Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree: Everything we know about the DLC
21.02.2024 - 20:12
/ polygon.com
/ Hidetaka Miyazaki
Elden Ring fans will return to the Lands Between this summer with the release of the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC. FromSoftware’s major new expansion to its 2022 open-world action-role-playing game promises an all-new story, with new enemies to face and new weapons, armor, and spells to equip.
After more than two years, Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree will send players somewhere new, the Land of Shadow, for what promises to be a challenging adventure. FromSoftware’s DLC typically contains the developer’s hardest bosses and enemies, so expect a major test of abilities.
And while FromSoftware is keeping many details about Shadow of the Erdtree under wraps, here’s what we know about the DLC, based on its reveal trailer.
FromSoftware and Bandai Namco will release Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree on June 21, 2024. The expansion will be released on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC via Steam, just like the original Elden Ring.
The events of Shadow of the Erdtree take place in a new space known as the Land of Shadow. According to game director Hidetaka Miyazaki, that new land is an “entirely separate, physically separate map” that “technically occupies the same space as the Lands Between.” In other words, expect an alternate reality version of the world, similar to Dark Souls’ Artorias of the Abyss and Bloodborne’s The Old Hunters add-ons.
Miyazaki also told Eurogamer that the Land of Shadow is FromSoftware’s “largest expansion to date in terms of overall volume.”
Miyazaki says that Elden Ring players can access Shadow of the Erdtree’s Land of Shadow by visiting Miquella’s cocoon. In Elden Ring, that cocoon is only accessible after defeating Mohg, Lord of Blood, in Mohgwyn Palace.
Mohgwyn Palace can be accessed by a gateway teleporter in the Consecrated Snowfield or by using the Pureblood Knight’s Medal given by White Mask Varré at the end of his questline. In other words, Elden Ring players will need to have advanced far into the game to access Shadow of the Erdtree.
Players will follow in the footsteps of Empyrean Miquella and trace his journey to the Land of Shadow, which FromSoftware describes as “a place obscured by the Erdtree where the goddess Marika first set foot.” Players will encounter other characters who are also following Miquella, but have “ulterior motives.” Miyazaki likens the player’s journey of trailing Miquella to following the blessings from the Sites of Grace in the Lands Between.
In addition to a new land, which Miyazaki says will be filled with large-scale legacy dungeons as well as small- to medium-scale dungeons, players can expect new boss battles, new types of enemies, and new weapons, armor, and other equipment. Shadow of the Erdtree will, of course,