Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree

When I first played Shadow of the Erdtree when it was first released, that being June 2024, I was initially going to review the DLC as soon as I completed it, but I decided to hold off until now. That was because I was unsure of whether I could write a proper review due to one particular aspect. See, when the DLC came out, it received some criticism for being too difficult and, while this mostly came down to one mechanic that I'll cover later on in this review, this was something I struggled to accurately judge since I was playing in new game ++. This meant that, by default, enemies had more health, took less damage and hit much harder. While I do believe that I could've written up a good review at that point, I felt the need to wait. I would come back to the game someday and play through the DLC at the default difficulty so that I could give my unblemished thoughts on the bosses, enemies and the general mechanics at play. Additionally, I decided, since this was my second playthrough of both Elden Ring and the DLC, that I would stop using the spirit ashes. This was specifically so that I could focus on the enemies' move-set, something which having a Spirit Ash compromises as the boss shifts their attention back and forth. Now that I've covered all of that, let's move onto my thoughts with regards to Shadow of the Erdtree.

The DLC tasks the player as a Tarnished seeking to become Elden Lord, traveling to the Land of Shadow in pursuit of Miquella, a Demigod and Empyrean. However, as they journey through the lands, it becomes clear that a war has been waging for a long, long time. Under orders from Queen Marika, the god of the Lands Between, Messmer the Impaler and his army are fighting a crusade against a group of people called the Hornsent. This campaign is genocidal in nature with the ultimate goal being the complete eradication of the Hornsent. So brutal is the nature of this conflict that Messmer's soldiers are described as having "set aside both honor and mercy" in pursuit of this task. In order to track down Miquella, the Tarnished will have to make their way through this warzone and face off against a variety of challenging foes.

What at first seems to be a tangent from the world of the base game - a seemingly standalone story - it eventually reveals itself to be an exceptionally important part of the world's lore. There are moments where I audibly gasped as I finally pieced together key information that would change how I viewed the world of Elden Ring and many of its characters. This, as is often the case in FromSoftware titles, is communicated through item descriptions, environmental observation and brief conversations with NPCs, requiring the player to work hard to put together the pieces until they finally see what it all means. While all of this rich, new lore is excellent and contributes greatly to the experience, there are a few areas that I think could've been improved. A few of the characters and bosses have surprisingly sparse lore and this dilutes our encounters with them when we've been so enriched by others. Additionally, there are some other storylines in the Land of Shadow that are unrelated to the pursuit of Miquella and the crusade being led by Messmer and, while these stories take concepts from the base game and expand on them in meaningful ways, I still wish that they could've been tied in somewhat with the main plot.

With regards to the gameplay, it should be no surprise that Shadow of the Erdtree provides a lot of content that builds upon the base game. New weapon types alongside more weapons in general, more armour, more ashes of war,  more sorceries, more incantations, more spirit ashes, more craft-ables etc., there is a large amount of new ways to build your character although the one downside to all this is that you have to reach the DLC itself before you can start messing around with these new additions. Incidentally, access to the DLC is located behind a powerful, optional boss late in the game and, while it is possible to reach this area relatively early, the boss itself means that it's rather unlikely for players to reach the Land of Shadow until they are most of the way through the main game.

However, arguably the most noticeable addition when it comes to gameplay, as well as the source of a lot of confusion around the time of release, is Scadutree Blessing. As you explore the Land of Shadow, you will find items called Scadutree Fragments which can be turned into Sites of Grace in order to upgrade your Scadutree Blessing. Each level gained will increase the amount of damage you deal as well as reduce the amount of damage you take, but this effect only works within the Land of Shadow itself. It's a clever concept as it rewards exploration and makes sure that players are not over-leveled by the time they reacch the DLC, which was released over two years after the base game, but with a few issues. The first was that of communication which, despite seeming quite clear to me from the marketing, caused many people to view them as optional to the experience. This could not be further from the truth as it quickly becomes apparent that the Land of Shadow was built around this mechanic and poorly engaging with Scadutree Blessing will result in your character dying in a few hits and nearly every enemy appearing to be a damage sponge. The second issue is that there is practically no room for error when collecting these fragments. The maximum Scadutree Blessing is 20 and, in order to reach that, you will have to find all 50 fragments, every single one. In my recent playthrough, I reached the end and realised that I'd only gathered 49 of them and I was not willing to look through every single Scadutree Fragment to find the single one that I missed. FromSoftware has slightly rectified this by adjusting the scaling so that earlier levels give you bigger boosts compared to later levels, but it does feel a little unsatisfying to look at your level 19 Scadutree Blessing and know that you could theoretically be one level higher. The addition of a couple of extra fragments would've given a little space for error while exploring. There is also a Shadow Realm Blessing which is boosted by Revered Spirit Ashes and boosts both your steed and spirit ashes in a similar manner to Scadutree Blessing.

Now, let us return to the whole reason I delayed my review in the first place; the difficulty. Even with proper development of Scadutree Blessing, there is no doubt that Shadow of the Erdtree is harder than the main game. The easiest example of this are the bosses which are now more aggressive than they have ever been before. Their attacks consist of long combo chains with little delays that'll throw off your rhythm, meaning that you have to learn their combos rather than merely reacting if you are to stand any chance of avoiding damage. In addition, finding openings where you are safe to attack is much harder and most attempts at doing a melee combo or a long spell cast will result in you getting hit. However, while it is harder to deal with than before, it is possible. Once I learned their tells and the timing of their attacks, I found myself able to dodge the majority of their attacks while finding those fleeting moments of vulnerability. However, I do feel the need to mention that the final boss of the DLC, who I will not name due to spoilers, is easily one of the hardest bosses that FromSoftware have ever created. Even after a nerf that allowed for more openings between their attacks, the fight was still brutal and pushed me to the limits of my abilities and strategies.

While you wouldn't expect too much of a graphical shift from the main game, it is worth noting that the visual presentation of the Land of Shadow is quite different to the main game. The moment you step out into the open fields, you'll spot that the colours seem even more contrasted than before with intensely dark shadows, blinding light and the dark crimson of Messmer's flame. This shift actually worked well for me as I always love high-contrast artwork and the blend of colours gave even more distinction between the various areas, something which was already very impressive in the base game.

With regards to the audio, vocal performances and sound effects are exceptional, as they often are in these games, but it's the music that truly stands out in this DLC. Several boss tracks are so hauntingly beautiful that I couldn't resist adding them to my work playlist and I would frequently be shocked, even when replaying the DLC, with how oddly soothing yet melancholic they were.

Shadow of the Erdtree is a tough yet satisfying expansion to the world of Elden Ring with plenty of fulfilling content, new ways to customise your playstyle and revelations that make you view the story of the main game in a different light. While it is not flawless, with a few questionable mechanics, it stands out as another triumph for FromSoftware and well worth the over two year wait.