Elden Ring: Shadows of the Erdtree’s opening hours are absolutely brutal

It’s been more than two years since the release of Elden Ring, a considerably long time for DLC to follow. So although the open world action RPG is FromSoftware’s biggest game to date, with many players still combing for its secrets and besting its fiercest bosses, those of us who haven’t returned since launch may be feeling just a little rusty.

That’s not necessarily a contributing factor for why Shadow of the Erdtree, the game’s only expansion and the largest expansion the studio has ever made, feels like a considerable step up in difficulty. But it certainly wants players to be well-equipped to brave its challenges, considering you’ll need to have not only defeated Starscourge Radhan but also Mogh, Lord of Blood, a powerful optional boss not everyone will easily discover the first time around.

Given that the preset builds available for our recent hands-on all started at Level 150, which is where most of us reached by the time we were able to take down the Elden Beast, I would hazard a guess that most players will want to have reached the endgame before making their way into the Land of Shadow.

That feels especially true when you encounter enemies that hit extremely hard. Such is the case for the Blackgaol Knight, an early optional boss you’ll find waiting in a crypt below early on in the map, brutal from a distance with their rapid-firing crossbow as they are with their sword up close.

Then there are the gravebirds, perched on top of gravestones while en route to the crypt, which were responsible for the first of many deaths. At the very least, you can make use of this new enemy as a summonable spirit ash. And if you liked being able to pick on big lumbering trolls early on in the base game, I’d advise keeping your distance from a giant with a huge forge for a body because even if it doesn’t stomp on you, you’ll no doubt be engulfed by the flaming AOE it produces. A good time as any to remind you that jumping is a viable tactic.

Which isn’t to say everything’s out to get you from the off. In this land of muted colours, with a dark Erdtree standing oppressively in the distance, there are also many docile shadows wandering the fields, a forlorn sight that also makes for more low-stakes punching bags to practise on.

With three builds to start from, the strength-based warrior, the dexterity-based knight and the faith and intelligence-based sorcerer, each is equipped with completely new armour and weapons. We were told there are more than 100 new weapons in this expansion, so even if you’re stubbornly comfortable with the gear you already had in the base game, there’s still going to be plenty of new lore from just the items themselves to feast on.

Discussing with other folks at the event, many favoured the sorcerer build for the powerful ranged spells but also because they can equip a new martial arts style, essentially transforming the game into dark fantasy Sifu. But old habits die hard, as we went with the dex-focused knight, whose starting weapons shined with elegance and agility.

Milady is described as a ‘light great sword’, though to the untrained eye reminded me of a rapier. By holding down the left trigger, you also adopt a stance where the blade is held out to the side, which, with the light or heavy attack buttons, allow you to follow with some graceful swinging combos. We found ourselves preferring the Backhand Blade, which you can use to easily deliver a running two-hit heavy combo, while its armament skill allows you to quickly dodge around an enemy into their blind spot for a counter that’s strong enough to hit-stun them.

“Many favoured the sorcerer build for the powerful ranged spells but also because they can equip a new martial arts style, essentially transforming the game into dark fantasy Sifu.”

As a preview event, we were restricted to these preset builds and would’ve preferred the ability for more balanced stats to mix and match equipment rather than having to just load up another save file. Tellingly, we noticed the knight’s dexterity stat was ridiculously higher than everything else. Had we had the opportunity to visit Rennala to respec, we would’ve put more points into raising defence.

Nonetheless, Shadow of the Erdtree does have other ways to aid you through blessings. Split into Scadutree Blessings and Revered Spirit Ash Blessings, these new items can be found as you explore and used at sites of grace to improve your attack and defence, and the defence of your spirit steed respectively. Much like golden seeds, the number required also goes up as you further upgrade. It’s certainly one way to give a leg up for players who might find themselves too out of their depth, while these blessings are also only effective while in the Land of Shadow.

You can also find assistance from some new characters who are on a pilgrimage in this new land to find Miquella, a mysterious character much talked about in the original game, as the elder twin brother of Malenia. My guess, however, is that he will be a pretty elusive figure throughout to both your Tarnished and his followers.

The few we encountered were also most likely to be found close to what’s referred to as their kindly leader’s footprints – Miquella’s Cross – gold ethereal signs planted on the ground with a symbol shaped like a rune and a cross on the top. Again, their significance alluded us during the hands-on, but almost felt on par with a site of grace in pointing you towards the right direction.

On that note, this starting region is predominantly split between two dungeons, a tower settlement called Belurat to the northwest and Castle Ensis to the northeast. Their aesthetics don’t feel too distinct from the ravaged forts from Limgrave, but each is as labyrinthian and treacherous as the legacy dungeons found in the base game, while its shadowy denizens are a lot more aggressive than those wandering out in the field.

There’s plenty to catch you out: a bastilla pointed in front of a long bridge you’re trying to cross; a large troll waiting at the end before you reach the castle gate; a dog lurking just out of sight that we can’t believe kept making us jump multiple times. And just when you think you’ve cleared one area of enemies, one more is waiting to pounce from behind a waterfall.

“There’s plenty to catch you out: a bastilla pointed in front of a long bridge you’re trying to cross; a large troll waiting at the end before you reach the castle gate”

Of course, it’s the new bosses where things get very humbling, and you truly appreciate that Shadow of the Erdtree is designed primarily for players who have already overcome some of the Land Between’s toughest hurdles and are relishing running a new gauntlet. While Bandai Namco staff did recommend an order to tackle the dungeons in terms of difficulty, I still spent a considerable portion of the three-hour session getting battered mercilessly by both.

Divine Beast Dancing Lion recalls both Vicar Amelia, especially in the introductory cutscene, and the kind of dancing lion brought out during Chinese New Year festivities – indeed, beneath the majestic cloth draped over its body, it does look as if there’s another being that forms its rear. It’s a fast moving beast whose movements are tough to follow, arguably one that you’d rather not lock onto, but who you then also have to contend with introducing even more damaging elemental attacks as it changes phases throughout the fight.

Judging by the name alone, Rellana, Twin Moon Knight is almost certainly related to Rennala and the Carian Royal Family, though makes a formidable melee-based opponent just from her twin blades. In some ways, being a humanoid boss meant I found her a little easier to engage with, just by slowly circling her, waiting for an opening. But that all went down the drain by the time she starts bringing elemental spells into the fight, embuing each blade with fire and magic. The latter has such a ridiculous range with enough damage to one-shot that we simply had no answer for it (let’s just say running away wasn’t one).

You’re not left completely to your own devices, as it’s possible to summon a few of Miquella’s followers into the fight. More often than not, however, they felt more of a hindrance as it became trickier to read the action with multiple figures in a scrum, while you’ll have to contend with the scaling benefits the boss receives when more allies are involved.

We’re afraid to say we had to leave the session with our tail between our legs, but also with the dread that, whereas Limgrave had many smaller mini-bosses you could take on to work your way up to the legacy dungeon headliners, progress in the Land of Shadow might be more impervious.

This is, of course, not the final build, especially when given a relatively limited portion of the map to explore, so there may yet be a few caverns or catacombs just out of bounds, though attempts to scope out ravaged village ruins as well as a flooded plain that in the base game would have been home to the Tibia Mariner didn’t yield anything. At this stage, it’s not even clear just how big the Land of Shadow’s map will stretch out as the Lands Between’s did, and that’s without taking into account any maps above or below ground.

Given that the open world structure benefitted Elden Ring by giving you the freedom to approach or avoid encounters at your own pace, we’d like to think that FromSoftware won’t abandon that completely in this expansion. But even if it’s too early to say whether or not Shadow of the Erdtree is a leaner package, from the first three hours, it’s definitely meaner.