Those who were sitting on the wall about Lord of the Rings Online can now download a seven-day trial version of the game to check it out. Characters created during the trial can be transferred to the full game if one wishes so.

The second free update for subscribers to The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar has been released. Dubbed Book 10: The City of the Kings, the update continues the epic story, adds over 100 new quests, implements significant enhancements to monster play and introduces the Reputation and Bartering systems.

The referral program for The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar is now live, offering subscribers of the MMORPG the opportunity to refer friends to the game and earn credits for free game time.

From Turbine, Midway and Codemasters comes word that The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar has officially entered beta in North America, with the pre-beta launching in Europe. Interested participants can enter the beta program by clicking here; the beta is by invitation only and over time more and more players will join the fray. According to Turbine CEO, Jeffrey Anderson, the beta already has nearly 200,000 players registered and will be one of the “largest beta communities” in the industry.

Turbine announced that The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar has entered the alpha phase of development. The company also announced that over 125,000 have signed up for the Beta program. In response to increasing demand, the studio is expanding the beta program, letting in more tens of thousands of people into the program in the coming months.

Based off the literary works of J.R.R. Tolkien, and inspired by the Peter Jackson film trilogy, Shadows of Angmar lets players explore the world of Middle-earth, defending the lands from the Dark Lord Sauron.

A playable version of The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar, the only MMORPG based on the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, will be present at E3. Turbine will be hosting the event at its booth (#2900, West Hall).

The studio will also begin the registration process for its beta program for LOTRO and offer a playable version of the Weathertop experience in its booth.

Midway has unveiled its full lineup for this E3 the company will showcase the following titles at its booth (#4001, Petree Hall):

• Stranglehold (PS3, Xbox 360, PC)
  
• Unreal Tournament 2007 (PC, PS3)
  
• Blitz: The League (Xbox 360, Wii, PSP)
  
• Mortal Kombat: Armageddon (PS2, Xbox)
  
• Spy Hunter: Nowhere to Run (PS2, Xbox)
  
• The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar (PC)
  
• Rise & Fall: Civilizations at War (PC)
  
• Happy Feet (PS2, GameCube, Wii, GBA, DS, PC)
  
• The Ant Bully (PS2, GameCube, GBA, PC)
  
• The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy (PS2, GameCube, GBA)
  
• MLB SlugFest 2006 (PS2, Xbox)
  
• RUSH (PSP)
  
• Mortal Kombat: Unchained (PSP)
  
• NBA Ballers: Rebound (PSP)

Both Turbine and Codemasters have announced that the latter will publish Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar in Europe. Codemasters will be responsible for the distribution, hosting, community management, technical support and billing for the title when it launches in the first quarter of this year.

The MMORPG’s Euro site and forums have gone live following the announcement.