Old Review: Lord of the Rings Online
It's the real deal, a true heavy weight in the current generation of MMORPGS, it joins the ranks of World of Warcraft, Everquest 2 and Guild Wars, arguably the top of the food chain in the current MMORPG subscriber wars.
I've played every mainstream MMORPG since the original launch of everquest (I did go back and play some Ultima Online also) and after 15+ years of playing video games I know when something feels right, and Lord of the Rings Online (LotRO) isnt perfect and wont rake in the uber millions of customers like World of Warcraft, but its damn good, Better than Guild Wars and tied with Everquest 2, in this reviewers humble learned (smarter than you, just kidding) opinion.
Graphics are lush, Sounds are magnificent, Gameplay is sound and yes mildly repetitive like all MMORPGS but it keeps you on your toes pretty much doing away with the Default Attack, Oh Default Attack is still there alright, but if you use only that against a monster of the same level as you, you will most likely die, horribly. While this may not bode well for bots (thank god) it does bode well for those who feel bored during combat, which I believe is the biggest problem an MMORPG faces.
Nerds er... Those intimate with the Tolkien work should feel right at home as its obvious people went to great lengths to make the game feel genuinely like the Real-imaginary world of Middle Earth.
From story telling movies, to instanced story missions or quests that you solo or group play through, you meet famous characters, and maybe even led a helping hand here and there. (Thats a joke, theres always a ton of quests to do.)
If you've played all the current gen MMORPGS and feel a little bored and want something new, or are just a fan of great games, I am happy to say its been years since I could more fully recommend a game to you... This is it, it is the Lord of the Rings, and its a real deal MMORPG, Turbine - I salute you.
