Rings RPG Expands Tolkien

Jeff Anderson, president and chief executive officer of Turbine Inc., told SCI FI Wire that Lord of the Rings Online : The Shadows of Angmar is a massively multiplayer online role-playing Game
that takes its cues directly from the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, but that also expands on them. "[We] took a lead from the master [and] focused [the Game
] on the first book [in the trilogy] and covered the storyline as Frodo and Sam leave the Shire and start moving towards ... Rivendell," Anderson said in an interview at the New York Comic Con over the weekend. "Post-launch we are going to tell more of the story as the fellowship leaves that area and goes forth ... all the way to Mount Doom."

The main storyline of the Game
covers many of the same events as the first book of Tolkien's trilogy, The Fellowship of the Ring, Anderson said. "Everything from Gandalf being captured ... [to] Strider meeting up with the fellowship at The Prancing Pony [to] the fight on Weathertop," he said. "We've got all those moments in the Game
, and we communicate that through a variety of different mechanics: through text, through voice-over, through Game
cinematics. Those all make sure that the player is aware of where the story is."

Instead of playing as one of the iconic characters created by Tolkien, players create their own heroes, Anderson said. "The hero comes from one of four different races: You can be an elf, dwarf, hobbit or human," he said. "You will have a chance to start your own story. You will become your own hero of Middle-earth. We posit from the beginning that you're an exceptional character. Obviously most hobbits were not running around the world, so you are an exceptional hobbit, or exceptional elf or dwarf. And ... eventually you go on, and we put you in the heart of the adventure."

Turbine wanted to let players play either good or evil, but realized that not everyone is interested in engaging in player-vs.-player battles, Anderson said. "Rather than just letting hobbits [player-kill] hobbits and elves PK dwarves, [we let] people play as orcs or wargs or spiders," he said. "The monster characters are only allowed in one particular region of the world. ... So if you walk through the Shire, you won't find yourself confronted with 50 different Uruk-hais, because it will break the fiction and isn't much fun for the hobbit."

A focus on story is critical to the next generation in MMORPGs, Anderson said. "[lotro
] has the grind, the 50 levels, the 400 different skills for you to learn, ... the 1,500 different quests," he said. "But behind it all is a very interesting epic that really pulls you in and keeps you there." Lord of the Rings Online : The Shadows of Angmar is currently in beta testing and will be released to the general public April 24. To learn more about the Game
or apply to be a beta tester, visit the lotro
Web site.