Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree received rave reviews from critics, but its user reviews on Steam indicate a mixed response.
To be exact, this long-awaited Elden Ring DLC currently sits at a 95 score on Metacritic, though its Steam user reviews are mixed as of this article’s writing. Interestingly, the negative reviews seem to be caused by two particular problems that players have with the game.
Looking at both the reviews and the responses from sites like Reddit, many players indicate performance issues when playing Shadow of the Erdtree. It seems that poor optimization is a problem as many users report stuttering when fighting bosses, even on gaming PCs that have powerful GPUs.
Aside from performance problems, many of the negative reviews also mention the game being too hard, especially the main bosses. Of course, while the immediate response for many might be to say “git gud,” there is merit to the complaints.
Specifically, the complaints boil down to the bosses being overtuned as even with many Scadutree Blessings and buffs, the later bosses can still two-shot most players. All of this while having incredibly long attack chains that leave little room for an opening.
In my review, I mentioned this fact about Shadow of the Erdtree. Despite giving it a 10, I said:
This boss design is great for players who want the hardest challenge possible, all while still being accessible for players (like me) who are fine with using Spirit Ashes and NPC summons. That also means that players who want the Dark Souls 3 or Bloodborne-style balance where bosses are “fairer” in 1 on 1 fights may be disappointed.
Based on the negative reactions to the game, it seems that this is the case. Essentially, players who love incredibly difficult challenges have no issues with the DLC, while players who use summons can also beat the bosses without much issue. The problem is for many players who want to experience the thrill of the 1-on-1 fights but with a “fairer” balance. After all, many of the DLC’s bosses require near-perfect runs to beat solo.
Of course, these reviews may change in the coming weeks and months as the base game also got mixed reviews right around launch which soon became Very Positive.
Shadow of the Erdtree is available now on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC.