Far Over Misty Mountains Cold:

Non-leveling Content in LOTRO

There is an inn, a merry old inn
beneath an old grey hill,
And there they brew a beer so brown
That the Man in the Moon himself came down
one night to drink his fill.

I was proud of my son. He was 9 years old, and he was reading The Hobbit to me. Third grade!

I thought. He’s only in third grade and he’s reading Tolkien. I don’t remember reading The Hobbit until sixth grade, myself. And our teacher was cool enough to also let us watch the animated movie. But here was my son, reading The Hobbit all on his own, by his choice, at age 9. I was impressed with him and perhaps a little too pleased with myself as a parent.

As he wove his way through the intricacies of Bilbo’s lineage and the wonders of hobbit feet, my son suddenly stopped and handed me the paperback. “Mom,” he pleaded, “Could you get me to a part where something actually happens?”

So maybe my kid wouldn’t be devouring Tolkien and moving on to Tolstoy any time soon. It was a grand notion while it lasted. Turns out he actually was more interested in Dav Pilkey’s Captain Underpants books in the long run.

But the very same things that bored my son when he was 9 are the things that Lord of the Rings Online (LOTRO) fans gobble up eagerly--lore; lots of intricate lore. Tolkien’s books are rich with it. Few characters are without a lineage or history. Few stories are without a backstory. Few places lack maps and vivid descriptions. Some of the most intriguing or flat-out wonderful things about Tolkien’s epic stories are things that I hope will exist in LOTRO, even though, and perhaps despite the fact that they’re not directly related to gaining levels.

Songs & Poems

Songs (like the one above, sung by Frodo at Bree) have a special place in Middle-earth. One song that has always held a special place in my heart tells to story of the Dwarves’ plight in The Hobbit:

 Far over the misty mountains cold
to dungeons deep and caverns old,
we must away ere break of day
to seek the pale enchanted gold.

Some people who find Tolkien’s writing slow or dull (and there certainly are more people like my son who want the instant gratification of “something happening”) would do well to read some of the songs and poems from his writings. I’m eager to see song interpreted in LOTRO. I certainly hope it will be there, because I can’t imagine Middle-earth without it.

Places to Go

Instead of just rendering killing fields where adventurers go to gain experience by slaying monster after monster, Turbine is charged with the enormous task of making the worlds of Middle-earth come to life. We’ll be able to wander through the Shire and Barrow Downs. We’ll be able to experience the ethereal beauty that is Rivendell and Lórien. Perhaps we’ll recoil at the horrors of the Dead Marshes. From what we’ve seen so far, I believe these game worlds will bring a deep level of immersion. For many of us, we’ll be seeing places that we’ve only imagined (or experienced through Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings movies, after which LOTRO is not modeled). Visiting the Shire or wandering through Barrow Downs may not be the quickest way to get to “something happening,” but it’s certainly going to be one way to experience a world from classic literature, at last interpreted and brought to life.

People to See

Who wants to meet Galadriel face to face? I do, I do! With Tolkien lore come vast opportunities for Turbine to present non-player characters (NPCs) that truly step right off the pages of The Lord of the Rings trilogy and onto our computer screens in 3D form. And while I’m certain many of these NPCs will exist to send adventurers out on quests, it will also be a thrill just to see them. Certainly bringing our beloved hobbits, elves, dwarves and humans to life is a huge challenge for Turbine. After all, we may have preconceived notions of what these characters look like, particularly due to the heavy influence of the movies (not that I would mind Aragorn looking like Viggo Mortensen).  It will be fascinating to see which characters find their way into the game, and how Turbine will interpret them for us.

Where there’s Smoke, there’s Fire(works)

The debate over pipe-weed in LOTRO continues--will we see it there, or will Turbine decide that it’s irresponsible to appear to be promoting smoking? It’s a difficult call, and there are no easy answers. But if smoking is still open to debate, certain things that smoke, hiss, and eventually go boom should not be--fireworks. There may only be a handful (literally, just five) of wizards in Middle-earth, but at least one of them knew how to make things go bang and sparkle in the night sky. I don’t think I’ll be quite satisfied unless I can witness one of Gandalf’s firework displays just once. But then, my own summers are spent hauling my kids around to every fireworks display I can find, so wanting fireworks in LOTRO is a given for me.

Not all content in a game relates directly to leveling...to “something happening.” Much of it adds flavor and makes the experience more immersive. And I believe that’s what LOTRO fans truly want--an experience that isn’t just about racing to the top of the leveling food chain, but truly makes them feel as if they’re part of the realms of Middle-earth.

 

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