The Lord of the Rings Online is the ultimate adventure, this massively multiplayer online role-playing game delivers an interactive experience brimming with life and filled with the familiar people, places and monsters from the most famous fantasy of all time. From the picturesque surroundings of the Shire to Moria, the most fearsome underground realm ever imagined, players will soon experience the world of Middle-earth for free! 

This game spans legendary Eriador, including the pastoral Shire, the Elven enclave of Rivendell, rustic Bree, and more. As the lands of Middle-Earth fall under a growing threat from the dark realm of Angmar, only the mightiest of deeds and the stoutest of hearts can halt the advance of Sauron's minions.

The game teams responsible for The Lord of the Rings Online (LOTRO) and Dungeons & Dragons Online (DDO) are now moving from Turbine to Standing Stone Games, a newly formed indie game studio. In addition, we’ve partnered with Daybreak Games to provide global publishing services. They’ve had a long, successful history developing and publishing MMOs, and we’re happy to lean on their expertise.

We're embarking on an exciting adventure as Standing Stone Games, a newly-independent studio staffed by people who have been working on DDO and LOTRO for many years. The teams remain very much committed to both games and are thrilled to continue development and operations of these games as an independent studio.  This is an opportunity for us to bring about our dreams while still working on two of the biggest licenses in video games. It's a huge honor, and for you this means your games will continue to grow and improve. We love to focus on games with a high level of depth and scope, and we can't wait to show you what the future brings. 

Although a great many exciting things are happening on our end, you'll be able to continue playing the game(s) you enjoy with as little interruption as possible. Our development continues on track, and the plans we have already announced remain firmly in our future view. Again, although we are a new studio, we are also the same developers who have been and will continue to work on our games. 

This is the year that LOTRO ventures forth into Mordor! We currently expect to release the Mordor expansion in the summer, and we'll have a lot more information as we get closer to the day of its arrival. 

Prior to Mordor, we have two big things happening in Middle-earth: Update 20, and our 10th Anniversary! We can't wait to celebrate a decade of Lord of the Rings Online with you. We'll be bringing out a new event that will serve as a fun centerpiece to complement the festival, along with our other, usual fanfare. We are planning a lengthy celebration livestream on Twitch and YouTube to celebrate a decade of LOTRO. We will see you in livestream chat and in-game! 

Update 20 will feature the region called the Wastes, where players will adventure through the bleak Noman-lands, dismal Dagorlad, and up to the very Slag-hills of Mordor. We will also take players to the Battle at the Black Gate, Lord Aragorn’s last, desperate gambit to divert the Enemy from the real threat. Delve beneath the earth through winding maggot-holes and the Towers of the Teeth in two capstone resource dungeons that can be played in solo and fellowship modes. Finally, Update 20 will offer you a chance to help the various companies within the Host of the West prepare for their final confrontation with the Dark Lord. In addition, the update will feature a new Featured Instance rotation, among other things.

With Update 21, we shatter the Black Gates and march into Mordor for our first expansion in nearly four years! In it, we will cover the fate of the One Ring and then embark on new epic tales, foraying into multiple regions of Mordor after the fall. There, we will encounter strange new monsters, new mechanics, and new treasures to be won. We will begin whole new storylines that look deep into Mordor and hint at things yet to come. We are making plans to debut a new playable race, the High Elf, along with aesthetic improvements to all playable races across the board. We also plan to add large group challenge content in the ensuing update.

Update 22 will round out the year, and is far enough away that we'd like to keep its content under wraps for now. Let's just say that we have years’ worth of plans for Lord of the Rings Online; stories to tell, lands to explore, and heroic deeds to be done. 

It remains an honor to be your Executive Producer, and we thank you again for your support. 

Key Features :

• Be a hero: Show the world your mettle and risk your life to protect all the Free-peoples. Combine class, race, traits and experience to create your own unique character. Forge your Fellowship and struggle together against evil with other adventurers in your campaign across Eriador. Work as a team leveraging your diverse talents, skill-sets and classes to gain strategic advantage.
• Evolving world: Unique instancing technology allows every player to make their mark within the world. Save a Hobbit village, clear a Dwarven mine, purify an Elven glade – the power is in your hands to change the fate of entire realms.
• Choose your lineage: Follow in the footsteps of your favorite Tolkien hero. Choose one of Middle-earth's signature races of Human, Elves, Dwarves and Hobbits. Mark your own place in history.
• Unlock the secrets of Middle-Earth: Working directly with Tolkien Enterprises, Turbine has crafted an experience directly from the literary works of J.R.R. Tolkien. Explore the pastoral Shire, roam the eerie Barrow Downs, visit elegant Rivendell, walk beneath the dark canopy of the Old Forest, adventure to the depths of Moria and discover many other locations fully realized from The Fellowship of the Ring.
• Classic characters: The faithful recreation of Middle-earth is populated with familiar friends and corrupt foes. Join in the battle against Orcs, Trolls, Spiders, Barrow Wights and the Nazgûl. Meet Elrond, Tom Bombadil, Bilbo, the Dúnedain and even members of the Fellowship itself.
• Intense combat: Combat in Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar grows in intensity as you master your skills and gain strategic advantage. Combine your efforts into devastating compound attacks. The game rewards those who join forces through an exciting combo system that amplifies the effectiveness of groups and fellowships.