Is Elden Ring Game Worth It? Gameplay Review

Elden Ring game is a souls-like open-world game that takes a different approach than other From Software games. It has a good open world that is a unique thing that is good for both newcomers and fans of souls-like games. Elden Ring is massive and challenging with the same vibe that made Dark Souls such a great one.

The boss battles are good and it challenges players to utilize all in their arsenal.  music, art direction, and gameplay of the game complement each other. The epic journey starts the moment the game starts. It has a rich world begging for exploration that reveals more, the more you explore. It has great repeatability value for players who wants to explore all that the game has to offer.

The game has the essence of souls-like in an open world environment. It provides the freedom of an open world with the intensity of souls-like games. The extreme sense of discovery makes everything even better. There are secrets, puzzles, and mysteries that require exploration. Players might not even see the entire section if they don’t explore a location. The map will not show anything about the events, dungeons, and locations players just have to find them organically.

Elden Ring can be good for both hardcore fans and casual players as it considers both. This sense of freedom might not sit well with players who like traditional souls-like games. The challenging combat can keep casual players away despite having an amazing adventure. It is a first souls-like open-world game that offers challenging combat and a raw sense of discovery.

Premise (Spoiler Free)

The plot of the game is not complicated and it is not the main focus of the game. You are a Tarnished in a broken world of conflict. Elden Ring has been destroyed. Only a few hold the shards of it. It is all up to you to journey, defeat the shard holders and become Elden Lord. The story is vague on the surface and not too deep. However, it is deeper and easier to understand compared to other souls-like games. The lore is more comprehensive but the story is still just an afterthought like other such games. The world is brutal as everything has been messed up.

There are characters to talk to throughout the game so, it is not just about intense combat. Characters will also shed light on some story context. Such a narrative makes understanding the lore a little easier. Though the means of explaining the lore are better, they are still not as extensive. Elden Ring is not a story-driven game and the story is just there to support the existence of the game in most cases. It is a typical From Software game, with a little more emphasis on the story.

Setting

Elden Ring game takes place in the Lands Between after the breaking of Elden Ring. The map of the game is full of discoveries. It offers a large amount of exploration and you can get lost while exploring the world. You can just follow the main quest which can be a straight path. However, if you want to discover things, there are a lot of them. While exploring you can find areas never seen before. The more you explore the more you will discover. It is a brutal, dark, and bizarre world that is full of discovery. There are a lot of quests and new locations on the map. It has a different vibe than other open-world games.

The Lands Between has full of adventure that rewards you for exploration. You will come across new locations, dungeons, catacombs, and remnants of the destroyed towns. So, exploration will show you part of the world that you might otherwise miss. You can also take on any location in multiplayer similar to other From Software games. There are a lot of locations that can only be discovered through exploration because they are not part of any mission. The sense of discovery can be overwhelming at times. Elden Ring will reward you for exploration both in terms of discovery and material.

Adventure

World of Elden Ring game is the major star of the show. There is a lot of exploration in the game. It can work well for both newcomers and veterans of Souls-Like games. You have a summonable mount that you can use to go around on the map. Go wherever you want, discover stuff, and have fun on the map. While exploring you will find hidden bosses, dungeons, items, NPCs, and things like that.

You might even miss an entire section of the map if you don’t explore around. If you hit a dead-end, you have to find your way out as the game will not babysit you by showing pointer for different activities. An obscure path might lead to a big location with bosses and hidden items. Ignoring them could result in you never finding out about these locations. There is a lot of hidden stuff so you have to look for things, to experience what the game has to offer.

It is not a map filled with question marks that wants you to discover these locations. Everything is organic and the map baits you as a newcomer to explore and find every bit of it. You just have to go out into the world find stuff and interact with it. There is no filler content as each part of the game offers a new set of adventures.

Dungeons and Discovery

Dungeons are optional that can be missed if you do not explore. These optional dungeons are good despite sharing traits. They can look bland and similar which might not make them seem as desirable. Legacy Dungeons are different and usually have a surprise that makes them quite good. Searching for Dungeons might lead to the search for a Legacy Dungeon as everything is organic. Legacy dungeons offer amazing gameplay mechanics and boss fights.

There are large keeps and castles along with the main quest areas as mentioned earlier. The traditional feel is there along with the adventure of open-world. Elden Ring game combines Freedom to explore with a souls-like game which makes everything better. It is all about discovery, not tracking multiple quests on the map at the same time. It is challenging yet forgiving, which makes it good for both new and old players of souls-like games. There is no penalty other than runes loss so you can explore to your heart content.

Missions and Activities

There are a lot of side activities and you might even get lost while exploring and forget about the main missions. I was so immersed in the side activities that five hours passed before I realized that I was off the track. Getting lost and stumbling on something is common in Elden Ring game. Elden Ring is a souls-like game, with a unique open-world, main quests areas, and a lot of side quest areas. You will face big mini-bosses and powerful main bosses which makes it fun.

Depending on your tolerance you can spend a lot of time roaming around on the map. Exploring will help you level up which can help you take down tougher enemies. It starts from small dungeons and caves but leads to a larger world. You will find complex puzzles and other things once you are out in the world. There are some unusual things to be found, just keep on going and you will find some new stuff. Even while going straight forward in the open world you can find dungeons, treasures, and hidden bosses. Exploring will let you find ways to locations that are not yet accessible. Seeing new areas and knowing that you can go anywhere is a liberating experience.

Combat

Combat of Elden Ring game is challenging and deliberate since it is a From Software game. The placing of checkpoints makes it a bit easier than other souls-like games but it offers freedom and a lot more stuff. Think of it as a souls-like game with jumping and freedom to explore any part of the map. You can parry, counter, attack, and evade. You also need to keep an eye on your stamina and health meter.

Restrictions are light and you can spawn near the location of death. The game will not punish you for dying as you can respawn near the location of death again. Before the start of a difficult area, you will find a Grace Point. Grace Points act as checkpoints. Such freedom helps you explore hard areas and come back stronger after upgrading charters if you are not up for the task. The game wants you to learn and grow strong.

It is a souls-like game with a jump and power counter that is satisfying to land. Timing your counter can be a game-changer as it can take a chunk of the enemies’ health. You can still parry but the high-risk high-reward situation makes counter a better choice.

Bosses

Just when you feel like you have explored all that the world has to offer, you come across a new location with a new enemy type. Just when you think that you have become good at the game, a new boss will destroy you. You would then need to rethink the strategy. Elden Ring game encourages you to come back stronger if you hit a difficult spot. Some of the weird big bosses can one-shot you if you are not careful. Each atmosphere is dense both with enemy types and probes. The game wants you to keep evolving and changing your playstyle to become better at it.

Customization

In the beginning, you will create a character and then select a class. Choosing a class will give you baseline stats. Later on, dumb point into whatever stat you think is the most important. Focusing on strength and endurance will make you better at melee combat, turning you into a solid knight. You can focus on speed and become a quick assassin or become a magic-user. The choice is yours as everything has its strengths and weaknesses.

The performance of your character can change, depending on what equipment and weapons you are using. It can change the play style and how you approach the combat. Think of it as making builds that can have different outcomes. The more you play the more you will discover about it, which helps you make better choices.

Ashes of War and Spirit of War

Ashes of War are weapon art that changes the functionality of your character. These are special skills that you can improve and add armaments. It can grant you sword moves such as spin, magical abilities, or other powerful attacks. It reminds me of the charms from Ghost of Tsushima.

Spirit Ashes are summons are important during combat. It lets you summon different creatures that will help you in combat. Most characters can summon them even at base level at the beginning of the Elden Ring game. They can be summonable ghost soldiers that will attack enemies, wolves, and other things like that. You can also upgrade them which will make them more powerful.

General Gameplay

Gameplay is one of its central focuses because it is different than any other souls-like game. It is a fun play with extensive character customization. Different scaling mechanics and skills allow you to create your vision of a traveling hero. You can approach different locations in any way you see fit even if a clear path is not available. If you can approach a location, you can enter it.

Alteration and respecification of stat help you make a good character without failures. Just keep tweaking your stat until you hit the sweet spot that matches your playstyle. You don’t have to experiment with the stats. Combat can vary from player to player and build to build in Elden Ring game.

Your stat plays a major part in how you play and approach the combat. Melee combat is more diverse as there are a lot of different moves. The stagger system rewards you for taking enemies with timing. A powerful attack can be more advantageous than defense. So, it is always a high-risk high rewards situation.

You can find ingredients for bombs, throwable weapons, buff items, and make weapons stronger. Getting to Sites of Grace and using Runes are one of the major elements. Sites of Grace act as Bonfires while Runes act as Souls that have been a major part of other From Software games. There are a lot of stats and number that makes it interesting. Gameplay mechanics and RPG-like stats go hand in hand, making everything better.

World and Performance

The world of Elden Ring game has fun gameplay elements. The surroundings look artistically pleasing with good lighting. There are some new and weird fantasy elements and locations never seen in any other game. Death is not that punishing thanks to the generous placing of checkpoints. Open-world of the game along with the placing of checkpoints, make death less frustrating. Most people won’t care about such stuff but the impact of open-world on difficulty is undeniable. It takes some time to grasp the game due to its largeness. The game keeps the idea of souls-like and adds new things to it

The performance of the game is good but there were some glitches most of which have been fixed. The PC version of the game has relatively more issues than other platforms. None of the glitches are game-breaking at least the one I saw. There are a limited number of graphical options on PC.

Lighting sword on fire feels similar to Game of Thrones. Since George RR Martin was involved in making the world of Elden Ring. Helmets of soldiers and dresses of some characters also feel similar to Game of Thrones. The world is dark, gloomy, and brutal just like the series. If you look closely, you can find the impact of Game of Thrones here and there. It takes some time to grasp the game due to its largeness. The game keeps the idea of souls-like and adds new things to it

Verdict

Elden Ring is a souls-like open-world game that is challenging but forgiving at the same time. It wants you to take on the challenge and come back at it stronger if you cannot do it for the first time. Death does not feel as punishing because checkpoints are generously placed. Challenging boss battles and a wide variety of bosses make Elden Ring even better. The motion and speed of control are good which helps a lot during combat. It has a Sekario type feeling thanks to the controls. Death will teach you something new and you can usually start close to the location of death.

The open world of Elden Ring is good with different types of locations. A single path can lead to a different location in an area which makes each part of the map important. The scale of the world is big which can get frustrating you will ignore such diversities in the map. You never know which type of boss will appear to you which keeps you on edge.

Your adventure starts the moment you land on the map. From there, you can play the way you want. The story is vague, which is not a good factor even though it is a souls-like game. A better story could have made it a lot more appealing to new players. Its forgiving gameplay and open-world can make it a good choice for new players. In the end, it all depends on players, some souls-like fans might not like it due to these changes. The combat is still as hard as any other From Software game, which can make it good for veterans. It sits in the perfect midsection of open-world and souls-like games.

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