|
''The Lord of the Rings Online'' (commonly abbreviated to ''LOTRO''), initially branded as ''The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar'', is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) for Microsoft Windows and OS X set in a fantasy universe based upon J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth writings. It takes place during the time period of ''The Lord of the Rings''. ''The Lord of the Rings Online'' was developed and is maintained by Turbine after Jeffrey Anderson secured the rights from Vivendi.〔(Turbine spin into action to secure Tolkien license - VideoGamer.com )〕 Originally subscription-based, it is free-to-play, with a paid ''VIP'' subscription available that provides players various perks. Four of the more prominent are access to all game regions and content not part of an expansion pack, the ability to swiftly travel between major towns, the removal of the currency cap that would otherwise hamper the economic freedom of a player, and the ability to send currency through the mail system, and make cash-on-delivery payments. It launched in North America, Australia, Japan, and Europe on April 24, 2007. In addition to regular free updates, five expansion packs have been released to date: ''Mines of Moria'' in 2008, ''Siege of Mirkwood'' in 2009, ''Rise of Isengard'' in 2011, ''Riders of Rohan'' in 2012,〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=WARNER BROS. INTERACTIVE ENTERTAINMENT AND TURBINE LAUNCH THE LORD OF THE RINGS ONLINE™: RIDERS OF ROHAN™ )〕 and ''Helm's Deep'' on November 20, 2013.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=WARNER BROS. INTERACTIVE ENTERTAINMENT AND TURBINE ANNOUNCE THE LORD OF THE RINGS ONLINE™: HELM’S DEEP™ )〕 In 2010, the NPD Group reported that the game was "the third most played massively multiplayer role-playing game" with Turbine citing their free-to-play model as the reason for the growing subscriber base. ==Gameplay== The game's milieu is based on ''The Lord of the Rings'' and ''The Hobbit''. However, Turbine does not have rights to any other works in Tolkien's legendarium, such as ''The Silmarillion'' or ''The Children of Húrin''.〔 〕 Much of the gameplay is typical of the MMO format: The player controls a character avatar which can be moved around the game world and interacts with other players, non-player (computer-controlled) characters (or "NPCs") and other entities in the virtual world. Camera angles can be switched between first-person and third-person options. Characters are improved by gaining levels. A character's level increases after it earns a set amount of experience points through the player versus environment (or "PvE") combat and storyline adventures. Characters' abilities are improved by increasing in level, but character skills must be purchased from specified NPCs after gaining new levels. The main storyline (also known as the "Epic Quest Line") is presented as a series of "Books", which consist of series of quests called "Chapters". There were initially eight Books when the game was released, with new books added with each free content update. Tolkien's Middle-earth as represented in ''The Lord of the Rings Online'' implements magic in a different manner than other MMORPGs such as ''World of Warcraft''. There are only five "wizards" in the fictional world, none of which are player-controlled. Instead, there are active skills which require "power" (the equivalent of magic points). Some skills behave like magic (like healing or throwing a burning ember at an enemy), but are based on "lore".〔 (【引用サイトリンク】 work=BBC News ) 〕 In addition, objects and artifacts are used to create effects similar to magic. As opposed to other role-playing video games, the equivalent of health or hit points in LOTRO is morale and can be raised via food, rest, music, and battle cries. The game also places a fair emphasis on cooking and farming in its crafting system, in consistency with the characterization of Hobbits in Tolkien's writings. Other gameplay features include a fast travel system between discovered locations in-game, and a detailed quest log with a tracker and history of quests completed. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「The Lord of the Rings Online」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|