The Lord of the Rings Online is currently on a small wave of success. The MMO veteran published its eighth expansion last year Gundabad
which revolved around the old dwarf homeland that gave it its name and concluded the storyline that had been spun for around two years.
In addition, the company proudly celebrated its 15th anniversary this year. In addition to all kinds of gifts for the players, many quests and an emotional trailer looked back on past adventures that we experienced together:
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The Lord of the Rings Online celebrates a big anniversary with an emotional review
But no reason to sail straight west: There is still work to be done. At least that’s what the developer Standing Stone Games promises us and the publisher EG7 apparently sees it that way too. Because the virtual Middle-earth has now even outdone an ambitious Marvel MMO project internally.
Bye, bye Spider-Man, hallo Gandalf!
What happened? On May 25, 2022, EG7 performed at a press release announced that a Marvel online role-playing game commissioned by developer Daybreak Games had been put on hold. you have a re-evaluation of the development risks, the required financial investment and the long-term strategy
made and then decided to take this step.
So far there hasn’t been much information about the game anyway, but this is bad news for comic fans who have always wanted to fight evil villains together. In the meantime, the first supposed screenshots have also appeared. Supposedly
it’s because the artist Ramiro Galan on his ArtStation profile only states to have been working on an “aborted Marvel MMO project” without confirming the definitive connection to the EG7 title.
What does this have to do with LOTRO? So superheroes need to hang their costume back in the closet. Elven ears, on the other hand, rejoice, dwarves raise their tankards bawling with joy and hobbits treat themselves to a third breakfast to the joy of the day: Because of all things, The Lord of the Rings Online, LOTRO for short, which has meanwhile disappeared into the niche, is now benefiting from the Marvel end.
The numerous regions of Middle-earth are currently enjoying great popularity again.
Cash injection for upgrades and new content
The reason is obvious and simple: LOTRO is currently experiencing a second spring. Unofficial Numbers certify the game the highest number of players in over 5 years, if you ignore a short peak during the corona pandemic. At that time, all content was made available free of charge for a few months in order to be able to offer distraction to people sitting at home around the world.
According to the statistics linked above, around 72,000 players are currently roaming through Breeland, Rohan and Mordor. This should not only be ensured by the loyal band of veterans that has grown over the course of 15 years, but above all by the large number of heroes who are now coming to Middle-earth for the first time or again. Because large parts of the game have recently become completely free to play:
The Lord of the Rings Online
The free content has doubled in one fell swoop
Of course, publishers and developers want to keep these new players on a permanent basis. Therefore, the estimated 500 million Swedish crowns (equivalent to around 47 million dollars) for the Marvel MMO will be distributed among several smaller projects within the group. Named specifically: A big upgrade
for The Lord of the Rings Online.
The scope of this ominous upgrade remains to be seen. But you shouldn’t expect that the entire technical framework, which is more than twenty years old, will now be revised from the ground up. That would probably blow up the cost/benefit ratio. But would be conceivable major graphical improvementsrevised animations, a reduction in annoying lags and a new interface that looks more contemporary and also supports high resolutions without any problems.
Anyone who says The Lord of the Rings Online must expect that Sören will appear out of nowhere and babble in your ears what he loves about the MMO to this day – and what less:
link to Podcast Content
Finally, we have a sweetheart for you. No, not a sparkling ring, because that’s ours. Us! Us alone! But we give you a reading tip: How much fun can you still have with The Lord of the Rings Online in this day and age when there are modern representatives like Final Fantasy 14 and Elder Scrolls Online? Sören explains this to you in his extensive column.
