With Demon’s Souls, a fantasy action role-playing game, FromSoftware served up a treat for those who like the masocore (a portmanteau of ‘masochist’ and ‘hardcore’) genre, wherein the gameplay is extremely difficult. The developer has a reputation for such games. The company’s creative mastermind Hidetaka Miyazaki once even famously remarked, “Hardship is what gives meaning to the experience.” FromSoftware’s latest release, Elden Ring, fits this philosophy.
Elden Ring is one of the year’s biggest releases because of Miyazaki’s collaboration with the popular American novelist, George RR Martin. It was highly anticipated since its announcement in 2019. Now that it is finally here, we can say that the game was totally worth the wait.
Elden Ring is set in a Norse mythology-inspired place called Lands Between sometime after the titular ring shatters. You play as one of the outsiders, known as the Tarnished, who are called back to Lands Between. Your objective is to travel the place, find all the ring’s shards (known as the Great Runes), defeat the demigods who possess them, and become the Elden Lord.
The story is not told through standard cutscenes as in previous FromSoftware games like Bloodborne and the Souls series. It is there for those who pursue it.
Elden Ring
You need to piece it together from the conversations you have with non-playing characters and from the reading material you find. You need not worry about these things, if you are just interested in the action.
Elden Ring feels like a Dark Souls game. It is slow, deliberate, and difficult. Some of the aspects are especially tough. The enemy AI, for instance, is intelligent. So, aimlessly doing the evade roll is a quick way to death. There is also a greater emphasis on stealth compared to the developer’s previous games.
The world, teeming with monsters, claustrophobic castles, and unique characters, is a joy to explore. There are many nasty, hidden surprises too. So, watch out for that giant dragon that appears out of nowhere. There are many parallel stories happening. So, a quest log would have been a useful addition to track the journey.
Character creation is a lot like Dark Souls with several classes to choose from. Each class gives you a unique starting boost. So, choose wisely. You can either tweak your character to be a melee master, backstabbing thief, spell-slinging wizard or something in between. It is all about finding a style that helps you survive gigantic bosses that are agile and fearsome. Do a bit of research before you create your character. Also, do not hesitate to restart the game.
Elden Ring, overall, is a superb open-world game that is best played on consoles right now, given the PC version is rough. Bringing all the signature elements that made Souls games great into an open world game is an accomplishment. Not all can live up to this game’s challenge. The rewards, however, are worth the risk.
