Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree Review – No, It Is Not Overhyped, It’s Amazing

Elden Ring, to put it lightly, took the world by storm with its engaging combat, exploration, and general difficulty. souls-like games have been on the rise in popularity in the most recent decade thanks to the originality of FromSoftware. Shadow Of The Erdtree, Elden Ring’s first and seemingly only DLC package, launches June 21, 2024, and I’ll do my best to graze over as many details as I can without spoilers.

I wouldn’t call myself a fanboy of From Software, Elden Ring, or souls-like games. Still, I have thoroughly enjoyed every experience I’ve had since Dark Souls 2 and was equally excited to try out Shadow Of The Erdtree after slaying the Elden Beast in 2022. Like most modern games, the public cloud of opinions tends to alter expectations for big launches like this. Still, Shadow of the Erdtree confidently offers one of the best downloadable experiences to any game, aside from Elden Ring already being established as an all-time great.

How I Played The DLC and Prefacing Review Details

Just so we’re on the same page, the main storyline of Shadow OF The Erdtree can most likely take an experienced Elden Ring player about 15-25 hours. I did my best to experience the DLC naturally by exploring every nook and cranny, only to find exciting discoveries. Luckily, the exploring and adventure aspects of going off the beaten path were nothing short of a thrill ride throughout my 40 hours of playtime.

If you were wondering how legitimate this review would be, I completed and beat the main storyline and traveled every inch of the map in 40 hours, which is pretty fast. If I can guess, I explored 90-95% of this map before I finalized my opinions, as they changed frequently throughout my playthrough due to ups and downs between frustration and joy.

“Shadow of the Erdtree confidently offers one of the best downloadable experiences to any game.”

There is one side quest I can confirm I haven’t finished because I simply can’t find the character involved, or I don’t remember if I killed him. Nonetheless, I got my hands deep into Shadow of the Erdtree, tasking myself with anything I came across, and it was truly one of the best experiences I have had in gaming in quite some time.

Oh, and I basically just play the game with the Moonveil in one hand and a Glintstone Staff in the other, both maxed out. I also spam Ash of War and Glinstone Cometshards, along with timely dodges, of course, on an Intelligence and Dexterity build. I started the DLC at about level 165 and ended at around 190.

The DLC is quite challenging for any player, especially at level 165. So, I would expect fans to get little value from purchasing this DLC if they can’t handle the base game. This could be seen as a major flaw to some, but it’s simultaneous gold for an Elden Ring fan, a new challenge to be had.

Brief Backstory, Narrative, and Motive Behind Shadow of the Erdtree

Shadow of the Erdtree begins after defeating Radhan and Mohg in the base game. At the Cacoon behind where you meet Mohg, there is a hand that will allow you to gain access to the Shadow Realm, an area untraveled in the darkness.

Not only will you quickly be greeted by the expectedly terrific design direction of FromSoftware, a superb and vast space with beautiful music that gives you chills the second it hits you, but you will also meet Leda, a main character found throughout your trek.

Leda has one goal: to discover what happened to Miquella, a lost god. Even though Leda really cares about finding Miquella, I honestly didn’t. The Shadow of the Erdtree storyline is just as abstract and convoluted as the main Elden Ring world story, but that isn’t really why I play Elden Ring. It’s simply a cinematic marvel, and it’s also a fun time every time, so the story is just icing.

I will quickly note that playing the DLC did increase my interest in the lore and how Shadow of the Erdtree relates to the overall plot.

In addition to Leda, you will find other characters that may have insight into their connection to Miquella and her past, along with various side quests to endure, but I won’t spoil those. Just know that plenty of other storylines were just as interesting as the main path, so don’t be afraid to misdirect.

As mentioned previously, Miquella’s crosses are found throughout Scadu Atlas, which helps the player navigate to the correct general direction.

In general, the narrative and backstory of Shadow of the Erdtree tend to take a backseat. Other than cool boss cutscenes and interactions, there isn’t too much detail or involvement with dialogue. Combat and exploration take precedence over information and lore brain-storming moments.

Exploration, Map Design, and the Flow of Adventure

Shadow of the Erdtree provides the player with an Elden Ring experience at its core. Still, with a focus on verticality, exploration, and aesthetics, it truly rewards the player when traveling away from where you think the main story shall lead. You will often find deep labyrinths and alternate routes like the base game, opening up reasons why this DLC is worth $40 USD.

I appreciate the world design and the extreme labor it must have taken to craft such an intricate map that quickly became a new digital home. I soon forgot anything about the main game of Elden Ring… and my personal well-being, too. There were times when I was so intrigued about what came next that I forgot to feed myself, so that in itself is a testament to how engaging navigating the Shadow Realm is. The world is simply that big, allowing you to travel just about every inch of the world, and it never ceases to drive the player’s curiosity.

“The world is simply that big, allowing you to travel just about every inch of the world, and it never ceases to drive the player’s curiosity.”

The map is filled with confusing, brain-bending connecting paths full of “aha” and “ohhh that’s where that leads” moments. Also, due to the verticality, you can often see explorable areas, whether you look up or down.

If you think you can’t go somewhere, you probably can, so don’t give up.

Scadutree Fragments, Revered Spirit Ashes, and How Exploration Impacts The Player

While running around the Shadow Realm’s open map, you will come across Scadutree Fragments and Revered Spirit Ashes, which grant passive attack and defense percentage stats that only apply in the Shadow of the Erdtree world map.

Here is why you play the entire game before forming an opinion. At first, I couldn’t care less about finding these new items, as you couldn’t even check how they affect your base stats, so this layer seemed rather barren at first.

As I traversed further into the world, facing difficult foes, slaying dragons that made me rage a few times, and other secrets not worth spoiling, I quickly had my a** handed to me on a major side quest boss, my only main spoiler alert, Bayle The Dread.

He made me have that notorious Elden Ring feeling, “Am I supposed to be fighting this right now?” Not only that, but it was simply frustrating me, and I wasn’t having fun at this point. The boss was set up in a way that would either one-shot me right after walking the gate, or I wouldn’t have time to summon anything, quickly leading to my demise. I started asking myself if it was just me, but since this was a review, I carried on without scratching the itch of defeating Bayle.

How does this apply to Scadutree Fragments and Revered Spirit Ashes? Well, these items quickly changed from being something I didn’t care to find to instantly becoming all I wanted to find, other than fun collectible items and weapons to flex on friends, of course.

The more I played Shadow of the Erdtree, the more the world made sense, and the more I wanted to explore to gain strength as I started to really feel the effects of these Fragments later in my playthrough.

My frustration turned into motivation, a true testament to the emotional rollercoaster of Shadow of the Erdtree, as FromSoftware forces the player to explore side quests and hidden areas to become victorious, and it was no bother, but yet the best time.

By the end of my playthrough, I had a Scadutree Blessing of 17 and a Revered Spirit Ash Blessing of 9. I am sure I missed a lot, too, so if you aren’t close to those numbers, keep searching. You apply your findings at a site of grace.

Cosmetics, Customization, and Collectibles

Just like Scadutree Fragments, one can also benefit from exploration by finding a wealth of new items, weapons, spells, Ash of War, Talismans, Summons, Crystal Tears for the Wondrous Physick, armor, and last but not least, Cookbooks. When I say cookbooks, did I say cookbooks? They are everywhere.

Although I am more of a one-trick pony in these games, sticking to tactics I decided on from the beginning, many of the new weapons and armor are more than unique, setting themself aside from base game weapons. Shadow of the Erdtree is full of mini-bosses and strong enemies with unique abilities to steal after defeating them, granting incentive to kill anything you see. Not to mention, even more of a reason to kill foes in the DLC is collecting Scadutree Fragments, and Revered Spirit Ashes. Just know you will never know what you might find, so you are better off fighting what you see rather than running.

Anyway, the new armor, weapons, and ash of wars are full of flavor and style, providing an adjacent yet different take on skills you are used to seeing. FromSoftware makes your money worth it by allowing the player to collect a wide array of stylish and strong abilities.

Some weapons I collected are, but are not limited to promote your own need to collect, are Red Bears Claws, Spirit Sword, Spirit Glave, Sword of Night, Claws of Night, Euporia, Ancient Meteoric Ore Greatsword, and more! So I have heard there are 100 or so new weapons, and although I found a lot, I’ll never find them all. There are also secrets in which you can decide between two weapon paths, so choose wisely. I enjoyed seeing small decisions like these as they further enhance the RPG nature of Elden Ring.

I do not want to go over all the collectibles you will find, but just know there is something for every build here, whether it’s using new spells like Impenetrable Thorns, Giant Golden Arc, or new Ashes of War like Wing Stance or Aspects of the Crucible Wings, or maybe different armor sets like Gaius’ or Red Bears.’ Lightweight or heavyweight players, along with different spellcasters, are equally considered in Shadow of the Erdtree, so if you think otherwise, you probably haven’t progressed far enough to understand how much content there really is here.

Along with general abilities, a significant part of Shadow of the Erdtree is the addition of martial arts combat, which needs to be found rather than given. I can appreciate the creative contrast this fighting style might provide, and although it didn’t fit into my build, it was enjoyable to try out. And I think it fits right into the look and feel of the world rather than being a stick-out feature for people to overhype. You can also customize the martial arts with elemental ash of war upgrades to give it even more flare. Also, it seems like there was a bigger focus on close-quarters, quick-hand combat due to some of the findings along the Shadow Realm, in addition to the Martial Arts.

I didn’t touch on this too much, but going back to the cookbooks, you can collect Hefty Cracked Pots, which allow for new crafting consumables and benefits if you are into the crafting mechanic. I mostly skip over this aspect of the game, but Shadow of the Erdtree doesn’t let the player forget about it, as even the recipes play a vital role in progression. The use of cookbooks for puzzles and problem-solving was a surprising delight I didn’t get to experience in the base game. The mechanic didn’t seem overly complex, yet still satisfying to decipher.

New Combat Experiences, Unique Enemies, Bosses, and a Full Circle Challenge

As you can expect, there are plenty of new enemies to be fought in the Shadow Realm, along with other familiar faces. One important enemy to fight is the large Furnace Golems, which always drop crystal tears for your wondrous Physick. I particularly didn’t find killing these golems too hard, rewarding, or worth my time, but depending on your build, I guess you can find used to some of the spoils. In most of their abilities, you simply jump on the horse and attack his legs after, so he looks more challenging than he is. There are more brutal forms of the golems to be found, but I’ll let you figure that out.

Shadow of the Erdtree is full of exciting and fresh combat experiences, fending off new spells and enemy sword thrusts, especially offering a wide variety of mini-bosses, main and side bosses, mostly dropping worthwhile upgrades, armor, weapons, and don’t forget remembrances. There are new ways to duplicate remembrances, which was a pleasant natural find for me, so I’ll leave that left unsaid from here.

Generally, all enemies are hard to beat, and nothing ever feels too easy, while some parts of the game require stealth. I would have liked to see more of this creative gameflow where fighting off what was thrown at me was not an option, but I know combat is what makes Elden Ring shine. Just know that the part I’m referencing was rage-inducing.

As seen in the trailer, your main first boss is the Divine Beast Dancing Lion, and although he is still demanding, he’s a fair introduction to what’s coming next. You can see me wearing the Divine Beast’s head the whole review, both for stat boosts and irony. It’s just fun to wear.

“Shadow of the Erdtree is full of exciting and fresh combat experiences, fending off new spells and enemy sword thrusts.”

The end game of Shadow of the Erdtree is highly challenging, hard enough for me to spend over three hours studying every move and cast there is to dodge and still lose. There were also several side bosses that made me audibly rage and punch my chair, but over time, I prevailed, only to continue smiling my way through every step of the world.

Searching other parts of the DLC will benefit your chances of beating the final boss and maybe other bosses you can’t fend off, and this quickly became the best part of the Shadow of the Erdtrree experience. At first, I didn’t enjoy how strenuous some of these battles were. Still, you quickly realize that discovering local talismans, Scadutree Fragments, Revered Spirit Ashes, and other vital items dramatically improves your chances of defeating bosses you couldn’t otherwise. I can confirm this due to my ability to go back and defeat Bayle in less than five tries after sinking over two hours and getting destroyed by his mighty fire.

FromSoftware truly provides the player with a full experience since you almost HAVE TO search around to gain enough passive strength to beat the DLC. I was going to dock points due to how overly impossible Shadow of the Erdtree seemed at first, but playing the game more and more only asserted that my negative bias was incorrect. The indirect direction the player is forced to take here is a feat of game design.

Final Thoughts: Do You Need Shadow of the Erdtree?

Shadow of the Erdtree is an amazing game on its own, but that’s what it is. It seems a little too disconnected from the base game for my liking. Although that is also to the benefit of the DLC, there was really no other connection, quest, or reason to go back to the main world during my playthrough other than maybe a bell bearing or something like that.

Obviously, the lore is connected, but I forgot all about the base game while in the Shadow Realm. Take that as you will, but for someone who doesn’t yet own Elden Ring, if you are going to purchase the DLC, it will be half-priced if you buy the whole game together. However, make sure you intend to sink dense hours of game time before being able to play the DLC, let alone be experienced enough to fight off the challenge in the shadows.

Shadow of the Erdtree is more for someone who is an Elden Ring lover already, has beaten the game, or is highly skilled at these games. I’m worried that less experienced combat gamers will not be able to buy the DLC until they are confident in their skills or their enjoyment of the game, ostracizing the more casual Elden Ring player. The problem is that buying later will cost $40 instead of $20, so it’s your call. FromSoftware locks people into purchasing the complete package, but I think those buying this already know what stress is in store.

Regardless of skill, the DLC is aesthetically beautiful. You marvel at the top-tier layout everywhere, from colorful floral towns to dry Autumn mountain terrain. The game remains visually stronger than ever. Each location is very memorable, even more so than the base game.

Conclusion

Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree has raised the ante from the previous gift of a game Elden Ring was and will continue to be. There was a reason Elden Ring was game of the year, and if DLC can be game of the year, I would throw this in the running because it is simply that engaging.

I never wanted to put the game down or go to bed when my 5 AM sunrise shined through my window. I just wanted to see what Shadow of the Erdtree would throw next, but I have to remember we are only human, and rest is essential.

The expansion is substantial and independent, conveniently adding a new experience and fresh direction to your character’s development on your next playthrough.