When Elden Ring released in 2022, I was a bit apprehensive at first. I’m typically not a fan of FromSoftware’s games; not because I don’t like challenging single-player content but I often find the slower pace combined with frustrating boss mechanics to simply not be fun. That being said, Elden Ring ended up as my game of the year in 2022, and I still think it’s the best open world game ever created. With that in mind, Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree expands upon almost everything from the main game and makes it even better.
Shadow of the Erdtree
The entirety of Elden Ring’s expansion takes place in The Land of Shadow, the birthplace of Queen Marika, with Kindly Miquella (in spirit) and his entourage of followers guiding the Tarnished throughout. While Elden Ring and Shadow of the Erdtree are said to take place concurrently, the latter does feel more like an expansion than a typical side quest DLC.
For starters, Shadow of the Erdtree is incredibly difficult. Nearly every major, and most minor, boss is a formidable opponent with a few even surpassing that of Malenia who was previously considered one of the most difficult bosses ever created. While being a high level alone won’t help too much in progressing through the DLC, having access to a variety of weapon builds and extra health or stamina certainly doesn’t hurt.
Another issue is that the requirements to enter the DLC require either completing two specific quests or having progressed significantly in Elden Ring. In order to access The Land of Shadow, the Tarnished must slay Starscourge Radahn and Mohg, Lord of Blood then interact with Miquella’s cocoon. Radahn can be fought after starting the festival by gaining access to the Altus Plateau and a portal to Mohg is found in the Consecrated Snowfield, however, players can fast track both of these events by completing quests for Ranni and Varre.
With those things in mind, I highly recommend completing Elden Ring and starting a New Game+ before venturing into Shadow of the Erdtree. Not only is the experience gained while combating the bosses throughout the main game is invaluable, but rushing to The Land of Shadow via the optional quests is likely to leave players under leveled with limited gear options.
Land of a Thousand Deaths
Upon entering The Land of Shadow, players will be greeted by one of the most stunning visuals I’ve ever seen. Unlike the golden Erdtree radiating in every direction in Elden Ring, players walk in The Land of Shadow to see the black husk of a tree dripping in fire and shadow. Where the Erdtree gives hope, the Scadutree spreads despair.
However, just because the visuals in Shadow of the Erdtree are terrifying doesn’t mean they also aren’t absolutely beautiful. Nearly every location in the game looks like it could have come from a masterpiece work of art. I personally found the different zones, villages, and fortifications more diverse and aesthetically pleasing than in the main game. Everything feels a bit more condensed, each boss feels unique, and new skill and weapon effects go over the top. Furthermore, the art team made excellent use of brighter color palettes to break up the browns, greys, and yellows that seemed to encompass the entirety of Elden Ring.
It’s a good thing the game looks amazing because you’re going to be here for a while. Likely, dead on the floor in the same spot over and over. Did I mention that the bosses in Shadow of the Erdtree are difficult? A lot of them make the base game look like easy mode while a few are absolutely relentless. Thankfully, despite the difficult level, most of the bosses are designed in a fair and fun manner…with one exception.
This might have to do with playstyle or build choices, but I found Commander Gaius to be the worst designed boss in the series. It seems that the FromSoftware development team caught on to the fact that most players were buffing and/or using summons at the start of each fight, so nearly every boss will rush directly at your face as soon as you pass through the mist.
Most of the time, this “fine,” however, Commander Gaius simply doesn’t let up. More often than not, his gigantic body and massive hitbox on attacks will simply pin the player against the entrance and kill them. If you’re lucky enough to roll away after being skewered to half health, he’ll just chase you…forever. I personally could not find a way to dodge his attacks and put myself into a position to counterattack before he went on the offensive again. So I did the only thing that seemed reasonable and put on heavy armor, gave my Mimic Scarlet Rot, and ran away until there was an opening for a few quick attacks.
While I absolutely hated everything about the Gaius fight, there are other bosses that I found more mechanically challenging, specifically the final boss which many people are considering one of the hardest ever designed. That fight is exceptionally difficult due to the speed needed to dodge its attacks, but most of my deaths felt like a skill issue and not an insurmountable task due to unfair hitbox designs.
Becoming the Elden Lord
The idea of boss fights that are even more difficult than in the base game might be off-putting to some, but thankfully, there’s a new means of progression in Shadow of the Erdtree. In addition to getting runes for additional levels, which will come in droves, two new upgrades are introduced: Scadutree Fragments and Revered Spirit Ash fragments.
The Scadutree Fragments increase damage dealt and reduce damage received while in The Land of Shadow. There are a total of 50 Scadutree Fragments scattered across the land with the initial upgrade requiring 1, each subsequent requiring 2 until level 10 and then levels 10 to 20 requiring 3 each. The initial upgrade is the largest, increasing damage dealt by 10% and reducing damage by 9.1%, and this scales up to 100% increased damage and 51.3% damage reduction at level 20.
Most of these will be found along the main path, with some light exploration or from killing bosses. I made it to the final area with Scadutree level 12 and eventually reached level 17 after exploring most of the game before beating the final boss.
Revered Spirit Ash fragments are essentially the same thing except for your summons. There are only 10 levels for the Spirit Ash blessing with the final requiring 5 fragments and increasing damage by 75% while reducing it 37.5%. I personally prioritized locating Scadutree fragments over Revered Spirit Ash because summons can’t help you when you’re dead.
In addition to raw stat upgrades, there are a plethora of really cool weapons in Shadow of the Erdtree. As a mainly dexterity player, Rakshasa’s Great Katana was a game changer. It’s essentially a bigger, stronger version of Rivers of Blood. Rellana’s Twin Blades are also very fast and fun to use allowing the player to hurl both magic and fire attacks.
Spear of the Impale provides both a great close-range fire area attack and a decent mid-range option, which is great for landing that finishing blow on tricky bosses. Finally, the inconspicuous Backhand Blade is a real all-star despite not being a ‘special’ weapon due to its extremely fast attacks and Blind Spot ability that lets you dodge enemy attacks while striking from the side. This just names a few, as there are dozens of new weapons and a lot of new or upgraded Talismans, which will really benefit certain builds.
Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree is a visual masterpiece with a breathtaking world to explore and has one of the most rewarding combat systems ever created. This is one of the few games I could see myself playing forever if there was a steady stream of new content to discover. However, it falls short of perfectly, mainly in the form of its storytelling.
The world of Elden Ring is fascinating, and while there are a few interesting side quests (mainly involving Needle Knight Leda and her entourage), the DLC’s ending is underwhelming and there was a missed opportunity to weave it into the main game. I do hope we will receive additional DLC in the future, and Shadow of the Erdtree is a must play for anyone who enjoyed Elden Ring.
Reviewed On PlayStation 5.
Edit: The original version of this review had a score of 9.4, which was an error from our backend. The correct score should be 9.5, now reflected in the piece. Apologies for the confusion here - curse using a literal slider to set this in the system. - Bradford
