I got a pretty good sense of how things would go down in Shadow of the Erdtree when, mere seconds into my preview session, I found myself ambushed and fighting for my life. My scenic ride through golden fields was interrupted by a hunched monstrosity with dual discs, who pounced on my head and wouldn’t give me a second to breathe. A boss fight, you might ask? Nope – this was just a regular enemy. There’s a definite sense that even normal enemies in the Land of Shadow hit harder, and are simply more aggressive, than those in the base game. With danger around every corner, you’re kept constantly on the defensive, rekindling that same mixture of fear and excitement you likely felt when taking your first steps through The Lands Between.
This is a DLC that’s perfectly pitched to challenge Elden Ring veterans, then. But more than that, Shadow of the Erdtree feels like a FromSoftware greatest hits album. It takes all the things that made Elden Ring extraordinary – its grandiose atmosphere, memorable boss fights and darkly humorous level design – refines these elements, and turns the volume up to 10. Better still, it gives you an even wider range of weapons and tools with which to explore these features. And honestly, what else could you want from an Elden Ring DLC than more of the good stuff?
One thing that does feel different, however, is that the Land of Shadow has a rather more ominous atmosphere than the other regions in the Lands Between. After defeating Radahn and Mohg, you can hold Miquella’s withered hand to be transported to this new area. Here, blackened veils drape across the sky, buildings are swathed in heavy cloth, and ghostly tombstones loom from the ground in a golden valley called Gravesite Plain. One of the key themes in this realm is death – or at least, the many different death rites and rituals that have been forbidden by the Golden Order. As Elden Ring loreheads will know, Marika sealed away the Rune of Death to achieve immortality for herself and her offspring, making all other death rituals taboo in the process. In the early stages of my journey through the Land of Shadow, I came across a tower called the Pillar of Suppression, at the top of which read: “The very center of the Lands Between. All manners of Death wash up here, only to be suppressed.” It seems this place has been deliberately hidden from view by the Golden Order, to conceal anything that might trouble the prevailing belief system.
