Now that players have finally gotten enough time to spend with Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree, much of the Souls community agrees that, while flawed in a few aspects, the expansion is FromSoftware at the peak of its creative prowess.
Admittedly, despite all the praise being showered at the DLC, it is difficult to look past some of its minor failures. One such failure, though, comes in the form of an enemy so mind-numbingly dull that players usually start skipping them right after the beginning.
Shadow of the Erdtree’s Furnace Golems Have Been the Expansion’s Big Missed Opportunity
Shadow of the Erdtree is Elden Ring‘s Wonderland. Nearly everything in the game screams perfection – aside from a few balancing issues – from items to bosses to the overworld.
Considering that, it begs the question of why FromSoftware decided to fill the Land of Shadow with Furnace Golems, one of the most boring enemies whose novelty fades after the first or second encounter.
The true biggest disappointment
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Now, from a lore perspective, these things are admittedly very cool. As a part of Messmer’s army, these walking monstrosities were used as tools for the subjugation of the Hornsent, Marika’s enemies, and for making a mockery of the Fell God.
The mechanical perspective is where things get somewhat icky. While the fights always have an element of spectacle to them, what it boils down to is you, on your Torrent most likely, hitting away at the Golem’s leg until it falls after you damage its poise three times, only to then hit in its face once and do it all over again.
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While the armored ones do offer some change of tactics, their fight usually ends as soon as you throw a Hefty Pot their way, making them somewhat pointless, too.
Of course, and a special shoutout to when a Golem falls on uneven terrain and players are simply unable to launch the critical attack animation. People really don’t enjoy that part, FromSoftware.
Boss Reuse Is the One Issue That Elden Ring’s Shadow of the Erdtree Couldn’t Fix Either
Now, to be fair, calling out Elden Ring and FromSoftware on the Greater Foe reuse in the overworld is a little unjustified, especially considering the sheer variety of ways that you can take on every challenge in the game.
However, the problem has never been more pronounced than in expansion, as seen through Ghostflame Dragons and the Golems. As the community has voiced time and again, the main issue with these bosses stems from the fact that there are not a lot of different ways of fighting them.
So, while seeing the problem return here was undoubtedly a disappointment, one can hope that with the next game, FromSoftware can overcome this issue with a bit more focus.
With that said, what are your thoughts on Furnace Golems? Did you start ignoring them midway into the expansion, too? Let us know in the comments below!
