Lord of the Rings' combat has the familiar slow-to-medium pace of most MMOs, and borrows liberally from the WoW-standard user interface. The class balance is good, and the characters themselves prove distinctive and fun, from the dual-wielding Champion to the concussive shouts of the Minstrel.
If there are a lot of familiar elements of the gameplay, there are also a lot of unwelcome ones. Apart fromthe storyline, most quests are of the tedious “collect ten pelts” variety. There's plenty of spawn-camping, even in the beta, and the high respawn rates ensure that half of your fights are going to be joined by a newly-minted monster.
Turbine has added a few evolutionary features — mostlyto keep the gameplay tightly aligned with the story and ethos of Tolkien's novels. For example, the death penalty is represented as Dread — which also afflicts you when you get too close to a Black Rider. Most famously, Turbine has implemented player-vs-player combat as “Monster Play.” Because two elves would not fight in Tolkien's world, instead players are able to take on the identity of a servant of Sauron to fight other players. You can't play the whole game as an Orc — but it's a great diversion from the serious business of saving the Ring.
And as unimportant as it sounds, you don't look for a group - you look for a Fellowship. This isn't so much a change of game mechanics as it is a change in attitude. It's a reminder that LOTRO isn't just a game: it's a world and a story that both players and developers truly care about. Maybe that's a small step toward a more respectful player culture, but it's still a welcome one.