Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree could arrive early February next year. At least, that’s according to leaked promotional images featuring a controller collab between Thrustmaster and parent company Bandai Namco.
Originally ousted by the eagle-eyed folks at Reset Era, Thrustmaster might have inadvertently let slip the release date. A new page on its website details custom Elden Ring controllers inspired by the highly-anticipated expansion. Alas, the multiple GOTY award winner, has its ‘tarnished‘ in a fervour once again.
The promotional images also clearly highlight the controllers will be available by February 2024. Meanwhile, the promotional text specifically mentions to, “Sync with new ‘Shadow of the Erdtree’ expansion release.” Other buzzwords include ‘major keybeat,’ and ‘animate sales.’ Awful, I know, but this careful albeit cringeworthy corporate speak leads many to believe that the controllers are meant to coincide with the expansion launch. Naturally, the slides have been deleted from the Thrustmaster website.
The Thrustmaster page also references two additional controllers themed around Malenia and Ranni from Elden Ring. However, these two hideous wonders are scheduled for a 2025 release, supposedly alongside yet another expansion. This is where some doubt is warranted because FromSoftware has never mentioned a second expansion for the series.
Of course, this could be a hoax. The slide seems to be meant for internal use only, as the first page does feature a very generic ‘confidential’ badge in the top left corner. Also, the slides date back to October 2023, and a lot has changed since then.
Earlier this month, Japanese gaming website Game Watch interviewed the producer of Elden Ring. He mentioned the DLC remains “a little ways off” yet, but progress is going well. With that said, I don’t think it’ll be ready for a February launch if you ask me. Just a hunch.
