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XiMMiX
09-19-2007, 02:15 PM
The Lord of the Rings Online
Shadows of Angmar
08.05.2007
Following the successful books, Peter Jackson’s movie and the previously released games of “Lord of the Rings”, Turbine Software / Codemasters present us with a new MMORPG. “The Lord of the Rings Online – Shadows of Angmar”. We opened it up for you to strike back the hordes of evil that have invaded Eriador.
The Lord of the hourglass
After the lengthy installation (as usual with MMORPG) of LOTR Online, we couldn’t wait to explore the northwest of Middle Earth. What, just the northwest? That’s right! To begin with, the game only provides us with the area of Eriador in Middle Earth. Other areas are to follow soon. So we have some add-ons to look forward to, although Codemasters have already announced a free add-on, which will let us explore the lands of Evendim. Additionally, over 60 new quests have been announced.
World of the Rings?
Let’s make one thing clear from the start: “The Lord of the Rings Online” borrows heavily from its bigger brother World of Warcraft. But why not? If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. WoW veterand should therefore have no problem with the transition to “The Lord of the Rings Online”. But the Lord of the Rings isn’t just Lord of the thieves. The programme has the right approach to innovations, even if these aren’t always implemented perfectly.
On to Middle Earth!
After the automatic installation of the patch (which has updated the game by more than 945%) and the setting up of an account, the game welcomes you with a nice menu. Here you set up our character in the usual MMORPG manner. For your character, you have to choose between 4 races. The elves, the dwarves, the hobbits and humans. Once you’ve chosen a race, you have to choose one of the typical 7 MMORPG classes, which go by different names than usual. The warrior, for example, is called an armourer. We chose a human, male armourer.
Introduction by the book

“The Lord of the Rings Online” introduces you gently to the controls in a secured start area. And this even considerably more interesting than World of Warcraft. To access the world without restriction, LOTRO sets you so-called intro-quests. These missions (depending on your race) have to be completed before you can explore the world on your own. This, however, is not the restriction that could be expected, as the intro mission isn’t just a guide to the controls, but at the same time is an intro to the campaign of LOTRO.

In the case of our hero, we have to defend our village, Archet, against attack from Blackwold bandits. Completing the introduction takes place in an instant (an area opened on the server for the player and his group only) where you have to slay the leader of the Blackwold bandits, ?ogan. No problem for our level 5 hero.

The storyline of LOTRO sticks mainly to the book. With the purchase of the programme, you play through the first half of the first of the three books with the hero of your choice. Bad news: You can’t join Sauron’s horde, but can only play on the good side. Whether you will be able to play as the “evil” races in the future is currently not 100% certain. So that you can still play as the evil boys, LOTRO features the so-called Monsterplay.
Monsterplay instead of PvP
Monsterplay fills the gap which the campaign leaves – playing on Sauron’s side. As mentioned earlier, you can’t play through the storyline on the dark side. Monsterplay is the PvP side of Lord of the Rings. Similar to World of Warcraft, you fight in arenas against other players. If you choose Sauron’s side instead of your hero in the Monsterplay arena, we are catapulted into the ring with a level 50 bad guy, no matter how old our character is. Quests with the bad guys aren’t completely out of the question, though. Each type of monster has certain quests available for the personalisation of his monster-character. Important: To take part in Monsterplay, your character must have reached level 10. If you want to contest the Monsterplay with your own character, level 40 is a prerequisite. Makes sense, as you wouldn’t stand a chance against the level 50 villains otherwise.
The Quests
Here Lord of the Rings scores the most points, and even goes one better than World of Warcraft. The main quests are constructed sensibly per race and tell the wonderful tale of “The Lord of the Rings”. Of course, there are the usual “kill 6 Blackwold baddies and return” quests, but nowhere near as extreme as its big brother WoW. It’s also worth mentioning that questing in “Lord of the Rings Online” gives the most XP for advancing your level. There’s no point in brainless slaughter if you want to progress quickly. Eager “levlers” are therefore advised to complete as many quests as possible, to quickly reach level 50. A great feature which caught out eye is the quest log, which allows you to accept a total of 40 quests at once. For quest fanatics, this is considerably more practical than the limit of 25 in World of Warcraft.
How do I earn my daily bread?
Every good online role playing game offers jobs for the characters. “The Lord of the Rings” is no exception. You can choose from 10 jobs, of which you can practice three, but not quite as freely as in World of Warcraft due to the way in which the professional fields are structured.
Graphics and Sound
One of the main factors that lifts “The Lord of the Rings Online” above World of Warcraft is the fantastic graphics, which make a considerably better impression than the gradually tedious comic look of WoW. “The Lord of the Rings” sets its scene brilliantly and must currently be the best looking online role-playing game. The soundtrack is accentuating but never obtrusive and, with the graphics, ensures that we feel completely contented in Middle Earth.

Note: Text made by Blood Knight, Out only for PC!