Beta, To spoil or not to spoil!

Are you someone who yearns to know a secret OR do you abhor those who know a thing and have a wanton desire to tell it?

Another way to ask these questions would be: Do you want to beta test LotRO OR do you want to experience LotRO with others with no prior knowledge of its contents? It’s funny, I’m sure there are people on both sides of this topic, but if asked I’d bet most, if not all, would say “Yes! I want in beta!”

Interesting concept, “beta”. Beta testing supposed to be “work”; no one is supposed to have “fun”. The developers have created the game and tested the game for themselves (in the secretive “alpha”) but if you stare at something long enough you become blind to its minute flaws. Beta is a way to test the game with fresh eyes that hopefully can find the imperfections so these “bugs” can be found and corrected before shipping the millions of copies of the game to the stores for purchase. And...heaven forbid the game launches with flaws that slows game play or worse, crashes the computer.

The beta testers job is to press every key, click every in game rock tree, blade of grass, NPC, door, chest, animal, try every possible swing of a weapon or draw of a bow, wear every permutation of armor, cast every spell, walk, run, swim, and jump not once, but three or four or more times all the while munching on their favorite high carb, high fat, high sugar snack and drinking gallons of caffeine and sugar. Once a “bug” is found they repeat it over and over, ad nauseum…..and then report it to the devs. And after all this, the devoted beta tester is not satisfied. They dive back into the game and look for further evidence of bad lines of code.

Now, most of you who said “Yes! I want in beta!” are probably not devoted beta testers who want to help the developers eliminate or at least minimize game play flaws, but rather want “inside” information about the game before launch…so you know where all the “cool” loot is located.

So, again, I ask (and should be asking myself) are you someone who yearns to know a secret or do you abhor those who know a thing and have a wanton desire to tell it?

I remember, at 15 years of age, sitting in the theater watching Star Wars: A New Hope the week of its original release. Nothing, and I mean nothing like this movie had ever been seen in the history of the human species. (Yes, 2001: A Space Odyssey for it's time was a great movie; but let's face it would bomb at the theaters if released for the first time today.) Since 1977 sci-fi fans have demanded nothing short of perfection and have yeaned to get the inside scoop on the next Star Wars Movie (or what ever sci-fi genre film was debuting). Some enjoy going into the theaters with no knowledge of the film while others would enjoy not only reading the final version of the script but being present during the filming of every scene before seeing the movie. I must confess, I'm one of the later.

You can imagine the anxiety of someone of my generation going to see Revenge of the Sith, a movie that many of us waited 27 years to see. For other Star Wars films, I usually read the novelization and scanned the web for any hint about the film before buying my ticket. But, I thought I'd try it the other way for the last Star Wars movie and refused to read the book (although I bought it the day it hit the bookstores), would not visit any website that even remotely hinted of containing the script or any spoilers and even desperately avoided watching the movie trailers. I wanted to go to the theater without any knowledge of what would happen in the movie and be "totally blown away".

Well, I was disappointed. I loved the movie and have watched it many times since it debuted. On the third viewing, the tears I thought I would shed in the theater on May 29th finally came as I enjoyed every nuance of the film as well as mourned the last of the Star Wars movies.

I feel the same anxiety regarding the debut of Lord of the Rings Online. Being involved in the beta test would not spoil the game for me and, in fact, would most likely enhance my enjoyment of the game once launched. I belive those invited to beta test a game should consider the invitation an honor and should strive to be a good little beta tester and go after those bugs as eagerly as we'll go after those vile and corrupt Balrocs after game launch.

So....how about it? Do you really want to be a beta tester? Do you really want to know the “inside” scoop on LotRO or do you want to savor every nuance of the game as it is revealed to you for the first time?

What a Mess!

Did anyone else notice the oodles of PvP threads that are beginning to pile up? Goodness, we should really hired a maid or at least give Morfang the proper attire. It is getting to be quite messy in the there. tut tut

As many of you know, Patience dropped a bomb on us this morning on how Turbine will be implementing a form of consensual Player vs. Player combat in The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar. Just for reference, here is a direct quote, taken from this thread:

After carefully considering the issue of Player vs. Player combat, we have announced at E3 that The Lord of the Rings: Shadows of Angmar will contain some form of consensual PvP combat. Obviously, we can't just use most of the standard types of PvP, so how this will be implemented is still under discussion. In light of this decision, I am lifting the moratorium on discussion outside of this thread; however, the Forums Guidelines still apply, so keep it clean, folks. If it becomes a problem, we'll once again restrict discussion to a single thread.

-Patience

Since that announcement, some eleven threads (if not more) have popped up throughout the forums. Also note that all these came within a twelve hour time-span. Yikes! (Maybe we should have just stuck to one thread.) These threads we filled with woe and praise. Disappointment and joy. Criticism and tribulation. These threads ranged from the LOTRO Discussion forum all the way down to the Off-Topics. They popped up with amazing speed and consistency.

The community itself has already shown some of its colors with this issue – some showing restraint and commitment and others blaring themselves as loud as can be. A main contributor to the cause of anti-PvP that I have seen is Eywe. Always a strong voice and a sensible mind, looking at the entire picture:

So this means that PC's CAN attack PC's now?? So you guys went from "this decision will not change" to it changed?? Some feedback on that would be nice because it sounds like you have done a complete 180 on the subject now.

As of now, the forums have calmed down, as has the community, but not without a bit of the usual:

“lol seeing an elf smack a hobbit over the head with a banjo would be awesome”

-will

So, until we get some more information on this strange and unexpected turn of events, we will just have to hold tight and go with the flow.

Hex

Community Voices--Part 2

Here's the remainder of the contributions I received for this little project.

And if you sent me your contribution on Sunday, well I'm sorry to say I didn't get it. Chalk it up to vagueries of the universe and the way it seems to find chinks in your armor.


Part 2--



Link5935

Well, I have only been here since February, but my stay here so far has been extremely enjoyable. I have met some very interesting individuals, such as MAW, he is a rather mature person, who admittedly, makes me a bit angry sometimes when he points out my mistakes. He is correct most of the time however, and the advice helps me better myself I suppose. He is a person who I thought was a mod when I first got here, and he pretty much is... He has done several great things with the community, such as the doughnut revolution, where everyone changed their avatar to something having to do with doughnuts. Many people jumped on how great the idea was, and made events of their own such as the pirate avatars a while back. Another interesting person I have met here is sheighton, he has greatly helped my understanding of computer knowledge and was very patient with me when I asked many questions ,which seem to be rather dumb questions to ask to me now quite frankly. And you cannot forget the one who asked me to write this particular collection of words, Mr. Vastori, who seems to care about this community a lot considering he is putting the effort to make this “blog”, I think he called it. That word, blog, always hated it for some reason.... However, getting back on topic, there is one more individual I would like to speak about, and his name is swisskdl, I am not quite sure what his name means, but I consider him a friend, I am not sure if the friendship is mutual, but he has been very kind to me and we helped each other out with information on building our own custom computers . Now for a bit about me, I played WoW for about a year, and I got tired of the drama everywhere and left the game for good in February. Shortly after I quit I joined the LOTRO forums and said hello to everyone. This community is kind overall, well moderated, and helpful, if you read the FAQ that is!

LadyMist

As a whole the lotr community has been one of the more mature forum communities I have had the pleasure of being a part of.

For a community to keep a sizable amount of loyal posters over the course of years in itself has to say something about how much we interact with each other. We were diverse in our questions as we were in our views of game and non game related things yet we still mesh well with each other.

A new start is upon us and all old threads the good, the bad, and the ugly will be forever wiped, but our memories of camaraderie, debates and willingness to pass info will forever be etched in the memories of all the ole time posters.

Hxlgg

Community Life
The World of MEO and LOTRO

There are certain people who you remember for your entire life. Those people who have simply make an impression on you; those who changed your life in a positive or negative way or those who you just seemed to connect with instantly. These types of people don’t come around as often as desired, but when they do, it always turns out to be a great experience. If you’ve ever gotten the chance to encounter one of these individuals, feel honored. Feel special, if you will. Hold on to this person and open yourself to them. This is the type of experience I have had with the Middle-earth online forums.
Back in 2004, when I joined the MEO forums, there was an abundance of posting from characters that will forever remain in my memory. No, I will not get into how my life has been changed forever by these people or how I have been touched by them, mainly because that last remark would earn a few giggles, guffaws and smart remarks in volley. I will speak in truth though: many people that I have met on these forums have made an impact on how I think, how I act and my outlook on the world. Yes, they have changed me and that is something I am rather happy with and would love to thank them personally (which will happen this summer, an opportunity I will savor).
This community, that was formed long before I entered their midst, has a very tight bond and a rich history. Dated back in the late 90s, these forums have kept together for more than six years, following a game that was hardly in existence. They continued to follow it not because of the game, but because of the friends they made along the way. Friendships were formed long before concrete information of the game was cemented and they still last to this day.
Besides the friendships themselves, these members, these people, have made great contributions to the forums themselves. The forums have gone through many changes over the years this game has been in production. From Sierra to Vivendi to Turbine, the forums have had their share of make-overs and string of members.
Those who have followed this game for quite some time know of what I speak, and I haven’t even been along that long. Those people will almost be sure to tell you that it is not the developers that make a game. Sure, they physically make the game, but in the end, there would not be a game without the community. Without the people who stick with the game through the rough times. Without the people who, no matter what will stick around. Stick around for the game? No. Stick around for the rest of the community. Stick around for their friends. Stick around for the people who would stick around for them. That is why they, we, stay.
It really harms a community when part of it is taken away. There is always this gaping hole that will never be filled. On the MEO boards, in my time at least, this has happened twice. Well, twice in the sense that it was more noticeable when it occurred – being the splitting of the servers and the banning of a more notable member.
Nonetheless, the community has persevered and stuck though the tough times. We have fought back the hoards of trolls, slaughtered the ignorant masses and weeded out many of the rotten seeds, in the end, forming an exemplary community, standing high above all others.

I would like to take a moment and point out several members, group and threads in this community that have really stood out:
Community Members:
Light of Arnor (leader in discussions all around the boards), Bart (general leader and all around nice guy), Ara (palindrome extraordinaire), Arbalister (intelligent and revered), tgyg (originator or the Forum Round-ups), MAWorking (most active member on the forums, denouncer of false truths and creator of spam boards), Sauveteur (fantastic and devoted member of the community spending her time getting to know everyone), Morthoron (The Dark Elf with bated breath), Lotheani (lover of Canadians and renowned member of the EoI), Gilenath (humorous, solid fellow devoted to the community and Loth’s punching bag), Alfwine (cunning linguist and good friend), Morfang (HOTTIE!!), Real Deal (owner of the noob check-in desk), sssuuu (leader of latter day’s community building), DarhilofAnfalas (bard extraordinaire), Ish (writer of the Off-Topic drama The OT), Tav’Roon (the denim king and teller of stories), INSENSIBLE (great photographer), Stacey Undomiel (gamer until the end), Hammman (most insignificant poster), Amon Ereb (all around dork), …and countless others. There are really too many fantastic members who have many a great contribution to this forum whether they are from helping the newer members, showing ideal taste in all areas of the forum or helping out with community building. There are several groups that have sprung up along the way as well, including the Mahanaxar and the Atanatári. Both have been more than helpful to the community.
Fansite owners: ep (Arda Post – and prolific member of the community), TucksMa (Ogaming) and the whole crew at (MEO)LOTROSource (Earane, Methost, Thrindil, Polleke, odinseye, Giladain, Dath KahRek, Golgine, Furin, Calagorn and Feathalion)
Our Fearless Moderators and Developers: (most notably) Keeper, Sharked, Floon Beetle, Akiva and Patience. All have been kind to us, helped us when we needed it and listened to us (most of the time).
Long Standing Kinships (not guilds!): The Elves of Imladris (Thingol), Followers of Light (Hallatur), Rangers of Forochel (INSENSIBLE), Rangers of Tharbad (Tar-Amandil), Iron Guard (Klathorn), Rangers of Anadûnê (Real Deal), Soul Assassins (Amon Ereb) and many more.

So, in the end, thank you MEO community, from me. Thanks for all the great times and I look forward to many more (in fact, I demand it). You are all fantastic and I can’t wait to talk to ya (probably in a couple minutes – you know the chatting whore I am :P). Y’all are teh r0xx0r!!!11!

Community Voices--Part 1

When the announcement came that the LOTRO Community Forums were to be tidied, my first thought was, "Here's a subject to sink teeth into!". But the more I thought about it, the more daunting of a task it became. How to approach it? As Tribute, highlighting threads, posts and individuals that have made the Community what it is today? That wouldn't do much but create a pale mirror-vision of the true Community.
Besides, how can one person presume to sum up such a vast collection of talent, creative insults, and engaging debate?

I actually did begin the task, and the more time I spent with it, the more wrong it felt. The Forums were the way they were because of the people that populated it. And I'd rather leave the memory of the Community as it was to you, the Community member. So I asked several Community members to sum up what the Community meant to them, how they saw it.

To butcher a Gandalf-ism here, some people were asked that shouldn't have been, and others were not yet should have been. Please don't feel left out, as I chose randomly, and yet with some thought as to who might be able to write about the Community.

I'm breaking this into two parts, today and again tommorrow, as I don't have the heart to edit the contributions. They are great as is, and I want to present them in that light, without coloring them with my own thoughts. Ans since a couple are pretty lengthy, I thought I'd spare you and give you some time to digest between doses.

Ok, enough. Here's what some of the LOTRO Community to say as this latest chapter has come to a close:


Tav'Roon

Through all of my time here on the LotRO (and MeO) forums, I don't think I've ever had more fun anywhere else. There's a certain quality to these forums and
its community that keep me coming back for more. It's a little bit of charm, and
maybe even a drumstick on a string tied in front of me. I dunno, but whatever it
is, I love it! I'd like to give my thanks to all of its awesome members, each
adding a little bit more awesomeness to an already awesomely large pile of
awesome. From a spamtastic thread to a good ol' bashing, it's the most damn fun
I've ever had on a forum. EVER.

ieatglue44

Wow. People need to kind of stop talking like this is the end. I know a lot of people will be leaving and it's going to be quite sad to see them go...but we will be moving to a new forum. Even so, these forums mean a lot to me. I would not be the mature (haha) fourteen year-old I am today without people like Morthoron and this community. It's amazing how much of an effect this has had in my daily life. I never would've known what a "noob" was if I wasn't part of this community. I would've had literally no conception of 1337 speak. I'm not sure if these are good or bad things, but they're still funny. The whole community has influenced me amazingly, especially the Role-playing forums and the Off-topic forums. I'll never forget the great times in the General Store or the Ice Cream Shoppe. I'll never forget the widespread commotion when people like ep and Morth were getting chased away. Fortunately, this is not the end. Not yet. Maybe close, but not yet.

Aquilla

So I'm supposed to write something summing my thoughts on the community up to this point in time, eh?
Well, if I were going to try and describe it to someone who hasn't ever been around here, I would likely compare it to High School, and that's just because High School is fairly universal. Most of the pople on the forums are either in High School or they're done with it. In either case, it's something we can look back on and have some common ground; it's the one thing that's universal on these boards, since we can't even always agree on our own level of devotion to Tolkien and the original writings. I'm going to start with

The Faculty: Patience, Ramen, & Saffron. Patience is math teacher that, even though you hate the rules and homework and standards, she's nice enough on a regular basis that you still look forward to the class, even though you hate the subject. Ramen is the cool substitute teacher that you try and trick by saying, "Well, when PATIENCE is here, she let's us run naked through the threasd, and talk about politics, and make fun of people who use bad grammar," even though everybody knows that's not true, and the sub isn't going to fall for it. But she'll roll her eyes and smile, just because she knows if things get too bad, she won't be the one we really complain about. Saffron is the crazy magic science teacher that, even when her back is to the class and she's writing notes, she STILL sees what's going on. She can ban people and lock threads without skipping a beat, and the whole class sits around thinking, "How did she do that? I didn't even see that coming." You've also got the various administrators, like hsinclair that you only see at lunch time or roaming the halls before & after class. And while you think, "Yeah, they've got a desk job, they don't really care about me and my work here," all of a sudden she comes right out and says something directly to you, and you're really surprised and walk away thinking, "maybe devs are people, too."

The Cheerleading Squad: These are the people that, it really doesn't matter what's going on, they're all for it. They're so chalk-full of "school-spirit" that the admin could start sacrificing virgin she-goats on the campus lawn, and they'd be all for it. At worst blind sheep, at best over-exuberant supporters, they will support any and everything that happens, so long as they get to cheer about the game. The game is all that's important, and so they're cheering right alongside of it. *Ahem*Link5935*sniff*

The Bathroom Smokers: On the other end of the spectrum, you've got the "wastoids," the "freaks," the "potheads," the kids that are only doing their time, trying to get through another day, not caring what happens except it gives them a reason to complain. Nothing that happens can be good, no update meets with their approval, no event garnishes their interest, they live to complain. They bend the rules of the CoC whenever possible, and flame & troll mercilessly, generally defending their actions by saying, "You're all just a bunch of sheep." Pretending to be "nonconformists" or "free-thinkers," they generally just don't have anything better to do than complain, and try to convert all those around them into another embittered, disenchanted, angsty complainer. *coughunthorcough*

The Jocks: These are the guys that everyone, whether you like it or not, admires at some level. In our little world, they'd be the lore-giants, those individuals who spend so much time training and exercising their Tolkien muscles, and it would seem that it's all they care about. We do admire them at some point, although we all know that there is little if any real-world application for what they're doing. They'll get the recognition around here for what they do, and when we need that, we know who to talk to. But we can't consider them as "real" or "human," because who in their right mind would spend THAT much time on something so irrelevant? Aaaa... ahhhh...aaaaCHOOOOOOOOfutsieOOOooooooo. /sniff, excuse me

The Freshman: Can't live with 'em, can't shoot 'em. There are striking similarities to the lower classmen who would buy an "elevator pass" from a senior before realizing it's a 1-floor building, and preordering a game from a site that's changed it's expected release date 75 million times in the past 3 years. God bless 'em, without them the school would grow any more, we wouldn't get any new ideas or new faces or new points of view, but we'd also miss out on the "game will fail without PvP" threads. I'll lump in here all the transfer students that persistently wail about the "Well, at my last school they had mounts, and PvP, and all kinds of races, and we were state champs." The thing about this group, is we ALL were there at one point. Some feel like it was so long ago it doesn't apply; while others are so ashamed of their past actions that they pick on the Freshmen incessantly, trying to make up for their own past noobiness. Which leads into...

The Bullies: Every school's got 'em, and we've got more than our fair share. Many times there are crossovers from this group into the Jocks, other times they might be the smokers that are just bound and determined to squash anyone's goodwill, the bullies take it upon themselves to put down those that don't "measure up" to whatever standards they've mentally erected as being what all students/posters should be like. Sometimes it's because they're so insecure with themselves, they have to put down others to feel better about themselves. Sometimes they have a rotten homelife and they have to work out their agressions elsewhere. Sometimes they just haven't had their morning cup of coffee yet. In any case, they go about trying to take everyone down a notch, and sometimes a faculty member has to slap some sense into 'em, and sometimes you just have to get tired enough of it that you verbally *****-slap them upside the head to leave you alone. (Morthoron anyone?)

Band Nerds & Drama Freaks: Creative to a fault, the RPers have a great subculture going. They can hang out with each other with no problem. They have their own language, dress, expressions, and lunch table, and everyone concerned is more comfortable when they stick to it. While crossing the gap and making friends is possible, and even advisable it's generally hard to do, because of so many misconceptions on both sides of the fence. They add their own panaché to the most mundane things, and if you can get past that, or even learn to embrace it, they can be some of the friendliest people and most worthwhile contacts you'll find. (I'll throw Morth in here too, to make up for that last one. :wink

And so there we have it. There's our little group as I see it, and I daresay as many of you may see it. I'm sure I've offended more than one person here by "naming names" as it where, especially since I left myself out. In all fairness to that, I will agree to have myself placed in any of the above groups, or have a new group added just for me, and you can throw me in whatever stereotype best suits you. But I daresay most of us fit into one of these categories.

Actually, we have ALL probably fallen into each of these categories at one point or another. And I stick by my earlier analogy, that this is simply a time of a change for us. Many things will never be the same, but that is the nature of change. We'll get in a new crop of freshman, the scene and classes will change, I may actually stop looking at myself as a mouthy freshman, and promote myself to mouthy sophmore. Who knows? But whatever tomorrow brings, it will bring some kids dropping out, some kids moving in, maybe some new faculty, maybe they'll fine get a new floor for the gym. Whatever happens next, I'm excited about seeing it.

Jorel D'Lyn

Jorel's Thoughts on "Community"

To quote John Donne, “No man is an island…”. No matter how much one seeks solitude there is always some dependency on others. We are social creatures and have an innate longing to be a part of a community. For most of us our first community is our immediate family: mom, dad, brother(s)/sister(s) and perhaps a dog, cat or goldfish and we love this community more than life. As we grow and develop we form other communities, first in kindergarten and then throughout school. The forming of communities doesn’t stop there but continues with our work place and, certainly for some, through religious affiliations. These communities have existed for many centuries, and in fact, since before recorded human history. One thing these communities have in common is face to face contact. People can the experience the gambit of human emotion on our faces as well as touch through the shaking of hands, hugs and kisses.

Our ingenuity and intelligence have brought about the invention of the personal computer and the development of the internet; and not surprisingly, people have found ways to communicate and “touch” each other through the pulses of energy that course through the wires that connect us. Only within the last fifteen years has this newest form of community existed and although we generally do not touch the people within these communities they are nonetheless valid and affect us in ways no less equivalent than those communities first developed in our ancient past.

The Lord of the Rings Online Community has, I think for most of us, a special place in our hearts; for the stories of J.R.R. Tolkien were but a beginning in the genre of fantasy and have come to serve as a bridge to the future through which we, as the LotRO COMMUNITY, have used to connect. I, as many of you, have made friends through the LotRO Community that are ever bit as real as those that I can see and touch. I feel this is a monumental step in human evolution as we are connecting through commonalities rather than through the visual cues of beauty or otherwise.

I think those of us who have been a part of the LotRO Community will remember the second week of May in 2006 as a time of excitement and hope. The LotRO community has gone through changes before but I feel this latest metamorphosis is but the next step in an evolutionary process whereby the pupa will ultimately emerge from the chrysalis with renewed strength and soon be ready to soar to the heights of gaming and online-gaming-community excellence. I look forward to being with my online friends throughout the coming year as we continue to grow our Community not only for the experience of playing LotRO, but strengthen and deepen our friendships as well.