Lord of the Rings Online revs double after F2P switch

Turbine's MMORPG Lord of the Rings Online has seen a surge in success following its move to a free to play model, claimed its executive producer.

Speaking at GDC Online in Austin last night (as attended by Joystiq), Kate Paiz claimed that revenues had doubled since the switch last month, while the game had attracted over a million new registrations and a 400 per cent rise in active players.

20 per cent of lapsed players had apparently returned to the game since the change, while it now boasted three times the prior number of simultaneously online players.

"When you tell people you no longer have to pay for it, they come in droves," she stated.

53 per cent of players had indulged in microtransactions, claimed Paiz, who also headed up Dungeons & Dragons Online's move to free-to-play.

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