Like the base game did before it, Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree raises the bar for single-player DLC expansions. It takes everything that made the base game such a landmark RPG, condenses it into a relatively compact 20-25 hour campaign, and provides fantastic new challenges for heavily invested fans to chew on.
I love these games. They’re the perfect blend of old and new design. They put gameplay first, and then write the story around the game. They’re like the modern equivalent to Castlevania for me.
It’s true. I still routinely go back to the first Dark Souls and remember the amount of time I dumped into it trying to keep progressing. The amount of times I’d die and then test out a new strategy on something as simple as dispatching 5 enemies in a series of hallways, or going down the rabbit hole on boss fight strategies. I have the hardcover guide for the first DS game and it’s amazing. It’s weird how the brutality of those games can also be something you get peace from. Souls games are still among the few that I can truly disconnect with and be completely pulled in. Just talking about it makes me want to start a new character.
I love these games. They’re the perfect blend of old and new design. They put gameplay first, and then write the story around the game. They’re like the modern equivalent to Castlevania for me.
Plus I like invading. I can be a mini boss :D
It’s true. I still routinely go back to the first Dark Souls and remember the amount of time I dumped into it trying to keep progressing. The amount of times I’d die and then test out a new strategy on something as simple as dispatching 5 enemies in a series of hallways, or going down the rabbit hole on boss fight strategies. I have the hardcover guide for the first DS game and it’s amazing. It’s weird how the brutality of those games can also be something you get peace from. Souls games are still among the few that I can truly disconnect with and be completely pulled in. Just talking about it makes me want to start a new character.