CG's spolier-free review of shadow of the erdtree.
I've since completed every game in the series at least twice, except the PS5 exclusives, with a variety of builds, typically starting with a ranged build, then moving on to melee builds.
If it's not obvious by now, I don't go outside.
So far, I've put in around 10hrs with the Elden Ring DLC and defeated two remembrance bosses (main story bosses), and I've seen more than enough to come to the conclusion that this expansion is definitely not for everyone, but it is if you're like me.
Accessing the DLC
To start off, you need to defeat Mohg to even access the expansion, which I think was the best possible decision, given the DLC's difficulty and mechanics. Mohg can be incredibly challenging, especially if you don't find the crystal tear that makes you immune to his curse. He forces you to go out of you way to find an item very far away from him, which is knowledge that's essential to have going in to the expansion.
Leveling Up
If you don't like exploring open worlds to find sometimes hidden essential items, then the DLC isn't for you. If you enter at level 150, your character's level is unaffected, but your overall damage and defense are reduced drastically. You'll have to elevate this effect by searching for shadow blessings and using them at a bonfire to level up your shadow blessing level. You'll also need to find shadow ashes to level up the damage your spirit summons and NPCs do.
Skipping these items will result in you doing very little damage and getting 1-2 shot by heavy-hitters. The enemies and bosses are tanky and deal a ton of damage so I'd advise finding them all.
Personally, I don't hate this system because my favorite aspect of these games has always been exploration and finding new gear to try out. so I'm just finding these items as I progress.
Level Design
One area where the DLC is just objectively better than the base-game is level design. The open world areas are all unique looking and full of interesting colors and structures to explore, while the two main dungeons I completed both had secrets and shortcuts to find. There aren't any boss-runs though, so missing a shortcut won't impact your progress than much, but having them unlocked will help you search for items.
The enemy design is pretty varied, but you will see a decent amount of returning enemies from the base game. I'm not a fan of a few of the new ones. Some of the basic soldiers can take you out in 3 hits but they go down easily enough.
You'll find a ton of new weapons and gear if you explore, I'm currently using a great-hammer than does a massive wave of holy damage if you guard-counter with it and an armor set I farmed from a new black knight enemy.
Boss Design
(Context: When I mention playing solo below, I'm referring to being 100% alone, no summons, NPCs, or other players).
If you didn't like the boss design of the base game, you'll hate the bosses in the DLC.
The best way I can describe them is having the HP of two fire giants + the Demon of Hatred, and the speed of Maliketh. The ones I've seen also have a lot of combo spam, massive AoE, and 1-2 shot attacks that cover most of the arena.
Even at level 200, with enough shadow blessings, and a maxed-out weapon, you'll be doing almost no damage without bleed / frost / scarlet rot / black flame.
In fairness, I think this is because they wanted the bosses to have phases without having a cutscene pull up and reveal the second health bar, but it's just not fun to see the bar barely move after a critical.
Like in the base-game, these boss encounters weren't design for players that run around with basic great-swords and no summons.
I can't imagine how long it would take to drain their massive health pools alone.
Elden Ring wasn't designed to be a solo game and this expansion exacerbates that. If you want a good solo experience, go back to DS3, Sekiro, or Lies of P, but from what I can tell, this expansion is the worst solo experience in gaming.
After I finish one of these games, I typically go back and do a solo playthrough but I can't imagine returning to any of this content alone in the future.
For me though, this boss-design is perfect.
My build is a a great-shield with a great-hammer and spear combined with some incantations and maxed-out summons. I trade aggro with my summon and NPC while moving around to buff /heal them and the experience is what I want out of the game. I also use a ton of consumables and just about anything else I can do to optimize my build.
That being said, even if you go in with a setup like mine, expect a challenge.
I've yet to see any gimmick bosses yet, which is unfortunate, because I feel these bosses would be drastically improved by giving you a way to slow them down / beat them faster.
Conclusion
If you liked Elden Ring's base game and boss design, this DLC will give you more of what you like and you should buy it, but if you only play solo and use basic weapons, you'll likely hate it. Every problem solo-players face is multiplied by a thousand. But if you like exploration, the old souls game level design, and optimizing your build, this DLC is a solid 8/10 so far.
Have yet to find any girl in the DLC that can replace Ranni so I'm holding off on giving it a 10/10.
