Originally posted by Morthoron As far as JRR Tolkien's views, according to his letters he disliked technology, but even moreso he despised people trying to alter his stories in any way, shape or form. He made his son Christopher the sole executor of his work , because he was the only person Tolkien trusted enough to edit his material in a proper manner (Tolkien did much of his writing in long-hand and Christopher did the typing).
I think this here is kinda the only answer that needs to be given, Morthoron got it just right.
graphics-8/10 - I thought the world was rendered beautifully, character models, not so much, I felt my Guardian was wearing chest pieces that were one step above a trash can lid through most of his 30 levels.
sound-6/10 - meh...nothing special, I found myself turning it off to not interfere with voice chat (which was a nice touch)
gameplay-7/10 - typical quest based fantasy fare....deed grinding was boring, not enough monster types, horses at 35 is way too late (better than WOW, much worse than VG). Monster play just wasn't doing it for me....
community-8/10 - True, mature community, not many jerks, but game design means you only group to complete specific task, then disband..not much chance to get to really know folks
customer service-6/10 - they made me call them to cancel my account.... a big no-no....
LotRO was one of the best made games that I've ever quit early on (COV/GW's being the others) due to it not really catching my interest, and not really any major flaw of the game.
WHAT!?! That IS a game flaw. It's just not one of the easy-to-describe things like 'graphics' or 'sound'. The game doesn't catch way too many people's interest, and THAT is LOTRO's major flaw. The rest of the game is wonderful....it's just boring. And boring would be okay if they let us embrace it with community-building systems (housing, RP tools, etc).
His son seems to like and trust Turbine and I would think he would know and respect his father's work and wishes. A snippet from a recent interview www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php IT'S NICE, BUT IS IT TOLKIEN?
Steefel: We understand that Middle-earth is the fantasy destination, and it's got to be right. Tolkien Enterprises have been great though: they know we're making a game, and there has to be a magic-using class. People really want magic, and they want it to be fun. People want things that flash and explode, and lasers that fly through the air, and clearly nobody did that in Middle-earth.
But as long as you wrap it up right, and you make it clear he's doing these things through learning and wisdom and is understanding how to summon the natural energies in Middle-earth, then everyone's fine with it. They've come to really trust us, and that helps a lot. Especially with Angmar, which isn't described much in the books, and doesn't exist as a viable entity in the third age.
You are incorrect. Christopher Tolkien has nothing whatsoever to do with Tolkien Enterprises. Tolkien Enterprises is owned by Saul Zaentz Co., which bought the film rights to the Hobbit and LotR in the 1960's (which is why Turbine's game license is limited to The Hobbit, LotR and only parts of the LotR appendix). Christopher Tolkien is the chair of the Tolkien Family Trust, which owns the literary rights to The Hobbit and LotR (and all the rest of Tolkien's work). Given that Christopher Tolkien forbade his family to have anything to do with the movies, it is quite plain he would have the same attitude about the game. This is the reason you most likely will never see a Silmarillion movie or game (in this century anyway).
As far as JRR Tolkien's views, according to his letters he disliked technology, but even moreso he despised people trying to alter his stories in any way, shape or form. He made his son Christopher the sole executor of his work , because he was the only person Tolkien trusted enough to edit his material in a proper manner (Tolkien did much of his writing in long-hand and Christopher did the typing).
I agree, but middle earth junkies still need their fix.
Comments
I think this here is kinda the only answer that needs to be given, Morthoron got it just right.
WHAT!?! That IS a game flaw. It's just not one of the easy-to-describe things like 'graphics' or 'sound'. The game doesn't catch way too many people's interest, and THAT is LOTRO's major flaw. The rest of the game is wonderful....it's just boring. And boring would be okay if they let us embrace it with community-building systems (housing, RP tools, etc).
He would love purely because he helped make it. It is all his work because they mostly used the book to make it.
You are incorrect. Christopher Tolkien has nothing whatsoever to do with Tolkien Enterprises. Tolkien Enterprises is owned by Saul Zaentz Co., which bought the film rights to the Hobbit and LotR in the 1960's (which is why Turbine's game license is limited to The Hobbit, LotR and only parts of the LotR appendix). Christopher Tolkien is the chair of the Tolkien Family Trust, which owns the literary rights to The Hobbit and LotR (and all the rest of Tolkien's work). Given that Christopher Tolkien forbade his family to have anything to do with the movies, it is quite plain he would have the same attitude about the game. This is the reason you most likely will never see a Silmarillion movie or game (in this century anyway).
As far as JRR Tolkien's views, according to his letters he disliked technology, but even moreso he despised people trying to alter his stories in any way, shape or form. He made his son Christopher the sole executor of his work , because he was the only person Tolkien trusted enough to edit his material in a proper manner (Tolkien did much of his writing in long-hand and Christopher did the typing).
I agree, but middle earth junkies still need their fix.