FromSoftware has released a balance-tweaking update for Elden Ring's Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, addressing player concerns about its difficulty. The DLC, while critically acclaimed, proved exceptionally challenging for many, even seasoned Soulslike veterans. This led to some negative player feedback, including review bombing on Steam.
Update 1.12.2 directly tackles this issue by significantly improving the effectiveness of Shadow Realm Blessings (like Scadutree Fragments and Revered Spirit Ashes) in the early and late game. The update boosts attack output and damage negation, particularly for the initial levels of Blessing enhancements. While the latter half of the enhancement scaling is now more gradual, the final level also receives a noticeable buff. This should make the early stages of the DLC, and the final boss encounters, considerably easier.
Interestingly, Bandai Namco also issued a reminder to players to utilize these Scadutree Fragments effectively, highlighting a common oversight contributing to difficulty. These fragments, collected throughout the DLC, enhance damage output and defense when used at Sites of Grace. The update further amplifies their impact.
The patch notes also address a PC-specific bug causing ray tracing to automatically activate upon loading older save data, resulting in performance issues for some. Players experiencing frame rate problems are urged to manually disable ray tracing in the graphics settings. Future updates are planned to include further balance adjustments and bug fixes. The update is applied via the multiplayer server; players should ensure their game version is 1.12.2 before playing.
Elden Ring Update 1.12.2 Key Changes:
- Revised Shadow Realm Blessing Scaling: Increased attack and damage negation, especially in the early stages of Blessing enhancements. Final level enhancements also see a boost.
- Ray Tracing Bug Fix (PC): Addresses automatic ray tracing activation when loading older saves.
- Future Updates Planned: Further balance adjustments and bug fixes are forthcoming.
