It's a good thing I discovered early on you could play online to unlock the first four bonuses. However, it was disappointing to find out you cannot progress past mile 75 by playing online. I think you should allow player to pick up some miles (for example, up to 50% of the miles) for bonuses beyond mile 75. As it is, it's hard to know what triggers a mile bonus. Of course, it would cut into casino profits if players were allowed to earn up to 50% of the miles online after the Balrog bonus. So I doubt it would be implemented at all.

Hi rayd:

You have several good questions about Lord of the Rings such as:

• Are miles completely random?

• Does bet size matter in earning miles?

• Is 75 miles the most you can earn online?

As far as "profit" ... there is no direct correlation that I am aware of between miles, and how well a player does. In theory, a player could have a few massive hits, and it could carry them a long way to toward 100 miles.

However, it is fitting that you make it to your goal in the casino, rather than at home!

//// the Shamus ////\

Played LOTR at Foxwoods, complete blast. Hit 387.00 on one bonus round. Can't wait to play again.

There have been several questions about the miles and their role in the game and here online. Here's how they work: Miles are randomly awarded during the base game. It's a completely random determination, not associated with the amount wagered. So, it doesn't matter whether you are a max bettor or a min bettor, you have the same chance of being awarded a mile. The number of miles you have collected only affects which bonuses you can choose from when the bonus is triggered. It does not affect the frequency of the bonus triggering.

You can only win miles online to unlock Bonus five, The Balrog Bonus. The remainder of the miles must be earned in the casino game.

KirkKirk

Hi pouty:

What kind of a bet were you rockin' to get a hit like that? Is that a max bet? Any pictures, by chance?

Nice hit.

//// the Shamus ////\

Hi Kirk Kirk:

Do you know how cool it is to get clarification from the designer of the game? Amazing!

Thanks!

//// the Shamus ////\

Played this last weekend at the South Point. Had $15 of free play on mine and my wife's card. Cashed out $80 after an hour. Not bad on free $$$$. Was playing for a while and the the screen darkend up and Gollum showed up on the top of the screen, and i was like "Great, he's gonna mess this up" then BAM.....started scattering "WILDS" all over the place...NICE!!! My favorite game now.

i have played for about 8 hours in total

loss to date about $600.00

roi about 88%

one needs to hit a few large bonuses to have a chance

varied my bet from 1 credit to max credit

kept track of bonuses received

bonus type received does not seem to be a function of credits played

number of bonuses received does seem to be a function of credits played , single credit gives one about 50% less bonuses than playing 2 or more credits

Hi rsa22222:

According to Kirk Kirk, the machine keeps track of the number of bonuses, and the highest reward on that bonus.

Can you share that information with us?

Hope you are still having fun ... and not spending more than you can afford to lose.

//// the Shamus ////\

Since my last post I played the Isildur's Sword bonus a few times and completed the sword on my 3rd or 4th try. That was pretty cool. I was betting 80cents, so the completion bonus was $60 for a total of $88 or so.

I also played the Balrog bonus, which is very reminiscent of the the Red Alert Bonus in Star Trek. The first time I hit it, I won 80 cents and the second time I hit it I won $120.00. (Betting 80 cents and $1.20 respectively)

The_Shamus, I like the "old-school" feel of the high score counter too. I wish I could compare my totals against a global table though. That might be interesting.