Hope is NOT a Four Letter Word

I had a nice big post about the Games Forum lined up today. But that'll have to wait. I know. Bummer.

Seems that things really are coming to a crux. Patience posted, in Global fashion, throughout the Officials

We’re rapidly approaching some very exciting milestones in the development of The Lord of the Rings Online™: Shadows of Angmar™. To prepare for the upcoming changes as we get close to beta and launch, we’ll be giving the LOTRO website a facelift. We’re also adding new functionality to the forums (no, we can’t tell you what it is yet – but rest assured, this is big stuff!) and starting fresh with posting. The forums have been online for years now, and we'd like to mark this exciting time by starting with a clean slate. This means we will be wiping the LOTRO forums clean of all posts and inactive users.

There's more to it then that. I'll let you follow the linkage and read the rest.

What interests me though, are the changes the LOTRO Community is facing.

E3, the Electronics Entertainment Expo, is nigh. Running from May 10-12 in Los Angeles, E3 is where the video game Developer's and Publishers unveil their upcoming titles in all of their digital glory. This means Announcements, Video of gameplay demoes, and Interviews. Information that The Waiting have been hungering for.

Even before today, you could feel the undercurrent of expectation. Seemingly minor posts reminding others that although the week's Update was yet another POI, E3 is on the horizon, and then we'll all feast on digital info biscuits. These little reminders positively glistened with yearning.

But will The Waiting have much more to discuss? Sure, we'll have a brand spanking new set of Forums to fill, but most topics relative to MMOs, and their place in LOTRO, have been discussed Ad Nauseum.

We can surely expect the usual critiques and detailed comparisons of gameplay to reality and how such things violate the laws of the physical universe. We can expect the, usually smaller, postings giving Turbine accolades and pats on the back.

I think we can also expect a minor flood of people new to the existence of LOTRO and the questions such people bring with them. I don't expect such a flood to be Biblical in proportion, but it will be noticeable.

Ah, E3.

Will the unveiling of the UI design alienate some people?

Will the announcement of the mysterious 10th Profession give some migraines as they try to figure out just what the hell Turbine was thinking?

Will Video of Combat in real-time send others into apoplyctic fits of rage?

For sure, some people will declare themselves to be 'done' with the whole enterprise, and post their dramatic fare-thee-well posts. Others will be further entrenched in their furvor for LOTRO. I expect a deluge of complaints about the post counts being reset to zero. Or that 3rd account someone had being wiped because it hasn't had a login in 3 months. Already some are bemoaning the fact that custom avatars will no longer be allowed.

I'm fine with this. I embrace it in fact. It means that LOTRO is much closer than a lot of us had ever dared to hope. Despite the seeming negative aspects of these upcoming changes, today is a day to rejoice.

But I still worry.

Will the deluge of information we hope (expect) to see do the fanbase any good? Or will it actually harm the Community? Will we see a strengthening of opposing camps, sniping at one another over some detail with agonizing thoroughness?

Only time will really tell how the Community will come through this. One thing is for sure though, the Community is ready, come what may.