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First of all, I've been playing MMORPGs for 5 years now. Not a lot, but considering I'm only 18, I've been through a few. I'm definately not a "power gamer" - I have much more important things I should be doing. I've never really made it to the "end" of an MMORPG since I either get burned out or just plain bored. My closest was WoW where I left with a 56 Paladin. I've played games like FFXI, EQ I + II, Vanguard and WoW, along with some other small MMORPGs probably no one has heard of.
LOTRO interested me, and after playing the Beta I was very happy with what I saw. I love to group with people and find friends, although I want to be able to jump in and jump out while still accomplishing something.
On this board, and many others, I see constant complaints of "omg there's no endgame!!!" and "I have no desire to log in ever again", however the game remains the top rated on this website along with the very successful EQ II, and on many other websites as well.
So, my question: Is this game good and worth playing? I didn't get far enough into the Beta to judge for myself, so I need retail player's opinions. Like I said I'm not a power-leveler, but I do like to solo and adventure with groups. And, like I also said, I've so far never made it to the "endgame", although I logged more than 1000 hours in WoW. I also know this is the first months of release, so things SHOULD only be getting better... hopefully.
Sorry for the long post, but anyone who answers I'd greatly appreciate it .
Comments
If you enjoyed the beta and combine with that the fact that you don't seem inclined to rush to the highest level then you will enjoy the game now its released.
It looks to me like the game should fit right in with your playing style. Alot of the complaints you see are from the power-gamers who rush to max level and feel like they've run out of stuff to do. If you are familiar with LoTR at all, you should know that what has been released is just the beginning. There are many more lands and adventures to come. I think, based on what you have said, that you will enjoy the game very much.
I agree this game has a little something for everyone, truth be told my first MMO was WoW and like you I can close but then the BC killed it for me. So now I just run around and do my thing in this game.
Just a quick, random question: In some games it's hard to find groups, either because people would rather solo or because a particular class can never be found. 1) Isn't there a LFG channel/toggle that helps with grouping?/Is it easy to find groups? 2) Is there any class that seems to be played a lot less than the others?
LotRO is a perfect MMORPG for the casual gamer. If you are this type of player, it will not disappoint. On the other hand, if you play for hours at a time and your primary goal is to get to the maximum level in as little time as possible, you may not enjoy it as much.
The graphics are amazing and immersive. The story, well, that speaks for itself. Sound is fantastic. I find the quests are the best compared to the other MMORPGs I have played in the past, especially the conclusion of the "book" quests. For the first time, I find myself taking my time to enjoy the environment rather than chugging through to get to the next level. I'm reading the quest text rather than simply clicking the Accept button.
Although this game is in it's infancy, the ten or so zones that exist are quite large. And more zones and content will be added on a consistant basis. At this time, only about 10% of Middle Earth exists in the game. Expect the world to be freegin huge upon completion (5 or more years from now).
Personally, I love this game.
1) Isn't there a LFG channel/toggle that helps with grouping?/Is it easy to find groups?
There is an LFG channel. It's not global, though (there are no global chat channels). There is also an excellent global LFG tool full of bells & whistles that people seem to hardly ever use. They'd rather run around spamming /ooc and/or /lff channels, sadly.
2) Is there any class that seems to be played a lot less than the others?
Loremasters, I'd say. Poor dears need some dev attention and devotion. This might also help: the most populous classes are Champions and Hunters, by a vast amount, on every server. I've read a few unofficial high-level class counts on various servers (mind you, the way /anon works in LotR is you don't show up on /who searches, at all, so /anon people will be left out of these) that tend to come out with Guardians and Minstrels next after the big two, then Burglars and Captains, then the Loremasters. Again, this is just based on general /who census checks in the 40-50 range, only.
I hope that helps. With your playstyle, I think you might really enjoy the game. Power-levelers (& nothing wrong with being one, at all) just tend to burn through the current content too fast, leaving them with nothing to do but Deed hunting and PvM at the moment. While I have loads of free time to play in, I'm not much of a power-leveler, so I'm still enjoying the content (and I'm a Deeds junkie) and looking forward to the regular updates.
Have fun.
I was a Minstrel during the Beta and think I had fun with that (lol, can't really remember). I like playing a class that is among the minority simply for a slightly easier chance of getting a group. Either Minstrel or Burglar would be my choice if I got the game. However, in all the reviews I read they say all classes are surprisingly well-balanced. What's wrong with the Loremasters?
LOTRO was designed from the beginning to be a casual MMORPG which sounds like is what you're after. It's quest-oriented PvE so it's easy to login, get a group (if necessary) do a quest or few, then logout and enjoy Real Life.
I find I can get groups pretty easily in the LFF channel. I wish they'd put in a refined version of DDO's LFG tool so I could just choose a quest or few from my questlog and auto-import it to the LFG tool for everyone to see and join that way. LFG channels as a whole seems a step backwards, though you can use the /lff <message> command to flag yourself if anyone happens to use the WHO window to search for LFF-flagged players. Still not as handy as a true LFG tool though.
It's true the game launched with little to no traditional "end-game" content, though they added the first raid, Helegrod, a few weeks ago with more to come, as well as a huge update to the PvMP system.
If you're casual and take your time enjoying the game rather than rushing to the "end" then twiddling your thumbs (seriously, it's a *brand new* game, how much raid, etc. content did you powergamers honestly expect? especially when they said all along it was a casual game) then you'll likely enjoy LOTRO. They're adding new content every couple months, and even making small changes such as completely changing the paths in Old Forest recently (apparently the books say Old Forest is always changing, never the same place twice, etc. so Turbine is altering the paths every so often) and aside from no mob vs. mob activity like wolves attacking 'critters' for lunch, LOTRO does a good job of making Middle Earth seem like a real world you're visiting.
Champions and Hunters are, by far, the most-played classes. Which is why I don't have either yet. As with most games, tanks and healers (Guardians and Minstrels) are always in high demand. So far I only have a Captain and a Loremaster, both of which are a blast but the Loremaster is the squishiest of any squishy class I've played in any game to date. Turbine has said they already have some tweaks for the class coming soon so that will help. I despised playing a paladin in WoW, and a Captain is very paladin-esque but for some reason it "clicks" with me in LOTRO so I'm really enjoying it. I'll roll a Guardian someday but I was a raid tank in WoW so I'm enjoying being a support class for a change, the tank lifestyle can get to you sometimes.
I agree with the others, I think LotRO would be a good fit for you......
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Just trying to live long enough to play a new, released MMORPG, playing New Worlds atm
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"This is the most intelligent, well qualified and articulate response to a post I have ever seen on these forums. It's a shame most people here won't have the attention span to read past the second line." - Anon
Hmm... it seems like it would work for me. I noticed on other boards that, aside from the powerlevelers who are complaining, the game is plain fun to play. I want an MMORPG that I can play as much or as little as I want, and one that has a good community. The reason I left WoW (well, one of the reasons) was because of the annoying community, at least on my server. Are the complainers on this board a large number in game, or is the community generally mature/not annoying/etc? I know it will vary server to server, but as a general consensus, how is it?
I don't see people in the game complaining. Those that don't like it, left and troll the forums. There are no free trials, and the buddy keys were used up some time ago, so the community as a whole seems helpful and mature.
Its a game that doesn't need to be rushed. I like the fact that I bought the life-time subscription, so I feel no pressure to play endless hours to get my monies worth each month.
"Don't corpse-camp that idea. Its never gonna rez"
Bladezz (The Guild)
Make a minstrel and you will never lack for a group They play more like a battle mage though. When in groups your short term buffs even do damage to the mob. Spam the buffs and you really will not have to do much healing. I can solo a pair of yellows or a orange easily, the only time I have problem is when I get 4 blues on me .I was a Minstrel during the Beta and think I had fun with that (lol, can't really remember). I like playing a class that is among the minority simply for a slightly easier chance of getting a group. Either Minstrel or Burglar would be my choice if I got the game. However, in all the reviews I read they say all classes are surprisingly well-balanced. What's wrong with the Loremasters?
Nothing is wrong with loremaster really. They are not the old school fire wizard and take a bit of finesse to play, but a good one can solo a elite. It takes a bit of skill is all.
I miss DAoC
Don't waste your money on this game like i did. Its another grindfest/ horrible crafting system game. If you have played MMO's in the past than your going to hate this game, it brings nothing new to the table. Id suggest EQ2 over this game. I managed to get to lv 41 on lotro before i quit, its the same experience i had in other mmos like wow and eq but it falls short because the gameplay is horrible and the solo quest are a joke also grouping is more of a chore than entertaining.
The way i look at it is For every 2 people that actually enjoy this game their are 300 people that hate it.
If your new to the mmo genre than sure go ahead and buy it, because you probaly woudn't know better any way. But for a experienced mmo player like yourself your not going to enjoy this at all.
I suggest eq2 because both games are fairly similiar, but eq2 blows lotro out of the water. Well a lot of mmo's blow this game out of the water. The graphics are the only thing nice about this game, but thats not gonna hold your attention for long. If a game sucks it sucks the end. i love lotr, but game wise this is nothing more than a failed clone of other mmos, and surprisingly the game sucks. You would think if it cloned good aspects of other games that it might be good but no, its just a horrible game.
I'd guess it's closer to 300 people who enjoy the game for every 2 people who hate it. Considering there are hundreds of thousands of people playing the game compared to the number of hate posts on the boards...
I'd guess it's closer to 300 people who enjoy the game for every 2 people who hate it. Considering there are hundreds of thousands of people playing the game compared to the number of hate posts on the boards...
well thats probaly because the 300 people that do hate the game left and went onto other things, not all of them are going to be active on mmorpg.com, i happen to be here because i come on the site everyday. In the end im just trying to save this guy 50$ so he doesn't waste it on garbage.
However, after some more research today I have found a lot more people that are negative about it then I recently thought. Class balance problems and "same old" MMORPG gameplay being the major complaints. Can someone tell me if those two complaints are really worth passing the game for? I knwo this is the LOTRO board and I will get mainly "LOTRO is awesome!" answers but I might as well try.
I can only echo what others have said... based on how you describe your playstyle you will fit into LOTR just fine. The game is quite emmersive through level 45. Its players like myself that blow through content to get to 50 quicker than the majority of the player base that are having issues with the game.
Level 15-45 the story lines and areas to quests in are amazing. Sure there are some typical fed ex or kill a 100 boar quests, but the majority of quests have something that relates to the story of the world in which you are playing in. Since the first content publish the forced grouping around level 35 has pretty much faded.
The problem area is around level 45. Eastern Angmar has an excessive number of group quests compared to solo. The area almost requires that a minstrel be present. The area has recently improved wtih respect to travelling through it, but many areas require a group to procede.
The end game instances (Carn Dum and Urugarth) require a considerable amount of time to even get to let alone compete. Not very casual friendly. Urugarth is a well balanced dungeon for casuals, whereas Carn Dum is quite a bit more challenging.
Would say over all the 45+ game just feels like a grind and isnt even close to being the same level of entertainment that the game provides getting there. I feel Turbine will turn around the end game. They have done a great job so far. Just needs to be smoothed out more and more stuff added. Would just ask that they allow resource tracking while mounted.
Triston Master Carbine/Master Swords (SWG Eclipse)
Triston 29 Warden (EQ2 Permafrost)
Weland 70 Hunter (WoW Hellscream)
Suidan 36 Cleric (Vanguard Flamehammer)
Suidan 50 Champion (LOTR Gladden)
Some of the negative comments are from viral marketers; people paid to shape opinions by acting as if they were jus' regular folks. Some sound scripted, and the better ones have vague complaints, that can't be answered and use reasons for disliking the game that aren't really reasons. Good example these days is "the game play is just like every other...." . This ignores the fact that people don't play mechanics, they play the game; the job of the mechanics is to be as transparent as possible. In the early days, there were complaints that made it completely clear that the posters had never been in the game; they got laughed out of the forums, so nowadays you see a lot more of the "gee, I just can't put my finger on it but..." posts. If another game is then gently suggested as a better choice, then I get really suspicious.
The LotRO community is quite mature, moreso than any other large, successful MMO that I've played.
A lot of energy went into supporting varying styles of play. If you're a powerleveler, you'll find as a result, that not all of the design effort went into supporting powerleveling, and there's content that you're not using. Some have then complained about lack of content; no, just lack of content that suited a limited playstyle.
I tend to discount some of the "Should I buy this game?" posts because any good PC game costs about $50, and you're lucky if it gives a full month of play. Buy LotRO, and you'll very likely get a good month out of it, and a good chance you'll want to play it longer...
With any MMO, you'll have a lot more fun if you join a good guild.
You will hear good and bad about the game, but its best if you find out for yourself. If they have a free trial make use of it and if they don't wait until they do.
all I have to say is 1000 hours of wow and never reached end game?
I think a lot depends on how much you have played MMO's in the past, and how casual you are. LOTRO was my 5th major MMO in 10 years, and it was just like seeing a rerun for the 6th time.