A new Elden Ring update has patched the game’s Easy Anti-Cheat to support a recent SteamOS update, as detailed on publisher Bandai Namco’s official site. It’s good news for people playing the FromSoftware RPG on Steam Decks, especially those haunted by memories of the game’s technical tribulations at launch, some of which were caused by the anti-cheat functionality. It’s less great news for the millions hankering for the slightest whisper of a breath of new information about Elden Ring’s Shadow of the Erdtree DLC. But save your pity, above all, for the dozens of videogame news writers – dozens, I tell you! – who must write about Elden Ring’s Shadow of the Erdtree DLC at any opportunity, lest the demigods of traffic eat our souls.
There’s basically nothing to say here beyond the above, but by my sword, I am going to get 300-400 words out of this precious morsel of Elden Info, and you are going to sit there and watch me. Let’s start by recapping what we know about Elden Ring’s Shadow of the Erdtree DLC. It was announced in February last year, and going by one developer’s LinkedIn, has been in development since April 2022, shortly after the main game came crashing through our atmosphere.
Ever the peddler of enigmas, From have released exactly one Shadow of Erdtree image, which shows us a slender young golden-haired figure in a white nightie riding Torrent, your trusty summonable steed. The pair are gazing out across a field of waving corn, ghostly monoliths, and ruined archways. In the distance, a sickly Erdtree weeps golden sap.
The most popular interpretation of the key art is that the Elden Ring DLC expansion tells the story of Miquella, infant demigod brother of Malenia, goddess of rot and one of the game’s most aggravating bosses. But the unidentified character in the key art could also be a younger version of Queen Marika, progenitor of Elden Ring’s warring demigods, which would also suggest that the expansion is a prequel.
Or it could be none of the above. Perhaps the mysterious figure is a travelling tree surgeon, Frank E. Ring, who traded all his equipment for a goat during a drunken bender, the day before the biggest job of his career. Poor old Frank – he’s going to have a devil of a time pruning those dead boughs without his chainsaw.
According to a Thrustmaster controller listing posted by Datablitz in December, Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree’s release date falls in February 2024. The Thrustmaster listing also claims that another Elden Ring “major key beat or new game expansion” is due in 2025. The listing was pulled very soon after it was discovered, and neither Bandai Namco nor FromSoftware have said anything about it, which you could spin either way.
Frankly, I think the odds of a February release for Shadow of the Erdtree are low – there would have been a teaser trailer or something by now. But it would be neat timing inasmuch as it would coincide with the game’s second anniversary.
OK, I think that’s enough of that. For a more substantial Shadow of the Erdtree write-up that might also make you angry, here’s Ed Thorn arguing that he hopes it’s some kind of roguelike. I’m thinking about doing a diary series on Elden Ring myself, to refresh my memory of the From colossus and perhaps ensure that the next Erdtree news piece isn’t a massive load of cobblers. Do you have any weird playstyles to suggest? I have to confess, it’s my least favourite FromSoftware game. I don’t like the jump to open world exploration at all.
