Support NeoGAF

[Arsic]

My key the fight was parrying him, I died 100 times but once I learned his move set parry was my only option.

And there she is. Bleeds to proc burst.

I did it with the blood fiend arm myself. Same strategy as you. I had to respec out of my Marikas hammer build to do it. Had to get way more vigor too because 45 was to low for him.

Just to give you a sense I beat dark souls 3 dlc ringed city at level 86 recently with a bandits knife. When recommended is 120+.

Better question : how do you get the rest of that armor set? She only gave me her body piece when I killed her and checked her body.

 

[R6Rider]

Plural? I only got one...

Yeah, I had three available lol

 

[Saber]

My key to the fight was parrying him, I died 100 times but once I learned his move set parry was my only option.

You died 100 times and its "people exaggeration"? And with blood proc no less.
Fbh you better not take the guys who didn't find him a hassle seriously. Come at him with your best strategy/set and get ready to be blind and nuked for a long time.

 

[Boralf]

Better question : how do you get the rest of that armor set? She only gave me her body piece when I killed her and checked her body.

Legs and arms are from Black Knight set. Helm I don't know. She only drops the body armor.

 

[Danjin44]

And there she is. Bleeds to proc burst.

I did it with the blood fiend arm myself. Same strategy as you. I had to respec out of my Marikas hammer build to do it. Had to get way more vigor too because 45 was to low for him.

Just to give you a sense I beat dark souls 3 dlc ringed city at level 86 recently with a bandits knife. When recommended is 120+.

Better question : how do you get the rest of that armor set? She only gave me her body piece when I killed her and checked her body.

Her body armour is different but rest of her armour set is Oathseeker armour set which you can find early on.

But for head I'm wearing Winged Serpent Helm.

 

[Danjin44]

You died 100 times and its "people exaggeration"? And with blood proc no less.
Fbh you better not take the guys who didn't find him a hassle seriously. Come at him with your best strategy/set and get ready to be blind and nuked for a long time.

Like I said his damn tough and I'm no "great" player but my build is nothing optimal let alone special.

 

[Antwix]

Legs and arms are from Black Knight set. Helm I don't know. She only drops the body armor.

I know cuz I used the same helm but it is Winged Serpent helm. It's a (guaranteed?) drop from one of the fire knights in shadow keep.

 

[Fess]

Ah, cool, didn’t think they could make a boss I could hate more than Elden Beast. But here we are again in the DLC…Playing as a glintstone mage. Feels like I hit a brick wall here at the Promised consort Radahn fight. I’ve reached phase 2 but I don’t think I can do this without a complete respec. All I do is spamming dodge and can barely find a window big enough to do any spell, eventually I mess up and die.

 

[Macattk15]

Yeah INT builds got the mega shaft in the DLC.

 

[Orbital2060]

Its perfectly doable without summons or any super duper gizmo build, it just takes a lot of practise and patience. To endure the dodging regime while not getting greedy. You dont have to be as good as Ongbal to beat him, there are 14 health flasks between what they are doing and us mortals.

Its basically Artorius/Fume/Gael the knight archetype and theyve always demanded you to submit to their moves somehow.

 

[Orbital2060]

And there she is. Bleeds to proc burst.

I did it with the blood fiend arm myself. Same strategy as you. I had to respec out of my Marikas hammer build to do it. Had to get way more vigor too because 45 was to low for him.

Just to give you a sense I beat dark souls 3 dlc ringed city at level 86 recently with a bandits knife. When recommended is 120+.

Better question : how do you get the rest of that armor set? She only gave me her body piece when I killed her and checked her body.

You died 100 times and its "people exaggeration"? And with blood proc no less.
Fbh you better not take the guys who didn't find him a hassle seriously. Come at him with your best strategy/set and get ready to be blind and nuked for a long time.

Eh, is this some kind of dig at using weapons with hemorhage?

 

[Cyborg]

So many unawnserd question in this DLC, its dissapoiting to me. It seems that they had planned a different stroy (for the DLC) during the main game and then changed it at the last minute.
Things that bother me;

Spoiler

- Miquella wanted to cure the rot from Malenia but apperently just abandoned it while he had the power as he cured Freyja.
- Miquella wanted to give Godwyn a real death, suddenly he doesnt care about that anymore, Godwyn isn't even mentioned.
- Radhan being such an important character out of nothing (main game didnt even give a single hint at a vow made by the two) Seems so weird.
- Important character like Melina and Rani are just gone, like they didnt play a part in the main game. Completly ingnored.
- What the fck is the Erdtree? If its a shadow why is completly 3D? Shadows are always flat. Not a mention about the tree and the role it plays,
- In the promotional image Miquella was riding the Torrent but he could only enter the Shadow Lands when we defeated Mogh and Radhan. How can the Torrent be in two places at the same time?
- Structures that seem important but have no purpose at all. The prime example is after defeating Commander Gaius you can ride towards a big gate and there is a structure (suggested you would burn something in it) that has no point at all.
- The story trailer and things that happen in there are completley ignored in the DLC
- We have a huge (biggest) dragon ever that is just dead (his heart ripped out) Why? How is that possible?
- St. Rina a hype that just didnt deliver! A buildup that could have been more.

Dont let me start about the giants, fingers, greater will etc.

 

[mansoor1980]

level 128 now , i should start the DLC

 

[xcalibersa]

Just completed the DLC after many many hours, doing the item check list to see what I missed.

Game was fantastic. Honestly wasnt hard, but then again. I used the in game mechanics.

 

[SJRB]

So many unawnserd question in this DLC, its dissapoiting to me. It seems that they had planned a different stroy (for the DLC) during the main game and then changed it at the last minute.
Things that bother me;

Spoiler

- Miquella wanted to cure the rot from Malenia but apperently just abandoned it while he had the power as he cured Freyja.
- Miquella wanted to give Godwyn a real death, suddenly he doesnt care about that anymore, Godwyn isn't even mentioned.
- Radhan being such an important character out of nothing (main game didnt even give a single hint at a vow made by the two) Seems so weird.
- Important character like Melina and Rani are just gone, like they didnt play a part in the main game. Completly ingnored.
- What the fck is the Erdtree? If its a shadow why is completly 3D? Shadows are always flat. Not a mention about the tree and the role it plays,
- In the promotional image Miquella was riding the Torrent but he could only enter the Shadow Lands when we defeated Mogh and Radhan. How can the Torrent be in two places at the same time?
- Structures that seem important but have no purpose at all. The prime example is after defeating Commander Gaius you can ride towards a big gate and there is a structure (suggested you would burn something in it) that has no point at all.
- The story trailer and things that happen in there are completley ignored in the DLC
- We have a huge (biggest) dragon ever that is just dead (his heart ripped out) Why? How is that possible?
- St. Rina a hype that just didnt deliver! A buildup that could have been more.

Dont let me start about the giants, fingers, greater will etc.

Had some time to mull the story over and I think the buildup of the DLC's story and lore is excellent and a lot of little nuggets of lore are very cool but the ultimate payoff is pretty bad and the overall story just kinda falls flat after Messmer.

I also think it's a huge waste how there's zero connectivity with the main game. Nothing that happens in the DLC gets acknowledged by anyone in the main game at any point, which is ridiculous considering everything that happens in the DLC.

The grand finale is extremely minimal, barely answering anything, and the way it handled the final boss (who it is, and why) just sucks in my opinion. The buildup to reach it is grandiose but the payoff falls completely flat. You defeat the boss and that's that.

Just unfortunate.

 

[Bartski]

I see the ending of the DLC getting a lot of shit while it’s a million tomes better than the the base game IMO, Elden Beast was such a horrible final boss it soured me in the whole game so thanks Miquella for making up fir it

 

[Northeastmonk]

I find the whole plot to be in an extremely high fantasy setting, to a point where I accept whatever they throw at me or showcase as a boss. It’s crazy how many demi gods and gods, sons and daughters of gods, and a tree come together to make this world. It’s wild, which is why I’m much more accepting of certain bosses/end bosses/what not.

 

[FunkMiller]

Finished this the other day. Pretty damned good, though the 'ending' was a let-down. Would have liked a better FMV to close the DLC out.

 

[Saber]

Eh, is this some kind of dig at using weapons with hemorhage?

Not at all. Use whatever methods necessary to kill that bastard, I don't remember Souls games having rules. If you read my post you would get this wasn't the point.

 

[Fake]

My only two complains about the DLC are the last boss and that stupid forest labyrint.

 

[Orbital2060]

Not at all. Use whatever methods necessary to kill that bastard, I don't remember Souls games having rules. If you read my post you would get this wasn't the point.

It sounded like it, with your referral to blood proc. My bad.

 

[reezoo]

I guess we will never know ?

 

[Cyborg]

Had some time to mull the story over and I think the buildup of the DLC's story and lore is excellent and a lot of little nuggets of lore are very cool but the ultimate payoff is pretty bad and the overall story just kinda falls flat after Messmer.

I also think it's a huge waste how there's zero connectivity with the main game. Nothing that happens in the DLC gets acknowledged by anyone in the main game at any point, which is ridiculous considering everything that happens in the DLC.

The grand finale is extremely minimal, barely answering anything, and the way it handled the final boss (who it is, and why) just sucks in my opinion. The buildup to reach it is grandiose but the payoff falls completely flat. You defeat the boss and that's that.

Just unfortunate.

Yup

 

[SantaC]

I used to watch chasethebro videos but dude isnt as skilled as it seems. He struggled 5 hours on final boss and had to use the fingerprint shield in the end.

 

[Antwix]

Eh, is this some kind of dig at using weapons with hemorhage?

The only dig that's warranted is fingerprint shield imo. Or in the past, perfume bottles. Everything else is alright imo. Also Bloodfiend arm is still quite overtuned currently due to huge blood buildup, stance damage and the quickness of the charged r2.

I've said it before and I'll die on this hill... mimic tear with whatever typical build is more impressive than fingerprint shield.

 

[tommib]

Had some time to mull the story over and I think the buildup of the DLC's story and lore is excellent and a lot of little nuggets of lore are very cool but the ultimate payoff is pretty bad and the overall story just kinda falls flat after Messmer.

I also think it's a huge waste how there's zero connectivity with the main game. Nothing that happens in the DLC gets acknowledged by anyone in the main game at any point, which is ridiculous considering everything that happens in the DLC.

The grand finale is extremely minimal, barely answering anything, and the way it handled the final boss (who it is, and why) just sucks in my opinion. The buildup to reach it is grandiose but the payoff falls completely flat. You defeat the boss and that's that.

Just unfortunate.

I kept trying to find a way to go up those big pillars at the end of the arena thinking there has to be something more.

Nope.

You won.

Go home.

 

[Antwix]

So many unawnserd question in this DLC, its dissapoiting to me. It seems that they had planned a different stroy (for the DLC) during the main game and then changed it at the last minute.
Things that bother me;

Spoiler

- Miquella wanted to cure the rot from Malenia but apperently just abandoned it while he had the power as he cured Freyja.
- Miquella wanted to give Godwyn a real death, suddenly he doesnt care about that anymore, Godwyn isn't even mentioned.
- Radhan being such an important character out of nothing (main game didnt even give a single hint at a vow made by the two) Seems so weird.
- Important character like Melina and Rani are just gone, like they didnt play a part in the main game. Completly ingnored.
- What the fck is the Erdtree? If its a shadow why is completly 3D? Shadows are always flat. Not a mention about the tree and the role it plays,
- In the promotional image Miquella was riding the Torrent but he could only enter the Shadow Lands when we defeated Mogh and Radhan. How can the Torrent be in two places at the same time?
- Structures that seem important but have no purpose at all. The prime example is after defeating Commander Gaius you can ride towards a big gate and there is a structure (suggested you would burn something in it) that has no point at all.
- The story trailer and things that happen in there are completley ignored in the DLC
- We have a huge (biggest) dragon ever that is just dead (his heart ripped out) Why? How is that possible?
- St. Rina a hype that just didnt deliver! A buildup that could have been more.

Dont let me start about the giants, fingers, greater will etc.

Godwyn should've been the final boss. I think that would've been awesome since we never actually get to see him (except for that base game intro cinematic screenshot with him getting stabbed). Im not the biggest lore person but I think it could've worked as a revenge arc maybe. They could've just skin-swapped Radahn and gave him blonde hair and called him Godwyn and it would've been good lol

Also yeah, I wish Melina and ranni made some appearances in the dlc too

 

[MagnesD3]

Just finished the DLC, as someone who thinks the base game of Elden Ring may be the best video game ever made, Shadow of the Erdtree really let me down. Dont get me wrong its a great DLC and a great game if you dont compare it to the base game but typically From Software makes their DLC the best part of their games and I cant I say even close that I feel that way about anything in it.

The 2 biggest things that bothered me were the crazy amount of empty space in the DLC which really didnt reward exploration as hard and the fact that most rewards you did received mattered very little, every smithing stone, every cookbook, every material, every glovewort just meant so little and they were a majority of your rewards for taking the time to explore, even at the end of the base game some of these things begin to matter less but you can forgive it since you are in the latter half of the game and in theory you could use these limited resources on other weapons/summons you wanted to try but they give you the bell bearings, you dont anymore smithing stones or gloveworts.

When it comes to the cookbook/material stuff part of the reason that worked so well in the base game was because it was mostly an ignorable mechanic that rarely affected the game in a meaningful way, thats fine when there are few rewards toward that mechanic but when that mechanic becomes the majority of the little rewards for you exploring then you have a problem.
So rewards took a big hit. The skibbidy tree pickups were a nice thing to help you feel some sort of progression but they needed to add more, I could easily think of a couple easy to implement pickups similar to smithing stones or glove glovewarts that would allow players to receive interesting pickups but no sort of effort is found (hell at the very least make new smithing stone levels or something)..

In terms of empty area's Hinterland, finger ruins, most of cerulean cost and honestly alot of gravesite plains just felt barren, also there's alot of odd choices, like no stonesword key locations so player's can finally use some of those overcollected stone sword keys from the base game but they have an imbued sword key to reach an area that you can visit pretty early, idk just strange stuff. Also the lowering of catacombs, lack of night time bosses and having no bosses at the end of forge's was really disappointing too, I personally loved how many Red Life bar's would just pop up in the base game, it felt like there was danger/surprises around every corner, here theres not much.

Then there is the lack of legacy dungeons, there's really only 2 and the only strong one I feel is Shadow Keep but even then its pacing is super weird since they intend for the player to constantly enter and exit it making it not feel as meaningful of an area, the other Legacy Dungeon Belurat/Elis is split in half which also screws up the pacing making it feel not like much of a legacy dungeon since you do it at 2 separate instance's in the DLC. Every other area is too small to really be considered a legacy dungeon, hell the catacombs were more like legacy dungeon's than most things with how long they were, I think they got the wrong impression from the mainstream audience that kept complaining about how every catacomb was the same (when they absolutely werent) and instead of having several they would try to fit 2-3 into one, Id rather they spend that amount of time in more of the unique area's than the visuals of the catacomb's. As for new area's I do have 2 big praises, Ruins of Roah is easily the best new are, I think they did a great job of kind of blending the open environment with legacy dungeon type design, it really worked for me and secondly I think the Abyssal woods had the best atmosphere in the DLC, it was so well done, the only things keeping it from being my fav area in the DLC are the large amount of empty space (I have no clue why they didnt just put more of the survival horror gimmick in that empty space to make it even more tense, such a missed opportunity) and the spooky manor while super cool was too short (also screw the fake map space behind the manor).

One of the last big knocks for me was there just wasnt enough cool boss cutscenes, there are alot of cool bosses that really deserved more effort put into their presentation, saying it would be overbudget is bullshit, elden ring made bank there is no reason at least 4-5 more bosses couldnt have had an intro cutscene. Also speaking of cutscenes, miyazaki said the DLC would have its own ending and thats kinda bull, you just get a weird memory cutscene that feels out of place, after you beat the final boss it feels so strange not to have any sort of resolution or conclusion, its really bizarre and another mistep.

One final nitpick I have to say is picking Radaun for the final kinda lame given we have already fought him, the implications from the whole using Mohg's corpse bit made it seems like a fusion of sorts would happen like some weird Mohg/Radaun/Miquella hybrid or something crazy but no its just Radaun with some light spells \ ('.') /.

Anywho I had alot of fun but Elden Ring is the best game Ive played as an adult and From usually makes the DLC's for the best part so it failing to live up to the hype for how long we waited is frustrating even if I thought most of it was really good. Honestly I just wish it was like half the content and more tightly designed and we had gotten it a year ago or they spent another year of the development just polishing important stuff up like the rewards/cutscenes I mentioned. At this point I kinda hope its the last time they do Open world because maybe they really dont get what made elden ring so good, if ER 2 comes out Im not gonna lie, Ill be alot more skeptically cautious about my expectations, its probably for the best that they just move on.

My score for the DLC would be 9.5/10

 

[Boralf]

My score for the DLC would be 9.5/10

 

[Arsic]

Just finished the DLC, as someone who thinks the base game of Elden Ring may be the best video game ever made, Shadow of the Erdtree really let me down. Dont get me wrong its a great DLC and a great game if you dont compare it to the base game but typically From Software makes their DLC the best part of their games and I cant I say even close that I feel that way about anything in it.

The 2 biggest things that bothered me were the crazy amount of empty space in the DLC which really didnt reward exploration as hard and the fact that most rewards you did received mattered very little, every smithing stone, every cookbook, every material, every glovewort just meant so little and they were a majority of your rewards for taking the time to explore, even at the end of the base game some of these things begin to matter less but you can forgive it since you are in the latter half of the game and in theory you could use these limited resources on other weapons/summons you wanted to try but they give you the bell bearings, you dont anymore smithing stones or gloveworts.

When it comes to the cookbook/material stuff part of the reason that worked so well in the base game was because it was mostly an ignorable mechanic that rarely affected the game in a meaningful way, thats fine when there are few rewards toward that mechanic but when that mechanic becomes the majority of the little rewards for you exploring then you have a problem.
So rewards took a big hit. The skibbidy tree pickups were a nice thing to help you feel some sort of progression but they needed to add more, I could easily think of a couple easy to implement pickups similar to smithing stones or glove glovewarts that would allow players to receive interesting pickups but no sort of effort is found (hell at the very least make new smithing stone levels or something)..

In terms of empty area's Hinterland, finger ruins, most of cerulean cost and honestly alot of gravesite plains just felt barren, also there's alot of odd choices, like no stonesword key locations so player's can finally use some of those overcollected stone sword keys from the base game but they have an imbued sword key to reach an area that you can visit pretty early, idk just strange stuff. Also the lowering of catacombs, lack of night time bosses and having no bosses at the end of forge's was really disappointing too, I personally loved how many Red Life bar's would just pop up in the base game, it felt like there was danger/surprises around every corner, here theres not much.

Then there is the lack of legacy dungeons, there's really only 2 and the only strong one I feel is Shadow Keep but even then its pacing is super weird since they intend for the player to constantly enter and exit it making it not feel as meaningful of an area, the other Legacy Dungeon Belurat/Elis is split in half which also screws up the pacing making it feel not like much of a legacy dungeon since you do it at 2 separate instance's in the DLC. Every other area is too small to really be considered a legacy dungeon, hell the catacombs were more like legacy dungeon's than most things with how long they were, I think they got the wrong impression from the mainstream audience that kept complaining about how every catacomb was the same (when they absolutely werent) and instead of having several they would try to fit 2-3 into one, Id rather they spend that amount of time in more of the unique area's than the visuals of the catacomb's. As for new area's I do have 2 big praises, Ruins of Roah is easily the best new are, I think they did a great job of kind of blending the open environment with legacy dungeon type design, it really worked for me and secondly I think the Abyssal woods had the best atmosphere in the DLC, it was so well done, the only things keeping it from being my fav area in the DLC are the large amount of empty space (I have no clue why they didnt just put more of the survival horror gimmick in that empty space to make it even more tense, such a missed opportunity) and the spooky manor while super cool was too short (also screw the fake map space behind the manor).

One of the last big knocks for me was there just wasnt enough cool boss cutscenes, there are alot of cool bosses that really deserved more effort put into their presentation, saying it would be overbudget is bullshit, elden ring made bank there is no reason at least 4-5 more bosses couldnt have had an intro cutscene. Also speaking of cutscenes, miyazaki said the DLC would have its own ending and thats kinda bull, you just get a weird memory cutscene that feels out of place, after you beat the final boss it feels so strange not to have any sort of resolution or conclusion, its really bizarre and another mistep.

One final nitpick I have to say is picking Radaun for the final kinda lame given we have already fought him, the implications from the whole using Mohg's corpse bit made it seems like a fusion of sorts would happen like some weird Mohg/Radaun/Miquella hybrid or something crazy but no its just Radaun with some light spells \ ('.') /.

Anywho I had alot of fun but Elden Ring is the best game Ive played as an adult and From usually makes the DLC's for the best part so it failing to live up to the hype for how long we waited is frustrating even if I thought most of it was really good. Honestly I just wish it was like half the content and more tightly designed and we had gotten it a year ago or they spent another year of the development just polishing important stuff up like the rewards/cutscenes I mentioned. At this point I kinda hope its the last time they do Open world because maybe they really dont get what made elden ring so good, if ER 2 comes out Im not gonna lie, Ill be alot more skeptically cautious about my expectations, its probably for the best that they just move on.

My score for the DLC would be 9.5/10

You write a dear diary and end up at 9.5/10 lmao.

I give it a 9 and my only beef is common:
Final boss could’ve been better from who you fight, the cut scene after, and how hard he hits

And the rewards in the dlc felt lackluster.

 

[MagnesD3]

In the context its a 9.5 versus what equates to a 12/10 for the base game. I dont think any modern from software game is below 9.5 out of 10.

You write a dear diary and end up at 9.5/10 lmao.

I give it a 9 and my only beef is common:
Final boss could’ve been better from who you fight, the cut scene after, and how hard he hits

And the rewards in the dlc felt lackluster.

Yeah I know lol, I feel like I have to be fair with the score, it IS great compared to the greater gaming land scape but when compared to its better self and other from software titles I find it to be a weaker link..

 

[thuGG_pl]

Just finished the DLC, as someone who thinks the base game of Elden Ring may be the best video game ever made, Shadow of the Erdtree really let me down. Dont get me wrong its a great DLC and a great game if you dont compare it to the base game but typically From Software makes their DLC the best part of their games and I cant I say even close that I feel that way about anything in it.

The 2 biggest things that bothered me were the crazy amount of empty space in the DLC which really didnt reward exploration as hard and the fact that most rewards you did received mattered very little, every smithing stone, every cookbook, every material, every glovewort just meant so little and they were a majority of your rewards for taking the time to explore, even at the end of the base game some of these things begin to matter less but you can forgive it since you are in the latter half of the game and in theory you could use these limited resources on other weapons/summons you wanted to try but they give you the bell bearings, you dont anymore smithing stones or gloveworts.

When it comes to the cookbook/material stuff part of the reason that worked so well in the base game was because it was mostly an ignorable mechanic that rarely affected the game in a meaningful way, thats fine when there are few rewards toward that mechanic but when that mechanic becomes the majority of the little rewards for you exploring then you have a problem.
So rewards took a big hit. The skibbidy tree pickups were a nice thing to help you feel some sort of progression but they needed to add more, I could easily think of a couple easy to implement pickups similar to smithing stones or glove glovewarts that would allow players to receive interesting pickups but no sort of effort is found (hell at the very least make new smithing stone levels or something)..

In terms of empty area's Hinterland, finger ruins, most of cerulean cost and honestly alot of gravesite plains just felt barren, also there's alot of odd choices, like no stonesword key locations so player's can finally use some of those overcollected stone sword keys from the base game but they have an imbued sword key to reach an area that you can visit pretty early, idk just strange stuff. Also the lowering of catacombs, lack of night time bosses and having no bosses at the end of forge's was really disappointing too, I personally loved how many Red Life bar's would just pop up in the base game, it felt like there was danger/surprises around every corner, here theres not much.

Then there is the lack of legacy dungeons, there's really only 2 and the only strong one I feel is Shadow Keep but even then its pacing is super weird since they intend for the player to constantly enter and exit it making it not feel as meaningful of an area, the other Legacy Dungeon Belurat/Elis is split in half which also screws up the pacing making it feel not like much of a legacy dungeon since you do it at 2 separate instance's in the DLC. Every other area is too small to really be considered a legacy dungeon, hell the catacombs were more like legacy dungeon's than most things with how long they were, I think they got the wrong impression from the mainstream audience that kept complaining about how every catacomb was the same (when they absolutely werent) and instead of having several they would try to fit 2-3 into one, Id rather they spend that amount of time in more of the unique area's than the visuals of the catacomb's. As for new area's I do have 2 big praises, Ruins of Roah is easily the best new are, I think they did a great job of kind of blending the open environment with legacy dungeon type design, it really worked for me and secondly I think the Abyssal woods had the best atmosphere in the DLC, it was so well done, the only things keeping it from being my fav area in the DLC are the large amount of empty space (I have no clue why they didnt just put more of the survival horror gimmick in that empty space to make it even more tense, such a missed opportunity) and the spooky manor while super cool was too short (also screw the fake map space behind the manor).

One of the last big knocks for me was there just wasnt enough cool boss cutscenes, there are alot of cool bosses that really deserved more effort put into their presentation, saying it would be overbudget is bullshit, elden ring made bank there is no reason at least 4-5 more bosses couldnt have had an intro cutscene. Also speaking of cutscenes, miyazaki said the DLC would have its own ending and thats kinda bull, you just get a weird memory cutscene that feels out of place, after you beat the final boss it feels so strange not to have any sort of resolution or conclusion, its really bizarre and another mistep.

One final nitpick I have to say is picking Radaun for the final kinda lame given we have already fought him, the implications from the whole using Mohg's corpse bit made it seems like a fusion of sorts would happen like some weird Mohg/Radaun/Miquella hybrid or something crazy but no its just Radaun with some light spells \ ('.') /.

Anywho I had alot of fun but Elden Ring is the best game Ive played as an adult and From usually makes the DLC's for the best part so it failing to live up to the hype for how long we waited is frustrating even if I thought most of it was really good. Honestly I just wish it was like half the content and more tightly designed and we had gotten it a year ago or they spent another year of the development just polishing important stuff up like the rewards/cutscenes I mentioned. At this point I kinda hope its the last time they do Open world because maybe they really dont get what made elden ring so good, if ER 2 comes out Im not gonna lie, Ill be alot more skeptically cautious about my expectations, its probably for the best that they just move on.

My score for the DLC would be 9.5/10

I think I agree on every single point ( the score is weird).

 

[MagnesD3]

I think I agree on every single point ( the score is weird).

Yeah it feels lower than that to me but if Elden Ring didnt exist and this was a stand alone thing Id give it a 9.5. Also its a DLC thats really big and has alot of greatness so I try to be fair. It feel's more like 9.3 to me emotionally.

 

[thuGG_pl]

Yeah it feels lower than that to me but if Elden Ring didnt exist and this was a stand alone thing Id give it a 9.5. Also its a DLC thats really big and has alot of greatness so I try to be fair. It feel's more like 9.3 to me emotionally.

I get you, ER to me is 10/10. Despite the flaws of the DLC it is still the best thing I played for a long while, so it is 9/10 for me.

 

[Danjin44]

This DLC give me one of the best weapon class in entire Souls games. Light great sword is absolutely fantastic I hope I see to see this weapon class in future Souls games.

 

[Orbital2060]

In a shameful turn of events, I have embraced the comfort of verdigris metal and stony fingerprints, and beaten the crap out of Promised Consort Radahn. Oh Radahn, mighty Radahn. I copied your remembrance twice so I never have to deal with your stupid shit ever again.

Seriously: I got so fed up with a couple of things esp. in the second phase, that I chickened out. I didnt change my stats, but simply equipped the shield + armour, and the great-jars talisman for max equip, And he was down in two attempts, in a total walkover. Healing was not an issue. You just have to let go of the L1/LB sometimes and conserve stamina.

So, a massive letdown on my own part, but I would have had to go through this shit over and over again for a week or two and I have other things to get on with. Kudos to those who got through with their preferred builds.

A couple of things I had issues with:

1. One of the series of swings he does in phase 1 are almost impossible to dodge properly. The one where he swings twice, and then one more super quickly from the left. You have to roll perfectlly on the frame after the second swing, or he WILL clip you with the last swing back. And it throws me (almost) every time, because the attacks are so relentless and it fucks with my focus and timing. This goes for second phase, too.

2. The blood arc skill that he does has obscured my view many many times, and led to taking hits and again losing focus and the will to carry on.

3. The light show on display in the second phase is often very distracting, and I have up until the last clearing attempt had problems identifying where attacks come from, and when Im supposed to dodge. Like the mirror image that he sends down, I cant see for shit whats going on.

It has still been a great ride, but the final boss ultimately ruined the experience for me. I dont know if hes overtuned, I think Fume knight is a tougher boss although simpler in design. That fight never feels unfair.

So a bit of a damper on what should have a been a feeling of victory and accomplishment, alas.

 

[Saber]

In a shameful turn of events, I have embraced the comfort of verdigris metal and stony fingerprints, and beaten the crap out of Promised Consort Radahn. Oh Radahn, mighty Radahn. I copied your remembrance twice so I never have to deal with your stupid shit ever again.

Seriously: I got so fed up with a couple of things esp. in the second phase, that I chickened out. I didnt change my stats, but simply equipped the shield + armour, and the great-jars talisman for max equip, And he was down in two attempts, in a total walkover. Think I used two health flasks. You just have to let go of the L1/LB sometimes and conserve stamina.

So, a massive letdown on my own part, but I would have had to go through this shit over and over again for a week or two and I have other things to get on with. Kudos to those who got through with their preferred builds.

A couple of things I had issues with:

1. One of the series of swings he does in phase 1 are almost impossible to dodge properly. The one where he swings twice, and then one more super quickly from the left. You have to roll perfectlly on the frame after the second swing, or he WILL clip you with the last swing back. And it throws me (almost) every time, because the attacks are so relentless and it fucks with my focus and timing. This goes for second phase, too.

2. The blood arc skill that he does has obscured my view many many times, and led to taking hits and again losing focus and the will to carry on.

3. The light show on display in the second phase is often very distracting, and I have up until the last clearing attempt had problems identifying where attacks come from, and when Im supposed to dodge. Like the mirror image that he sends down, I cant see for shit whats going on.

It has still been a great ride, but the final boss ultimately ruined the experience for me. I dont know if hes overtuned, I think Fume knight is a tougher boss although simpler in design. That fight never feels unfair.

So a bit of a damper on what should have a been a feeling of victory and accomplishment, alas.

These bosses literally gave a bad taste in my mouth, which is a shame.
Interestly Messmer is by far the most entertaiment fight of the DLC and I feel like the DLC simply spit on his face because after that fight he becomes a nobody.
Even Rellana, the botleg version of Renalla, isn't that fun to play. She feels like an ultra aggressive and moveset excessive boss with way more poise than Crucible Knights and no visible weakness despite not wearing a shield. Even Radhan can be interruped from time to time.

 

[thuGG_pl]

These bosses literally gave a bad taste in my mouth, which is a shame.
Interestly Messmer is by far the most entertaiment fight of the DLC and I feel like the DLC simply spit on his face because after that fight he becomes a nobody.
Even Rellana, the botleg version of Renalla, isn't that fun to play. She feels like an ultra aggressive and moveset excessive boss with way more poise than Crucible Knights and no visible weakness despite not wearing a shield. Even Radhan can be interruped from time to time.

Most major bosses in the DLC were a letdown for me.
Rellana was overagressive with tons of bullshit (but at least she was a gatekeeper and fighting her later was a good idea ).
Mesmer also overaggressive, needed to play a bit with my build to find something for him, and finally he felled, but I just felt I was lucky.
Gaius another bullshit one.
Then Bayle, he could have been the best, it's certainly the best spectacle, the most epic fight. But they needed to add this annoyance of locking only to the head, this ruined the fight for me.
Radhan was just straight BS, no point in talking about it, simply the worst.

 

[Saber]

Most major bosses in the DLC were a letdown for me.
Rellana was overagressive with tons of bullshit (but at least she was a gatekeeper and fighting her later was a good idea ).
Mesmer also overaggressive, needed to play a bit with my build to find something for him, and finally he felled, but I just felt I was lucky.
Gaius another bullshit one.
Then Bayle, he could have been the best, it's certainly the best spectacle, the most epic fight. But they needed to add this annoyance of locking only to the head, this ruined the fight for me.
Radhan was just straight BS, no point in talking about it, simply the worst.

Right?
How the fuck Bayle feels better than the last boss? I don't mind repeating a boss, but why the heck the last boss has to be Radhan? Why Gaius ignore the mount rules and make Tree Sentinels and Loretta feel like a bunch of imbeciles riding a horse?
And this is from an Elden Ring lover, this DLC has alot of wrongs and inconsistencies.
Like, the shadow guys that carries a jar and drops blessings they respawns like normal enemies for some reason. Why? Scarabs rares don't respawn and have clear differences between them which also dictates its rewards. The bosses are extremelly unrewarding(mediocre amount of runes) and so most of weapons(try ghostflame weapons and compare to any weapon in the base game). The dungeons level design are poor despite some having interesting concepts(like gaols). The only dungeons that I like are the forge mines ones, but those don't have bosses.
St. Trina way to make her speak is demency imo.

 

[Arsic]

Right?
How the fuck Bayle feels better than the last boss? I don't mind repeating a boss, but why the heck the last boss has to be Radhan? Why Gaius ignore the mount rules and make Tree Sentinels and Loretta feel like a bunch of imbeciles riding a horse?
And this is from an Elden Ring lover, this DLC has alot of wrongs and inconsistencies.
Like, the shadow guys that carries a jar and drops blessings they respawns like normal enemies for some reason. Why? Scarabs rares don't respawn and have clear differences between them which also dictates its rewards. The bosses are extremelly unrewarding(mediocre amount of runes) and so most of weapons(try ghostflame weapons and compare to any weapon in the base game). The dungeons level design are poor despite some having interesting concepts(like gaols). The only dungeons that I like are the forge mines ones, but those don't have bosses.
St. Trina way to make her speak is demency imo.

We really acting like Ludwig wasn’t the best boss of blood borne dlc? He wasn’t even on the box art or the final boss.

He shits all over Kos.

Ringed titty city dlc for DS3 final boss vs base game final boss or other bosses isn’t the best boss either.

They consistently miss the mark on final being best. And that’s ok.

 

[Danjin44]

I guess I’m one of the few who liked the boss fights in this DLC, I’m also type who likes aggressive bosses.

 

[Saber]

We really acting like Ludwig wasn’t the best boss of blood borne dlc? He wasn’t even on the box art or the final boss.

He shits all over Kos.

Won't disagree, though. Didn't make last boss of this DLC any good though.

I guess I’m one of the few who liked the boss fights in this DLC, I’m also type who likes aggressive bosses.

Thats a clear difference between agressiveness and over excessive boss. You as a soul player should have know.
Aggressive bosses are nothing new, but these bosses usually trade something to compensate(poor defenses, vast opennings, etc). Misbolgen is like very aggressive but usually trade off his defenses and poises for it. Crucible Knight are often though opponents with lot of armor(specially the shield one)but most of his attacks are predictable, even his combos and can be almost certain to be parried.
Now say the same thing about Rellana. She is like a perfect rpg character in terms of concept. She got fast attacks, combos, defenses, magic, gap closer, dashs, etc. Try to find something bad about this boss.
And before you come saying whats wrong like them, I got no problem with you like them. Different tastes different takes is what I say.

 

[Danjin44]

Won't disagree, though. Didn't make last boss of this DLC any good though.



Thats a clear difference between agressiveness and over excessive boss. You as a soul player should have know.
Aggressive bosses are nothing new, but these bosses usually trade something to compensate(poor defenses, vast opennings, etc). Misbolgen is like very aggressive but usually trade off his defenses and poises for it. Crucible Knight are often though opponents with lot of armor(specially the shield one)but most of his attacks are predictable, even his combos and can be almost certain to be parried.
Now say the same thing about Rellana. She is like a perfect rpg character in terms of concept. She got fast attacks, combos, defenses, magic, gap closer, dashs, etc. Try to find something bad about this boss.

Rellana also can be parried like Malenia her posture can easily break, she was tough but I personally had much harder time with enemies with lion dance mask that had different elemental attacks.

 

[Arsic]

To add to Saber, Gael is actually a perfect final boss.

Took me plenty of tries but never did I feel bull shitted or overwhelmed.

I took him down at 86, recommended is 120+, and it never felt obscene. Plenty of nice gaps to poke or heal, patterns you can follow, epic two/3 phases, and felt good after beating him. Didn’t have to respec.

That’s how they need to look at final bosses through the lens of. DS1 final boss also was appropriate.

 

[Saber]

Rellana also can be parried like Malenia her posture can easily break, she was tough but I personally had much harder time with enemies lion dance mask that had different elemental attacks.

The problem with the dancing lion is that his attack animations are confusing. Other than that he seems fine to me.

To add to Saber, Gael is actually a perfect final boss.

Took me plenty of tries but never did I feel bull shitted or overwhelmed.

I took him down at 86, recommended is 120+, and it never felt obscene. Plenty of nice gaps to poke or heal, patterns you can follow, epic two/3 phases, and felt good after beating him. Didn’t have to respec.

That’s how they need to look at final bosses through the lens of. DS1 final boss also was appropriate.

You guys are all smart playing on a simple new game. I'm played on NG+6 first time, his HP is like 3x worse. What you guys plays are like childs play in comparison.
Its like compare Bloodborne DLC on a new game versus my new game plus first timer. My new game plus was 7 when I face Ludwig first time, any of his attacks instantly kill me.

 

[Danjin44]

The problem with the dancing lion is that his attack animations are confusing. Other than that he seems fine to me.

No don’t get me wrong, they are great enemies but I consider them tougher than Rellana.

 

[bender]

My score for the DLC would be 9.5/10

IGN Editors posting on GAF again.

 

[Arsic]

The problem with the dancing lion is that his attack animations are confusing. Other than that he seems fine to me.




You guys are all smart playing on a simple new game. I'm played on NG+6 first time, his HP is like 3x worse. What you guys plays are like childs play in comparison.
Its like compare Bloodborne DLC on a new game versus my new game plus first timer. My new game plus was 7 when I face Ludwig first time, any of his attacks instantly kill me.

Shit pussy. Git gud.

 

[Saber]

Shit pussy. Git gud.

I get it. Otherwise I wouldn't beat Dark Souls, Bloodborne(+DLC) and Elden Ring and the entire DLC(seeing you guys starting a new game for the DLC is funny though). Didn't stop me from telling my impressions though.

 

[Arsic]

I get it. Otherwise I wouldn't beat Dark Souls, Bloodborne(+DLC) and Elden Ring and the entire DLC(seeing you guys starting a new game for the DLC is funny though). Didn't stop me from telling my impressions though.

I’m just clowning.

You da mvp.