It's been nearly a month since the Dungeons and Dragons Online launch of Mod 8 and the community has responded both positively and negatively. One of the major features that didn't quite make the live push was the highly anticipated Hirelings system which was previewed a few weeks later. We had the opportunity to sit down with Kate Paiz, the games' Executive Producer. During our lengthy conversation we discussed Hirelings, the Druid class, Mod 9 and the Shavarath storyline; which we talked about in great length, several times!

Tamat :  So Kate, congratulations on the fantastic launch of mod 8.
 
Kate :  Thank you.
 
Tamat : You’re welcome.  It seems like the team put in a lot of hard work and they definitely pulled it off. It’s been an overly successful and a fun edition that reaches out to a lot of the current and new players at the same time.
 
Kate :  Absolutely.  We’re very excited about it.  It has definitely been something we’ve been working on for a while.  And it’s always nice to see the fruition of stuff that’s been in planning and in the works – a hireling system, we’re still shaking the last bit of bugs out of, has been something we’ve been excited about for a very long time.  And certainly the new player experience and character generation are going really well and we’re very pleased about that.

Tamat :  Awesome.  So let’s talk about mod 8, since it’s new. What can you tell us?  Just give us a brief rundown on everything that’s been modified.

Lord of the Rings Online Executive Producer Jeff Steefel recently told videogaming247 that Turbine will announce console MMO products early next year. No, that's not a typo. Turbine plans to release more than one console MMO!

“We’re really not talking about what our console product plans are, but we will be soon,” he said when asked specifically if we’re going to see a console version of LotRO.

“I would guess by early next year’s we’ll be able to be much more specific about what we’re doing with console, what kind of products we’re putting on console.”

Steefel further said that Turbine is in early development work with hardware manufacturers to "understand where they’re heading in the online space, where the connectivity between the console and internet is really headed."

You can read the full article here or below. Let the rumor mill begin as we wonder if we'll be playing LotRO on our consoles in the future.

Are you excited to enter the Mines of Moria ? Well, while you wait you can check out these new screenshots that were released by Turbine today of Redhorn Lodes, a new area in the expansion. The area looks massive, with huge pillars and stairways literally dwarfing (pun intended, sorry) any dwarf or hobbit who enters it.

All of the images can be viewed in our screenshot gallery . Also, don't forget to discuss the expansion in our forum .

Mines of Moria will introduce two new classes, the Rune-keeper and the Warden, as well as Legendary Items. The level cap will also be raised to 60.

New screenshots for Lord of the Rings Online: Mines of Moria , the game’s first expansion, were released today by Turbine , and they showcase a variety of creatures located in the “Foundations of Stone” area that are just waiting to be slaughtered by daring adventurers.

Turbine boasts that the expansion is "the largest and most dangerous online underground environment ever created," and these screenshots seem to attest to that fact. Eyeless beasts, giant spiders and blade-wielding monsters are shown in intricate detail in various caverns, giving a "survival horror" vibe to the area.

Check out all of the screenshots here and discuss them, along with the expansion, in our forums .

Turbine released eight new screenshots from the upcoming Lord of the Rings Online: Mines of Moria expansion pack. These new screenshots depict two new classes that are being added to the game: the Warden and the Rune-Keeper.

Mines of Moria, which is tenitively scheduled to ship around the middle of November -- promises to be every bit as enjoyable as the original content. Check out these new screenshots and let us know what you think in our forums.