Last year, Lord of the Rings Online released a “mini-expansion” that was, in truth, a brand-new starter experience. The studio introduced two beginner zones and an alternate leveling experience for those sick of the older ones or looking for a modern take.
While the zones were nice and the additional leveling path a nice one to have, it raised a question I think we should be discussing – namely, should caretakers of older MMOs spend any time to fashion brand-new beginner zones, such as World of Warcraft’s relatively recent Exile’s Reach, or is that a waste of resources when players are going to blow past it quickly and crave more content at the level cap?
Maybe it comes down to whether you want your game to have a better first impression for noobs or even more stuff to do for content-starved vets. In any case, what do you think? Is this something MMO studios should be doing?
Every morning, the Massively Overpowered writers team up with mascot Mo to ask MMORPG players pointed questions about the massively multiplayer online roleplaying genre. Grab a mug of your preferred beverage and take a stab at answering the question posed in today’s Daily Grind!
