Homeward bound

​ ​The variety and depth of emotions video games are able to conjure up never ceases to amaze me.

 

They can come from the most unlikely of places, at the most unlikely of times, and in the case of my return to The Lord of the Rings Online this past weekend, aren't always an intentional part of the game experience.

 

I strutted into the lands of Middle-earth expecting to ease my way back into another epic series of grand adventures. What I got instead was a homecoming.

 

Though it took place inside a digital world I only got to know a year ago, I felt like a grown man returning to his boyhood home. It was an unexpected experience, but certainly welcome.

 

Like all dwarves, I cut my teeth in the lands of Thorin's Gate. I picked up my very first axe in those frigid lands to the east, donned my first suit of armor there and killed more than a few invading goblins.

 

But like any good adventurer, I eventually left my home behind and set out to make a name for myself. There were rumors of a dark army rising in the East, and all sorts of trouble with warlords, orcs and the like between the lands of Ered Luin and the shadowy regions of Mordor, and I figured I could at least lend a helping hand.

 

My wanderlust eventually subsided, though, and so I found myself content to settle down in the lands of Bree. I've seldom ventured past the Lonelands this year and, on the rare occasion I needed to earn some rent money, felt content to simply stay close to home. If my younger dwarf-self could see me now, he'd probably give me a sound (and well deserved) thrashing.

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Perhaps that's why I decided to return to the world of LOTRO this past weekend--to once again venture into regions unknown and explore more of its great big wonderful world. But rather than push forward into the war-torn regions beyond my new home, I was surprised to find myself revising my past instead. And, even more surprisingly, it left me feeling every bit as nostalgic as I would have had I made this journey to my birthplace here in the real world.

 

I know this because I made just such a trip earlier this year. I had not been home in half a decade, so it felt like time to make a day trip and see how the place was holding up. Everything felt so familiar and yet so alien at the same time. And smaller, maybe?

 

Buildings were erected where before there had been none. Some of my favorite haunts had apparently been closed long ago. And then there were the people. They looked familiar, but I knew none of them. We were no longer a part of one another's worlds.

 

In LOTRO, a full day passes in the span of a couple hours. The entire world moves at that accelerated rate, which means you can take care of some pretty grand adventures in a single play session. Feats that would take weeks to complete in the real world can be finished in a matter of hours. And then there's the leveling mechanic, which constantly reminds you how much your character is growing and improving; growing older at an accelerated rate.

 

While I've only been a part of digital Middle-earth for a year now--and only off and on at that--it feels like I spent far more time there than I actually did. At least, I hope that's the case. I don't want to become that type of MMO gamer.

 

Rather than fast travel, I made my trek home the only way that felt fitting: on the back of my trusty steed. I rode through lands I had not seen in quite some time, marveling at the fact that, though I've been gone, they have still been carrying on. The locals still milled about and quests were still being doled out by the dozens.

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I paid a visit to the elves of Celondim and Duillond on my way, stopped by one of my first favorite fishing spots and made side journeys to see the areas that provided me with some of my earliest missions, discovering that group of rowdy dwarves were still making trouble near the River Lune and the forests of the Low-Lands are still crawling with vengeful spirits.

 

My real surprise came when I finally made it back to the snow-covered lands of Thorin's gate. I was unaware that the starting area had undergone a facelift, and so was shocked to cross into the frozen valley and discover, much like my recent trip home in the real world, that things felt familiar, yet oh-so-different.

 

I discovered roads I had never seen before, bridges I had never crossed, and mountainous structures being constructed where, before, there was only a narrow path leading into a cave. And as for all those new questers interacting with the NPCs, they certainly looked the part, but I knew I was no longer a part of their world.

 

Despite its grandeur, Thorin's Gate now felt miniscule. It took this return trip to the place I first called home to remind me how much of Middle-earth I had seen and, more importantly, how much more was left for me to experience.

 

I think I'm ready to make the trip back to my little home in Bree now, but I don't expect I'll be staying very long. I need to grab some supplies and make sure I've got plenty of free slots left in my inventory. The road is once again calling my name, and I am once again ready to see where it takes me.