LOTRO: Free Quest Packs
At the beginning of March, Standing Stone Games very generously (and very wisely) decided to make all “quest, raid, and adventure area content” for The Lord of the Rings Online available for free. As a result, many players have returned to the MMO and all game servers have seen an increase in activity. Initially the offer was scheduled to end on April 31st but due to its success this has been extended to the end of August. Furthermore, SSG are now offering a coupon code that will permanently unlock all this content but players have to ensure that they use this by August 31st. This is a very generous offer which can save new and returning players a substantial amount of money. SSG have also promised a forthcoming sale on expansion quests (not a sale on entire expansions) and instance clusters. Effectively, a smart player will soon be able to own and access the majority of the game for under £10.
Promotions of this nature often favour new customers, as they are logically a potential source of new revenue. I often tire of seeing such adverts for great deals from service providers that I’m already a customer of. So it was nice to see that SSG have also decided to expand the benefits of the VIP program for LOTRO (VIPs being lifetime account holders and subscribers). According to today’s press release, the following rewards will soon be available. “VIPs will get access to a vendor that will grant them the following benefits once per day: 48-hours of town services items, a buff that negates item wear, and a buff that provides rapid crafting”. The buffs sound useful and I’m sure they’ll be well received. I’m hoping that this vendor will also be able to offer repair and the sale services, negating the need to return to major quest hubs so often.
One minor point regarding SSG’s current generosity springs to mind. Back in December 2018, they offered for a limited time The LOTRO Legacy Bundle for $199. It was a very comprehensive deal including pretty much everything in the game up to that date (again it included expansion quest lines but not the bonus material included in the expansions themselves). As I had missed out on buying a lifetime account, I purchased this bundle and subsequently spent 10 months comprehensively playing through the content with a new alt. Since then I have also bought the Minas Morgul expansion. So all I gain from SSG’s current coupon code are two Quest Packs from updates 25 and 26; Vales of Anduin and Mists of Wilderland. But I don’t begrudge this situation. SSG are simply reacting to the current business situation. If that means that LOTRO continues to thrive then that is to all our benefit.
