Initial release date: June 20, 2024
Genres: Role-playing video game, Adventure game, Fighting game
Developer: FromSoftware Inc.
Platforms: PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X and Series S, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows
Publishers: BNE LLC, Namco Bandai Games America Inc.
Keeping up with Elden Ring is an enormous task. One of my all-time favorite games, the base adventure has plenty of surprises, mystery, and depth. While not surpassing the original campaign, Shadow of the Erdtree does improve it by introducing a new, entertaining area to the Realm of Shadow. Fans of Elden Ring get more of everything that was successful in the main game with Shadow of the Erdtree, which is a great reason to brave its many perils once more. It features fun new dungeons, a formidable new roster of monsters, and a clever new method of growth.
Software expansions are well known for being far more challenging than the original game. The overall difficulty of Shadow of the Erdtree varies, of course, depending on the character you choose to play. Players are probably using late-game or New Game Plus characters because the sole prerequisite to start the expansion is beating Radahn and Mohg, while Shadow of the Erdtree needs having the original game. To put things in perspective, I started the expansion with my endgame (level 165), single-player character, who was more than capable of handling the new threats—at least for a little while.
These conditions mean that your character probably needs a very high number of runes to level up. Software eloquently took this into account when introducing two clever new progression items: Revered Ash Fragments and Scadutree Fragments. Spending these items at checkpoints, which are dispersed around the map, increases both total damage output and resistance: Revered Ash for your Spirit Ashes and Scadutree for yourself (albeit the benefit is exclusive to the expansion). I appreciate that you don’t have to grind for tens of thousands of runes to level up once—this is a really efficient way to build your character. This lets me roll with my favorite or favorites after they peaked in the standard game, and it’s also wonderful for augmenting maxed-out Spirit Ashes. These pieces won’t make your Tarnished into an invincible monster overnight, but they do make a discernible, if slight, change that keeps the game’s equilibrium intact.
Not to get too detailed, but Shadow of the Erdtree also makes a special effort to supply a plenty of smithing stones for upgrading the many new weapons (which you may use in the basic game) that are included in the expansion. This presents a compelling case for eschewing time-honored methods in favor of novel approaches. I obstinately stuck to the loadout that helped me win the main game during the wee hours. I eventually came across a ton of awesome and strong armor sets, spells, enchantments, and charms, which forced me to eventually design new, strong loadouts. With a cast of frightening, hideous, and occasionally downright strange new foes, Shadow of the Erdtree promotes experimentation just as much as the main game does.
It goes without saying that Shadow of the Erdtree is not a simple game. Now roaming the map as regular enemy types is an intimidating new class of armored enemies that in the base game would likely be regarded as mini-bosses. They’re so resilient that it surprised me when I saw them reappear after devoting a significant amount of time and energy to beating them once. The fire giants that thump over the map resemble baskets so much that they might as well be holding placards that read, “Mess around and find out.” That’s how strong and powerful they are. Creative new boss encounters present novel, frustrating challenges that made me cry in excruciating pain when I lost and ecstatic when I won. I won’t give all of them away, but a few enemies in particular might be just as challenging as Malenia. All of them are enjoyable to overthrow, and much like the main game, the pain of losing can frequently be eased by just switching to a different location.
Even while the Realm of Shadow is smaller overall, it is nonetheless very large and features many picture-perfect locations, some of which are difficult to even get to. Because of how skillfully From Software utilizes the verticality of the Realm of Shadow to conceal layers of important paths and entrances, don’t be shocked if it takes you many hours to finally un-fog the map. I like how visiting the Realm of Shadow seems very different than exploring The Lands Between because of this layer-cake style of worldbuilding. Most navigational puzzles can be solved by trekking up or down; the former frequently offers breathtaking vistas of the surroundings, while the latter leads players via underground passageways that reveal secret ruins, villages, and more. After more than forty hours of play, the excitement of discovery still serves as a strong incentive despite the growing difficulty of figuring out where to go next. My curiosity was typically rewarded with a cool location, a practical item, or a dangerous foe.
Thanks to numerous nifty and cunning surprises, the new dungeons—which including repeating ones like smelting forges and underground gaols—beg to be thoroughly explored, offering additional outstanding illustrations of From’s extraordinary level design. Even if there aren’t many discoveries as astounding as the subterranean cities in the main game, there were a handful that made me stop and appreciate their distinct visual identities. Getting to know the peculiar and dubious-looking people who work in these areas is a unique pleasure. The expansion’s bewitching but seductive attractiveness is enhanced by characters like a shadowy sorcerer pleading for favors or interacting with strangely altruistic bug warriors, even if you don’t really comprehend (or care about) what’s happening with Miquella and his followers.
Review Overview
Gameplay – 95%
Story – 92%
Aesthetics – 98%
Content – 94%
Accessibility – 75%
Value – 97%
Overall Rating – 92%
Outstanding
Summary: Shadow of the Erdtree can be summed up in a dry but accurate way: it is more Elden Ring. This expansion has all of the amazing feeling of exploration, amazing dungeon design, engagingly complex combat, fascinating lore, and compelling characters that characterized From Software’s 2022 masterpiece. From Software didn’t completely surpass its prior accomplishments, nor did it completely miss the mark and make Elden Ring worse. Even since Shadow of the Erdtree is no longer a total surprise and is instead a known quantity, it nonetheless maintains an extremely high level of status quo. However, Shadow of the Erdtree is an incredible minigame that solidifies this adventure’s status as one of the best ever created.