Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree is finally here, and after two years in development, it’s understandable fans are expecting the expansion to be vast and expansive. I’ve beaten all of Shadow of the Erdtree’s major bosses and found most of its secrets, so I can tell you roughly how long you’ll spend exploring the Land of Shadow.
Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree length, explained
I spent 40 to 50 hours exploring Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree before calling it quits, and beat the final boss of the expansion around the 40-hour mark. I took my time combing every inch of the map trying to find all of its optional bosses and secrets, so I expect the average playthrough will be somewhere in the region of 30 to 40 hours.
After nearly 50 hours, I’m confident I’ve found most of the hidden content and beaten nine out of 10 major bosses, but it’s a FromSoftware game, so there are undoubtedly plenty of things I’ve missed. It’ll probably take upwards of 50 hours to find everything, but it’ll be easier when there are plenty of guides available—like our handy guide to help you find all the Scadutree Fragments in Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree.
If you’re quick or skip most of the side content, you can make it to the last boss in 15 to 20 hours, but you’ll be missing out on the fun—Elden Ring (and all the other FromSoftware games) are all about exploration and discovery, and some of the best content is hidden where you’d least expect it.