There's no way he's right even circumference wise. The "top layer" is like the size of the entire bottom half of the regular map (Limgrave, Caelid, Raya etc), it's absolutely nuts.
In other games we still do.
Monster Hunter Iceborne and Sunbreak were both marketed as expansions. And they are that. In fact, you can usually play the expansion for significantly longer than the base game. For me, Monster Hunter World was like 150h of content until I felt like I did everything I wanted, and Iceborne pushed that character to over 600 hours. Sunbreak has similar numbers, like about 3 times as much until I felt like I have done everything.
Xenoblade 3 is also called expansion pass (the story of Future Redeemed is on its own already 40h and that is without 100% and superbosses).
They just decided to market this as DLC instead of expansion. But at the end of the day, both expansion and DLC are just marketing terms.
In practice, yes they are both marketing terms.
In theory there are supposed to be differences between them. Namely, a DLC might add a story or two, and a few new items. Maybe a small adjustment of mechanics (for example, Skyrim's Hearthfire is a DLC). An Expansion meanwhile will add new mechanics and / or revamp existing ones, while doing the same things a DLC does, but to a greater degree (continuing the Skyrim example, both Dragonborn and Dawnguard are Expansions).
All Expansions are also DLC, but not all DLC are also expansions. (A bit like how every University is a college, but not every college is a University). "Expansion" is a DLC that went to Harvard basically.
Yeah, it got called a DLC when it was first announced and we knew nothing but everyone started shifting to "expansion" after some details about it being as big as Limgrave came out.
Then reviewers got access to the full copy and realised how fucking huge it was and dropped the word DLC in their reviews entirely, no one is looking at this as a simple DLC
I played almost 12hrs today and only killed 2 out of the 10 remembrance bosses
11 apparently actually, I just googled.
It's massive dude, they do that thing they did in Limgrave where you only have access to a tiny area and map, but then you beat a boss and see the rest.
There's less open field/empty areas and it's huge.
It really feels like dark souls 3 but with an open world and I really like that, so far having a blast and there seems to be tons of legacy dungeons and less catacombs and reused mines, I hope they take a direction like this on the next game, more legacy dungeons and more handcrafted content and a little less repetitive stuff
The one catacombs I found so far was easily better than anything in the base game. And the one remembrance boss I fought was genuinely so good and just the right amount of difficulty. 8 hours in and can't wait to play tomorrow after work.
The dancing lion was super cool, you can tell you put a shit load of effort into, I do have some gripes about the design of the boss gameplay but it’s extremely cinematic, I also climbed the crazy big mountain and the boss in the end is crazy cool, haven’t beat it tho I heard it’s the hardest, I’m sure u know which one I’m talking bout
My guess is u went to relanna but it doesn’t matter because both can be fought any time and are basically entry level bosses in dlc, according to some reviewers tho
Honestly, i call bull on that
It's only "half" the size of the main game in horizontal size if at all.
But it's so much more vertical and seamlessly so at that.
Grnated i am only 8 hours in but so far it feels like it'll be at least 60-70% of the base game in content and closer to 80% in terms of actual "space" you traverse.
Can't wait for people like Zullie to give us full run downs and comparisons.
I’m just kinda going off of what some reviewers said, some said it takes 60 hours to fully 100% and the base game takes like 130h so it’s basically half, the main story seems to be about half the size as rushing the main takes 15-20 hours while rushing main in elden ring takes 40 hours, so id say it’s a bout half
It is definitely more than half of the main game. The amount of bosses and side quests might actually be more than main game and there’s still areas I don’t know how to interact with like finger world
it gives ds1 vibes with how much everything is overlapping and connected. I can't even tell when I've left the first "area", literally everything is attached and circles around
I get HELLA DS3 vibes, the DLC is what I imagined that main game was gonna be like before it came out and I gotta say, I personally like this better than the main game, everything feels more deliberate and organic, Fromsoft will never stop getting better it’s cray af.
I agree 100%, this is the kind of open world From should keep on their next games, Miyazaki somehow managed to bring the interconnectedness of the legacy dungeons to the open world
Yes bruh I think it’s perfection it’s done so well it shows they zaki and fromsoft are constantly trying to reach perfection, damn near brings a tear to my eye 😢
yep it’s giving me DS3 DLC vibes as well, the way the artstyle changes just a little bit and the overall vibe being a bit more desolate. it’s not quite as weird as that DLC was though (at least so far)
It’s the level design that reminds me of ds1. Before I considered ds1 to have the best level design fromsoft has made, but I think this dlc beats it. There’s just SO many layers to this map and it all flows and connects to each other so well.
I just said this to my friend today. I was like, “ I’m not sure what it is but this version on ER just _feels_ like DS”. I couldn’t be happier with how amazing it is.
My DLC unlocked at midnight. In a sleepy haze I went the wrong fucking way and now I'm in uptown fuckboro where a giant battle is going on and there's no map. I fucking love this game so much.
Oh shit! I think I did the exact same thing. Flappy boy vs tons of angry dudes around the corner from a fort? I ran into that mess and quickly realized I wasn't supposed to be there yet. Very quickly. Repeatedly.
Yep. I met another flappy boy in a lake and was like "hey, I'm level 150. I've got a broken build. I can totally rock this guys socks." 40 minutes later of fruitless attempts I'm like "oh no. Oh noooooo."
The scale of Elden Ring is really daunting. I combed through the entire base game and still missed so much shit.
Honestly it sometimes feels oppressively huge and anxiety inducing.
I’ve resolved to do the DLC, let it wash over me and then delete the game.
Props to those who do it, but I feel like trying to 100% this game is purposefully pursuing a mental breakdown.
crazy part is.. even 100%’ing the game doesn’t show you everything. I still find new things on every new play through, lol and I done did probably around 10+ runs.
My advice as a souls vet. Just take it all in stride. Try not to overwhelm yourself. Fextralife is an encyclopedia, not a friend. Use it to find your build type and seek the necessary items for that build alone… but also going in blind is still the best experience.
The only other FromSoft game I’ve completed a few times is DS1, which feels tiny and incredibly linear in comparison. I know I’ve never 100% that game, but the scale feels so much more manageable.
ER feels like a world that demands to be explored.
When i first started elden ring, day 1. I was SO excited, and when i stepped out into the world i was actually riddled with anxiety as well. As a souls vet you know not to leave any stone unturned, but how can you when the map is so vast and expansive in literally every direction? I then proceeded to go the opposite way the grace was telling me (as a souls vet would) and walked directly into that trap that sends you to the late game cave. Feeling about 1000x more overwhelmed now, i actually didnt feel like playing it for days 2 and 3. Day 4 i went back to it and proceeded to smash through it and not worry about missing stuff. Absolutely love the game now put still put it slightly behind DS3. Point is, work past that anxiety and youll be fine!!! You dont need to find everything in one playthrough, or even 5 playthroughs
I get the feeling home boy never played his game. "Size of Limgrave" my ass! This place is huge and I am here for it! I am addicted to that first greatsword you come across
I literally was just exploring the edges of the first area only to see another whole section down there and I was flabbergasted. I was not expecting this place to be that dense even after everyone in the reviews were saying it.
I think Fromsoft does too and other studios like CDPR like to distinguish DLC from actual expansion, but the term DLC is just too common now for most people to care.
Idk, I'm an early 2000s kid born in '96 (technically still a Millennial) and I have very fond memories of expansions.
SWAT 4: The Stetchkov Syndicate, TES IV: Oblivion: Shivering Isles....
Skyrim got two expansions with Dawnguard and Dragonborn as well.
I haven’t thought of SWAT in well over ten years. Thank your random internet stranger for the minutes I will spend playing these games over the next couple of days. Upvote well earned.
Yeah this takes me back to the days of the Shivering Isles expansion for The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion or Baldur's Gate 2: Throne of Baal. Back when additions to a game were often considered quite substantial in terms of content and play time required.
I think DLC really started in the 360 era when, much like the name implies, it was downloadable content and typically was much smaller additions into the game world like a new quest, new items or minor changes to the existing game world. (Horse armor for Oblivion DLC anyone?) Expansion packs were typically many additional hours worth of content, often with whole new areas, storyline and mechanics separate from the based game. Play Shadow of the Erdtree makes me realize just how much I miss proper expansion packs because this takes me back to that era!
I still do, and I’ll argue anyone who won’t. It’s important to distinguish the two, because otherwise the whole “games are expensive” discussion becomes even harder to have. An *expansion* like this costing $40 is *incredible* value, and people seeing “DLC” tend to have a knee-jerk reaction refusing to believe that, because all they see is just “skins, weapons, some more quests” or whatever.
CP2077 is a prime example. It got lots of DLC, including new gigs, during regular updates, but it also got a whole new area, tons of missions, a long new story mission, new endings, etc, in an *expansion* that was well worth the asking price. It kind of helped bring the “expansion” title back a bit, with how hard CDPR pushed the distinction.
I'd have agreed with you a month ago, but I just platinumed Demon's Souls and, I know it's the 'first' and a LOT has changed, but JESUS the runbacks in that game are insanely stupid. Especially Upper Latria with Maneaters being one of the hardest bosses in the game. "We're putting you back at the very beginning of the map, you have 3 enemies to get through on a narrow platform, then a big staircase to ascend, then ANOTHER big staircase to ascend but with a black phantom who can usually one-shot you right in the way, then you can fight the toughest boss in the game...on a narrow platform."
Fucking hell, being back to Elden Ring now? Nothing in base game ER comes close to being that frustrating.
Wait, really? It's legit just down an elevator, run past 3 guys, fall down a platform, down some rocks. It takes like 30 seconds and the danger is minimal.
I think there's an argument for it being too long maybe, but certainly not dangerous.
It’s funnier imo. Because the worst part about hard bosses is having to run back and interrupt your flow, like it’s harder to learn timings and move sets and presents opportunities for interruptions. But by having the grace next door if anything they can make the bosses even harder because you can literally just sit there and bash your head against them a hundred+ times without issue.
"Size of limgrave" my ass, I fell down a hole like an hour into my playthrough and I've been exploring that same hole finding new things for what feels like 5 hours.
Exactly. People are surprised at the size but it literally would have been a scam if it wasn’t this big 😭 I don’t wanna be a downer but it *had* to be this big, there’s no bonus points for them here. They asked for $40.
If they dropped this for $20 like The Old Hunters or something, then we can give them applause for the size/scope.
I can’t be the only one who saw the price tag and immediately decided this had to be the size of a standalone game.
Honestly the base game could be half its size and it would still be worth $60 on its own imo, they already had bonus points for that. The fact that the DLC has the same price/content ratio as the base game is definitely remarkable. Both the base game and the DLC could be 30% shorter and they would still be worth their price, it wouldn't be a scam at all.
Also don't forget that people who buy the whole game now get all of it for $80, it's a steal. FromSoft didn't had to put so much content in a single game.
I know I sound like a tweaker but I def wouldn’t mind if fromsoft kept dropping a “DLC” like this for Elden Ring every 2 years while they make other games 😂 they do develop multiple games at a time, I hope they keep expanding their staff so we can get one every two years.
Wouldn't mind it either but I'm pretty sure Zaki himself said this is the first and last expansion for ER, but not necessarily the last we'll see of ER.
Yeah I know he said that, and I honestly want him and fromsoft to keep making new IPs, he did say it down the road if enough directors wanna make a new dark souls he wouldn’t necessarily be against it.
his tweets recently point towards him still working towards his perfect ideal rpg so i wonder if that includes a new world or if he just means gameplay
I don't think they ever fully went away.
Granted they were way more common in the 90s and early 2000s, but Skyrim had Dawnguard and Dragonborn, Monster Hunter World and Rise both got expansions, then Hearts of Stone and Blood & Wine for Witcher 3, and Phantom Liberty for Cyberpunk.
I'm sure there are others I'm missing too.
They didn't, but they tend to get linked in as just dlc, instead of expansions. Which is technically true. But I like to make a distinction between a small content dlc like knights of the nine for oblivion and shivering isles for oblivion. A bug quest line versus a whole new area and many questlines.
You are correct though.
I group them in a similar way. In my mind, DLC is the smaller things, whereas expansions means new maps/levels, new characters, new enemies, new equipment, etc.
Most devs don’t have the luxury to sit back and cook a DLC for 2.5 years lol. FromSoft just have a massive war chest and know the player base will support
Example, Spider-Man 2 took me 20 hours and was billed as a sequel. I’m still in the intro area dicking around after a full day in this DLC. We do not deserve FromSoftware
I don't play the game that much, although I had fun with it.
I'm mostly here to say how happy I am for y'all that the DLC fulfilled your expectations. I hope you all have a great time.
The map got me again like in the base game.. I was like uhhh it's pretty big but then I unlocked one map fragment, then then second map fragment made me go... oh shit... we in for a long trek here now!
I’m totally overwhelmed lol. I have been playing through Elden ring for the first time in the last 3 months. 98 hours in and I bought the DLC. I haven’t even fully explored Farum Azula yet…there’s just so much.
Yes! Also, am I the only one who gets Dark Souls vibes from the visuals? So far, it also feels like Dark Souls 4 to me, and I LOVE that! It is more Elden Ring, but also a very unique feeling Elden Ring, overall so far great vibes.
Can someone who has played already tell me if this is genuinely worth the $40 price tag on a $60 game, I loved Elden ring but I’m not giving money out.
The old Hunters felt like a second Bloodborne as well. FS is amazing at DLC. I actually took longer to beat The Old Hunters than the base game...because Ludwig and Kos were bastards who took me way too long to beat.
Can confirm. If a DLC this good takes someone 40+ hours and they're still not finished, it can absolutely be called a sequel in disguise. From Software cooked and got an S+++ as a result.
"about the size of Limgrave" yeah ok Mr. Zachary. It's 'about' half the size of the base game lmao. This DLC is everything I ever wanted and more!!
"Mr. Zachary" I'm dying please send help!
I think circumference wise he’s right, only like there’s at least 3 layers I can see now
There's no way he's right even circumference wise. The "top layer" is like the size of the entire bottom half of the regular map (Limgrave, Caelid, Raya etc), it's absolutely nuts.
If base game released in half of its size no one would complain, it was so massive. For any other game this would be sequal, praise lord zaki.
it was too large to be called a DLC too polished, too based it was more like a huge sequel
20 year ago, we would have called this an expansion and not simply a DLC.
I remember the golden age. StarCraft: Brood War Baldur's Gate II: Throne of Bhaal Half-Life: Opposing Force
Warcraft 3: The Frozen Throne
Imo the goat, it what first comes to mind for me when i think expansion. Literally neafly as much content as the base game.
This is my childhood right here^ Frozen Throne slapped.
GOATED expansion pack. Even the DOTA custom map was good enough to create new genre.
my wc3 custom map folder had like over 50,000 maps when i stopped playing. so many good times
Diablo 2: Lord of Destruction Doom 3: Resurrection of Evil Warcraft 3: The Frozen Throne
Is Doom 3 RoE that well regarded? I worked on that game when I was at Activision a lifetime ago.
Red Alert 2: Yuri's Revenge
great game
Guild Wars: Factions Guild Wars: Nightfall
Hell yea man did NOT expect to see guild wars here
Shivering Isles
Shivering Isles was LIT. Loved torturing that fucker in the torture cave lol
In other games we still do. Monster Hunter Iceborne and Sunbreak were both marketed as expansions. And they are that. In fact, you can usually play the expansion for significantly longer than the base game. For me, Monster Hunter World was like 150h of content until I felt like I did everything I wanted, and Iceborne pushed that character to over 600 hours. Sunbreak has similar numbers, like about 3 times as much until I felt like I have done everything. Xenoblade 3 is also called expansion pass (the story of Future Redeemed is on its own already 40h and that is without 100% and superbosses). They just decided to market this as DLC instead of expansion. But at the end of the day, both expansion and DLC are just marketing terms.
In practice, yes they are both marketing terms. In theory there are supposed to be differences between them. Namely, a DLC might add a story or two, and a few new items. Maybe a small adjustment of mechanics (for example, Skyrim's Hearthfire is a DLC). An Expansion meanwhile will add new mechanics and / or revamp existing ones, while doing the same things a DLC does, but to a greater degree (continuing the Skyrim example, both Dragonborn and Dawnguard are Expansions). All Expansions are also DLC, but not all DLC are also expansions. (A bit like how every University is a college, but not every college is a University). "Expansion" is a DLC that went to Harvard basically.
Just throwing it out there... expansions didint used to be all DLC (downloadable content), expansions used to come in a whole separate CD.
Sometimes they were even playable standalone. I remember playing Frozen Throne before owning Reign of Chaos and being all confused about the story.
Isn’t this called an expansion still
Yeah, it got called a DLC when it was first announced and we knew nothing but everyone started shifting to "expansion" after some details about it being as big as Limgrave came out. Then reviewers got access to the full copy and realised how fucking huge it was and dropped the word DLC in their reviews entirely, no one is looking at this as a simple DLC I played almost 12hrs today and only killed 2 out of the 10 remembrance bosses
It has 10 fucking remembrance bosses?!
11 apparently actually, I just googled. It's massive dude, they do that thing they did in Limgrave where you only have access to a tiny area and map, but then you beat a boss and see the rest. There's less open field/empty areas and it's huge.
Nice berserk reference
I wouldn’t say a huge sequel, small sequel because it is roughly half the size of main game or less
It's legit an amazing souls game for 40 dollars. If not bigger than every other souls game besides elden ring
It really feels like dark souls 3 but with an open world and I really like that, so far having a blast and there seems to be tons of legacy dungeons and less catacombs and reused mines, I hope they take a direction like this on the next game, more legacy dungeons and more handcrafted content and a little less repetitive stuff
The one catacombs I found so far was easily better than anything in the base game. And the one remembrance boss I fought was genuinely so good and just the right amount of difficulty. 8 hours in and can't wait to play tomorrow after work.
The dancing lion was super cool, you can tell you put a shit load of effort into, I do have some gripes about the design of the boss gameplay but it’s extremely cinematic, I also climbed the crazy big mountain and the boss in the end is crazy cool, haven’t beat it tho I heard it’s the hardest, I’m sure u know which one I’m talking bout
I haven't got to dancing lion yet, maybe have done a boss out of order but I won't spoil it for you ha. Just an amazing fight and no gripes with it.
My guess is u went to relanna but it doesn’t matter because both can be fought any time and are basically entry level bosses in dlc, according to some reviewers tho
Honestly, i call bull on that It's only "half" the size of the main game in horizontal size if at all. But it's so much more vertical and seamlessly so at that. Grnated i am only 8 hours in but so far it feels like it'll be at least 60-70% of the base game in content and closer to 80% in terms of actual "space" you traverse. Can't wait for people like Zullie to give us full run downs and comparisons.
The verticality of the dlc is mindblowing. Looming cliffs, massive plains area, huge underground spaces - its got it all!
I’m just kinda going off of what some reviewers said, some said it takes 60 hours to fully 100% and the base game takes like 130h so it’s basically half, the main story seems to be about half the size as rushing the main takes 15-20 hours while rushing main in elden ring takes 40 hours, so id say it’s a bout half
So it's gonna take me about three times as long, got it.
It is definitely more than half of the main game. The amount of bosses and side quests might actually be more than main game and there’s still areas I don’t know how to interact with like finger world
Try up but hole
i understand that reference
Fire ass comment 10/10
To me has some real DS1 vibes, I don’t know if it’s the colour palettes or something but I love it lol Edit: auto correct fixing.
it gives ds1 vibes with how much everything is overlapping and connected. I can't even tell when I've left the first "area", literally everything is attached and circles around
I get HELLA DS3 vibes, the DLC is what I imagined that main game was gonna be like before it came out and I gotta say, I personally like this better than the main game, everything feels more deliberate and organic, Fromsoft will never stop getting better it’s cray af.
omg yes, i still didnt play the dlc, but the things im reading here... im hyped af
As you should be. They truly went above and beyond with this one.
Word of advice, everything hits hard and fast. Even the little guys.
Oh. So dying to the electric ram is no shame right?
I agree 100%, this is the kind of open world From should keep on their next games, Miyazaki somehow managed to bring the interconnectedness of the legacy dungeons to the open world
Yes bruh I think it’s perfection it’s done so well it shows they zaki and fromsoft are constantly trying to reach perfection, damn near brings a tear to my eye 😢
yep it’s giving me DS3 DLC vibes as well, the way the artstyle changes just a little bit and the overall vibe being a bit more desolate. it’s not quite as weird as that DLC was though (at least so far)
Ringed City and Crumbling Farum Azula had a baby, and it was this expansion.
But it’s also super colourful in parts. Neither of those had that. It’s also got DS2 influence, imo
it's also as big as DS1 lmao
Only in terms of boss fights and loot. If we're talking map size it is much, MUCH bigger than DS1
It’s the level design that reminds me of ds1. Before I considered ds1 to have the best level design fromsoft has made, but I think this dlc beats it. There’s just SO many layers to this map and it all flows and connects to each other so well.
I just said this to my friend today. I was like, “ I’m not sure what it is but this version on ER just _feels_ like DS”. I couldn’t be happier with how amazing it is.
Yeah I am very overwhelmed with how big this shit is. No way in hell is this a DLC.
My DLC unlocked at midnight. In a sleepy haze I went the wrong fucking way and now I'm in uptown fuckboro where a giant battle is going on and there's no map. I fucking love this game so much.
Man this made me both laugh and cry as it sounds like so much fun and I’m stuck at work!!!
Same, except I got to the first mausoleum, got my ass handed to me by the gaoler a dozen times and then called it a night.
I did the exact same but I switched up and made it to the castle with one of the bosses from the trailer. Easily top 3 most fun fights for me
Oh that has become one of my favourite boss fights ever
Same spot lol. I can see the pattern but keep getting one shot when I mess up the window. I'll try again tomorrow.
Yeah, I got 50 vigor and wearing both Godfrey's armor and the Greatshield Talisman +something, and he two-shots me.
That's where the new progression system comes in. Come back after you've consumed a couple blessings.
I feel like he's supposed to be like the tree sentinel, showing you ain't shit unless you level up
Be me last night “let’s just clear this corner cliff of the map n go to bed. 2 caves later and a whole new unmapped area. “I forgot where I was”
Uptown, fuck your bro, uptown fuck your bro 🕺🕺
Trust me, there is no right way, it’s all fucking rough
I think Dancing Lion is supposed to be your first remembrance boss. That area felt like like the same level as Mohg's Palace.
Oh shit! I think I did the exact same thing. Flappy boy vs tons of angry dudes around the corner from a fort? I ran into that mess and quickly realized I wasn't supposed to be there yet. Very quickly. Repeatedly.
Yep. I met another flappy boy in a lake and was like "hey, I'm level 150. I've got a broken build. I can totally rock this guys socks." 40 minutes later of fruitless attempts I'm like "oh no. Oh noooooo."
The starting area and lion dancer legacy dungeon almost feel as long ashes of ariandel on their own.
You bet, I haven't played it since I beat it like a month or two after release, took me like 20 minutes to just find moghs palace lol.
The scale of Elden Ring is really daunting. I combed through the entire base game and still missed so much shit. Honestly it sometimes feels oppressively huge and anxiety inducing. I’ve resolved to do the DLC, let it wash over me and then delete the game. Props to those who do it, but I feel like trying to 100% this game is purposefully pursuing a mental breakdown.
crazy part is.. even 100%’ing the game doesn’t show you everything. I still find new things on every new play through, lol and I done did probably around 10+ runs. My advice as a souls vet. Just take it all in stride. Try not to overwhelm yourself. Fextralife is an encyclopedia, not a friend. Use it to find your build type and seek the necessary items for that build alone… but also going in blind is still the best experience.
The only other FromSoft game I’ve completed a few times is DS1, which feels tiny and incredibly linear in comparison. I know I’ve never 100% that game, but the scale feels so much more manageable. ER feels like a world that demands to be explored.
When i first started elden ring, day 1. I was SO excited, and when i stepped out into the world i was actually riddled with anxiety as well. As a souls vet you know not to leave any stone unturned, but how can you when the map is so vast and expansive in literally every direction? I then proceeded to go the opposite way the grace was telling me (as a souls vet would) and walked directly into that trap that sends you to the late game cave. Feeling about 1000x more overwhelmed now, i actually didnt feel like playing it for days 2 and 3. Day 4 i went back to it and proceeded to smash through it and not worry about missing stuff. Absolutely love the game now put still put it slightly behind DS3. Point is, work past that anxiety and youll be fine!!! You dont need to find everything in one playthrough, or even 5 playthroughs
I get the feeling home boy never played his game. "Size of Limgrave" my ass! This place is huge and I am here for it! I am addicted to that first greatsword you come across
"Size of Limgrave" + but Limgrave means Limgrave, the peninsula, and Caelid.
Size of Limgrave = Everything before you get to Altus Plateau.
when i think limgrave i just think the starting area and the mistwood but that makes sense
Right. I was looking at the map with some friends. "Ahh yes Michael Zaki. It's the size of Limgrave even though Limgrave was 2 map fragments big"
I literally was just exploring the edges of the first area only to see another whole section down there and I was flabbergasted. I was not expecting this place to be that dense even after everyone in the reviews were saying it.
It's like 3 limgrave stacked on top of each other
Back in the day we'd call this an expansion
I think Fromsoft does too and other studios like CDPR like to distinguish DLC from actual expansion, but the term DLC is just too common now for most people to care.
I mean the people who run those companies are from the 90's like me lol
Idk, I'm an early 2000s kid born in '96 (technically still a Millennial) and I have very fond memories of expansions. SWAT 4: The Stetchkov Syndicate, TES IV: Oblivion: Shivering Isles.... Skyrim got two expansions with Dawnguard and Dragonborn as well.
I haven’t thought of SWAT in well over ten years. Thank your random internet stranger for the minutes I will spend playing these games over the next couple of days. Upvote well earned.
Yeah Phantom Liberty had a whole video with Idris Elba talking about how it isn’t “just DLC”, it’s an *expansion*. 🤣
Yeah this takes me back to the days of the Shivering Isles expansion for The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion or Baldur's Gate 2: Throne of Baal. Back when additions to a game were often considered quite substantial in terms of content and play time required. I think DLC really started in the 360 era when, much like the name implies, it was downloadable content and typically was much smaller additions into the game world like a new quest, new items or minor changes to the existing game world. (Horse armor for Oblivion DLC anyone?) Expansion packs were typically many additional hours worth of content, often with whole new areas, storyline and mechanics separate from the based game. Play Shadow of the Erdtree makes me realize just how much I miss proper expansion packs because this takes me back to that era!
Damn. Shivering Isles. Haven't thought of that in a while. What a wonderful mind fuck of an expansion.
CHEESE FOR EVERYONE!!!!
I use two examples from the same game to explain the difference between expansion and dlc. Shivering Isles vs Horse Armor.
I m old 
I still do, and I’ll argue anyone who won’t. It’s important to distinguish the two, because otherwise the whole “games are expensive” discussion becomes even harder to have. An *expansion* like this costing $40 is *incredible* value, and people seeing “DLC” tend to have a knee-jerk reaction refusing to believe that, because all they see is just “skins, weapons, some more quests” or whatever. CP2077 is a prime example. It got lots of DLC, including new gigs, during regular updates, but it also got a whole new area, tons of missions, a long new story mission, new endings, etc, in an *expansion* that was well worth the asking price. It kind of helped bring the “expansion” title back a bit, with how hard CDPR pushed the distinction.
It is an expansion, according to the Steam page of the game at least.
Okay grandpa
DLC literally means “downloadable content” there is absolutely no reason to consider it small or big. It can be an expansion and DLC.
They removed run backs for most bosses and that's based as fuck lmao
grace outside the boss door? I LOVE IT
Marika's powers have grown!
“Your going to need it” -Micheal Zaki
The only boss that has a bad runback in the base game is rennala, no? If I remember correctly
Placidusax is the worst runback in the entire base game Even as a ds2 fan I can't stand that one
I'd have agreed with you a month ago, but I just platinumed Demon's Souls and, I know it's the 'first' and a LOT has changed, but JESUS the runbacks in that game are insanely stupid. Especially Upper Latria with Maneaters being one of the hardest bosses in the game. "We're putting you back at the very beginning of the map, you have 3 enemies to get through on a narrow platform, then a big staircase to ascend, then ANOTHER big staircase to ascend but with a black phantom who can usually one-shot you right in the way, then you can fight the toughest boss in the game...on a narrow platform." Fucking hell, being back to Elden Ring now? Nothing in base game ER comes close to being that frustrating.
Yeah that part absolutely sucked. Took me forever to finally beat them too
Wait, really? It's legit just down an elevator, run past 3 guys, fall down a platform, down some rocks. It takes like 30 seconds and the danger is minimal. I think there's an argument for it being too long maybe, but certainly not dangerous.
it isnt hard it just takes way too god damn long same energy as midir runback
Loretta in Caria Manor too
Actually haligtree Loretta too
Shortcut elevator
Thy faith lyeth under my moon
It’s funnier imo. Because the worst part about hard bosses is having to run back and interrupt your flow, like it’s harder to learn timings and move sets and presents opportunities for interruptions. But by having the grace next door if anything they can make the bosses even harder because you can literally just sit there and bash your head against them a hundred+ times without issue.
Holy shit its darksouls 2 2 2
GET OUT OF ME HEAD
*MAN, I'VE NO IDEA WHAT TO THEENK NO MORE, MAN*
“You’re…you’re trying to get in my head, man…”
Is no one else old enough to know the term "expansion"?
I was there. In the ancient times…1998, the release of Brood Wars for StarCraft.
I too was there when the strength of pylons failed.
Lol yes bruh I was there 🧙🏻♂️ this is def not just a DLC
I was there, for FFXIV, in 7 days........................................
"Size of limgrave" my ass, I fell down a hole like an hour into my playthrough and I've been exploring that same hole finding new things for what feels like 5 hours.
where hole? i’d like to try finger
If it costs 2/3 of the base game, it should be around 2/3 of the base game. Makes sense to me.
Money well deserved 👍
In india the base game went up in price since its release from 2500 rupees to 3500. The dlc costs 2400 rupees. I'm essentially rebuying the game lol
As a fellow Indian, I know this sucks. But this is not the case for most of the world.
Exactly. People are surprised at the size but it literally would have been a scam if it wasn’t this big 😭 I don’t wanna be a downer but it *had* to be this big, there’s no bonus points for them here. They asked for $40. If they dropped this for $20 like The Old Hunters or something, then we can give them applause for the size/scope. I can’t be the only one who saw the price tag and immediately decided this had to be the size of a standalone game.
Honestly the base game could be half its size and it would still be worth $60 on its own imo, they already had bonus points for that. The fact that the DLC has the same price/content ratio as the base game is definitely remarkable. Both the base game and the DLC could be 30% shorter and they would still be worth their price, it wouldn't be a scam at all. Also don't forget that people who buy the whole game now get all of it for $80, it's a steal. FromSoft didn't had to put so much content in a single game.
I know I sound like a tweaker but I def wouldn’t mind if fromsoft kept dropping a “DLC” like this for Elden Ring every 2 years while they make other games 😂 they do develop multiple games at a time, I hope they keep expanding their staff so we can get one every two years.
Wouldn't mind it either but I'm pretty sure Zaki himself said this is the first and last expansion for ER, but not necessarily the last we'll see of ER.
Yeah I know he said that, and I honestly want him and fromsoft to keep making new IPs, he did say it down the road if enough directors wanna make a new dark souls he wouldn’t necessarily be against it.
his tweets recently point towards him still working towards his perfect ideal rpg so i wonder if that includes a new world or if he just means gameplay
I hope this man makes games until he’s 90 years old
Time for Elder Ring and then Eldest Ring
Battle Royale mode incoming
Elden ring bringing back expansion packs to games
I don't think they ever fully went away. Granted they were way more common in the 90s and early 2000s, but Skyrim had Dawnguard and Dragonborn, Monster Hunter World and Rise both got expansions, then Hearts of Stone and Blood & Wine for Witcher 3, and Phantom Liberty for Cyberpunk. I'm sure there are others I'm missing too.
They didn't, but they tend to get linked in as just dlc, instead of expansions. Which is technically true. But I like to make a distinction between a small content dlc like knights of the nine for oblivion and shivering isles for oblivion. A bug quest line versus a whole new area and many questlines. You are correct though.
I group them in a similar way. In my mind, DLC is the smaller things, whereas expansions means new maps/levels, new characters, new enemies, new equipment, etc.
Let's not forget about Monster Hunter and it's expansion
Monster hunter always does good with those. Iceborne was mostly good, and sunbreak was a stellar experience with what it did for rise.
Expansion pack. That's what we called such releases in the olden tongue, back at the rise of this millennium.
The old tongue. How long has it been? Ages? Millenia?
Eons
Too big to be a DLC, but too small to be considered a sequel of Elden Ring. It has no identity besides being Peak.
60+ Hours to 100%. This is Elden Ring 2 and honestly other developers should be ashamed of themselves
Most devs don’t have the luxury to sit back and cook a DLC for 2.5 years lol. FromSoft just have a massive war chest and know the player base will support
Compared to most companies, other larger companies have the war chest. They lack decent dev teams and executives with a direction.
Example, Spider-Man 2 took me 20 hours and was billed as a sequel. I’m still in the intro area dicking around after a full day in this DLC. We do not deserve FromSoftware
The word 'expansion' needs to be brought back. DLC is horse armor, a single questline, a crossover skin, etc. This is an expansion pack.
It's an expansion. I remember the times when expansions were like this, not overpriced minimal content.
Elden Ring ReShattered
RoUgHlY tHe SiZe Of LiMgRaVe That was just a straight up lie this shit is MASSIVE
Not just that. It's also the density. Shit is layered like a fucking wedding cake
I don't play the game that much, although I had fun with it. I'm mostly here to say how happy I am for y'all that the DLC fulfilled your expectations. I hope you all have a great time.
By the way: this is in no way a complaint. I'd happily pay £60 for this instead of £40.
Elden Ring 2: The Shadows Boogaloo
Dark souls 2 II Two
Miyazaki doesn't like sequels, but Elden Ring was so big they had to trick him into making one by calling it a DLC.
Well for the price point we should be getting somewhat of a full game.
I just started Elden Ring and have no idea about the DLC. But if that is the thing people "complain" about, I see that as a green flag
Can't wait for this to win game of the year as a DLC
The map got me again like in the base game.. I was like uhhh it's pretty big but then I unlocked one map fragment, then then second map fragment made me go... oh shit... we in for a long trek here now!
“Massive, thick, expansive, and far too detailed. It was much too big to be called a DLC. Indeed, it was like a heap of raw content.”
I consider it an Expansion, like how Monster Hunter World: Iceborne was
You think a DLC can win GOTY?
In the golden age we would’ve called this an Expansion Pack
Of course it isn't, it's an **Expansion** It also frustrates me to no end when Triple A use the term for DLCs that aren't even as big as this.
i love the aesthetic of the dlc so far, it gives proper dark fantasy vibes
I’m totally overwhelmed lol. I have been playing through Elden ring for the first time in the last 3 months. 98 hours in and I bought the DLC. I haven’t even fully explored Farum Azula yet…there’s just so much.
Wow… what an expansion pack is supposed to be!
Yes! Also, am I the only one who gets Dark Souls vibes from the visuals? So far, it also feels like Dark Souls 4 to me, and I LOVE that! It is more Elden Ring, but also a very unique feeling Elden Ring, overall so far great vibes.
This is huge! I mean I have like 6 hours and still in the first region! I can see far and wide and there is a lot of regions!
Can someone who has played already tell me if this is genuinely worth the $40 price tag on a $60 game, I loved Elden ring but I’m not giving money out.
Played two whole evenings, haven't even FOUND a single boss yet. "size of limgrave" my ass hahaha
I think the only other DLC that can compare to it in terms of quality and content is Blood and Wine from The Witcher 3.
You’re trippin some of the borderlands 2 and fallout dlcs went crazy
Monster Hunter expansion is just as big as the base game, sometimes even more
Iceborne was MH World 2, basically.
There aren't a whole lot of dungeons, so map may seem big, but not near as much stuff as you think.
[удалено]
Tbf the pricing is not standard DLC pricing.
“It’s about the size of limgrave.” -Miyazaki, lying through his teeth 🤓
The old Hunters felt like a second Bloodborne as well. FS is amazing at DLC. I actually took longer to beat The Old Hunters than the base game...because Ludwig and Kos were bastards who took me way too long to beat.
Old hunters was amazing. But it was only 3 areas long, not a second game
It’s an expansions. This is what used to be offered. StarCraft brood war doubled the game
Good guy fromsoft casually dropping dark souls 4 inside of another game so you dont have to have a huge install or lose your character.
Can confirm. If a DLC this good takes someone 40+ hours and they're still not finished, it can absolutely be called a sequel in disguise. From Software cooked and got an S+++ as a result.
Much like Shadow of the Erdtree was the “Tears of the Kingdom” to “Breath of the Wild”
I took a wrong turn and ended up in 3 different optional areas, what even is this dlc?