The Lord of the Rings Online Gets Bigger

Turbine, Inc. and Codemasters Online Gaming have just announced the details of a third free content update for The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar.

This latest update is titled Book 11: Defenders of Eriador and expands the epic MMORPG with over 100 new quests, a new 12-player raid, two new areas in Middle-earth and an all-new player housing system.

"The Lord of the Rings Online has quickly become the hottest online game of the year," said Jeffrey Steefel, the Executive Producer. "Book 11 is our most ambitious update yet. We continue to define the standard in interactive storytelling with the next chapter of our epic story and introduce a wealth of new content including the housing system, which will give players the opportunity to live in their own home in Middle-earth!"

Book 11: Defenders of Eriador will be available to subscribers on October 24, 2007 in North America and a day later on October 25, 2007 in Europe.

EA & New Line Extend Agreement

EA has announced today that they have extended their agreement with New Line, allowing them to create games inspired by the Lord of the Rings movies and novels, through 2008.

They have also announced that a new Lord of the Rings themed game is in the works, and will ship in 2008. Although, no definite details of the game have been released. Perhaps it will be their RPG, Lord of the Rings: The White Council? Lets hope.

EA Ships BFME Anthology

Electronic Arts has announced that their complete collection of the Middle-earth RTS series, The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth Anthology, has shipped to North American retailers today.

The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth Anthology includes The Battle for Middle-earth, The Battle for Middle-earth II, and BFMEII: Rise of the Witch-King. This compilation will be available for $39.99.

LotR: BFME Anthology Announced

While The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle Earth is hardly an RPG, it has many elements of an RPG that I figure RPG fans will enjoy (a fantasy world, unit customization, etc.).

Anyway, EA has announced a Battle for Middle Earth Anthology for PC, containing Battle For Middle Earth, Battle For Middle Earth II Collectors Edition, and Rise of the Witch-King. The three games will sell for $39.99 and hit retailers on March 20, 2007. If you haven't picked them up yet, here's an ideal chance!