Xsolla shares how its video game specific anti-fraud solution helped MMO title Lord of the Rings Online reduce its fraud rate and double conversions using Xsolla's technology.

Lord of the Rings Online, the massively multiplayer online role-playing game based on the work of J. R. R. Tolkien, launched more than a decade ago and continues to innovate on behalf of its large, passionate fanbase.

The free-to-play MMO wanted to update a core element of the game experience—its online store—and improve support and communications for players. They were also looking for better fraud protection.

Lord of the Rings Online launched under Turbine as a subscription game back in 2007. They soon shifted to a free-to-play model with an online store, an ahead-of-the-curve move that Turbine credited for the game’s exponential growth. In 2016, the group that had been working on the game at Turbine took over development as Standing Stone Games. Today – twelve years since launch – Standing Stone Games continues to develop Lord of the Rings Online under publisher Daybreak Game Company (Warner Bros.). They recently released the game’s sixth expansion pack.

Xsolla Gateway partners benefit from the same detailed visibility into all transactions as those who use Xsolla as a merchant of record.

Game developers large and small turn to Xsolla’s tools and services to help grow their game business. In the standard agreement, Xsolla acts as the merchant of record for the game, managing relationships with a wide range of global payment providers and maintaining compliance for each region around the world. Not only is this a huge time-saver for game developers, Xsolla protects them from the risks and costs associated with lack of compliance and fraud.

When game developers have the ability to manage risk and operate contracts with payment providers themselves, Xsolla Gateway offers another integration option. With Xsolla Gateway, Lord of the Rings Online benefits from Xsolla’s tools and services, including:

Custom Store

• Increased store conversion rate: Prior to working with Xsolla, Lord of the Rings Online’s store’s look and feel didn’t match the game. This raised the suspicions of game players – could they trust this store? – and they were more likely to avoid or cancel purchases. Lord of the Rings Online and Xsolla worked together to create a store interface that matched the look and feel of the game. This consistency helped earn player trust, resulting in more purchases and fewer cancellations.
• A seamless transition for players: A good user experience is critical for successful sales, which is why it was so important that Lord of the Rings Online's new store allowed players to make purchases without re-entering their payment information. Xsolla preserved the industry standard “one-click” payment experience by transferring all user account information from Lord of the Rings Online. Not only was there was no need to re-enter payment information—the entire transition process was invisible to game players.

Transaction Reporting & Anti-Fraud

• Detailed transaction reports: Xsolla provided transaction reporting via an online dashboard to help reconcile amounts from each payment system—the same detailed transaction reporting system that Xsolla provides for merchant of record partners.
• Fraud detection and dispute handling: Xsolla advised Lord of the Rings Online on the optimal parameters to pass with transaction data in order to assist with fraud detection and dispute management.
• Configurable fraud filters: With Xsolla, game developers can set limits on the number of accepted payments per player within a configurable time frame (from one minute to months) based on the game’s risk and/or frequency of fraud. In Lord of the Rings Online's case, Xsolla set a higher threshold to increase conversion rate and customer satisfaction.

Customer Communications and Support

• Enabled emails for in-store purchases and other player communications
• Shared customer support resources to support player issues and questions
• Added new support channels, including chat, Facebook and a toll-free phone number, making it easier for players to contact support
• All player data is stored securely and is fully GDPR compliant.

Xsolla’s Gateway solution gave Lord of the Rings Online a flexible, reliable and efficient solution for updating the game experience and almost doubling the number of store conversions.

Even with a long track record of success and a very dedicated fanbase, Lord of the Rings Online still needed to stay on top of the latest trends and challenges in the marketplace. Xsolla Gateway gave Lord of the Rings Online an advanced approach to transaction analysis and fraud protection, which dramatically decreased fraud rate from 0.6 per cent to 0.1 per cent.

Also, a result of their new, customized store, Lord of the Rings Online store conversions soared. After launch, the conversion rate was 42 per cent and, in just one month, it climbed to 62 per cent. Today the conversion rate is 82 per cent – – almost double the initial rate.

Lord of the Rings Online also saw rapid growth in-game players following the Xsolla Gateway integration. There was a 700 per cent increase in the number of returning game customers from launch to present day.
Perhaps best of all, everything in the Xsolla Gateway integration – from creating the customized store, integrating the new payment provider for Lord of the Rings Online, to transitioning all users accounts – was completed quickly and on time.

By working with Xsolla, Lord of the Rings Online gained a partner in growth, innovation and fraud protection, freeing the game developers to focus on the best part—ensuring the game continues to stand out in the fiercely competitive landscape.

For your risk-free trial of Xsolla Gateway, contact [email protected].

About Xsolla
Xsolla delivers a comprehensive suite of tools and services that make it easy to launch and monetize games and products globally. Serving only the video game industry, the Xsolla product suite caters to businesses from indie to enterprise, with: Pay Station and its #1 Anti-fraud solution, Partner Network, Site Builder, Store, Login, and Launcher.

These Xsolla tools work seamlessly to eliminate the friction in distribution, promotion, sales and payments so developers, publishers, and platform partners can increase their audience, sales and revenue. Headquartered in Los Angeles, with offices worldwide, Xsolla operates as a merchant and seller of record for major gaming entities like Valve, Twitch, Ubisoft, Epic Games, and PUBG Corporation.