Everything we know about Elden Ring DLC

For many fans of the open-world saga from FromSoftware, the Elden Ring DLC continues to be at the top of their wish lists. Elden Ring is the most popular Souls game ever and one of the biggest games of 2022, so there is a sizable player base out there that is eager for more. They’ve seen every Elden Ring conclusion, explored every cave in the Lands Between, and are eager to learn what comes next. Although Elden Ring DLC hasn’t been announced, it’s definitely a possibility. Here is everything we know so far about that potential.

As of this writing, it is unclear if Elden Ring will receive any downloadable content (DLC), as both FromSoftware and Bandai Namco have refrained from providing specifics in their discussions on the matter. The official press release from Hidetaka Miyazaki and Yasuo Miyakawa, President and CEO of Bandai Namco Entertainment Inc., provided the closest indication of what is to come so far. The latter is quoted as saying the following:

“Much effort was placed into creating “ELDEN RING” so that we could exceed the expectations of our fans worldwide. In like manner, we will continue our efforts in expanding the brand beyond the game itself, and into everyone’s daily life.“

Meanwhile, this assertion was included in the press release itself:

“Please look forward to more of “ELDEN RING” as an IP (characters and other intellectual property) in hopes of expanding beyond the realm of games.”

There certainly seem to be plans for more Elden Ring, though it’s unclear in what capacity. The idea that it might extend beyond gaming could mean a variety of things, including likely merchandise or even an adaptation into other media, but Miyakawa’s comment about doing so feels open to interpretation and might point to upcoming DLC.

Additionally, it feels fairly plausible due to recent game-related behaviour and past business practises. Four of the six “Soulsborne” games that FromSoftware has released in the past 15 years have had at least one DLC add-on, aside from the regular content updates and changes that have been made to Elden Ring since its release (indicating that the game is still constantly being worked on).

It seems more than likely that one of FromSoftware’s biggest games would have something, but of course, we don’t know that for sure just yet. Even Sekiro, which had no official DLC, did have a significant free update that added content to the game.

However, documents found in the most recent Elden Ring updates suggest DLC—possibly more than one DLC—may be forthcoming. To understand the significance of these findings, we spoke with a number of data miners, and they all agreed that there is plausible, if not unambiguous, evidence of an impending update.

According to the information at hand, one hypothesis is that a minor update might be released as a taster for a much larger content drop, possibly connected to two enigmatic maps discovered in the game files. Although it’s still speculative, this is the most well-informed speculation we’ve heard about the Elden Ring DLC so far.

WHEN IS THE ELDEN RING DLC RELEASE DATE?

Since Elden Ring DLC hasn’t been formally announced, it’s impossible to predict when (or even if) it will release. To determine how long it took for DLCs to reach players, we compared the release dates of previous FromSoftware games to those of their (first) DLCs.

Dark Souls: Artorias of the Abyss DLC is coming in 11 months (released as part of the Prepare to Die edition, it took another 2 months on top of that to become purchasable individually)
3 months until the Crown of the Sunken King DLC for Dark Souls 2
Eight months until The Old Hunters DLC for Bloodborne
7 months until the Ashes of Ariandel DLC for Dark Souls 3
content update for Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice after one year and seven months

If these instances serve as a precedent, it means that if Elden Ring DLC is ever released, it will probably happen this year or at the very least be announced by 2022.

When the Elden Ring DLC May Be Released

The majority of FromSoftware’s earlier projects came with some kind of expansion months after their initial release. Dark Souls’ DLC, Artorias of the Abyss, was released. Dark Souls 2 received the Crown of the Sunken King expansion 13 months after its release. Dark Souls 3 received its first DLC, Ashes of Ariandel, four months after its release.

Bloodborne (its remaster, which only existed in dreams), on the other hand, received The Old Hunters expansion eight months after its release. The only exceptions are Demon Souls and Sekiro, the latter of which only receives relatively minor changes like a boss rush mode. Considering how FromSoftware has performed in the past, it seems likely that Elden Ring will receive its own expansion about a year after.

WHAT WILL THE ELDEN RING DLC BE ABOUT?

We can only make conjectures about what a potential Elden Ring DLC might contain or what will occur at this time. The Dragonlord Placidusax fight in Elden Ring does allow you to travel back in time, demonstrating that FromSoftware is not against these kinds of concepts. Previous FromSoftware DLCs frequently have a focus on time travel, either leaping far back or forward in the world’s history to experience significant events.

Additionally, there are many significant events that have been hinted at in the Elden Ring lore that would be fascinating for us to personally experience. As an alternative, perhaps the designers will alter or open up areas that are already in the game to allow for player participation. For more details, scroll down or click on the following possibilities, which many in the Elden Ring community believe are likely to be the focus of DLC.

Roman Colosseums
the enigmatic cloud that was between the Divine Towers
Egg of Miquella
Night of the Black Knives and The Shattering
The Rise of Queen Marika and the Greater Will

The Colosseums

Elden Ring’s Colosseums are imposing, arena-like structures located in Limgrave, Caelid, and Leyndell that are scattered throughout the game but cannot be reached legally. But some players have hacked the games and discovered arena-like areas inside, leading many to believe that these will eventually turn into PVP arena (which would explain why FromSoftware are constantly tinkering with weapon balancing in advance of such an update).

Having so many enormous, unusual-looking structures is obviously a sign of something, especially since there doesn’t yet seem to be any legend associated with them.

The mysterious cloud between the Divine Towers

Many people have noticed this one: if you find every Elden Ring Divine Tower location, you’ll see that they all perfectly circle a single location. This central location isn’t the Erdtree, as you might expect, but rather a patch of inaccessible ocean in the middle of the map that is cloud-covered and hidden. That cloud seems suspicious, maybe they’ll team up in a DLC and blow it away to reveal a new island?

Miquella’s egg

Miquella, Malenia’s demigod brother and allegedly the most “fearsome Empyrean of all,” is a significant figure in the Elden Ring lore despite the fact that we never get to see him in person. Miquella was cursed to eternal childhood and attempted to cure himself before being kidnapped by Mohg, Lord of Blood. Miquella is currently dormant, and you can find him inside an egg-like cocoon with one arm protruding in Mohg’s boss fight arena. At one point, Ofnir makes the suggestion that Miquella should stay in bed; however, what will happen if he awakens?

The Shattering and the Night of the Black Knives

The Night of the Black Knives was the night when a group of assassins sneaked through the Lands Between and killed a group of demigods, including Marika’s son Godwyn. Although two distinct events, they are inextricably linked. The Shattering—a major conflict between all the remaining demigods over the right to rule—then ensued as a result of this, with the most well-known examples being the fabled battles between Malenia and General Radahn (a conflict so epic it turned Caelid into a blighted hellscape). These incidents are obviously worth looking into at least a little bit because they served as the main focus of the Elden Ring story trailer.

The Greater Will and Rise of Marika

They could also go back even further, to the creation of the Lands Between, when Marika, a being from the realm of Numen, is selected by the deity known as the Greater Will and, along with her husband Godfrey, creates the Lands Between. They wage war against giants, dragons, and sorcerers to further the Greater Will’s sphere of influence. It would be an opportunity to experience a younger, more modern version of the Lands Between and interact with crucial figures like Marika, Godfrey, Radagon, and Godwyn, important figures in the lore who only appear briefly in the main game.

This is all speculation, of course, based on the obvious gaps in Elden Ring and educated guesses based on FromSoftware’s past and the statements made by its developers. As soon as we learn more, we’ll make sure to update this page. We’re eager to learn what the future holds for the Lands Between.