Elden Ring is a title that has been immensely popular since its release in 2022. Having already won numerous awards, including the prestigious GotY at The Game Awards 2023, the game received universal acclaim from almost everybody.
Shadow of the Erdtree, the upcoming expansion for the title that was announced in the initial months of 2023, is long-awaited by fans. So much so that several posts about the upcoming expansion are made daily over at the game’s subreddit. One of the biggest questions that the fans have about the title is where the expansion’s place would be in the game’s timeline.
Shadow of the Erdtree: Will it be Set Before, After, or Parallel to the Elden Ring Timeline?
As mentioned earlier, Elden Ring fans are often seen wondering about the game’s upcoming expansion that has been confirmed to be coming, but there isn’t a release date confirmed yet. Elden Ring took the SoulsBorne formula, an in-house one developed by FromSoftware, and applied it to a much larger scale. Much of the game’s focus was on world-building and lore-creation, which paid dividends as players who loved the game were new to the SoulsBorne subgenre.
A post by one of the players of the game’s title was seen sparking a discussion on the game’s official subreddit about the Shadow of the Erdtree expansion. The entire post and the discussion that followed can be found here.
In the post, the player asked if a certain amount of progression would be required for the players to get the most or even unlock access to the upcoming DLC. On the flip side, the player even asked if there would be such a thing as going overboard with the game’s progression, rendering the player’s experience lukewarm at best. One of the significant highlights in Elden Ring‘s storyline, like triggering Leyndell, the Ashen Capital, was discussed.
Considering the second scenario, it would be incredibly inconvenient that going overboard with progression would be a possibility. That is because the expansion will come almost two years after the game’s initial release date, so most of the player base will have completed the title’s storyline.
After the post’s creation, the discussion shared some fantastic insights and highlighted the trends followed by other FromSoftware games. One of the top comments was from FromSoftware enthusiasts, and a player stated that:
It’s super unlikely to be in Ash Leyndell, especially since every DLC they’ve done didn’t require you to get that far into the game. Dark Souls 1’s DLC was accessible after the first half, DS2s DLC were in the first half, and DS3s DLCs were accessible in the first half as well.
The player further stated that other DLCs for other titles in the SoulsBorne series took place later in the game. The format of previous DLCs in the studio’s titles was discussed. It was also discussed that the DLCs usually had boss fights and had zero NPC questlines added to the game as part of it.
Also, an incredibly valid point made by one of the comments was that if the DLC is present in the first half of the game, it makes it easy for those gamers who have yet to buy the title to access it even faster. And this will lead to the Elden Ring novices enjoying the expansion early on.
Some mandatory bosses may need to be defeated for players to gain access to the DLC. Also, since Elden Ring is much more open than any other game from the studio, it might just give players the freedom to enjoy the DLC without any prerequisites.
Elden Ring players are desperately waiting for the Shadow of the Erdtree to drop, if the posts and discussions on the game’s subreddit are any indication. FromSoftware also seems to be taking its time to ensure top-notch quality when the expansion is finally released.
What do you think will be the requirements for Shadow of the Erdtree? Where do you think it should fit in Elden Ring‘s timeline? Let us know in the comment section below!
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