After several months of silence, Elden Ring explodes back on the scene with a flurry of news and previews. And yes, a release date that’s just around the corner: February 2022. Coupled with the recent Elden Ring network test last November 12, fans have been raving for more Elden Ring content. So here’s what we know so far about the upcoming action RPG of From Software. Check out the Elden Ring gameplay trailer from E3 2021.
By now, most players know that Elden Ring is a collaboration between famed director Hidetaka Miyazaki and Game of Thrones writer George R.R. Martin. Miyazaki, who is a huge fan of Martin, requested the author to create the world known as the Lands Between, a fantasy realm where exists a force called the Elden Ring. Symbolized by the colossal Erdtree, the Elden Ring grants each being in the Lands Between a state of grace, made evident by a golden light in their eyes.
At some point in their history, some denizens of the Land fell from grace and lost this light. These beings were dubbed the Tarnished and were consequently banished from the realm. Many years later, however, the Elden Ring was broken. Like a beacon, this called the Tarnished back home to the Lands Between. You play as one of the Tarnished, and this begins your tale. As to your purpose and what final antagonists you’ll face, that remains to be seen in the game.
According to Martin, he accomplished his part early in pre-production, with the studio taking over after he finished the main lore. They would report back to him now and then to show their designs for characters and monsters.
From Software Studios are the makers of legendary games such as the Dark Souls series and Bloodborne. Based on the gameplay, Elden Ring is essentially the same, but with additional features that set it up as a successor to Dark Souls and Sekiro, except on a much grander scale and with various improvements and nuances at play. Long-time From Software composer Yuka Kitamura will return to score Elden Ring, so it will definitely SOUND like a Souls game.
From the preview and the beta test, Elden Ring features an enormous open world with different environments, ranging from mountains, lush forests, fetid swamps, and vast castle ruins. The game map is enormous, with explorable land going as far as the eye can see. Time of day and dynamic weather also play a role in creating the environment.
The world here is far larger than any other game by From Software. Miyazaki has teased that Elden Ring will feature his open-field concept, with the environment, combat, and story adapting to the player’s exploration of the Lands Between.
Miyazaki explains that the world will be divided into six main areas, each with an explorable dungeon. Each of these areas is owned by a specific demigod, who also will serve as the bosses for that location. According to Miyazaki:
“While the areas are lined up in a way so that you would normally tackle them in a specific order, you don’t have to follow it. We wanted to give a free level of progression and exploration throughout the Lands Between, so there's a lot of different ways. You won't be able to access everything from the start, but there are a lot of different ways you can approach each area. And there's a lot of freedom as to which order you tackle different areas as well."
Given that the game will feature sprawling environments, Elden Ring will have horseback riding, making it the first Souls-like game to feature it. Horses won’t be available at once, however. Torrent, the player’s spectral horse, only becomes available after finishing a quest linked to the Sites of Grace. After obtaining Torrent, however, you can summon it through a spell at any time.
Unlike Sekiro, Elden Ring’s in-game map will have plenty of detail. It will also helpfully point out ruins, Sites of Grace, buildings, and other locations of interest. Exploring the wilds will reward the player as this will reveal many hidden areas. Sites of Grace are significant as they let the player rest and recuperate.
By Miyazaki’s estimate, Elden Ring will take roughly 30 hours to complete the main story, but with all the exploration and side quests, it’s hard to tell exactly how long it will take to finish the entire game.
Despite its sprawling size, the Lands Between do not sit empty. Players will encounter both friendly and hostile NPCs along the way. Foes will wander the map in set zones, setting up camps and guarding important places against interlopers.
Players will encounter a wide range of enemies: goblin-like creatures, human soldiers, grotesque monstrosities, Tree Guardians, and of course, dragons. Players also have helpful NPCs, including the spirit Melina, who appears at Sites of Grace to offer aid.
According to Miyazaki, Elden Ring will still be difficult, as hard as Dark Souls 3. To win, you must correctly time your blocks, dodges, and attacks. Get overconfident, and you’re likely to taste death more than once.
Apart from Souls-like stamina-based melee combat, the game will include magical and ranged combat akin to Skyrim. You also get options for stealth kills, guard breaks, knockouts, and finishing moves, much like with Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. Stealth resembles that of Sekiro: players crouch to avoid being seen, then they can move in for a silent kill. Mounted combat has also been confirmed as part of the features.
If you die in Elden Ring (which is guaranteed), you will drop all your collected Runes at the site of your death.
There are five different Elden Ring Classes to choose from:
No matter what class you start with, you can always improve your character by leveling up your skills from a skill tree and creating a build that’s entirely your own. Classes are simply a starting point.
As with any RPG, the player stats determines their abilities.
These include a character’s Damage abilities in these aspects: Physical, Magical, Fire, Lightning, Holy, and Critical Attack.
Aside from defenses against the above attacks, it includes the following:
The game's final version is said to have about 100 different skills, allowing you to freely create builds as you see fit. Skills will include different forms of weapons and magic.
Skills come with weapons and shields, but you can change them at a Site of Grace by using Ashes of War. Note that some skills are hidden and need to be discovered by exploring the Lands Between.
Aside from summoning spirits in combat, players may summon their companions to join in cooperative play or PvP. This is accomplished by one player drawing a symbol on the ground and another activating it, drawing the other player into their world as a spirit. You can set up a password system so only friends can come and help you. You can also set up a duel with other players. Note that summoned players may not use Sites of Grace, and horse riding is disabled during Multiplayer sessions.
Using certain items, you can also invade other players’ worlds to hunt them down, if they make themselves available for it. If you get invaded, you can use a different magical item to call for aid against the interlopers. It’s a fairly complex system that makes the multiplayer experience quite interesting.
Here’s what’s included in the different Elden Ring Editions:
Elden Ring Digital Standard Edition (pre-order)
Elden Ring Digital Deluxe Edition
Elden Ring Collectors Edition
Elden Ring will release on February 25, 2022, for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X. Pre-order Elden Ring today at the cheapest available prices.
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