Shadow of the Erdtree Should Break a PlayStation Tradition

Elden Ring is now over two years old, but the game’s surrounding hype has rarely dissipated since its release. With its first paid expansion only around two months from release, there’s no danger of FromSoftware’s sprawling action-RPG being out of the spotlight any time soon. The DLC, titled Shadow of the Erdtree, is expected to be the Japanese developer’s biggest DLC ever. With this in mind, it would be a great opportunity for Elden Ring to break a PlayStation tradition by introducing a brand-new Platinum trophy specifically for the DLC.

The introduction of Trophies (or Achievements for Xbox users) in the mid-2000s significantly changed the way many people played games. Giving players electronic trophies tied to specific in-game achievements created a new sense of accomplishment, and allowed people to showcase their skills via their overall trophy haul, which has a score attached to it. The inclusion of a Platinum trophy for almost all PlayStation games, which is awarded for getting all available trophies in the game, adds further impetus for completionists, and many will waste precious hours chasing particularly tricky trophies in order to get their hands on that elusive Platinum.

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Elden Ring’s Shadow Of The Erdtree DLC Has the Perfect Opportunity To Troll Fans

Future content for Elden Ring could prank players by making a big change to a popular tradition that has developed in the game’s community.

Shadow of the Erdtree’s Trophy List Should Be Suitably Big and Rewarding

Historically, FromSoftware has taken a varied approach to DLC trophies for its expansions. Despite each boasting some of the toughest bosses and areas of their respective games, none of the acclaimed Dark Souls trilogy’s expansions had their own trophy lists.

For a series renowned for its difficulty, and with a particularly passionate and active online fanbase, this seemed a little perplexing. Bloodborne, however, which was released a year before Dark Souls 3, did come with its own DLC trophy list.

For an expansion as large as Shadow of the Erdtree seems to be, an accompanying trophy list feels appropriate. But arguably, PlayStation should take this a step further, and perhaps give the hotly anticipated DLC its own, separate Platinum trophy. Elden Ring‘s Platinum is no easy task, but when compared to all of FromSoftware’s other Souls titles, it feels like the most reasonable of the bunch, meaning particularly skilled players have already managed to obtain it.

Shadow of the Erdtree Will Likely Be Even Tougher Than Elden Ring Itself

While it’s difficult to say exactly how tough Shadow of the Erdtree will be, if FromSoftware’s previous DLCs are anything to go by, players can expect to be faced with an even bigger challenge than the one presented during the base game. The trailer has revealed some potentially tough new opponents, including Messmer the Impaler, a boss many are speculating could give Malenia, Blade of Miquella a run for her money.

Likely, the expansion will also introduce new side quests and secrets for players to uncover, so new trophies to reflect some of these achievements should be expected. With or without a Platinum Trophy of its own, Shadow of the Erdtree is primed to emulate Elden Ring‘s success, albeit on a smaller scale. The long gap of over two years between the base game and DLC has led many to believe that the overall quality of the finished product should be suitably high. It will hopefully prove to be one of the year’s most successful releases when it releases this June.

Elden Ring

Elden Ring is a fantasy action-RPG adventure set in a world co-created by Hidetaka Miyazaki, the creator of the influential Dark Souls video game series, and George R.R. Martin, the author of the best-selling fantasy series A Song of Ice and Fire. This collaboration between two renowned creators has resulted in FromSoftware’s largest game to date, filled with danger and discovery at every turn. Hidetaka Miyazaki, president and game director of FromSoftware, has a history of directing highly acclaimed games in franchises such as Armored Core and Dark Souls.

Released

February 25, 2022

Multiplayer

Online Co-Op , Online Multiplayer

Engine

Proprietary

ESRB

M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Language, Suggestive Themes, Violence

How Long To Beat

58 Hours

Metascore

96

Platforms That Support Crossplay

PS4 & PS5 and Xbox One & Xbox Series X|S

PS Plus Availability

N/A