Elden Ring faces review bombing over new Tarnished Pack DLC

Elden Ring is facing review bombing on Steam following the release of the Tarnished Pack, a small DLC priced at approximately $5. The controversy stems from the inclusion of cosmetic items, such as new skins for the mount Torrent, alongside two new character classes, new weapons, and NPC invasion events.

Players have expressed significant dissatisfaction with the monetization of these cosmetic elements, drawing comparisons to the infamous ‘Horse Armor’ microtransaction from The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. The backlash has resulted in hundreds of negative reviews, causing the DLC's overall rating on Steam to drop to ‘Mixed’ within days of its launch.

While the Tarnished Pack has drawn criticism, the core Elden Ring title remains a massive commercial success with over 30 million copies sold. The controversy appears specifically targeted at the pricing and nature of the new content rather than the game's port to the Switch 2 platform.