Regarding the teleport to Enir-Ilim, I think they shouldn't have done that at all. I don't think it's too hard to realize where you have to go next after burning the sealing tree, but if they were really that worried that players wouldn't be able to figure that, they should had teleported us to the base of Belurat, change the enemy placement, maybe add some of the inquisitors and divine bird Warriors and make us fightour way through Belurat again, similar to what they did with Ashina Castle.
Actually that would’ve been a perfect way to add in a bit more legacy dungeon content without creating a whole new one. Plus I’ve always felt Belurat had a good layout and side content, but its big issue really is the enemies being forgettable.
Belurat is genuinely my favourite area in the DLC and top 3 in the whole game. Shadow Keep is certainly better on a technical level, but I'm just in love with Belurat. The music is so good at setting the tone (for the whole DLC really, not just the area) and gives the vibe of a great and proud civilization crushed by an unspeakable tragedy (which is a trope but a great one), and that cool suffocating feeling only deepens when you learn about the sins of the hornsent later on. And it has so many secrets that are really satisfying to find, which is great because it's the first area of the DLC and as such it still had me in my "completionist" mood upon exploring it. It's still no Stormveil but it feels a lot like it, and I remember feeling so delighted when I learned I actually managed to find basically everything in the area. It's everything I want out of a Souls level.
I have fallen in love with belurat, I sometimes just go there to enjoy the music and scenery from the boss room. I also can't forget that the boss in this area is one of my favorites. Belurat just has a special place in my heart.
Leyndell pre-shattering would be great for a vacation. I would also love Liurnia. Also, you are probably the first person I've seen who doesn't dislike Finger Ruins.
I will always have a soft spot for the Abyssal woods, i love how oppressive the atmosphere is, the aging untouchables were personally quite tense for me as i committed to the stealth entirely, the fact that torrent was shit scared has me unnerved, the buildup for Midra helped me love that boss even more. Idk, while its a bit of a walk in subsequent playthroughs, i can’t say it has lost its charm for me
You sound like such a goober. If that area made you “TenSe aNd UneRveD” get a grip. That area is horrible and just missed potential, so much so it makes me upset when people defend it. It reminds me of demon ruins from ds1, super cool in theory but empty and horrid in practice.
My vacation spot would be shaman village. About the shadowpeople across the scadu plains; while it’s true they’re nothing more than a fly in terms of threat level, I also don’t think that’s their point. I believe they’re supposed to represent the brutal aftermath of Messmer’s conquest, people burned and unable to move on to a true afterlife. So I view them more as environmental storytelling
You should also play Nine Sols. Most of the bosses are either ok or great, but Eigong is imo the best 2D boss of all time. Even better than Pure Vessel.
@DamianSamson-t8rAgree. Darius also used to be mu favorite boss in POP the lost crown, but has now been dethroned by Artaban in the DLC. I know most people even forgot the DLC came out, but Artaban is great because he has no filler animations, short phase transitions, no yellow attacks, and instead of gaining new moves in each phase, he just gains mix-ups, something which actually makes the 3 phase structure of this game’s bosses more engaging instead of a slog. But Eigong IS imo the best 2D boss ever. Great lore, atmosphere, arena, OST, and fight. She has a huge and varied move-set, where each and every attack requires an unique response. She also has a ton of mix-ups. I love that Eigong doesn’t have a single «boring» or «useless» attack. Though phase 3 gets a bit tedious on replays, as she just repeats the same 2 attacks in that phase, though I don’t mind too much and the attacks are indeed cool. The only other flaw I have with Eigong are the flames which can spontaneously appear beneath her during some of her attacks, which isn’t lethal, but is frustrating when you’re trying to beat her hitless. I even think Eigong is better than Isshin the sword saint and even inner owl, but they’re all close. An easy 10/10 fight. Do find any flaws or issues in Eigong? Sorry for long text lol.
@zigsynx5364 no butt I haven’t done her third phase literally working on it now butt yeah I agree on Artaban he is the inner owl of pop the lost crown with his mix-ups and how much understanding of the games mechanics he requires out of you
@DamianSamson-t8rI am glad somebody else actually played through the POP dlc lol. I think it was worth the 5 dollars and has good platforming, 2 good bosses, but a mediocre story which gives Radjen a deliberate backstory, only for her to die in the most anticlimactic way possible. The game really has a weak story ngl. Radjen was a good boss, but at that point I was tired of the blatant 3 phase structure where each phase is just a harder version of the previous one. The desperation drags on too long, and only needed to happen once. Darius is still better than her tbh. Artaban IS, however, this game’s inner owl though. Also, good luck with Eigongs third phase. Don’t give up, and remember that phase 3 Eigong has less HP (5000 hp) than phase 2 Eigong (7500). Phase 3 may seem daunting, but it’s actually not that bad. Blasphemous 2 also released it’s DLC recently, but has a story which retcons B1 for no reason (Mea Culpa), costs 13$, but has around the same content as POP DLC. Also, the added NG+ was horrible at launch. B2 still hasn’t added a boss rush mode, something POP added a long time ago. Extremely rare Ubisoft W.
The Shadow of the Colossus influence on this DLC is alot, like alot alot. That game is quite literally empty and yet is extremely highly rated which begs the question, Is emptiness an inherent flaw , a product of Bandai Namco refusing to let FS finish anything ,or an artistic decision. Should the land where all manner of death washes up be 'lively' or dead? Nier Automata's desert area is empty and is highly rated. Is the way empty areas are rated related to the ones personal feelings about a game? I dont know how FS couldve better communicated the atmosphere other than ditching open world completely.
The emptiness in Shadow of the Colossus is there to build up atmosphere and heighten the surrealism of The Forbidden Land. The combat of SotC is not the focus of the game. The comparison to Elden Ring, and the attempt to use one of the most artistic games ever created to justify the lack of content in the DLC, are laughable.
abyssal wood are goted when paired with invasions, being invaded in this creepy forest and trying to beat invader without alerting winter lanterns in the fog is extremely enjoyable
This is a good idea, I ran TT while there as well but I also took out the aging untouchables because I have a bad compulsive need to fight anything no matter how tedious it is. I suck at parrying, BTW so each untouchable took me 4 or 5 tries lol
Love this video man! I like bosses and all, but it’s getting exhausting seeing a million videos online about “bosses ranked,” followed by “bosses ranked by difficulty,” “bosses ranked by lore,” “bosses ranked by height,” etc. I always love a discussion about areas, level design, atmosphere… it feels like judging art. Ancient Ruins of Rauh at #2 is a great pick and I agree completely, might even consider it at #1. On my first run through I thought it was good but didn’t think much of it, probably would’ve ranked it 6th or so on this list. On my second run, I realized how perfect it was. The layout is amazing, the way it connects, and the side paths are extensive. There was a whole divine beast fight I didn’t know existed, and I probably spent a full 3 hours going through the area and finding things despite having just finished the DLC a few weeks prior to that run. Rauh may be in my top 5 areas for the whole game. I would probably put Enir-Ilim lower though. It is beautiful and all, but the divine frost warrior is complete BS and at the end of a brutal stretch after the spammy birds, not to mention those magic spammers as you’re running up the stairs are basically pure luck to dodge. Also I think the area is way too short. But I did love the side path to Belurat, one of the coolest moments in the game, and again, it is absolutely beautiful. The other divine warrior fights were decent besides the Frost.
I don’t like how they handled the abyssal woods. There is no real danger, the enemies are reused and the winter lanterns are cool but not enough. As a horror fan I get that a slow build up is important but in a game where you travel so so much I don’t think it needed even more of that. I wanted huge spider like monsters, slowly roaming around the woods. Huge gaping mouths hanging from the trees. Just something thats actually threatens the player. Same goes for Midras Manse and also Midra himself. All of them lack something . Especially with Midra going into phase 2 at 2/3 HP I expected something big at the end. Like the arena completely succumbing to the frenzied flame, fire raining down etc. Like if Midras body wasnt able to keep up with the flame itself. In the end hes probably the coolest boss in the game but only has very basic attacks without the chaos in it the soundtrack and the lore bring with them.
35:50 I second this so hard. I really dreamed of legacy dungeons akin to Brume Tower and Shulva the Sunken Temple for Shadow of the Erdtree - vastly different unique major dungeons to outmatch the main game without being too similar. I can't say I'll remember the aesthetics of most places that aren't named Enir Ilim, Ruins of Rauh, Dragged Peak or Stone Coffin Fissure. But the level design of the Shadow Keep and the verticality of Gravesite Plain and especially Scadu Altus was a VERY welcome addition to Elden Ring! I just don't think they "really" outdid themselves with a preceding roster of Leyendell, Stormveil, Ringed City, Research Hall, Cainhurst Castle, Shulva, Brume Tower, Anor Londo etc. Ancient Ruins of Rauh, Enir Ilim, and Dragged Peak probably got the closest to the variety and "freshness" I hoped for.
Great video, am glad ur back :D My favorite area would have to be jagged peak, just because of the buildup for Bayle. Tbh though i kind of felt pretty meh about shadowkeep though.
I'm so glad to see that Enir Ilim>Belurat. I like both. But I feel like Enir Ilim is downplayed a lot because of that annoying stair path. The enemy designs are so good, and the aesthetics, as well as the interesting side paths, make it one of my favorite levels in all souls games. Also it's not too long or short. It's the perfect length for an end level imho
The lack of more new enemies is my criticism. Because i think this is what makes the game interesting for me. It makes the zone feel unique and disitinct. Abyssal woods could have more new frenzied enemies. Charo and Cerulean coast could have new ancient dead enemies. Since Jagged Peak is supposed to be a parallel to farum azula they could have made new beast men or a dragon like cult enemies. Stone Coffin Fissure could have enemies like Murkmen from Ringed City dlc or just a unique putrescent type enemies. They could have gone crazy with it. But i guess they ran out of budget.
When I first reached Shaman Village, it was night, and glowing minor Erdtree was even more prominent and beautiful. Great view, relaxing scenery, but not enough for BnB stay
The Abyssal woods should have made a huge Untouchable watching over a large portion of the abyssal woods which you need to hide from, like the frenzied tower in the base game
Great video! Off-topic, but I hope you've played the recent update to Black Myth: Wukong, the updated Gauntlet bosses are genuinely amazing and making a video on them seems like a good idea
I published it 1 minute ago so I mean thanks but you haven't seen it yet. Or maybe you have foresight. But yeah I played the update and I'm with you, it's pretty awesome and I'm planning on making a video on it
@@magicat7356 Would you believe me if I said I have faith that the video would be great no matter what? I've watched your other videos a bunch, really liked them, your criteria for judging is really similar to my own
@@Oknahidwin Tiger Vanguard was probably my favourite overhaul out of all of them. His moveset basically doubled and got a lot more variation. Wasn't a big fan of Erlang's change since they removed his phase transition attacks but at least the bow is cool
This order is really solid. The only thing I'd change is Ancient Ruins of Rauh, which I might drop down a tier since I don't love the dullness of the underground sections. Also, completely agreed on the access to Enir-Ilim. So underwhelming to teleport there, and it clearly feels like they intended to have it accessed through the Dancing Lion's arena, then changed it randomly last minute. Great video, as always.
Since Shadow Keep is accessed multiple times and have separated sections, I think it's fair to consider Belurat and Enir-Ilim two parts of a whole. If you do, then I think they can join the big 3 legacy dungeons of Elden Ring aka Stormveil, Leyndell and Shadow Keep.
I am curious to see how convergence will rework the differents area, and also, I want to point a big flaw of elden ring and it's dlc : balance between elements, let me explain : how many areas, bosses and ennemies do we have around scarlet rot? Caelid, kindred of rot, lake of rot, malenia, romina, scorpion, putrid avatar... How many areas, bosses and ennemies do we have around sleep? Stone coffin, but not really because it's ennemies are reskins and putrescent knight, even if I love him isn't sleep type because he was supposed to be tied to the gloam eyed queen. And for the madness, we have areas and bosses, but not enough ennemies, truly fromsoft could've done something like the bloodborne forest in order to make it better, maybe one or two field bosses based of madness (I like the drakes, even if they're reused, so a madness dragon could've been funny) That's one the biggest issues I have with elden ring, there's some ideas and concept so overutilized to a point where it's not worth it and for some cases (radahn in particular, love him in base game, hate him in dlc due to lore) is just boring and worthless, when it shouldn't be the case because some concepts are not correctly utilized, ghostflame isn't used well and there's many copy paste, which is sad because it's a cool idea. But shadow keep best dlc dungeon/area, definitely
Nothing actually…happens in Abyssal Woods. Midra’s Manse is ok. It’s very small. Midra is the only redeeming thing. Repeat playthroughs are a slog to Midra unless you love cookbooks.
@@Budd631 atmosphere was scary, if you let yourself get immersed the stealth sections are very thrilling. Different strokes though, if it wasn’t for you that’s fine, though other people did like it.
21:13 This can be said about pretty much every area in the entire game tbh. When the “sun” is up and is casting its rays across the landscape, this game looks absolutely stunning and reminds me a lot of watercolor paintings. At times it really looks damn near photorealistic and very eye catching. But when there’s no light in the open world, everything in the environment looks extremely flat and boring. It’s a damn shame because DS3 and Bloodborne looked pretty acceptable in areas with very little outdoor light sources, but ER is somehow worse in that department.
There are exceptions to that, like I think Cerulean Coast looks good any time of day since most of the color comes from the flower fields anyway. Some of the snow areas too, and points where you have massive vistas. But generally the open world relies a lot on the lighting and the skyboxes, which aren't always on its side.
@@Jbswe nah I don’t think so - if it was all one interconnected dungeon it would but it’s just lots of small dungeons technically connected to eachother but not accessible between them. Not to mention the church district promising something cool but not delivering.
Rauh felt too empty for me. Enir elim and belurat felt too short and lacked enemy variety. Shadow keep was the only DLC location that could compete with Leyndell, Volcano manor, The Haligtree and Stormveil castle.
The DLC is sooo good, but it could have been so much better. I agree with you on many points, especially the boring shadow enemies everywhere. Maybe I just had too high hopes. It was still great though.
Your list made me thinking about the DLC as a whole and for me the Highlight are Clearly the Bosses. I lost interest after like 40 hours but didnt defeating every boss (i fought all of them except radahn because i was stuck on the NPC fight before but i just never got back to SotE). I was heavily interested in the Lore, but it was a bit underwhelming for me. Elden Ring is by the Bosses my favorite soulsborne Game but for example the Areas even if i really like the Open World, im not to sure. I think there were more potential and i would have wished for a bit more of enemy variety. But i still love it. Im very excited for Neightrein.
I respect your opinion but I don't agree or really understand it. Abyssal Woods just doesn't have enough gameplay elements, or interesting level design. Atmosphere can only take you so far.
I loved shadow of the erdtree but I started to have my doubts when I went through the finger ruins. I started to feel bored and not rewarded. It del bond and lacking in storytelling and this one of a few places I felt that. I hope going forward with DLCs less is more is taken into account. I’d have fathered less places but more intricacy and more to do. ❤
@@magicat7356 I love him now, he is 100% in my top 5 bosses now, tbh i think i enjoyed him more than messmer (i never fought him pre nerf and i still died 80+ times)
You should do the KH3 remind DLC data battles. The main game sucks hard, we all know, yet I still think it’s worth it for 14 whole superbosses. They are unique in the sense that they have puzzle like openings that are hard yet rewarding to find. Tough their biggest weakness is the lack of mix-ups, but I think their unique puzzle-esque design makes up for it. Also, Yozora is one of the toughest (while still being fair) boss fight of all time. I’d love to see you rank them, as you are really great at analyzing boss design. I have never seen boss fight with higher skill expression than these data battles, as some openings are incredibly obscure and difficult to consistently achieve. Good luck.
I have never seen that horrifying image of Asmongold's Lair. I guess we should expect no less from the mf that literally used a dead rat as an alarm clock. He has more money than god he can pay for a weekly maid cleanup while he's asleep, there is absolutely no excuse for that.
@@magicat7356 yeah I ended up seeing the original. I thought it was pretty funny although I understand that some people might take it the wrong way, so I'd say you're off the hook
Charo's Hidden Grave and Cerulean Coast r so disappointing. I was excited to eventually get to them but when I got there, it was just trash. Forget about finding loot, the reused base game enemies in Cerulean is the most disappointing. Not a single new enemy. Instead, just a shitty dragon and skeletons. The areas r beautiful but that's not enough for me, the place needs to feel somewhat alive and have unique mobs at least. Abyssal Woods is just as bad.
While I wouldn't call the jagged peak the worst, I would call it the most disappointing. Seeing this towering mountain from a distance and hearing about the monster waiting there builds a picture of a pretty exciting area, or even dungeon, but then traversing it proves to be but a short walk filled with repeated and underwhelming enemies. Seeing how big this place was on the map, and then how little was actually traversable was quite pathetic.
In my opinion, the worst area BY FAR is the Abyssal Woods. They're somewhat interesting on a first playthrough, but, if you ever want to replay the DLC and fight Midra, it is the most boring, repetitive, and draining experience in the entirety of Elden Ring. As someone who has played every single souls game (including DS2), it is probably within my bottom 3 areas in any of these games.
Damn son. Dumbly misinterpreting the furnace golem in Charro's hidden grave as a tower knight fight is the most stupid thing I've heard you say. 😂 omg you're not supposed to hit it's legs. Geezus 😂 wth
I watched most of your vids and think they are great i really like that stuff with awful to amazing tier couse it lets you compare your opinion between diffrent games but i noticed a common theme in your vids is shitting on lords of the fallen even tought your only vid on it was neutral, do you really think the game is that shit.
I was never a fan of the game and only started to like it less and less when I replayed it from scratch and physically couldn't because the game glitched out and hard locked me out of the ending. And then tried NG+ which made bosses have so much health a single try could last nearly 10 minutes, so I couldn't be bothered to finish that either. So my last 2 experiences were dreadful, while my first was like a 5/10. Those experiences dropped it to 3 for me. I know they've updated the game a lot since then so maybe it's not so bad anymore.
am i crazy for thinking that every area in this dlc is mediocre? i like shadow keep a lot but its a mish mash of previous ideas. but the rest are all just so unmemorable/ wasted potential imo
@@xEcuador1 idk man they all look gorgeous but they are so boring gameplay wise , so muc of the same shit you see in the base game but worse. abyssal woods and the manse is a collossal dissapointment and just underbaked
People still think THE LANDS OF SHADOWS a separate new elden ring map, when in reality it's just a single zone equivalent of Limgrave or liurmia of the lakes if you turn them into DLC. the only difference is that THE LANDS OF SHADOWS have smaller mini biomes which gives an illusion that the DLC is massive, there's a reason why the areas are mostly empty because they were never a new zone to begin with. yet the community still criticize SHADOW OF THE ERDTREE for it and calling FROMSOFT lazy.
Top to Bottom on Torrent ( from Cerulean to Scaduview ) doesnt take that long at all, no longer than fully exploring Liurnia would. People act like each 'Zone' is a 3hr slogfest with no items to pick up.
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@@bourne. ...what the hell
Regarding the teleport to Enir-Ilim, I think they shouldn't have done that at all. I don't think it's too hard to realize where you have to go next after burning the sealing tree, but if they were really that worried that players wouldn't be able to figure that, they should had teleported us to the base of Belurat, change the enemy placement, maybe add some of the inquisitors and divine bird Warriors and make us fightour way through Belurat again, similar to what they did with Ashina Castle.
That would’ve been awesome, maybe they could’ve even played with the layout with ash from the sealing tree
Actually that would’ve been a perfect way to add in a bit more legacy dungeon content without creating a whole new one. Plus I’ve always felt Belurat had a good layout and side content, but its big issue really is the enemies being forgettable.
Belurat is genuinely my favourite area in the DLC and top 3 in the whole game. Shadow Keep is certainly better on a technical level, but I'm just in love with Belurat. The music is so good at setting the tone (for the whole DLC really, not just the area) and gives the vibe of a great and proud civilization crushed by an unspeakable tragedy (which is a trope but a great one), and that cool suffocating feeling only deepens when you learn about the sins of the hornsent later on. And it has so many secrets that are really satisfying to find, which is great because it's the first area of the DLC and as such it still had me in my "completionist" mood upon exploring it. It's still no Stormveil but it feels a lot like it, and I remember feeling so delighted when I learned I actually managed to find basically everything in the area. It's everything I want out of a Souls level.
also the scorpions are awesome
I have fallen in love with belurat, I sometimes just go there to enjoy the music and scenery from the boss room. I also can't forget that the boss in this area is one of my favorites. Belurat just has a special place in my heart.
Leyndell pre-shattering would be great for a vacation. I would also love Liurnia. Also, you are probably the first person I've seen who doesn't dislike Finger Ruins.
We are so magiback
I will always have a soft spot for the Abyssal woods, i love how oppressive the atmosphere is, the aging untouchables were personally quite tense for me as i committed to the stealth entirely, the fact that torrent was shit scared has me unnerved, the buildup for Midra helped me love that boss even more.
Idk, while its a bit of a walk in subsequent playthroughs, i can’t say it has lost its charm for me
You sound like such a goober. If that area made you “TenSe aNd UneRveD” get a grip. That area is horrible and just missed potential, so much so it makes me upset when people defend it. It reminds me of demon ruins from ds1, super cool in theory but empty and horrid in practice.
@ damn lmao its not that deep, i just liked the area and build up and it was a spooky vibe, i don’t see whats wrong with that lmao
@@HeinzBeanz2002 Sorry brev, did I make you UnNerVed 👹👹👹 horrid
@@DreyfusLagooninsufferable comments
@@Eagle_SFM looks like I spooked you too, bum
My vacation spot would be shaman village.
About the shadowpeople across the scadu plains; while it’s true they’re nothing more than a fly in terms of threat level, I also don’t think that’s their point. I believe they’re supposed to represent the brutal aftermath of Messmer’s conquest, people burned and unable to move on to a true afterlife. So I view them more as environmental storytelling
They're essentially like the wandering nobles from the base game.
- Here to check if Shadowkeep places in number 1
- It is indeed number 1
*Opinion validated*
Do you really even need to check?
But how come lowkey horrid?
A good vacation spot for me would be either the shaman village or perhaps leyndell
You should also play Nine Sols. Most of the bosses are either ok or great, but Eigong is imo the best 2D boss of all time. Even better than Pure Vessel.
he said that the loves king darius fron pop the lost crown butt I think eigong is indeed even better than him so I agree
he said that the loves king darius fron pop the lost crown butt I think eigong is indeed even better than him so I agree
@DamianSamson-t8rAgree. Darius also used to be mu favorite boss in POP the lost crown, but has now been dethroned by Artaban in the DLC. I know most people even forgot the DLC came out, but Artaban is great because he has no filler animations, short phase transitions, no yellow attacks, and instead of gaining new moves in each phase, he just gains mix-ups, something which actually makes the 3 phase structure of this game’s bosses more engaging instead of a slog. But Eigong IS imo the best 2D boss ever. Great lore, atmosphere, arena, OST, and fight. She has a huge and varied move-set, where each and every attack requires an unique response. She also has a ton of mix-ups. I love that Eigong doesn’t have a single «boring» or «useless» attack. Though phase 3 gets a bit tedious on replays, as she just repeats the same 2 attacks in that phase, though I don’t mind too much and the attacks are indeed cool. The only other flaw I have with Eigong are the flames which can spontaneously appear beneath her during some of her attacks, which isn’t lethal, but is frustrating when you’re trying to beat her hitless. I even think Eigong is better than Isshin the sword saint and even inner owl, but they’re all close. An easy 10/10 fight. Do find any flaws or issues in Eigong? Sorry for long text lol.
@zigsynx5364 no butt I haven’t done her third phase literally working on it now butt yeah I agree on Artaban he is the inner owl of pop the lost crown with his mix-ups and how much understanding of the games mechanics he requires out of you
@DamianSamson-t8rI am glad somebody else actually played through the POP dlc lol. I think it was worth the 5 dollars and has good platforming, 2 good bosses, but a mediocre story which gives Radjen a deliberate backstory, only for her to die in the most anticlimactic way possible. The game really has a weak story ngl. Radjen was a good boss, but at that point I was tired of the blatant 3 phase structure where each phase is just a harder version of the previous one. The desperation drags on too long, and only needed to happen once. Darius is still better than her tbh. Artaban IS, however, this game’s inner owl though. Also, good luck with Eigongs third phase. Don’t give up, and remember that phase 3 Eigong has less HP (5000 hp) than phase 2 Eigong (7500). Phase 3 may seem daunting, but it’s actually not that bad. Blasphemous 2 also released it’s DLC recently, but has a story which retcons B1 for no reason (Mea Culpa), costs 13$, but has around the same content as POP DLC. Also, the added NG+ was horrible at launch. B2 still hasn’t added a boss rush mode, something POP added a long time ago. Extremely rare Ubisoft W.
Best area is the scadutree blessings we missed along the way
The Shadow of the Colossus influence on this DLC is alot, like alot alot. That game is quite literally empty and yet is extremely highly rated which begs the question, Is emptiness an inherent flaw , a product of Bandai Namco refusing to let FS finish anything ,or an artistic decision.
Should the land where all manner of death washes up be 'lively' or dead? Nier Automata's desert area is empty and is highly rated. Is the way empty areas are rated related to the ones personal feelings about a game? I dont know how FS couldve better communicated the atmosphere other than ditching open world completely.
The emptiness in Shadow of the Colossus is there to build up atmosphere and heighten the surrealism of The Forbidden Land. The combat of SotC is not the focus of the game. The comparison to Elden Ring, and the attempt to use one of the most artistic games ever created to justify the lack of content in the DLC, are laughable.
abyssal wood are goted when paired with invasions, being invaded in this creepy forest and trying to beat invader without alerting winter lanterns in the fog is extremely enjoyable
This is a good idea, I ran TT while there as well but I also took out the aging untouchables because I have a bad compulsive need to fight anything no matter how tedious it is.
I suck at parrying, BTW so each untouchable took me 4 or 5 tries lol
Love this video man! I like bosses and all, but it’s getting exhausting seeing a million videos online about “bosses ranked,” followed by “bosses ranked by difficulty,” “bosses ranked by lore,” “bosses ranked by height,” etc. I always love a discussion about areas, level design, atmosphere… it feels like judging art.
Ancient Ruins of Rauh at #2 is a great pick and I agree completely, might even consider it at #1. On my first run through I thought it was good but didn’t think much of it, probably would’ve ranked it 6th or so on this list. On my second run, I realized how perfect it was. The layout is amazing, the way it connects, and the side paths are extensive. There was a whole divine beast fight I didn’t know existed, and I probably spent a full 3 hours going through the area and finding things despite having just finished the DLC a few weeks prior to that run. Rauh may be in my top 5 areas for the whole game.
I would probably put Enir-Ilim lower though. It is beautiful and all, but the divine frost warrior is complete BS and at the end of a brutal stretch after the spammy birds, not to mention those magic spammers as you’re running up the stairs are basically pure luck to dodge. Also I think the area is way too short. But I did love the side path to Belurat, one of the coolest moments in the game, and again, it is absolutely beautiful. The other divine warrior fights were decent besides the Frost.
Cerulean Coast is my favorite by far lol. It looks so beautiful.
Happy new year Magicat!
Balatro bosses ranked when
Maybe I’m more down on this dlc than everyone else but I’d put all these areas 1 tier lower except for shadow keep.
I’d rate them all 1-2 tiers higher but I’m also a huge Elden Ring glazer
I don’t like how they handled the abyssal woods. There is no real danger, the enemies are reused and the winter lanterns are cool but not enough. As a horror fan I get that a slow build up is important but in a game where you travel so so much I don’t think it needed even more of that. I wanted huge spider like monsters, slowly roaming around the woods. Huge gaping mouths hanging from the trees. Just something thats actually threatens the player. Same goes for Midras Manse and also Midra himself. All of them lack something . Especially with Midra going into phase 2 at 2/3 HP I expected something big at the end. Like the arena completely succumbing to the frenzied flame, fire raining down etc. Like if Midras body wasnt able to keep up with the flame itself. In the end hes probably the coolest boss in the game but only has very basic attacks without the chaos in it the soundtrack and the lore bring with them.
35:50 I second this so hard.
I really dreamed of legacy dungeons akin to Brume Tower and Shulva the Sunken Temple for Shadow of the Erdtree - vastly different unique major dungeons to outmatch the main game without being too similar.
I can't say I'll remember the aesthetics of most places that aren't named Enir Ilim, Ruins of Rauh, Dragged Peak or Stone Coffin Fissure.
But the level design of the Shadow Keep and the verticality of Gravesite Plain and especially Scadu Altus was a VERY welcome addition to Elden Ring!
I just don't think they "really" outdid themselves with a preceding roster of Leyendell, Stormveil, Ringed City, Research Hall, Cainhurst Castle, Shulva, Brume Tower, Anor Londo etc.
Ancient Ruins of Rauh, Enir Ilim, and Dragged Peak probably got the closest to the variety and "freshness" I hoped for.
Great video, am glad ur back :D My favorite area would have to be jagged peak, just because of the buildup for Bayle.
Tbh though i kind of felt pretty meh about shadowkeep though.
This is uncanny! I was just watching your other area ranking from previous souls titles!
SAME!
I'm so glad to see that Enir Ilim>Belurat. I like both. But I feel like Enir Ilim is downplayed a lot because of that annoying stair path. The enemy designs are so good, and the aesthetics, as well as the interesting side paths, make it one of my favorite levels in all souls games. Also it's not too long or short. It's the perfect length for an end level imho
Abysmal woods is visually pleasing.
The lack of more new enemies is my criticism. Because i think this is what makes the game interesting for me. It makes the zone feel unique and disitinct. Abyssal woods could have more new frenzied enemies. Charo and Cerulean coast could have new ancient dead enemies. Since Jagged Peak is supposed to be a parallel to farum azula they could have made new beast men or a dragon like cult enemies. Stone Coffin Fissure could have enemies like Murkmen from Ringed City dlc or just a unique putrescent type enemies. They could have gone crazy with it. But i guess they ran out of budget.
When I first reached Shaman Village, it was night, and glowing minor Erdtree was even more prominent and beautiful. Great view, relaxing scenery, but not enough for BnB stay
The Abyssal woods should have made a huge Untouchable watching over a large portion of the abyssal woods which you need to hide from, like the frenzied tower in the base game
Great video! Off-topic, but I hope you've played the recent update to Black Myth: Wukong, the updated Gauntlet bosses are genuinely amazing and making a video on them seems like a good idea
I published it 1 minute ago so I mean thanks but you haven't seen it yet. Or maybe you have foresight. But yeah I played the update and I'm with you, it's pretty awesome and I'm planning on making a video on it
@@magicat7356 Would you believe me if I said I have faith that the video would be great no matter what? I've watched your other videos a bunch, really liked them, your criteria for judging is really similar to my own
@@pltchamp7240 I choose to believe you sir, and thank you
@magicat7356 the new tiger vanguard boss is actually s tier imo. Especially with the bindings to limit you. Also great video
@@Oknahidwin Tiger Vanguard was probably my favourite overhaul out of all of them. His moveset basically doubled and got a lot more variation. Wasn't a big fan of Erlang's change since they removed his phase transition attacks but at least the bow is cool
This order is really solid. The only thing I'd change is Ancient Ruins of Rauh, which I might drop down a tier since I don't love the dullness of the underground sections. Also, completely agreed on the access to Enir-Ilim. So underwhelming to teleport there, and it clearly feels like they intended to have it accessed through the Dancing Lion's arena, then changed it randomly last minute. Great video, as always.
Since Shadow Keep is accessed multiple times and have separated sections, I think it's fair to consider Belurat and Enir-Ilim two parts of a whole. If you do, then I think they can join the big 3 legacy dungeons of Elden Ring aka Stormveil, Leyndell and Shadow Keep.
I am curious to see how convergence will rework the differents area, and also, I want to point a big flaw of elden ring and it's dlc :
balance between elements, let me explain :
how many areas, bosses and ennemies do we have around scarlet rot?
Caelid, kindred of rot, lake of rot, malenia, romina, scorpion, putrid avatar...
How many areas, bosses and ennemies do we have around sleep?
Stone coffin, but not really because it's ennemies are reskins and putrescent knight, even if I love him isn't sleep type because he was supposed to be tied to the gloam eyed queen.
And for the madness, we have areas and bosses, but not enough ennemies, truly fromsoft could've done something like the bloodborne forest in order to make it better, maybe one or two field bosses based of madness (I like the drakes, even if they're reused, so a madness dragon could've been funny)
That's one the biggest issues I have with elden ring, there's some ideas and concept so overutilized to a point where it's not worth it and for some cases (radahn in particular, love him in base game, hate him in dlc due to lore) is just boring and worthless, when it shouldn't be the case because some concepts are not correctly utilized, ghostflame isn't used well and there's many copy paste, which is sad because it's a cool idea.
But shadow keep best dlc dungeon/area, definitely
Abyssal Woods is my favorite area. 🎃
Nothing actually…happens in Abyssal Woods. Midra’s Manse is ok. It’s very small. Midra is the only redeeming thing. Repeat playthroughs are a slog to Midra unless you love cookbooks.
@Budd631 For me, it's the foreboding atmosphere of the area. Love how spooky it feels.
@@craigauclair4026yeah, I agree. That’s all I has going for it. And there is nothing actually foreboding in it, sadly.
@@Budd631TH-cam commenter hasn't heard about opinions, shocking
@@Budd631 atmosphere was scary, if you let yourself get immersed the stealth sections are very thrilling. Different strokes though, if it wasn’t for you that’s fine, though other people did like it.
Impossible! A Magicat's list that I fully agree with? HOW????
Surprised people haven’t made more of these before
21:13 This can be said about pretty much every area in the entire game tbh. When the “sun” is up and is casting its rays across the landscape, this game looks absolutely stunning and reminds me a lot of watercolor paintings. At times it really looks damn near photorealistic and very eye catching.
But when there’s no light in the open world, everything in the environment looks extremely flat and boring. It’s a damn shame because DS3 and Bloodborne looked pretty acceptable in areas with very little outdoor light sources, but ER is somehow worse in that department.
There are exceptions to that, like I think Cerulean Coast looks good any time of day since most of the color comes from the flower fields anyway. Some of the snow areas too, and points where you have massive vistas. But generally the open world relies a lot on the lighting and the skyboxes, which aren't always on its side.
“The area looks cool and is fun to discover the first time” That is the entirety of Eldrn Ring not just the DLC.
If you go get the Scadutree fragment near the frost warrior and stand in the doorway he'll stomp and then walk off the ledge
I wish |Shadow Keep had more open air areas. I preferred those areas much more than the dull insides of the castle.
Magicat would you do a video on your favorite games?
The goat is back
stone coffin fissure is amazing man come on
I need convergence mod to go HAM in abyssal woods and the coastal areas
So many of the areas in sote have legitimately just nothing in them which sucks because the visuals are all pretty good
Asmongold's Lair is is the worst Poison swamp in Fromsoft history tbh
The cockroaches are so annoying to deal with and all the area leads to is a Midra reskin!
Dusk hd first episode is the perfect forest level, give it a shot
I still think none of the dungeons in the dlc reach the heights of Stormveil
Shadow keep does
@@Jbswe nah I don’t think so - if it was all one interconnected dungeon it would but it’s just lots of small dungeons technically connected to eachother but not accessible between them. Not to mention the church district promising something cool but not delivering.
Rauh felt too empty for me. Enir elim and belurat felt too short and lacked enemy variety. Shadow keep was the only DLC location that could compete with Leyndell, Volcano manor, The Haligtree and Stormveil castle.
31:18 Oceloooooooooottttttt!!!!!!
The DLC is sooo good, but it could have been so much better. I agree with you on many points, especially the boring shadow enemies everywhere. Maybe I just had too high hopes. It was still great though.
I like going into abyssal woods with the beast repellant torch and befriending all the rats
The areas would be better if there were more open fields and revenants in them. Some more furnace golems would be nice too
31:17 the madness got to him
charo's hidden grave is a nothing area. the only incentive to go there is the hippo that drops a scadutree fragment.
Enir ilim in top 3 is absolute lunacy.
What drags it down?
Agreed. Worst legacy dungeon in Elden Ring next to Castle Ensis.
Finally a video with the correct pronunciation of Ancient Ruins of RAUH 😂😂😂
Your list made me thinking about the DLC as a whole and for me the Highlight are Clearly the Bosses. I lost interest after like 40 hours but didnt defeating every boss (i fought all of them except radahn because i was stuck on the NPC fight before but i just never got back to SotE). I was heavily interested in the Lore, but it was a bit underwhelming for me. Elden Ring is by the Bosses my favorite soulsborne Game but for example the Areas even if i really like the Open World, im not to sure. I think there were more potential and i would have wished for a bit more of enemy variety. But i still love it. Im very excited for Neightrein.
13:54 Behold: Korea Manor
What was the music used during the Belurat segment?
Divine Beast dancing lion
Epic vid
7 dislikes to 334 likes.. goes to show how contentious the DLC level design is.
Ah, the abyssal woods hate saddens me. For me it’s on par with, if not better than shadow keep and leyndell
I respect your opinion but I don't agree or really understand it. Abyssal Woods just doesn't have enough gameplay elements, or interesting level design. Atmosphere can only take you so far.
I loved shadow of the erdtree but I started to have my doubts when I went through the finger ruins. I started to feel bored and not rewarded. It del bond and lacking in storytelling and this one of a few places I felt that. I hope going forward with DLCs less is more is taken into account. I’d have fathered less places but more intricacy and more to do. ❤
Cerulean Coast was my favourite, such a brethtaking view...
For some reason I despised Rauh with all my heart and Enir Ilim was kinda meh
Where’s the reaction video to night reign magicat?
So radanh is S tier now?
yep
@@magicat7356 I love him now, he is 100% in my top 5 bosses now, tbh i think i enjoyed him more than messmer (i never fought him pre nerf and i still died 80+ times)
You should do the KH3 remind DLC data battles. The main game sucks hard, we all know, yet I still think it’s worth it for 14 whole superbosses. They are unique in the sense that they have puzzle like openings that are hard yet rewarding to find. Tough their biggest weakness is the lack of mix-ups, but I think their unique puzzle-esque design makes up for it. Also, Yozora is one of the toughest (while still being fair) boss fight of all time. I’d love to see you rank them, as you are really great at analyzing boss design. I have never seen boss fight with higher skill expression than these data battles, as some openings are incredibly obscure and difficult to consistently achieve. Good luck.
I have never seen that horrifying image of Asmongold's Lair. I guess we should expect no less from the mf that literally used a dead rat as an alarm clock. He has more money than god he can pay for a weekly maid cleanup while he's asleep, there is absolutely no excuse for that.
I swear Charo's only exists as a lore dump lol.
Even then there’s barely any significant lore
I’m worried as to what “The Rakshasa Incident” could be considering the ignorant behavior present on that server
I was exaggerating it a bit. I just told everyone to kys but everyone knew i wasnt being serious
@@magicat7356 yeah I ended up seeing the original. I thought it was pretty funny although I understand that some people might take it the wrong way, so I'd say you're off the hook
I would to see him play metal gear rising revengence it takes like 7 hours to beat and has sekiro like parrying
Charo's Hidden Grave and Cerulean Coast r so disappointing. I was excited to eventually get to them but when I got there, it was just trash. Forget about finding loot, the reused base game enemies in Cerulean is the most disappointing. Not a single new enemy. Instead, just a shitty dragon and skeletons. The areas r beautiful but that's not enough for me, the place needs to feel somewhat alive and have unique mobs at least. Abyssal Woods is just as bad.
While I wouldn't call the jagged peak the worst, I would call it the most disappointing. Seeing this towering mountain from a distance and hearing about the monster waiting there builds a picture of a pretty exciting area, or even dungeon, but then traversing it proves to be but a short walk filled with repeated and underwhelming enemies. Seeing how big this place was on the map, and then how little was actually traversable was quite pathetic.
Yeah I think Bayle should have been hunting you throughout, Similar to Midir in the Ringed city
Cerulean Coast that low? Marigga pls…
If you want a good forest level indie game forgive me father area 3 lvl 1 will give you great content
In my opinion, the worst area BY FAR is the Abyssal Woods. They're somewhat interesting on a first playthrough, but, if you ever want to replay the DLC and fight Midra, it is the most boring, repetitive, and draining experience in the entirety of Elden Ring. As someone who has played every single souls game (including DS2), it is probably within my bottom 3 areas in any of these games.
I don't believe ur finnish no finn speaks this good english
tehny tarpeeks pitkään et alkaa menee sujuvasti
@magicat7356 jumalauta en ois kyllä millää tajunnu et oot suomalaine vaikka tullu jonki verra jo katottuu äijän videoit :D
Damn son. Dumbly misinterpreting the furnace golem in Charro's hidden grave as a tower knight fight is the most stupid thing I've heard you say. 😂 omg you're not supposed to hit it's legs. Geezus 😂 wth
Bro one second later i show myself throwing a pot them
Woohoo, in here before 100 viewers.
I watched most of your vids and think they are great i really like that stuff with awful to amazing tier couse it lets you compare your opinion between diffrent games but i noticed a common theme in your vids is shitting on lords of the fallen even tought your only vid on it was neutral, do you really think the game is that shit.
I was never a fan of the game and only started to like it less and less when I replayed it from scratch and physically couldn't because the game glitched out and hard locked me out of the ending. And then tried NG+ which made bosses have so much health a single try could last nearly 10 minutes, so I couldn't be bothered to finish that either. So my last 2 experiences were dreadful, while my first was like a 5/10. Those experiences dropped it to 3 for me. I know they've updated the game a lot since then so maybe it's not so bad anymore.
the legacy dungeons where a big disappointment for me in this DLC. Normally their DLCs have their best but leyendell, stormveil where way better
am i crazy for thinking that every area in this dlc is mediocre? i like shadow keep a lot but its a mish mash of previous ideas. but the rest are all just so unmemorable/ wasted potential imo
L take.
@@xEcuador1 idk man they all look gorgeous but they are so boring gameplay wise , so muc of the same shit you see in the base game but worse. abyssal woods and the manse is a collossal dissapointment and just underbaked
@@xEcuador1Refute what he wrote
People still think THE LANDS OF SHADOWS a separate new elden ring map, when in reality it's just a single zone equivalent of Limgrave or liurmia of the lakes if you turn them into DLC.
the only difference is that THE LANDS OF SHADOWS have smaller mini biomes which gives an illusion that the DLC is massive, there's a reason why the areas are mostly empty because they were never a new zone to begin with.
yet the community still criticize SHADOW OF THE ERDTREE for it and calling FROMSOFT lazy.
Top to Bottom on Torrent ( from Cerulean to Scaduview ) doesnt take that long at all, no longer than fully exploring Liurnia would.
People act like each 'Zone' is a 3hr slogfest with no items to pick up.
🎉🎉
This dlc does such a bad job with content in the open world, it feels like 50% of all content is in shadow keep.
Ye, its fun to traverse the map IMO but nothing to fight for huge stretches of the map really drags it down.
How can you choose between a bunch of garbages?
Why is everything so bland and ugly? Jesus its just empty space. Where the hell are the cool, complex, mazed like cathedral complex?
Promised consort radahn is still a garbage boss
He never was a garbage boss to begin with, just a boss with a fantastic moveset dragged down by over the top difficulty. Now he is S tier