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Everyone loves the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC for Elden Ring – actually, not everyone as the expansion’s Steam review has now dropped to “Mixed” amidst difficulty complaints.
At the time of writing, the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC’s Steam review is currently sitting at 63% positivity out of 30,480 reviews.
The main source of negativity stems from the difficulty of the DLC as many felt that many of the bosses and enemies were overly tuned and could one or two shot players to death with a flick of a finger.
“Now they’ve put Malenia everywhere, and I mean absolutely everywhere, these bosses do not let up, they don’t give you time to breathe. They will two to one shot you with a ridiculous combo that gives you no room and no margin for error, you make a single mistake and you’re dead, and that, is NOT fun at all,” reads one.
For context to non-Elden Ring players, before the DLC releases, Malenia was considered the most disgustingly (she’s the Goddess of Rot) difficult boss in the entire game.
Another review wrote that the bosses are capable of doing “bigger combos than your average Tekken 8 character and one shot you. This can also apply to regular enemies.”
Even popular Twitch streamer Asmongold chimed in on the difficulty and expressed his frustrations. That said, he is still reattempting the DLC.
Asmongold quit the Elden Ring dlc because it was “too hard for it to be fun” oh my lord pic.twitter.com/peGo0p9MRn
— Matt, Dad Hat Enthusiast (@TheChowderhead) June 22, 2024
Meanwhile, Kai Cenat who only recently started and finished the base game through a marathon stream stayed at the opposite camp and criticized those who are being overly negative without pushing forth – adding that it doesn’t make sense to release a DLC after two years since launch that is not as or more challenging than the end of the base game.
Kai Cenat speaks on the people who say that the Elden Ring DLC is “too hard” pic.twitter.com/FDni4mWstO
— Domain (@domainsdomain) June 23, 2024
Note that some of the negative reviews for Shadow of the Erdtree are about the game’s less-than-desirable performance, which is fair as Elden Ring does not exactly run the best on PC. I faced no significant frame drops during my time, but there were often textures and models popping in.
Now back to the topic of difficulty, many fans of FromSoftware may have already expected the DLC to be stupidly challenging as the studio is notorious for putting some of the toughest encounters in their DLCs – The Old Hunters for Bloodborne was wickedly brutal, while Dark Souls 3‘s The Ringed City is there to remind you that everything is out to give you that big “You Died” red text.
FromSoftware did not hide that the DLC would be far more challenging than the base game and even doubled down and warned players to get ready.
In an interview with CNET, director Hidetaka Miyazaki said certain bosses are designed to challenge players who’ve tackled a majority of the base game and added “which means we’ve kind of really pushed the envelope in terms of what we think can be withstood by the player.”
“Of course, some bosses are a necessary part of the story development and arc, but some are not,” Miyazaki continued. “The ones that aren’t are especially difficult, I think will pose a very good challenge and obstacle for players.”
Regardless of your opinions about the difficulty, be reminded of this wholesome player message shared throughout Dark Souls 2 – “Don’t give up, skeleton!”
Shadow of the Erdtree DLC introduces the Scadutree Blessing mechanic, which is a supplemental leveling system that encourages players to explore the Land of Shadow and gives them a sense of progression again after the base game.
This is a very important mechanic to engage with in the DLC as it bolsters the players’ attack damage and resistance to incoming attacks, scaling them better against the more aggressive inhabitants of the Land of Shadow. This also means that your base game end-game build will not feel as potent since the Scadutree Blessing gave you and the enemies a whole new scaling.
Also, you do not need to challenge major bosses early. You can explore around and find more Scadutree Fragments to upgrade your Scadetree Blessing, strengthening yourself before conquering challenges. A lot of bosses are also optional and always remember, Spirit Ashes and summons are tools in the game that are made to help you so do not be discouraged not to use them.
Hopefully, you are one of the cooler heads ready to prevail in the DLC because Shadow of the Erdtree is seriously a phenomenal expansion for the already amazing Elden Ring, which is why we gave it a 10/10 in our review.
Now would you excuse me so that I can go face Messmer for the 99th time – this time for sure.
