions about major issues that the player base has and any professional dev team should be happy to address them.
How many times does this topic need to be brought up? Yes, lotro will be going f2p. I'm pretty sure everyone on the planet knows this by now. We know about the item shop and the other changes. Give it a rest.
They probably announced it as a refresher since Turbine sent out A LOT of beta invites today.
I'm really looking forward to trying the game out again. I quit about a month after I bought the Mirkwood expansion. I really got tired of all the gear, rep, instance and legendary weapon grinds. I really loved this game Pre-Moria when top of line crafted stuff and player skill was good enough to get you into any raid.
i'm deffinitly going to try this when it goes F2P. i hear a lot of good things about it.
F2P LOTRO is nothing more than a glorified trial version.
Um you buy game content aka expansions you don't buy gear or anything like that. There is no such thing as a free game people need to understand this.
There is always something "to win" because it's a game. Games are about competition on various levels, it doesn't have to always be an obvious medal or ribbon awarded. Giving potions or whatever to decrease deed grinding time is the same as selling an I win button and granting an advantage over players who don'y buy the "potions". The deeds grant an increase to stats and better stats equals stronger character. Stronger character equals more group invites over weaker characters. Thus, they "win".
You could just pay the 10 a month for VIP and never have to care.
Add me a 3,4,5,6,7... 10 social clothing slot and I'll be glad to pay RMT for that
While you're at it also add free item placement in house and let us use instanced NPC building interiors as our home.
And add a decent looking for group feature too.
But before everything else change the travel UI to actually display you know a map with possible destinations, not obscure names that will mean nothing at all for casual F2P players
This is interesting.. will keep a eye on it for sure.
Ok, time to disect this bad boy...
First off, LOTRO is not truly going Free to Play. Free-to-play refers to any game that has an option of allowing its players to play without paying. With LOTRO, you're going to have to eventually pay sometime by either buying Turbine Points (which they would love for you to do), or by becoming a VIP which, if they follow the DDO model, will be raised back up to $14.99 a month when the F2P option goes live.
LOTRO works differently because it is a game based on an epic story line. There are not modules that you could sell because players want to experience the story.
No, but instead of selling modules, they sell quest lines. Pretty much the same difference.
Lord of the Rings Online will offer the epic storyline for free up to the Mines of Moria expansion.
Sure, if you're really into grinding. Turbine Points are given out sparingly in-game, so...you're going to have to buy them in order to advance. And, this also proves that it's not truly F2P because...look, you have to buy Moria!
Turbine is also very serious that the Free to Play model is not a Pay to Win model. They sell no gear in the game shop and nothing that can disrupt the balance of the game.
Right. That's why the Producer, Kate Paiz, has already mentioned that they are probably going to have gear for lower level characters to help them out. Also, there are already items in the store that change the balance of the game.
They also do not want the new model to disrupt the community they have already built.
It already has. Been to the LOTRO forums lately?
Two of the areas in the game store that Turbine feels will be popular are the Deed Excelerator and the Rank increases.
A deed accelerator (might want to learn how to spell) I can see, but being able to buy your Virtues? Nah...that's not going to change the balance of the game, you'll just see level 10 characters running around with all of their Virtues at 2 or 3 already without having to do anything. They'll be invincible at that level.
It is almost as if instead of paying for Power Leveling, you are paying the game company to allow you to achieve things faster.
So, items that you can buy in the store that give you PERMANENT boosts to morale, power, vitality, will, fate, etc. allows you to achieve things faster? Well, yeah, I guess they do, but then there's that whole balance thing again.
Also Turbine made it clear that there is only one price for ranks.
Really? Looked like there were more than one to me.
LOTRO now looks to make the leap this fall; the question is will it have the success that DDO had.
Are you making a statement or asking a question? Generally questions end with a question mark. But, to answer your statement, I believe that once a lot of players see what LOTRO has become, they will not like it at all.
With Warner Brothers now on board it will be interesting to see what becomes of these games.
Well, I'll put it to you this way, WBIE is only interested in its bottom line and keeping its shareholders happy. Look at what happened when Microsoft got involved with Asheron's Call.
Also if Turbine has any other games up its sleeve in the coming months.
Incomplete sentence, anyone? But, yes, they do, a console game. The annoucement should be coming out soon.
For now the game shop in LOTRO looks to be a good move for Turbine. How the community will react no one can tell, but being able to join the game and try it for free is never a bad thing.
More like Turbine probably realized it could make more money off of players if it nickled and dimed them. Even the VIP players. I wont be there.
I feel that LOTRO has lost touch with what it once was. I think it will now become a community of haves and have-nots, and those with more money will be the haves, and Turbine will love them for it.
Sure, you may not see end-game gear in the store, because they want you to buy your way TO it (there's actually more money in it for them that way anyway), but - mark my words - you WILL see the store eventually phase in to more and more items that give players an advantage. Why? Because they know they will sell.
They've already stated that because you can earn Turbine points in game that, transitively (as they put it), items that are ONLY available in the store are technically in-game, which tells you that they can put whatever they want in the store, no matter what it is, even if it DOES give someone an advantage.
This is exactly where Turbine went wrong with this game in my opinion. All the grinds and gates (compared to Pre-Moria) that are in place now make me glad I waited to see before purchasing any of the expansions.
In Shadows of Angmar, once you had hit level 50 (then the highest level) you were efficiently participating in all end game content immediately if you had bought your end game critted crafted gear on level. Instead of grinding out unnecessary and time-wasting content, you were able to do whatever it was that was fun for you at the end game straight off the bat. Shame they didn't leave things that way and unfortunately I doubt f2p will bring it back.
" The other area is the ability to buy Rank Increases. "
Is this talking about PvP ranks?
"Oh my, how horrible, someone is criticizing a MMO. Oh yeah, that is what a forum is about, looking at both sides. You rather have to be critical of anything in this genre as of late because the track record of these major studios has just been appalling." -Ozmodan
Possibly the worst article in regards to F2P for LOTRO that Ive seen. Im guessing no-one was throwing wads of money in your general direction, ala most other "articles" you post, so this one really didnt get any investigation time.
With the amount of poor (re shitty) info you provided, I doubt you talked to Turbine at all, and merely skimmed other pages to cobble together what youve got here now.
More than a month after the actual announcement was made.
Jesus, do some fucking homework Fuller.
PAST: UO-SWG-DAOC-WOW-DDO-VG-AOC-WAR-FE-DFO-LOTRO-RIFT-GW2
PRESENT: Nothing
FUTURE: ESO
F2P is a big LIE.
It is MICROTRANSACTION!!!!