Will the expansion save Lotro?

Ragnaven · May 2007

It's a simple question, without a simple answer. Will the end lvl grinding and lack of reason to pvmp out weigh the influx of new things in the content pack that will go live in June. Lotro has a lot of fun in the low to mid levels, but the high levels turn into a cold, unyeilding grind, with more than one "solo" quest that cannot be soloed in the least. Top it off with the constant inability to do quest for valor tokens in ettenmoors and you have a real problem. Why can't you quest there you ask? well for starters most quests turn out a grand total of one or three valor tokens, of which you need ten to get a reward which is sub par by everyones standards. Top that all off with the fact that monster players, the majority of which never broke lvl eleven in normal play, can enter ettenmoors free of charge and instantly have a lvl fifty char that needs to kill you to get new skills, and you have a major problem. Along with a major run on sentence. But, all that aside, monster players don't have any bills to play like players. Constant play as a player in ettenmoors can cost you, 120s to enter, and upwards of 200s in repairs. What does this gain you? Renown, that the devs cleverly forgot to do anything with.

The next problem is the overall lack of many items, a lot of the looks of armour and weapons that are shown at character creation are not in the game. As a gamer I hate when a company shows me "in game" videos that are not what the real game looks like. When I found out there is a grand total of about ten looks to all the heavy armour in the game I wasn't happy. There are a few stand alone items look wise, but nothing that really makes itself worth keeping in the stats department.

Lastly, the final class quest rewards lack any value at all. As these legendary items are weaker than most of the unique quest items from the end of the game. In the end the lack of gear makes many players, myself included, feel like our hands are tied. Be it against the endless waves of monster players, or the increased respawn time of mobs at the front of a zone.

In a game with only fifty levels, why do you have to be 48 before you can do anything highlevel at all?

tiki · May 2007

LOTRO will be saved when ppl start going into the fricken pvp zones!

dbell1967 · May 2007

LOTRO is not in need of saving. Turbine tends to cater to the majority of the playerbase. The majority of that base is not at the level cap. As more player get there you will see more attention given to it

beauxaj · May 2007

I have to agree with Dbell. You talk about many people who are at endgame and find it lacking, when many can equal 15 people or 500 people depending on your definition of many. Whatever your definition of many is, multiply it by 1000 or 10000 and you have the number of people who AREN'T where you and the "many" like you are. That is who Turbine is aiming to please, because at the end of the day, you and your "many" will just burn through content, get bored and leave while the rest will be enjoying the ride.

Its simple, make a game for 1000 who will play for 3-4 months or 100000 who will play for a year or more. Seriously, I didn't even KNOW there were final class quests because i'm nowhere near that stage from taking it easy and leveling up 4 characters at a pace that allows their crafting to support each other. (Damned if i'll be an AH scrub)

Ninix · May 2007

well... there should come new armor sets out with the expansion... so that might help...new quests.. a city and so on.. but yes.. it would help alot if people started going in the the pvmp zones.. and it kinda sucks that a lvl 10 can get a lvl 50 monster and play with.. thats kinda dull... just my opinion.

Supernerd · May 2007

yes it will save the game!!11

I have been grinding alts for weeks with nothing 2 do.

ChaulsinNL · May 2007

Originally posted by Ninix

well... there should come new armor sets out with the expansion... so that might help...new quests.. a city and so on.. but yes.. it would help alot if people started going in the the pvmp zones.. and it kinda sucks that a lvl 10 can get a lvl 50 monster and play with.. thats kinda dull... just my opinion.

Those are just pretty much cannon fodder though. Now that my reaver hit rank 1 i already notice a big difference just questing. My hp went up to 4557, got a skill which reduces armor value by >1k (armor value for monters sucks .. monster armor bug -.-) and generally rip through npc's.

Jaryd · May 2007

Thats the problem with new games. Too simple to reach end game. Shows a lack of actual content and challenges.

Hitting end game for me means , close account, start a new game. Give me a game that has lots of content and challenges and things to do that keep me entertained and not grind bored. One that is designed so that the end game is going to be 6 months a year away for even the most harcore player.

Daring · May 2007

I'm thankful that the expansion is FREE! It sucks spending $44 on an expansion and being disapointed. And all their expansions will be free. so think about that?

Ruthgar · May 2007

People that rush to hit the level cap and then complain about lack of content will never be satisfied.

I've played since Beta 1 in Sept. I knew exactly what content was available at 50, and I've taken my time leveling. I'm just 34.

I've told my kinship to level alts and wait for the content patch before going past the mid 30s. On my server the freeps are ruling the Ettenmoors already. As more people hit 50 the freep to creep ratio will be even more out of balance.

I was hoping that they would have slowed down xp gain at retail, because it is too easy to level.

If you are bored, level an alt. You can always cancel. I know that even WoW only had 1 raid for a long time. LOTRO will constantly add new content every few month. If people had done any research they would have known the state of the game.

Daring · May 2007

Oh and by the way, LotRO does not need saving, it is doing really great in sales, and I heard it might win PC game of the year!

DeadEnd · May 2007

Turbine is not a company that makes games on which you need to worry about it. Turbine adds levels easily and they won't hesitate to, they will also add new quests and worlds. Just be patient, the time will come.

Jackdog · May 2007

#1 best seller over there for a couple of months now

www.ebgames.com/default.asp

every single review from the major game sites seem to love it. It will probably get several awards as game of the year.

www.lotro.com/article/276

So whats needs "saving " ?

fiontar · May 2007

It's pretty hard to design a game that power levelers can't rush through fairly quickly, while still being fun for everyone else. I was a power leveler in WoW, usually in the top 5% of the leveling curve and was actually the third person on my server to hit 70 when Burning Crusade came out. The fun thing about LotRO for me is that I still play alot, but I'm not obsessed over leveling. I get a lot of enjoyment out of the game when I do play, but the highest level of my three alts in level 23 atm.

The regular monthly expansions will continue to add loads of content to a game that already has a lot of it. I don't really get people complaining about lack of content when they deliberately chart a course meant to blow past that content at the fastest speed possible.

Sramota · May 2007

As far as I can see,
LOTRO is a game with strong lowbie and weak highend...
So I doubt it will be many awards when the reviewers start going at the higher levels.

Hopefully the pack will bring in the much needed content, but until then, well, they'll be happy that people bought the "lifetime subscription"...

Keogh · May 2007

Originally posted by Daring

Oh and by the way, LotRO does not need saving, it is doing really great in sales, and I heard it might win PC game of the year!

Agreed.

LOTRO doesn't need saving. Those of you at 50 and bored, should have paid more attention to posts from BETA players. LOTRO is NOT for power leveling (get to end-game as fast as you can) players.

I also noticed that the original poster created an account just to post this trolling thread.

Bored with LOTRO? Leave, bye, don't let the door hit you on the way out. Just look at any game sales chart, LOTRO is in no trouble what so ever and one of the longest thread in this forum is all the people begging for buddy keys.

Save LOTRO.... lol

wykkid79 · May 2007

Originally posted by Ragnaven

It's a simple question, without a simple answer. Will the end lvl grinding and lack of reason to pvmp out weigh the influx of new things in the content pack that will go live in June. Lotro has a lot of fun in the low to mid levels, but the high levels turn into a cold, unyeilding grind, with more than one "solo" quest that cannot be soloed in the least. Top it off with the constant inability to do quest for valor tokens in ettenmoors and you have a real problem. Why can't you quest there you ask? well for starters most quests turn out a grand total of one or three valor tokens, of which you need ten to get a reward which is sub par by everyones standards. Top that all off with the fact that monster players, the majority of which never broke lvl eleven in normal play, can enter ettenmoors free of charge and instantly have a lvl fifty char that needs to kill you to get new skills, and you have a major problem. Along with a major run on sentence. But, all that aside, monster players don't have any bills to play like players. Constant play as a player in ettenmoors can cost you, 120s to enter, and upwards of 200s in repairs. What does this gain you? Renown, that the devs cleverly forgot to do anything with.
The next problem is the overall lack of many items, a lot of the looks of armour and weapons that are shown at character creation are not in the game. As a gamer I hate when a company shows me "in game" videos that are not what the real game looks like. When I found out there is a grand total of about ten looks to all the heavy armour in the game I wasn't happy. There are a few stand alone items look wise, but nothing that really makes itself worth keeping in the stats department.
Lastly, the final class quest rewards lack any value at all. As these legendary items are weaker than most of the unique quest items from the end of the game. In the end the lack of gear makes many players, myself included, feel like our hands are tied. Be it against the endless waves of monster players, or the increased respawn time of mobs at the front of a zone.
In a game with only fifty levels, why do you have to be 48 before you can do anything highlevel at all?

The update in June offers a lot. Not only revamped 30-40, giving a reason to reroll if you've pass it already, but shorter end-game instances. Carn Dum is awesome but extremely long. They are seriously upgrading rewards on the Freep side for MP I believe. You'll be able to see next week on Rohyran (or whatever the name is) when the preview server opens.

I wouldn't worry too much in all honesty. Updates of this scale are slated every 1.5 - 2 months. There should be plenty to do with Helegrod, the Evendim instances, upgraded and populated Ettenmoors, etc. Oh, and remember... A new zone = new deeds = upgrades to virtues. Every new zone will offer some virtue upgrades for your character, in addition to gear upgrades and the like. Plus, we have class armor sets in Evendim. If that doesn't sound like enough then I don't know what you're expecting. It's substantially larger than any free update on this time-table in any MMO. Think about it, they'll have more free updates than COH in under 1.5 years. And a full-blown expansion by then too.

Hairysun · May 2007

The question here is will the expansion save you (The OP) not LotRO. There is nothing in my game that is in need of saving. I'm having a great time and the expansion is "icing on the cake" so to speak. Granted, we apparently differ with our play styles. I just can't help but feel sorry for the power levelers that IMO miss the game in their drive to the top.

Masta22 · May 2007

Just thought id point this out but think everdim was planned for launch because the area is labelled in the instruction manual. Must of been delayed. The thing im looking forward to the most is the drum kit and the champion armor sets. Does anyone know if they are adding music recording to the patch so you can auto play songs. Anyone know when in june the patch is?

CognetoJoe · May 2007

the game is far from needed saving.

Grindalyx · May 2007

Originally posted by Jaryd

Thats the problem with new games. Too simple to reach end game. Shows a lack of actual content and challenges.

Hitting end game for me means , close account, start a new game. Give me a game that has lots of content and challenges and things to do that keep me entertained and not grind bored. One that is designed so that the end game is going to be 6 months a year away for even the most harcore player.

HMMMM a game were lvl cap is 6 months away for a hardcore player. Would be a game in developement for 10+ years cost 5 times more than even wow did. You can't put enough content in a game to keep a hardcore player busy for 6 months. Thew will burn thru it to quick. In my opinion turbine is dong it right by paying attention to the casual players or the non hardcore players if you like that term better. They will be the one playing for the long hall. You said it yourself hitting lvl cap meens closing your acount and moving on. This is the way most hardcore players play the games in my exp. You can't make a game and cater to only the hardcore. If they did what your asking then lvl cap would be anywere from a year and a half to 2 years away for casual gamers.

CognetoJoe · May 2007

If you went into LotRO thinking it was to be a hardcore game, then you simply didn't read up on the title, AT ALL. It has been marked several times that it is a game for casual players , players who have the attention span to read the quests as well as do a little roll playing. There is over a years worth of content for me to play through and with the added update coming , that will will just add to the content list and give me even more to play through.

If you log in everyday for 3 hours or more, you need to take a break , and get more activities in your life, like riding a bike, hiking, going out with friends. This game is the perfect balance if you really want to live your life, and play a game at the same time .

Also, if you say you reached the end game , level 50. Please post your characters screen shot , no screen shots, then you are simply talking out your bunghole.

DeaconX · May 2007

Originally posted by CognetoJoe

If you went into LotRO thinking it was to be a hardcore game, then you simply didn't read up on the title, AT ALL. It has been marked several times that it is a game for casual players , players who have the attention span to read the quests as well as do a little roll playing. There is over a years worth of content for me to play through and with the added update coming , that will will just add to the content list and give me even more to play through.

If you log in everyday for 3 hours or more, you need to take a break , and get more activities in your life, like riding a bike, hiking, going out with friends. This game is the perfect balance if you really want to live your life, and play a game at the same time .

Also, if you say you reached the end game , level 50. Please post your characters screen shot , no screen shots, then you are simply talking out your bunghole.

Agreed! I'm still only level 24 with my main character mostly due to the fact that I play whenever I'm not doing other things like goin out with friends and all that jazz... then when I do play it's often with friends and usually Role playing so everything takes longer of course but that's alright because we're having a blast... the game is quite right for the casual/role player. I really didn't realize LotrO needed 'saving' lol

Keogh · May 2007

Originally posted by Masta22

Just thought id point this out but think everdim was planned for launch because the area is labelled in the instruction manual. Must of been delayed. The thing im looking forward to the most is the drum kit and the champion armor sets. Does anyone know if they are adding music recording to the patch so you can auto play songs. Anyone know when in june the patch is?

That is the plan. Music will get a big update. You'll be able to download songs off the web, convert them to a score and convert them again to play in-game by hitting a key. You'll also be able to program music offline and import it to LOTRO and play it with the stroke of a single key.

WSIMike · May 2007

Originally posted by Grindalyx

Originally posted by Jaryd

Thats the problem with new games. Too simple to reach end game. Shows a lack of actual content and challenges.

Hitting end game for me means , close account, start a new game. Give me a game that has lots of content and challenges and things to do that keep me entertained and not grind bored. One that is designed so that the end game is going to be 6 months a year away for even the most harcore player.

HMMMM a game were lvl cap is 6 months away for a hardcore player. Would be a game in developement for 10+ years cost 5 times more than even wow did. You can't put enough content in a game to keep a hardcore player busy for 6 months. Thew will burn thru it to quick. In my opinion turbine is dong it right by paying attention to the casual players or the non hardcore players if you like that term better. They will be the one playing for the long hall. You said it yourself hitting lvl cap meens closing your acount and moving on. This is the way most hardcore players play the games in my exp. You can't make a game and cater to only the hardcore. If they did what your asking then lvl cap would be anywere from a year and a half to 2 years away for casual gamers.

Before players got the game figured out and started learning how to power-level to 75 in Final Fantasy XI, it could take the better part of a year to get there. And that game didn't take 10 years to develop. It's about the level of difficulty of the content, and how generous they are with XP. There's no such thing as rested xp in FFXI, nor discovery xp... Because, though it's a popular misconception, SE did not design FFXI to be all about leveling. Many players treat it as such (and will complain it's just a grindfest), but if you look at the design, look at the decisions they made and look at where they put the most emphasis, it's very obvious the game was not designed with power-levelers in mind.

How long it takes to reach level cap only seems vital to those who see it as the only worthwhile goal. I have said this for as long as I can remember, and it still holds true.. Too many players come to MMOs with a console game mentality. They're used to "winning" a console game within a couple weeks, then moving on to the next - or going back and mastering it to the point of being able to post speed-run videos of it. There's a definite widespread preoccupation with "faster is better" at work here.

MMOs are not set up like that. There is no way to "Win" the whole game, because, by their very nature, they're unending - the rate at which the game expands is limited only by the time it takes to create and implement new content (which takes alot of time).

Think about it... MMOs offter a variety of different activities... crafting, questing, exploring.. in LOTRO, you have a completely social-based music system... They are designed to be virtual worlds to exist in - not triathlons to race through. Yet, that's how so many people treat them - like a race to the finish line; I don't even think many players are doing it consciously because, well, that's just how they're accustom to playing a game. I think it's been proven, time and again, in several MMOs now, that getting to end-game within 2 weeks or so is not rewarding in the long-run.

The only way these people will be satisfied is to understand that MMOs require a different approach, and turn off the whole console "win the game" mindset. There is no defined finish line to cross. The trick is to take your time and experience all you can in the game. I would bet money that if that became a more common mindset, if people forced themselves to slow down and not focus so much on leveling, you wouldn't see *nearly* so many "There's not enough content!" posts by people who got to level cap 2 weeks after the game came out.

But, I know that won't happen.. We live in a culture (at least in some areas) with collective ADD; the so-called Fast-Food Mentality.

Tabby_Cat · May 2007

It is news to me that the game was even in trouble! I doubt seriously that it is in any need of being in need of being saved.

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