While players of the Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree DLC continue to criticize the game on Steam for its difficulty and performance issues (neither of which are new to FromSoftware games) and give the game a "Mixed" rating, other parts of the internet are heaping praise on it, showing that there's more to it than meets the eye.
Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree DLC Review
The biggest complaint for most is that the difficulty is very high compared to the base game. While it is known to many that FromSoftware DLCs are harder than the original title (especially the bosses), considering how much more popular Elden Ring is compared to the studio's previous games, it's safe to say that this comes as a shock to most. High difficulty or not, it doesn't stop more skilled players from pulling off hitless runs. (Balance adjustments made since launch should help the struggling and possibly the user reviews. For now, we'll wait.)
On the other hand, one Reddit user said in response to a popular post praising the DLC content: “More map density, more verticality, less huge kilometer plains and themed dungeons; that's all you can ask for from an Elden Ring DLC.” Another noted, “It's really great once you get into it.”
It’s no lie that Shadow of the Erdtree is FromSoftware’s biggest DLC yet, with its massive map and wide variety of bosses to take down and dungeons to explore. Furthermore, the world design and sound are different from the base game, making it feel like an entirely new title, while the different environments feel like worlds unto themselves. The aesthetics of the environments are the same, and as such, accolades about how beautiful the game is have been flooding social media.
