In preparation for Mines of Moria, Community Manager Meghan “Patience” Rodberg just announced Turbine will be hosting a “welcome back!” weekend on October 2-6. The event offers former LOTRO players the opportunity to play those four days free, and also includes +25% xp bonus for everyone (not just the returning players).
Tags: LOTROMake sure you’re ready to take advantage of everything that Mines of Moria™ has to offer by participating in a Welcome Back Weekend which includes bonus experience for all!
From October 2-6, 2008, we’re offering free LOTRO access to our former players, and +25% bonus experience gain for everyone who logs in and plays. Returning players are invited to patch up, jump in, and start playing on their old characters to get them ready for Moria!
Prepare your characters for the wonder and dread of Moria by taking advantage of these bonus XP days! Tell your friends to log in and play, level your mains and alts, and get ready to Conquer the World Beneath™!
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Hmm… might have to log in my old Champion over the weekend if I’ve got the time. He’s 39 if I remember right, on… crap can’t remember what server. Either way, it’s hard to not take advantage of a free 25% bonus weekend. I know I’ll get Moria one day, because the Tolkien fan in me demands it, I just don’t know when.
Hmmm….
Will I be disappointed still?
I have hopes Moria will be worth a darn (but I still cannot get over the Pink “Brain” Creature screenshot with the Soulcaliber pose I posted on my blog..)
But, I have a character at level 40. It could be a chance to finally max out.
/debating
I’m sure you’ll agree with me however, when I say I’ll gladly take a Pink Brain Creature over a Pink Mine-Boar… or bear… or wolf…
“Brain Creature over a Pink Mine-Boar… or bear… or wolf…”
That was one of the things I hated most, if not the most, about LoTRO. I can totally dig sticking to the lore, but man did that make the game boring at points. Not enough “flair”. Glad they’re livening it up, even if does mean bastardizing the T-man’s work a bit.
I totally understand why the Eriador game is a bit… lacking? in excitement, especially from all of us so used to the much higher-fantasy worlds where all kinds of creatures and races abound and flashy magic spells and huge glowing weapons are the norm. When I first started LOTRO, it was jarring and I had to use Vanguard or Guild Wars to balance things out.
But from an artistic and creative perspective, I also totally respect that risky design decision of building the game world chronologically, even though it cost them players who wanted the excitement and variety of Azeroth, Norrath, etc. Hopefully as the game’s chronology gets beyond the Misty Mountains, we’ll be seeing more of what we expect from other MMOs.
As a counter-point, LOTRO is not the only offender. I can remember sighing in annoyance at yet another zone in Azeroth populated with Murlocs, spiders, bears, etc. If I was bored enough, I’d compile a zone-by-zone comparison of each game’s fauna to see how they truly compare. I suspect they’re not as far apart as some think.
Agree about the “sameness” of these games.
Guild Wars mixed it up some and so did EQ2…
As a matter of fact, EQ2 has a HUGE variety of stuff, yet this is where the disconnect for players comes in.
Too much variety equals not enough continuity.
But, as to your comment on the “risky design decision”, this is where the picture of the “Pinky Brain” (haha…pun intended) really kills me.
It detracts from this cohesive realistic world they built.
I think the Graphic Designers are just stuck and do not know how to recreate the awesome pics from LOTR’s past.
I have a ton of art books from the various artists who have illustrated for LOTR novels..and there are so many designs that the game just does not coincide with.
If this was Turbines inspiration, then “Pinky” brain is far from that vision. They have really lost track, and are finally doing their own thing, and it is not cool!
Ah well, no need to run on about that picture. It is things like that pic though that really irks me about what Turbine did to such a beloved license.
I won’t speculate on Pinky Brain until I get there and see one. Tolkien didn’t describe a whole lot of Moria so Turbine gets to have a lot more free reign here. Other than orcs, trolls and a Balrog, we don’t know much of what’s down there. We’ve seen orcs and trolls in Eriador already and those lucky enough to do the Rift of Nurz Ghashu raid have fought a lesser balrog already. It would get boring if there were no variety of “cool” or “creative” monsters to fight other than those.
Pinky Brain reminds me of the Flood from Halo; I’m sure Turbine will have a good LOTRO-lore reason for Pinky Brains that will hopefully fit within the scope and vision of LOTR-lore.