It looks like Lord of the Rings Online’s monetization will not change in a significant manner before the Gundabad expansion due sometime later this year.
The conversation began between new Standing Stones Games Producer Oleg “Raninia” Brodskiy and YouTuber Bludborn. The two discussed a myriad topics, legendary items revamp, and more.
In fact, we had covered a similar discussion the team had with the community in producer’s letter earlier this year. If you missed that, we’ve got you covered here.
During the conversation, Brodskiy discussed the monetization and the growing friction between players and the game regarding the business model. In fact, the devs themselves don’t seem terribly keen on the current business model. As Brodskiy espoused on the interview,
“No one was happy about it, but everyone felt trapped because this is the way it’s always been.”
Brodskiy further clarified in the official forums, writing,
“Monetization will definitely not change significantly before Gundabad, it's too big a thing to handle at the same time as making a new expansion.”
However, he noted the team will not wait to change until they can overhaul the entire business model,
“That said, I don't think it'll be something where we will wait to wholesale replace the entire model - my goal is to get a plan that gets us 70-80% of the way there, get that out the door, then work on the rest. So 2022 is much more feasible. We're still having those discussions - and atm I actually have to finish putting the group pitch together for leadership to approve - but I'm hopeful that we'll have a decision on overall direction within the next month or two. Getting it to happen will certainly take longer, but like I said, 2022 feels feasible.”
And there you have it. It looks like change is indeed coming. Last month, LOTRO saw the return of Weatherstock, and we think such player-driven festivals prove why this game’s community is among the best.
