Elden Ring's Shadow of the Erdtree DLC: A Double-Edged Sword of Difficulty
Despite critical acclaim and a top Metacritic score pre-release, Elden Ring's Shadow of the Erdtree DLC has received a mixed reception on Steam, sparking considerable player debate. While lauded for its challenging gameplay, many players express frustration with its demanding combat encounters, perceived imbalance, and performance issues across PC and consoles.
[Embedded YouTube Video: Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree is NOT What Players Expected - https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZVQNWEZQwsY]
The DLC's difficulty is a central point of contention. Numerous player reviews highlight battles as excessively challenging, sometimes disproportionately so compared to the base game. Criticisms include poorly-placed enemies and bosses boasting excessively high health pools. These complaints are supported by screenshots from Steam and Reddit (see below).
[Image: Steam Review Screenshot showcasing negative feedback] [Image: Reddit Screenshot highlighting player complaints about difficulty] [Image: Metacritic Screenshot displaying the Mixed review score]
Performance problems further exacerbate the negative feedback. PC users report frequent crashes, micro-stuttering, and frame rate limitations, even on high-end systems. Frame rates reportedly dip below 30 FPS in densely populated areas, significantly impacting playability. Similar frame rate drops during intense combat sequences have been reported by PlayStation users.
As of Monday, Steam shows a 36% negative review rate for Shadow of the Erdtree. However, Metacritic awards a more positive "Generally Favorable" rating of 8.3/10 (based on 570 user reviews), while Game8 gives it a 94/100 score. This disparity highlights the significant divergence in player experiences and opinions regarding the DLC's overall quality and difficulty.
