Technomage wrote on Feb 15
th, 2019 at 12:10pm:
Who was Doctor Octothorpe with regards to LotRO?
Not sure if your question was answered.
Ben Schneider, aka dococtothorpe, was the lead designer for LOTRO, in a similiar fashion that steelstar is the lead designer for DDO.
In December three members of the LOTRO team were laidoff/fired/left by mutual agreement. A world builder, the head of the Art Department as well as DocOctothorpe.
At least one world builder from LOTRO was reassigned to DDO last fall, Fantus. Rumor mill suggests a second World Builder was also reassigned but I cannot confirm this.
The writing is all over the wall that LOTRO is not doing well, the Mordor Expansion (and subsequent updates) have not been, what's the term, well received by the player-base at large. Add in the fact a new MMO based on the Tolkien license at Athlon is in the works (set prior to the LOTRO but still in Middle Earth).
At the same time the number of people working on DDO has been increasing...