Skip to main content

Long read: The beauty and drama of video games and their clouds

"It's a little bit hard to work out without knowing the altitude of that dragon..."

If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy.

10 years later, The Lord of the Rings Online finally makes it to Mordor

One does not simply release an expansion.

The Lord of the Rings Online finally gets to Mordor at the end of this month - over 10 years after the game came out.

The Mordor expansion launches on 31st July. As you'd expect it's set in Mordor, the black, volcanic plain occupied and controlled by Lord of the Rings supervillain Sauron. It includes over 300 new quests, a new allegiance system, a level boost, the high elf race and a couple of new titles, one of which is the appropriately titled "Walked into Mordor".

The Lord of the Rings Online launched back in April 2007 as a subscription-based MMO, but successfully transitioned to free-to-play in 2010. Initially developed by Turbine, The Lord of the Rings Online is now maintained by Standing Stone Games.

Watch on YouTube

Mordor is the sixth expansion for the game, following Mines of Moria in 2008, Siege of Mirkwood in 2009, Rise of Isengard in 2011, Riders of Rohan in 2012 and Helm's Deep in November 2013.

It took Lord of the Rings Online 10 years to get to Modor, then, which is only slightly longer than it took Frodo Baggins in Peter Jackson's movies.

Read this next