Post by Morreion on Aug 27, 2010 9:02:52 GMT -5
The Road to Mordor: Kicking back with Ales & Tales (Massively)
As a server, Landroval is absolutely ripe with player-run RP events. It's really one of the shining jewels of LotRO, and testament to how RP-friendly and encouraging Turbine created this MMO to be. There are player-run trivia contests, concerts, parades and celebrations all the time. But over all of these looms Ales & Tales, a gathering of RPers that changes locations weekly. Created by Harperella of the Lonely Mountain Band (an RP kinship), Ales & Tales feeds the RP spirit of the community by putting on an evening of song, poems and stories.
The Road to Mordor: Putting the "lass" back in "class" (Massively)
Conclusion
While we still are in beta and everything is subject to change™, most of the classes are due for nominal upgrades, with captains and hunters getting the bulk of the love this round. All classes may rejoice that new armor sets will be available from the scalable instances, so at least there's something for everyone in this patch.
While we still are in beta and everything is subject to change™, most of the classes are due for nominal upgrades, with captains and hunters getting the bulk of the love this round. All classes may rejoice that new armor sets will be available from the scalable instances, so at least there's something for everyone in this patch.
Developer Diary: Wardrobe System (LOTRO official site)
Using the Wardrobe
A major difference between the wardrobe and other types of storage is that an item moved into the wardrobe is copied; the original item will remain wherever it originated. The wardrobe will copy key information, such as the item’s name, appearance, description, and color, leaving the original untouched. What you decide to do with the original item is up to you and has no impact on its doppelganger in the wardrobe. You may decide to delete or sell the original to free up storage space elsewhere, or if the item is not bound to you, you can give it away to a friend. In a lot of ways this functionality is similar to how the outfit system works. You are never really moving clothing to an outfit slot but rather the outfit system copies the appearance to that slot.
Unlike real-world closets, this wardrobe can only store clothing and initially is limited to 20 items. Additional space can be purchased in the LOTRO Store in increments of 10, up to a total of 50.
A major difference between the wardrobe and other types of storage is that an item moved into the wardrobe is copied; the original item will remain wherever it originated. The wardrobe will copy key information, such as the item’s name, appearance, description, and color, leaving the original untouched. What you decide to do with the original item is up to you and has no impact on its doppelganger in the wardrobe. You may decide to delete or sell the original to free up storage space elsewhere, or if the item is not bound to you, you can give it away to a friend. In a lot of ways this functionality is similar to how the outfit system works. You are never really moving clothing to an outfit slot but rather the outfit system copies the appearance to that slot.
Unlike real-world closets, this wardrobe can only store clothing and initially is limited to 20 items. Additional space can be purchased in the LOTRO Store in increments of 10, up to a total of 50.
Massively's Community Detective, Issue #6: Lord of the Rings Online (Massively)
Landroval's community is basically all that it's been made out to be -- it's large, friendly, and generally quite helpful to newer players. As beta and launch-day veterans with a couple years of play under our belts, we expected this to be the case, but it's nonetheless refreshing returning to LotRO's player community after a prolonged absence due to stints in other games. There always seems to be someone online (as evidenced by the GLFF channel reporting between 200 and 300 players even during the dead weekday periods), and the majority of those folks are ready and willing to answer questions and speed a newb on his way.
There does seem to be some friction between those opposed to the upcoming F2P conversion and those who either don't mind or don't care, as more than one of our polling sessions led to some verbal sparring over the issues at hand. True to form though, Landroval's players were exceedingly polite even in disagreement, with personal attacks and adult language kept to a bare minimum. We've seen a lot of servers and a lot of communities over the years, and Landroval definitely belongs in the top two or three in terms of an inviting atmosphere and a high level of maturity across the board.
There does seem to be some friction between those opposed to the upcoming F2P conversion and those who either don't mind or don't care, as more than one of our polling sessions led to some verbal sparring over the issues at hand. True to form though, Landroval's players were exceedingly polite even in disagreement, with personal attacks and adult language kept to a bare minimum. We've seen a lot of servers and a lot of communities over the years, and Landroval definitely belongs in the top two or three in terms of an inviting atmosphere and a high level of maturity across the board.
Lord of the Rings Online F2P launch date announced (Massively)
"This fall" has been the only answer for a while, as developers said they wanted to make sure the game was completely ready before committing to a date. They seem to be pretty certain now, as the announcement of a September 10th launch date came from Turbine early this morning.
The Road to Mordor: Gated communities (Massively)
From what I've read about EQII this week, some players are satisfied that their subscription service won't be sullied by freebies littering their landscape -- but there's also a vocal group that is genuinely worried that any and all new players will immediately head to the free servers instead of ever setting foot on the subscription ones. The worriers wonder if this will cause the old game to dry up in terms of numbers, like a river's flow being diverted to other regions.
Of course, I'll bet you that there are those in LotRO who wish Turbine would take this route and keep free players in an isolated ghetto, preserving the integrity of their experience without shivering with distaste when a free player asks a question in the advice channel.
I'm strongly for an open community, not a gated one, because I feel that it offers the best future for the game, period. I think it's a huge mistake to get into an "us vs. them" mindset, especially when you fall into the fallacy of labeling any free players as stereotypes. Gamers are gamers, each with their positive and negative sides, and must be treated on a case-by-case basis instead of lumping them together as a faceless mob. I'd rather be associated with a community that welcomes, helps and teaches others instead of a community that is known for its selfishness, elitism and hostility.
Of course, I'll bet you that there are those in LotRO who wish Turbine would take this route and keep free players in an isolated ghetto, preserving the integrity of their experience without shivering with distaste when a free player asks a question in the advice channel.
I'm strongly for an open community, not a gated one, because I feel that it offers the best future for the game, period. I think it's a huge mistake to get into an "us vs. them" mindset, especially when you fall into the fallacy of labeling any free players as stereotypes. Gamers are gamers, each with their positive and negative sides, and must be treated on a case-by-case basis instead of lumping them together as a faceless mob. I'd rather be associated with a community that welcomes, helps and teaches others instead of a community that is known for its selfishness, elitism and hostility.
The Road to Mordor: Rep pony riots (Massively)
...The rep grind in LotRO is notoriously unfriendly, which has kept the rarity of these mounts pretty high, and tells you a lot about the accomplishments of a player whom you pass on the road riding one. Once these ponies go up on the store with no in-game requirements attached, those accomplishments are rendered null, and the perceived uniqueness of the mount due to its rare status is gone for good.
Now, I don't have problems with the concept of selling mounts on the store, but as many howling players attest, reputation horses really do mean something to a lot of folks because of how they are currently attained. If Turbine goes ahead with the sale of these mounts, then there's even less of an incentive to increase your reputation than before, and a wedge will be driven between some players and the company. I don't think that's worth it, especially when the whole situation could be resolved by simply creating a few new skins.
Now, I don't have problems with the concept of selling mounts on the store, but as many howling players attest, reputation horses really do mean something to a lot of folks because of how they are currently attained. If Turbine goes ahead with the sale of these mounts, then there's even less of an incentive to increase your reputation than before, and a wedge will be driven between some players and the company. I don't think that's worth it, especially when the whole situation could be resolved by simply creating a few new skins.
LotRO’s Cash Shop affects gameplay directly and indirectly (Keen & Graev's Gaming Blog)
To all the trolls who flamed me when I said that the LotRO Cash Shop would affect gameplay both directly and indirectly, what are your thoughts now that all this information is being released? I could pick through the comments and start naming people but why don’t you go ahead and read the comments yourself and see who you think was right. If you want to skip reading all 154 of them I’ll give you a quick synopsis: I was right. I waited a while before being smug because I wanted to see how it played out. Now is a good time to comment.
...Instantly buy what was once hard-earned? Check.
Players buy power for their characters that give an edge over those that don’t? Check.
Affect the game directly and/or indirectly? Check.
...My position remains unchanged on Free to Play. It’s bad for games. Free to Play brings with it certain elements which alter the way games are played/maintained/designed in order to accommodate its model. In a subscription game the developer’s interests and the player’s interests are much more aligned. In a F2P game the developer’s interests and players interests diverge.
...Instantly buy what was once hard-earned? Check.
Players buy power for their characters that give an edge over those that don’t? Check.
Affect the game directly and/or indirectly? Check.
...My position remains unchanged on Free to Play. It’s bad for games. Free to Play brings with it certain elements which alter the way games are played/maintained/designed in order to accommodate its model. In a subscription game the developer’s interests and the player’s interests are much more aligned. In a F2P game the developer’s interests and players interests diverge.
I'm getting more worried about LOTRO's cash shop model the more that I read about it.
