Hidetaka Miyazaki Confirms That Shadow Of The Erdtree Will Be The Only DLC

Hidetaka Miyazaki has stated that Elden Ring will have only one DLC, Shadow of the Erdtree, despite its massive success.

It has been over two years since the release of Elden Ring, the most successful FromSoftware title that even features a collaboration with author George R. R. Martin. The game enjoyed universal critical acclaim, collecting numerous awards, including Game of the Year at The Game Awards, so the news comes as a shock to players and press alike.

“Shadow of the Erdtree Is The First and Last DLC”

The news came from an interview the renowned director gave to a Chinese media outlet. where Miyazaki spoke about Elden Ring and its future expansion

“Shadow of the Erdtree is the first and last DLC, and we have no plans to add more content to Elden Ring.”

As justification, Miyazaki explained what led the team to make this decision:

“Elden Ring emphasizes exploration and adventure in a vast world. To provide that experience, a large and expansive setting is inevitably needed. So, instead of dividing it into several parts, it was simply better to create a large expansion. If sold separately, the freedom of exploration and the sense of adventure would be diminished.”

However, Miyazaki did not rule out returning to the Elden Ring universe in another game. In the interview, he was asked about the future of the title as a franchise, and Miyazaki simply stated that the studio intentionally leaves the endings of its games open-ended.

In March, in another interview with a North American media outlet, the director left the door open for a possible sequel, stating: “We don’t want to say that this is the end of the Elden Ring saga for now.”

FromSoftware’s approach to DLC content varies from game to game, and it seems to depend entirely on the project, the publisher, and what the team wishes to develop with it. Dark Souls 3, for example, had two smaller DLCs, while Dark Souls 2 had a DLC trilogy. Dark Souls and Bloodborne, like Elden Ring, only had single expansions: Artorias of the Abyss and The Old Hunters.

Shadow of the Erdtree Will Allow Difficulty Adjustments

Most players know that the DLC entrance is via Moghwyn Palace and expect the difficulty to be appropriate for high-level characters. However, this new conversation with Zhihu has given Fromsoftware the opportunity to mention an important note regarding difficulty:

“In general, as it is based on the second half, the difficulty is relatively high. We have also introduced a new level element in the DLC that allows you to freely choose the intensity of your challenge,”

“For example, if the player’s level in the main game is already very high, you can choose to disable this increase and challenge the enemy without upgrading this new attribute,” he continues in the conversation. “But if you feel it is already difficult for you, you can continue to improve the new attribute and the character’s strength.”

Although Miyazaki does not detail the nature of the new mechanic, speculation is rampant on how this optional feature will improve some character’s statistics.

New Characters and More Hours of Gameplay

On the matter of game length, the director managed expectations with an ambiguous take:

“I don’t think it’s good for me to answer the question about the duration – I revealed in a previous interview before the release of Elden Ring that it would take about 30 hours to finish the game, but after the release, everyone said I was a liar and that that time was not enough!”

“As for the best time to start it, everyone can play according to their preferences and there is no strict order. If I had to say, we would recommend starting the DLC in the late game of the main game, and then coming back to finish the game. Because if you finish the game, you would probably go to New Game+ and not transition to the DLC.”

Some new DLC lore details were also touched upon, which is exciting news for all who are speculating about Messmer and Miquella. Without going into spoilers, Miyazaki hints that players will find the answer to some of the questions that have arisen among the community members after playing Elden Ring… But there will also be other questions that, as is customary in FromSoftware titles, will give rise to endless theories and speculations on the networks.

Furthermore, Shadow of the Erdtree will have novelties regarding creatures to interact with. In this regard, Miyazaki recalls that “there will be a lot of new characters” and that “NPCs that usually appear directly will not return [in the DLC].” On the other hand, and as the community suspected via details from the last Elden Ring trailer, the expansion will have new groups or factions that will allow us to know more about the universe built by FromSoftware.

SotE Doesn’t Affect the Game’s Ending

Regarding this issue, Miyazaki comments that “the DLC is independent, so players’ decisions in the game will not affect the story of the DLC.” Although, while it is true that “there is no such thing as an ending” in the expansion, “players will have to face some decisions along the way.”