Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree DLC Review

ign.com:

When I gave Elden Ring a 10 two years ago, I did so not just because it’s an incredible game, but because it also raised the bar for open-world games as a whole. The way it encourages exploration, rewards curiosity, and challenges you to find your own individual solutions to difficult combat encounters by including tons of different viable weapons, spells, and other build options is absolutely exemplary. Now, FromSoftware is back to raise the bar on everyone yet again, this time when it comes to what you’d expect from a "simple" DLC. Shadow of the Erdtree may not do anything radically different from the base game, but this expansion somehow feels like a scaled-down version of that same experience that recaptures all of the magic of playing Elden Ring for the first time, with more content packed within than many fully priced games. Its unexpectedly large realm is filled with new secrets, new discoveries, a ton of new build options to experiment with, as well as some of the most challenging and unforgettable boss battles Souls fans will have ever seen.

I strolled into Shadow of the Erdtree thinking I was some kind of Elden Lord badass, having defeated Malenia, Mohg, Placidusax, the Elden Beast, and every other big threat around. My level 150 character was armed with fully upgraded gear and the maximum number of flasks… but let me tell you, it did not take very long for the Realm of Shadow to humble me. Even though the only requirement to access the new areas is to beat Radahn and Mohg – which, granted, is no small feat – you’re going to want to over prepare before stepping foot into this new arena, because it is brutal. FromSoftware definitely skirts the line between fair and unfair with some of the later boss designs in particular, perhaps getting closer than ever. But crucially, it never actually crosses that threshold, and that masterful tightrope walk – along with some truly spectacular boss design – results in some of the most thrilling and satisfying bosses