A game that was ready to be released, is well supported, has mature players and will be around for some time to come.
That said I started playing this game in closed beta many, many monthes ago. I have enjoyed the game since I first started playing it. I played WoW for about 18 months and I still occassionally play it, because my son plays and we join up once and a while. But I like LOTRO better, which leads most to the question of "Why?".
The biggest difference to me isn't the gameplay or graphics it is the maturity level of the players. Not all WoW players are immature and rude but many are and it really takes away from what is probably the single most defining game in the MMORPG genre to date. In LOTRO I have found a community of gamers that enjoy playing with each other and don't talk a lot of trash or 'kid' talk. That makes the game a 10 right there for me.
Nonetheless the game still needs to be enjoyable and below is how I rated the game and why:
Gameplay (8/10): The game does play a lot like WoW, but I like the interface better (more sleak and smaller) and I enjoy the quests far more. I've read others say the quests are boring and say 'go here and go there', but lets face it other MMORPGs do the same thing. I like the 'Book' concept of questing and the feeling of being part of the lore. That makes the game play fun and exciting... and expandable. The only draw back to me is the lack of mobs at times. The spawn rate on key mobs can be lengthy and you will see from time to time a stack up of people waiting in one location for a key mob. This seemed to happen more with LOTRO then other MMORPGs.
Graphics (9/10): I like the graphics. I've read others say they are to 'boxy' or don't look right but in all honesty with the settings near max things look amazing to me and the performance is still excellent.
Sound (7/10): The sound quality is good. The ambient sounds are quite nice. But mob sounds and quest givers tend to get repetitive and old. I hate going to someone who is giving a quest and having them ask in an annoyed voice "What do you want?". There isn't much variety in what is said, that is a big shortcoming to me.
Value (9/10): This game can be expanded on quite a bit and it can grow and expand the original story and beyond. You can replay different classes and races. Reviewer's Tilt (9/10): I like MMORPGs and especially this one because the players are mature and polite unlike other MMORPGs. The story is solid based on a well established lore and the developers did an excellent job of staying with that lore rather then adding frills to attract a younger audience.
If you are an LOTRO fan you will love it. If you are tired of the immature WoW crowd you will enjoy it. If you want are a diehard WoW fan who thinks that PVP is a 'real' form of multiplayer competition, you'll hate it.