Only the first option has always been around. Being able to completely hide your online status is brand new.
Unless new configuration options may appear without an update, it is not "brand new". I just checked and I have that option, and I updated WhatsApp in August 14, when I was forced to do so. My version is 2.22.16.75.
https://www.livemint.com/technology/tech-news/whatsapp-bring...
That is indeed how WhatsApp seem to have been rolling out features recently.