Regarding Turbine’s revelation that Lord of the Rings Online is going to go free to play this fall, I am late to the party as always – particularly so because I am not yet completely certain of my feelings on the matter. A summary of other bloggers’ thoughts can be found here, with most weighing in as optimistically apprehensive to positive in outlook. My thoughts on the change are that this is a good move for Turbine and MMOs in general; as a fan of free to play titles and a cheerleader for the Guild Wars franchise, this is a no-brainer for me. I do not buy the story that subscriptions are necessary for either server maintenance or continued content updates, so if Turbine (or the Warner hand that is guiding it) feels that a change in business model will bring more people to the title, I think it’s well worth the attempt.
LOTRO was supposedly already free to play for me because I bought a lifetime subscription over two years ago. However, due to that purchase, I have actually paid approximately $46/mo for my playtime, as I discovered too late that the game is not at all to my taste. I would have benefited from this model springing into play a little sooner, but I am determined to find a way to make use of the Turbine points I will be accumulating as a lifetime member, perhaps to buy a Warden and make one last attempt to pass through Middle Earth, if only just to say I’d been there.
Whether or not I am or ever was a fan of Turbine’s games, as champion of the growing free to play family, I must admit that it’s nice to see another game enter the fold. Come on in – the water’s fine!
if i had a lifetime sub i’d be a little unhappy about it, as i don’t i’m pretty cool with it.
Yeah, I kind of wish I were coming at it from that angle instead. I’d probably have been happier just dabbling in LOTRO from time to time.
I don’t know, a part of me is envying the Lifers now, especially those who bought their LTSs at launch. Their investment would have long paid for itself by now, plus they will even get to enjoy all the things you can buy with points without having to spend a dime.
I’m only a casual LOTRO player, I’ll most likely downgrade my VIP (subscription) account to a premium once the F2P model goes live. That’s probably best for me.
I’m definitely in support of the Premium, or buy what you need and own it forever aspect. And as you said, now you don’t have to choose what to pay for/play!