Despite critical acclaim, Elden Ring's Shadow of the Erdtree DLC has received mixed player reception on Steam, sparking debate over its difficulty and performance.
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Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree - Falling Short of Expectations?
Shadow of the Erdtree: A Brutal Reality Check for Elden Ring Players ------------------------------------------------------------------------------Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree's Steam Debut: A Tale of Two Reviews
Steam Screenshot While boasting a top Metacritic score pre-release, Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree's Steam launch was met with a wave of negative player feedback. Released June 21st, the DLC's challenging gameplay, while praised by some, frustrated many due to intense combat, perceived difficulty imbalances, and performance problems across PC and consoles.
Performance Woes and Difficulty Debate
Reddit Screenshot The expansion's combat intensity is a major point of contention. Players report battles feeling significantly harder than the base game, with accusations of poorly designed enemy placement and excessively high boss health pools.
Performance issues further compounded the negative reception. PC players reported frequent crashes, stuttering, and frame rate limitations. Even high-end systems struggled, with frame rates dipping below 30 FPS in crowded areas. Similar frame rate drops during intense moments were reported on PlayStation consoles.
Metacritic Screenshot As of Monday, Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree holds a "Mixed" rating on Steam (36% negative reviews). Metacritic shows a more positive "Generally Favorable" rating of 8.3/10 (based on 570 user reviews). Game8, however, awarded a significantly higher score of 94/100.
