A full-fledged continuation to one of the best games of the current decade, Elden Ring’s Shadow of the Erdtree expansion looks set to broaden the horizons of From Software’s finest hour in ways that will surely delight players. From mystical new lands to new weapons, terrifying big bads and more, here’s what’s new in the Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree.
A New Narrative That Bridges From Elden Ring
Heavily hinted at during various points in the base Elden Ring game, Shadow of the Erdtree has players tracing the footsteps of the Empyrean demigod Miquella as he disappears into the Land of Shadow. Unfortunately for Miquella, who finds himself drawn into this realm by Queen Marika, the Land of Shadow finds itself presided over under the baleful gaze of Messmer the Impaler. An immensely powerful exiled demigod in his own right, he not only controls a massive serpent but can also manipulate fire and wields a gargantuan spear like no other. Though it hasn’t been quite confirmed yet, the focus that Messmer has been afforded in the latest trailer for Shadow of the Erdtree certainly suggests that he could be the big bad of this highly anticipated Elden Ring expansion.
Whether Messmer ends up being Shadow of the Erdtree’s apex baddie or not, it’s also clear that the role he plays in the Elden Ring expansion is central to the events that unfold. For a start, the description for the Shadow of the Erdtree trailer specifically mentions that the Land of Shadow was “set ablaze by Messmer’s flame’, while in that same trailer, we also hear a narrator say the words “those stripped of the Grace of Gold shall all meet death. In the embrace of Messmer’s flame.” This all heavily suggests that Messmer is indeed a rather bad fella who not only wants to murder those who do not have the Grace of Gold, but likely the missing Miquella as well. Fun times are ahead for all, it would seem.
An All-New Land – The Land of Shadow
As much as it is something of a shopworn cliche, the Lands Between, which served as the primary location for the events of Elden Ring, was as much a character as anything or anyone else in its narrative and that trend looks to continue in Shadow of the Erdtree. In Shadow of the Erdtree, wannabe Tarnished will find themselves whisked off to the Land of Shadow, an oddly incorporeal land that has been set apart from the Lands Between; think about the way that Atorias of the Abyss bolts onto Dark Souls and you’ll get a good idea of how the Land of Shadow exists atop the Lands Between.
In terms of sheer size, the Land of Shadow is at least the size of Limgrave – meaning that while Shadow of the Erdtree doesn’t present a game world quite the same as the base Elden Ring game, it will nonetheless present a realm that is still of substantial size and filled with all of the nooks and crannies that will just beg to be explored. Indeed on that note, Miyazaki has recently confirmed to Eurogamer that that the Land of Shadow is From Software’s “largest expansion to date in terms of overall volume.”, so don’t expect to see everything that Shadow of the Erdtree has to offer in a single weekend.
When it comes to the structure of the Land of Shadow according to director Hidetaka Miyazaki, players should expect a sprawling landmass that is structured in a similar way to the Lands Between. This means that armchair adventurers should expect a familiar blend of open-world spaces and linear dungeons, albeit with a swathe of all-new monsters, traps and other fiendish elements that will only be revealed when players first sit down and play Shadow of the Erdtree. To reach the Land of Shadow, you must reach Mohgwyn Palace in the base Elden Ring game and approach Miquella’s withered arm, upon which a portal will appear, whisking you off to the Land of Shadow.
New Bosses, New Fighting Styles & Much More
Naturally being a somewhat sizable expansion to Elden Ring, it’s certainly fair to say that Shadow of the Erdtree will come packing a whole heap of additional bosses, gear and other such delights to keep even the most committed adventurer happy. Certainly, in terms of bosses, Shadow of the Erdtree doesn’t look to disappoint as it’s set to boast no less than ten entirely, never-before-seen bosses for players to tangle with and, well, die in front of many, many times. Speaking of death, Shadow of the Erdtree also brings a wealth of new and especially nasty environmental hazards along for the ride, including a Death Blight swamp, because what would a From Software title be without a whopping great expanse of health-sapping, miasmic liquid, eh?
Luckily, while Shadow of the Erdtree certainly seems to be filled to the brim with all sorts of grotesque nastiness, Elden Ring’s only expansion will also give veteran players more than a few ways to deal with this fresh onslaught. Chief among these is the eight new weapon styles that Shadow of Erdtree packs in, including a distinctly flashy hand-to-hand combat technique that takes in all manner of backfists, spinning kicks and other such strikes that would make even Jet Li blush.
And you’ll need all of that and then some too, since much like the base game that it sits atop, Shadow of the Erdtree looks to be rock hard, to say the least. As Miyazaki explains it in his interview with Eurogamer, however, Shadow of the Erdtree’s difficulty is only matched by the ingenuity that it encourages players to embrace in order to defeat its most difficult challenges: “We wanted to provide these challenging encounters and these menacing threats, and in order to do that, we wanted to give the player a lot of freedom of approach. We wanted them to feel free in how they choose and when they choose to approach and tackle these hardships.” he says.
So now you know exactly how Shadow of the Erdtree intersects with 2022’s Game of the Year, as well as what you should be prepared for in the Land of Shadow, why not secure your copy on the Green Man Gaming store.
