Why did LOTRO never embrace pvp servers?

[Anton]

I am just thinking. Ol time player here. Lotro got a huge world right now. Have had a huge world to play around for quite some time. Why did Lotro never make a pvmp-server? Just for pvmp?

Like you could have diffrent starting positions all over the map, depending on if you play as the free people or as the creeps. And places could bee attacked, like the creeps could attack Bree and take it over, the Freeps could attack Moria and liberate it piece by piece? Open world fighting where you actually would be in danger alone on the road. No need for the quests as they are on a server like that, but the objective would rather be to conquer a certain amount of the map to your side.

Idk, maybe this is just something that I would have wanted to see, and no one else. Just thinking it's a wasted oppurtunity, and would be way more need of teamwork which would be fun I guess.

But like I said, this be the ramblings of an old fool, maybe it's just me who think this would be fun.

[Talyc Verda]

Truth be told, strictly PVP MMOs are already a niche. And outside of community made events, Monster Play is pretty dead. So a full PVP server likely wouldn't be worth the cost to run it.

[Spotter]

They didn't do it, because they aren't as stupid as EVE-Online, who never made PVP a CONSENT ONLY thing in their game. They let anyone, attack any other player at anytime, and System Security does nothing against the Criminal Actions in Game. So a lot more players leave and ignore PVP Only.

[Kormach]

They didn't do it because they stick pretty closely to the LoTR lore. There isn't a lot of free peoples battling each other in the books. It does have PvMP, which allows you to fight monster player in specific zones. It's never been a huge part of the game because it's been unbalanced for years. Every once in a while they try to make it better, but it's not very popular on hardly any servers.

[Talyc Verda]

Originally posted by Kormach:

Every once in a while they try to make it better, but it's not very popular on hardly any servers.

To expand on that, I believe even the devs have said several times that they are aware that PVMP is a system that needs work done to it, but its not a priority for them.

[NavFamG]

WAY WAY back when they were creating the game the Tolkien family was much more involved and they didn't want ANY form of Pvp in the game partly for the reasons the OP mentioned. The thought of anyone attacking places like the Shire was a totally 'not going to happend, hard stop' item.

After much back and forth the family agreed to let in a limited form; PvMP, but it could only come in if restricted to a 'closed off' part of the map.

Because of all this, PvMP was really just an after thought tacked onto the game towards the end of the development cycle.
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Fast forward to the early years the game was running and the PvMP population was always very much lower than the PvE pop (only 9% I believe). The game was never designed for Pvp and that crowd after the newness wore off went else where.

Any PvMP only server would always have been in the same position as the Age of Conan Pvp server is now; a large world with less than a 100 players scattered all over it and needing a phone fight matching app to find the other players.

[Harvain]

Open World PvP is something they aren't allowed to do with the License they have is one key reason.

That has & always will hold back what can be done with PvMP. Add onto that it's been 17+ years.

[Robmo]

i love pvp mmos but i think it doesnt suit the lore and game.

why would the free peoples fight eachother?

[cheshirm]

perhaps some rich old gamer can donate a server, pay for the internet connection, support, devs, etc and then see if there are enough paying customers interested in pvmp.

[Anton]

Yeah, like I thought, not much interest in it + license issues it seems? Too bad I think, but oh well, life goes on. Having high hopes for some future game from Amazon :)

Originally posted by Robmo:

i love pvp mmos but i think it doesnt suit the lore and game.

why would the free peoples fight eachother?

Never meant that free people would fight each other. Freeps would fight creeps.

[Kormach]

That already exists in the Ettenmoors. There used to be some interest in that, but it has waned significantly as time has gone on. I know it's still big on one server, Arkenstone I think, but not sure.

[Freelancer]

Erm. Why should they? I don't see any value in PvP in Lord Of The Rings setting in it's current form and it's heavily against the lore.
Wait until Amazon or some other ♥♥♥♥♥♥ studio makes a "new and modern" LOTR MMORPG, where you will have all the ticks for modern audience and full PvP because you could play a Mordor Orc faction =)

[Anton]

Originally posted by Freelancer:

Erm. Why should they? I don't see any value in PvP in Lord Of The Rings setting in it's current form and it's heavily against the lore.
Wait until Amazon or some other ♥♥♥♥♥♥ studio makes a "new and modern" LOTR MMORPG, where you will have all the ticks for modern audience and full PvP because you could play a Mordor Orc faction =)

Why they should? Don't know if they should. But it would be fun imo. To team up, a bunch of players to try to take for instance Moria from a bunch of players playing orcs. And people playing orcs or the likes trying to take settlements held by the free peoples. What's against lore in the forces of evil fighting the free people?

Yes I agree, a new game would be great. LOTRO is great, but old and lacks as a result of it in some aspects like graphics, and it shows.

Originally posted by Kormach:

That already exists in the Ettenmoors. There used to be some interest in that, but it has waned significantly as time has gone on. I know it's still big on one server, Arkenstone I think, but not sure.

Yes, but only in the Ettenmoors. It would be great to see it spread out all over ME. Every region available to encounter enemies.

[Aiel]

plenty of players would enjoy a more PVMP experience. the problem lies in the raw, devoted PVE experience players. That take up more then 98% of the games development. The developers at the end of the day are at fault. Could they make more money from a dedicated PVMP server, could they exercise more development in that sector. They totally could, instead they chose not to make more money. And focus on the PVE aspect of the game. To the disappointment of a large amount of people over the years. Plenty of people who discuss PVMP in the forums that state it was never meant to be apart of the game. Have already checked out and don't want it. Thats fine, but your also carelessly ignoring a section of the player base that does, which is just plain ignorant and selfish. There's a good sector of the community that I can say has no regard or care for a section of the community and its the Creeps that get ignored and pushed to the side and treated as irrelevant and then people state the community is so welcoming. It is if you only conform to what they like, then the gloves are off my friend and it isnt pretty in lord of the rings Online.

[Harvain]

Originally posted by Aiel:

plenty of players would enjoy a more PVMP experience. the problem lies in the raw, devoted PVE experience players. That take up more then 98% of the games development. The developers at the end of the day are at fault. Could they make more money from a dedicated PVMP server, could they exercise more development in that sector. They totally could, instead they chose not to make more money. And focus on the PVE aspect of the game. To the disappointment of a large amount of people over the years. Plenty of people who discuss PVMP in the forums that state it was never meant to be apart of the game. Have already checked out and don't want it. Thats fine, but your also carelessly ignoring a section of the player base that does, which is just plain ignorant and selfish. There's a good sector of the community that I can say has no regard or care for a section of the community and its the Creeps that get ignored and pushed to the side and treated as irrelevant and then people state the community is so welcoming. It is if you only conform to what they like, then the gloves are off my friend and it isnt pretty in lord of the rings Online.

The main issue will always boil down to how the LOTR MMO was being considered by the License Holder: Tolkien Enterprises known now as Middle-earth Enterprises.

Their vision was one that "doesn't glorify the Enemy as the Lord of the Rings is about the struggles of the Free Peoples".

So "Player versus Player" better known as Player versus Monster Player (PvMP) was always off to a rough start and never given full attention as there were "Behind the Scenes" limitations for what was allowed to be done.

That said the SSG LOTRO team could do more for PvMP but honestly PvMP is the third-wheel of LOTRO both due to Limitations plus how it's been handled over the years.

[Aiel]

The developers definitely have the glorifying the free peoples down to a icy razor edge. The entire development has focused around that, to the now devastated balance of Monster play. So yeah I get that, I'm not even refuting that they invested more into PVE. But that has left their PVMP experience beyond awful in comparison to other MMo's. When you look at Marketing it makes poor sense as to why they wouldn't want to be competitive with other MMO's to retain more money and a larger player base by investing more into PVMP. But that's exactly what hasn't happened, its a marvel to me in a capitalist economy that the developers wouldn't see more opportunity there. Unless like you said certain contract decisions restricted it to the point of almost axing it all together.