I may get it in a few months, after a price drop. Right now:
- I don’t like the level cap boost.
- The Runekeeper has been handled poorly. Not only is it out of place in Tolkien, the developers have mocked the players for caring. Because they are free to do so when the people who care about lore purity already have lifetime accounts: you cannot take your monthly fee and leave, and you either buy the expansion or stay stuck and alone at 50. (At least the graphics on the Runekeeper have been turned down from “Sith Lord” to “gunslinger with no guns.”)
- My gaming rig is in the shop.
: Zubon
do you think WotLK would be a better option for the time being?
Considering #1, #3, and that I have no WoW account? Not for me. YMMV.
I totally agree with #1, especially with the way armor (gloom resist sets) and weapons (weapon xp for legendary weapons) makes it seems like more levels was unnecessary for design.
I am getting MoM though because I like the story-heavy gameplay of LOTRO and it is $30 which is pretty cheap for an expansion.
The problem with not packaging in the extra 10 levels with MoM is that you would end up with all the new content sitting at the high end, which wouldn’t add a great deal for people who already have level 50 characters.
It would be nice if they had included some lower level content with the release as well, but maybe that will come later.
Forgot #4
#4. Offers nothing new except for being stuck underground with the same ugly character models, UI and boring questing.
I’m terrified for the expansion, actually. LoTRO was a good enough game to be fun WITHOUT it, with non-standard character types that had replay value (just zones with low replay value, esp the lower ones, Old Forest Blues, anyone?).
The runemaster is really interesting. I’ve not seem them directly slam people, but it doesn’t quite fit the Tolkien mold. I’m afraid it will be too powerful.
Also not playing currently ,but that’s because I’m far far away from my gaming machine, working.
I think the level cap boost depends on if you are there or not. Since that’s one of the myriad reasons I didn’t get Lich King, my highest WoW character is in the mid-40’s. But for LoTRO it’s nice to get that XP increase again.
As far as Rune-Keeper’s go, I’m willing to give Turbine some leeway. I loved the books. I really enjoyed the movies. I wasn’t bothered by 99% of what was changed/cut to make the movies. I’m a firm believer that anytime an IP is transferred to a new medium that some compromises need to be made. Every format has it’s own pros and cons and just because something works in a book doesn’t mean it’ll work in a movie or a game.
So yeah, Rune-Keeper are pushing the magic part beyond what Tolkien’s original vision much more so than Loremasters did. But, I think they’ve managed to extend the lore without breaking it.
As far as the developers slamming people, I’ve not seend that, but I don’t frequent the forums often.