Turbine posted a huge article with details of the upcoming LOTRO expansion, Mines of Moria.
Remember in early June, Turbine announced they’d secured $40 million in financing, and one of the major investors was Time Warner, parent company of Warner Bros.? Mines of Moria appears to be the first fruits of that labor: Turbine will be self-publishing the expansion, but Warner Bros. is handling the distribution.
For players, the interesting part is that Mines of Moria will be distributed in digital format for existing LOTRO customers, or in-stores as two different boxes:
- The Lord of the Rings Online: Mines of Moria Complete Edition will include the original The Lord of the Rings Online™: Shadows of Angmar™ game (Volume I), all content updates released since launch, and The Lord of the Rings Online: Mines of Moria (Volume II). The Complete Edition will be available at retail stores nationwide and offers new players who wish to journey through the most complete and authentic recreation of Middle-earth the full, award-winning experience.
Very cool! Sounds like this will utterly replace the in-store boxes of Shadows of Angmar, rather than simply being an expansion box. Similar to how EQ2’s Echoes of Faydwer came as the full game and all prior content which I thought was a great decision.
- The Lord of the Rings Online: Mines of Moria Collector’s Edition will feature the content of the Complete Edition as well as compelling digital and physical items for collectors. Limited quantities of the Collector’s Edition will be available at retail outlets in a unique leather-bound book packaging and will include:
- 3 exclusive tokens that can be exchanged for the player’s choice of 8 different in-game items
- 22″ x 22″ premium quality cloth map of the Mines of Moria
- Special gold-plated ring complete with chain and pouch
- Mines of Moria poster
- The Lord of the Rings Online Art and Music Collection with the official Mines of Moria Soundtrack
- A full color Collector’s Edition Starter Guide
- The Lord of the Rings Online: Mines of Moria Digital Expansion is a digital upgrade that will allow existing subscribers to The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar to continue the ultimate interactive adventure into the vast, terrifying and unparalleled world beneath Middle-earth.
I am really a fan of digital distribution these days; the clutter from so many boxes gets to be ridiculous. However, I have the Collector’s Edition of Shadows of Angmar, so I’ll likely bite the bullet and do the same for Mines of Moria. It’s a shame companies don’t come to a compromise: charge me half the difference between the digital price and the CE price to gain the in-game items and choose one of the external perks (I’d choose the soundtrack for MoM) and just ship that item to me. That would be a win-win situation — Turbine gets extra income, and I get the important in-game CE items plus the only other perk of interest to me, all the while not having to find space for another video game box.
Tags: LOTRO, MMO Gaming
on 
on 
Entries (RSS)
great info, thanks Scott
If you could describe LOTRO as most similar to any one other MMO, which one would you pick?
I’m curious.
I sense a blatant attempt at baiting me to say “WoW” but I just can’t.
If I absolutely had to pick one and only one, I’d go with AC2. It’s “most like” a kinder, gentler, fleshed-out and modernized AC2.
It has aspects of WoW (much of WoW was taken directly from AC2, though, so there!) such as quest-givers with icons over their heads, and (over)using the same mob types. I also see the Deed system being similar to the Title system of Guild Wars only taken to the next step, just like WAR will be cranking it to eleven with its Tome of Knowledge. I could also relate it to Vanguard as both attempt to balance solo and group play throughout the entire leveling game. The player housing I see as a compromise between SWG and EQ2, a full public neighborhood but instanced from the world.