Tuesday, Turbine’s Mines of Moria expansion hit retail outlets. In addition to giving players access to the granddaddy of all dungeons, it also provides several key upgrades. On the visual side there’s a new dynamic lighting system, as well as “dual-height” mapping, which has been described to me as flipping mountains to create more dynamic ceilings in structures. There’s also a new way to view unique items. It’s called Legendary Items, and it will allow players to imbue, customize and even name their own weapons. Plus, any MMO update wouldn’t be complete without adding two additional character classes and a larger level cap.
To celebrate the release, I recently got the opportunity to talk to executive producer of the game, Jeffrey Steefel. We talked about what he felt some of the more enticing features of the expansion were, how long it took to complete it, and even what Tolkien would think about Turbine’s work.
I also tried to get to the bottom of the mystery MMO Turbine is working on for consoles, but as you’ll see, Turbine is quite tight-lipped about such things. Hit the break for the full interview.
DESTRUCTOID:
What do feel are the most enticing features of the Mines of Moria expansion? What do you think will stick with most players?
Jeffrey Steefel:
There’s so much to talk about and the Mines of Moria has a little something for everyone. If you like story, you’ll love the Epic experience, as it drags you through all of the repercussions of the Balrog’s death, and the Fellowship’s passage. If you like just getting more stuff, then the Legendary Item system combined with the slew of new instances will give you something interesting to run with too. On the other hand, if you just want to find a different play experience, then the Rune-keeper and the Warden offer that, in spades. So no matter what kind of player you are – there’s lots to see and do!
Are you excited that the expansion is finally available? How long did it take to complete?
It’s always amazing to see an early vision of something take life and then fill up with our players, eager to devour the cool new stuff we’ve made. It took us about a year to make Moria, and it has been an action-packed ride. We had really high expectations for where we’d end up and I couldn’t be happier about where we landed.
Do you think Tolkien would approve of Turbine’s work in Mines of Moria? Why or why not?
Well, I’d never presume to really know what the Professor would have thought of any of this but I’d like to think he’s be thrilled to see his universe coming to life and filled with people from all over the world. Moria would be especially exciting, I would think, as we were able to bring to life so much of the history and mythos of the thousands of years of Moria as a major part of Middle-earth.
What is it like to recreate literature? Especially something as highly regarded as Tolkien’s trilogy?
Challenging, overwhelming and one of the richest experiences I’ve ever had in creating entertainment and games. We always have lots of eyes on us and that can be daunting, but Tolkien has given us such a rich and complete tapestry to work from that we have riches at our fingertips to create with. It’s a bit of a sacred trust in being the people who have for the first time really brought Tolkien’s world to life in a persistent universe online.
Recently, Blizzard CEO Mike Morhaim expressed that he would like the time between expansions in World of Warcraft to decrease. Are you already looking at what could be next?
Our goal is to keep delivering content on a regular basis whether it be via our Book updates or a full-blown expansion such as Moria. We plan to ship a new expansion every year or so with several book updates in between. We feel that we’ve been providing leadership in the industry in terms of delivering ongoing and evolving content for our subscribers.
How is the Xbox 360 version of LOTRO shaping up? Will it include the Mines of Moria expansion?
Turbine is deep in development on an MMO for console. We haven’t announced what title or titles we will be bringing to console. That said, we’ve made a lot of progress on leveraging our technology for different platforms and we will be sharing more info on our plans in the near future.
One thing I’ve always been enamored with in regards to Turbine is your dedication to your games. How long do you plan on supporting Lord of the Rings Online?
For a very long time. One of the exciting things that happened as a result of our successful launch was that Tolkien Enterprises extended our license to 2014 with an option to extend to 2017. That means we have a lot of time to cover a lot of material. Our first title, Asheron’s Call just celebrated its 9th anniversary and its 100th content update. We know how to create these experiences that can last for years and years and we have every intention of doing that with LOTRO. It’s our sincere hope that this online Middle-earth can evolve and persist for a long time to come.
