Lord of the Rings Online celebrates its 16th anniversary this year and released update 35.1 (oh my) last week, adding a cool new raid along with a host of upgrades and gifts for players. Players looted the Demon Lord's citadel in Angmar long ago and evicted the ghosts that live there, but it turns out that, like other evils in Middle-earth, they probably should have thrown it all into the volcano for good.

"Gwathrenost, the Citadel of the Demon King" is a new raid for level 140 players, set in the re-created Khan Dum! This raid will soon be playable at Tier 1 and Tier 2. The citadel of Gwathrenost, once the residence of the Demon Lord of Angmar, casts a long shadow over the city of Khan Dum. After the regent of Angmar was deposed, the remnants of the Iron Crown have crept from the shadows, mastering the artifacts of the lost Demon Lord and attempting to regain control of the realm," the announcement reads (opens in new tab).

Kudos to Tolkien. They were all the coolest. Gwaslenost

4otro's 16th anniversary update also added new customization options for those playing as humans, greatly expanding what you can do in the looks department of your character. There are more options that can be shared between men and women, and several textures have been upgraded to improve their appearance. The range of body proportions has also been expanded.

"We want as many players as possible to feel represented in the game, so we are introducing new character creation options for face, hair, and body," the developer says, "but there is more work to be done for more diverse options and we will follow up with more in the future He stated.

Lord of the Rings Online is certainly an old MMO at this point, but it is still doing very well. Developer Standing Stone Games has outlined a wealth of updates and additions planned for this year. In addition to updates to classes, crafting, and playing as monsters, there will also be in-game events such as festivals and treasure hunts. Later this year, a new adventure will be released, raising the level cap, adding new classes, new instances, and new raids.

The full release notes for Lord of the Rings Online Update 35.1 can be read on the Lord of the Rings Online website (opens in new tab).