Spoiler warning: This article contains spoilers for the Elden Ring, Shadow of the Erdtree DLC’s final boss.
Elden Ring Twitch streamer MissMikkaa has become the first person to complete Shadow of the Erdtree while using a dance mat as a controller, overcoming the DLC’s brutal final boss on the 52nd try.
Shadow of the Erdtree is already gaining a reputation for being a phenomenally challenging piece of DLC, even by FromSoftware’s characteristically difficult standards. However, its fearsome nature hasn’t stopped a select group of exceptionally talented streamers from going above and beyond to make it even harder for themselves by playing with their very own jury-rigged controllers.
For example, last week saw legendary doot champion DrDeComposing complete the entirety of the DLC while using the notes played through a modified electric saxophone to guide his Tarnished warrior through the shadowed lands. Streamer Perri Karyal meanwhile is attempting to beat Shadow of the Erdtree with the power of thought, by using a special headset to read her brain’s electrical activity, which is then fed into a virtual controller to provide imputs with which to manipulate her character.
I DID IT! ALL bosses of my dance pad Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree run have been deFEETed!
The last boss fell after 52 tries and 7 hours of dance-padding (my feet hurt). DLC took me 7 days in total with 325 deaths; 69 of them to gravity, nice.
I hope Miyazaki is proud of me. pic.twitter.com/DqbgLxTCXz
— MissMikkaa (@MissMikkaa) July 8, 2024
Now, Twitch streamer MissMikkaa has joined the pantheon of FromSoftware enthusiasts to beat Shadow of the Erdtree with unconventional means, after using a dance mat to defeat Promised Consort Radahn, and cap off a challenge run for the ages.
“I DID IT! ALL bosses of my dance pad Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree run have been deFEETed!” wrote MissMikkaa in an X post following her defeat of the final boss. “The last boss fell after 52 tries and 7 hours of dance-padding (my feet hurt). DLC took me 7 days in total with 325 deaths; 69 of them to gravity, nice. I hope Miyazaki is proud of me.”
MissMikkaa was able to direct her Tarnished to attack, dodge, heal, move, and switch items by stepping on pressure points on the dance mat that were bound to specific keys on a virtual controller. The lack of buttons relative to a traditional gamepad also meant that MissMikkaa was forced to do away with things like nuanced camera control, which most gamers take for granted.
Of course, this isn’t the first time that MissMikkaa has made headlines for performing seemingly impossible feats of skill while gaming. For example, the streamer made headlines back in 2023 when she sensationally defeated two Malenias simultaneously using a dance pad, and a DualSense to control two separate games of Elden Ring at the same time.
Check out IGN’s Shadow of the Erdtree guide, and interactive maps to find out everything that you need to know about the Elden Ring DLC, including how to find the elusive Scadutree fragments needed to power up your Tarnished for the late game push.
Anthony is a freelance contributor covering science and video gaming news for IGN. He has over eight years experience of covering breaking developments in multiple scientific fields and absolutely no time for your shenanigans. Follow him on Twitter @BeardConGamer
