Convince me to play Elden Ring

But to be fair, Souls games aren't that hard. People who see these games as "insanely high difficulty" probably haven't played a lot of games. Or at least not challenging games. Boasting about completing a Souls game is just cringe.

I personally hope they don't dial any difficulty back with the Souls games, or put in any lame easy mode. There are thousands of Souls-like games that are easier than FromSoftware's games if challenge isn't enjoyable for you. Souls games are popular for what they are, and should stay what they are.

I think that's definitely the reason you didn't enjoy Elden Ring. I can't even look at Ubisoft's games anymore. I get bored just by knowing they exist.

True. Something as easy as fun gameplay is hard to come by these days, and is impressive in that sense. But to me it's more that the game industry sucks rather than Souls combat being impressive. Like, Souls combat isn't very good, but it's one of the best we got for ARPG standards, I'll take it.

If you played those games less than 20 hours, you're lucky for not wasting your time. Those games copy themselves to infinty. Last game I tried (and heavily regret) was Assassin's Creed Origins, because people said they changed many things with the series. But it turned out people were lying, and it was exactly the same game again, but now also with annoying loot spam. Dumbest shit I've ever seen. I could handle 13 hours of that game until I had to wipe all traces of it from my PC.

Yeah, sounds pretty lame. I played Elden Ring pretty much the same way I did with Breath of the Wild (minus exploring as freely), but can definitely see why you didn't enjoy the game.

@Litchie: I think I spent about 8 hours in those Ubisoft games. Those are the only Ubisoft Open World games I ever played.

As far as I am concerned, Ubisoft has made nothing but Rayman (including those Mario XCOMs) and Anno, since Gen 7.

@Litchie: I guess you are right. I have been playing Bloodborne recently and killed the Celestial Emissary. Game is fun, but I like to take breaks every now and again. I guess I should just level my character a bit more lol.

Don’t game is not that good, you are better off playing Sekiro much better game than ER. Elden Ring has terrible AI, no story and crap performance and pretty much you will have to mark everything on map. Save your time and play something else

Don’t game is not that good, you are better off playing Sekiro much better game than ER. Elden Ring has terrible AI, no story and crap performance and pretty much you will have to mark everything on map. Save your time and play something else

Good man.

Just the ability to level your character up makes the games easier indeed. It's like a built in easy mode of sorts. I've never had to farm in a Souls game myself though. Just cheesed some things. Like, oh, you're stuck in that corner for some reason as long as I stand here? Too bad for you, here's my sword in your face.

agreed. when i hear people ask for an easier mode i always wonder what they mean exactly, because if they say just dial up damage given and dial down damage taken it makes me feel like they maybe dont appreciate what makes fromsoft games difficult. because (imo) its not the combat. and there's probably too many variables at play with combat to do that dial up / down thing anyway.

the difficulty for me has always been that fromsoft go out of their way to give you as little explicit information about how to play their games as possible. they're such a contrast from the of majority modern aaa games with lengthy tutorial sequences, frequent cut scenes, explicit missions, ui littered with markers etc. with from games you have to figure everything out yourself. that's the difficulty / challenge

I personally love that shit, but can see why others would find it frustrating.

Like, I get absolutely zero enjoyment by doing a puzzle an NPC have told me the solution to. It's 100% a waste of my time, and I find that immensely frustrating. I want more FromSoftware-like games in the world.

Been playing Blasphemous lately, and it's very enjoyable, much in the same way as FromSoftware's games.

@Litchie: yeah man hand holding is one of the worst things about modern gaming. the thing is, fromsoft games are all pretty much built on the same foundational systems (ish) so all you need to do is figure one out, and you'll feel much more comfy with any of the others you try. it's definitely not a case of you've done one, you've done them all, but there's an underlying familiarity there which makes you feel much more at home

Indeed. And I'm used to games like that, so hand holding makes me annoyed quickly. Probably because games in the 80s and 90s didn't hold your hand. I can imagine why others (newer gamers) call Souls games "super difficult", and as I said earlier, this is probably because said people haven't played many games. They are instead used to newer stuff like Uncharted, where the game plays itself and you just guide it a bit.

Give me mysteries that make me go almost mad, and slowly let me figure it out as I go. So much more fun to do than getting a "HEY PLAYER, YOU SEE THAT WATER WHEEL?! TRY TO HIT IT WITH YOUR AXE!"

Is he playing yet?

I have personally never thought of Souls games (Demon's, DS, or ER) as having a distinct Japanese influence; neither in terms of game play nor as having deep cultural influence. While I'm sure there are influences present, it's not even close to being the dominant source of inspiration. FROM have been known to pilfer from all over the world, taking inspiration from the entirety of human history.

Having delved into Miyazaki's mind through his games for over a decade now, I can tell you this: that man and his wonderful art team do nothing without significance. Almost anything you see that is an in-game asset is put there because it ties into the world or its themes. Elden Ring takes this to 11, attempting to tell the entire history of the Lands Between over a 5000 year period. Careful thought is given to the past, and how it resulted in the present.

Elden Ring is very much a game about exploration, and one that lets you go at your own pace. Rarely, if ever, will you find a problem that only has a single solution. The absurd amount of gear in the game also means that you will have tons of build options to suit your desired play style.

The game is not perfect by any means and there are plenty of valid criticisms, but damn I think it's pretty special.

back then we were pumping money into arcade machines as we tried to figure out games. that incentive of you will literally pay if you die was good training and good motivation to figure out things quickly lol

How do you want to play the game?

For me this is a huge point, are you playing with magic only? swords only? sword and shield? spear? maybe a bow? giant weapons? Pizza cutter?

How hard do you want the game?

Will you play levelling as you please, with summons and full armour? maybe you will play armed but only with robes and use summons, maybe totally naked with summons, maybe armoured but no summons, maybe naked no summons and no upgrades.

I'll stop there but for me this is why you should play Elden ring, even though we all play the same map, with the same bosses with access to the same tools we can all have totally different experiences based on our preferences and the amount of build freedom and ability to focus in on particular playstyles/weapons is incredible.

@Maroxad: if you disliked the dungeons and saw them as uninspired and dull why do you focus so much on them? I went to the map markers first as well, but after that I enjoyed exploring the surface, finding and defeating mini bosses, raiding camps and ruins, and finding NPCs.

Dungeons are entirely optional and I missed so many on my first playthrough. I do think the dungeons are the weakest part of Elden Ring but I still thought they were fun and worth exploring.

Why exactly is our job to convince you of anything?

If you dont like it, dont like it. Its dumb to force yourself into something you dont like just because everybody else does.

No.

Well, I hear it's a good game, I think if people reframe it for me with their personal reasons, I might be able to approach it with a different attitude.

As it is now, I view soulsborne/roguelikes as trial-and-error exercises in frustration. I'm just wondering if there is a better way to approach it.

When I said "convince me", it wasn't meant as a challenge (given the nature of SW, maybe this was the wrong place for an open-minded discussion lol).

I genuinely want to give Elden Ring an honest try; it's less about forcing myself to enjoy as it is more about trying a different approach. These games clearly make a lot of people happy but apparently I'm just not getting it. Furthermore, it might help me enjoy a lot of games that are in my back catalog waiting to be played (Dark Souls, various roguelikes, metroidvania, etc.).

I'm a foodie, I like going out of my comfort zone and trying new things. If I don't like it, so be it; I Just want to give it an honest go from multiple angles, if necessary.

I think elden ring offers waaaay more leniency for new players to the souls games. Very rarely do you hit a roadblock like in say dark souls 1. When you get to Ornstien and Smogh you wither best them and continue the game or you bite your controller, throw it and admit that Miyazaki is better than you. Lol. In elden ring you still get to "roadblocks" but if you don't think you've got the chops for it you just go explore hundreds of other directions and continue leveling and crafting your character so when you return you're more prepared. It's not a game that needs an "easy mode" it's just a game that's asking you to show up for a fight prepared.... YOU are in control of how prepared you are.

Just want to say this isn't a constant. They can be that, and they will be that for a while in your first Souls game. But you get accustomed to the language of the game, the pace of the combat, and it's relatively smooth sailing. Which is also transferrable between their various titles.

And while these games appropriated the "git gud" slogan, they're not even that, it's fraudulent lol. Fairly basic combat, stats/gear can carry you a lot. Get the occasional skill check of a boss/encounter, but no way to really get hardstuck.

Definitely known people who can't progress in these games, then suddenly something clicks and they're just running through them.

@mrbojangles25: I think what stops many people from enjoying those types of games is when they blame the game or beat themselves up when they die in a game, as opposed to those that see it as a learning experience, change their approach, and, dare I say, get good.

The main appeal towards the Souls series is overcoming great challenges through growth and perseverance.

It's also not strictly a skill based challenge that requires repetitive trail and error, like say Super Meatboy. You can level up, try different approaches, experiment to find enemy weaknesses, and so on.

I know it's harder for some to not take death personally (which does sound odd now thinking about it), so if death continues to frustrate you, then these games may not be a good fit. But for me the risk/reward and challenge of these games gets my adrenaline pumping as much as a competitive multiplayer match and victory is so sweet.

I think that is a lot of it. Death is an inconvenience; I play games to make progress lol. That's pretty contrary to the soulsborne formula, a subgenre where one of the foundational pillar is dying a lot haha.

I need to get over that and accept the challenge. Or accept the type of game is not for me.

My tastes have changed a lot in the past ten years.

Because I wanted to see if there was something that was actually useful. I wanted a new whip or a bell to buy new shards to upgrade my weapon.

Them are optional doesnt excuse for them being absolute trash. If you can't get something right, don't add it.

Because you need content to hate on the game that have buried any hype left from BOTW. Its been a year, its time for you to open up and tell us how you truly feel.

Why do you assume I am such a fanboy of BotW? I even mentioned earlier in this thread that the game is an 8-9.

And why do you think those games are even remotedly comparable? They arent even the same genre...

I don't assume, i've read enough of your posts criticizing ER. Back when i compared BOTW, and reminded you how far surperior ER is, you were being triggered every single time. You don't need to play games anymore, its been almost a year. Open up.

I am pointing out that it is a dumb comparison because you are comparing apples to oranges. And arguing that a game is a better product than ER isnt exactly praise. Someone could put all sorts of gross things in a box and it would still be a better product than Elden Ring.

Just stop, we already spoke about this half a dozen of times (at least). Both games are action adventure with no hand holding. If you're not seeing any similarities worth comparing, you're living inside a copium house. The reason you try your best to make it sound like these two is like comparing apples to oranges is because you know damn well that BOTW loses on every comperable aspect. Fromsoft stole all the fire BOTW had. Everyone that was going crazy for the game, is now a massive ER fan, and you can't stand this fact.

And you know what? Raging won't change anything. ER been released a year ago, and its as if it came out less than a month ago cuz everyone, everywhere, is still talking about it AND THE DLC WASN'T EVEN CONFIRMED YET. Imagine when its officially confirmed. Then, imagine when the first trailer is released. Nobody will even remember BOTW is a video game lol.

As i predicted, Elden Ring has buried BOTW, and there's nothing you can do about it.

@Maroxad: btw you remind of the guy from the intro, i am sure you've heard of him.

The fact that you think they are comparable shows that you havent played BotW, or had only a very surface level understanding of it. Hence you constantly downplaying the emergent gameplay potential of BotW (which is what made BotW great).

Both games are built on entiirely different cores and as a result, excel at different things. Although I would argue in the case of ER, it didnt really do anything particularly well. Elden Ring has more in common with something like Dragon's Dogma than it does with BotW.

And ER is an Action RPG.

Edit: And both games held your hand. Just did so in more subtle and less condescending ways.

I have already told you that i have played BOTW, and i have played it for long enough to be able to beat most AAA titles in the same amount of time. The issue here is that you refuse to accept the fact that they're very comparable. Simply because if you do agree about these two being comparable, botw is way inferior, and you don't want to awvknowledge that.

And no, neither games held your hand. If you compare it to rpg's from the 90's, sure, you can say that they held your hand, but we're in 2022, and for nowadays standard, both of these games are far from holding your hand.

Both are action rpg games. ER happen to have more rpg elements than BOTW, but what doesn't ER have more off of? As i've said before, BOTW feels like a beta for ER, and that must hurt.

BotW is not an RPG... Comments like asserting BotW is an RPG is exactly why I suspect you have never played it. What exactly does BotW have in common with D&D. It did have some common elements with Ultima 6 and 7. But those are simulation elements, not RPG elements.

And yes, both hold your hand What the hell do you think this was?

After this, almost every single dungeon in the biome would be marked on the map as well. At least in Skyrim you had to actually go near the dungeon before it was marked on your map or have an NPC tell you its location. And before you say quest compass, Elden Ring marked where you had to go for several quests too.

BotW was also handholding. The game explicitly did not let you leave the Great Plateau until the devs knew you could play the game. But the shrines themselves were often about teaching you a new way to utilize your abilities. The game also had a quest marker, and the towers would be conveniently placed, you could spot most of the shrines on top of them.

Both games held your hand. They just didn't insult your intelligence while doing so.

@Maroxad said:

@hardwenzen said:

I have already told you that i have played BOTW, and i have played it for long enough to be able to beat most AAA titles in the same amount of time. The issue here is that you refuse to accept the fact that they're very comparable. Simply because if you do agree about these two being comparable, botw is way inferior, and you don't want to awvknowledge that.

And no, neither games held your hand. If you compare it to rpg's from the 90's, sure, you can say that they held your hand, but we're in 2022, and for nowadays standard, both of these games are far from holding your hand.

Both are action rpg games. ER happen to have more rpg elements than BOTW, but what doesn't ER have more off of? As i've said before, BOTW feels like a beta for ER, and that must hurt.

BotW is not an RPG... Comments like asserting BotW is an RPG is exactly why I suspect you have never played it.

And yes, both hold your hand What the hell do you think this was?

After this, almost every single dungeon in the biome would be marked on the map as well. At least in Skyrim you had to actually go near the dungeon before it was marked on your map or have an NPC tell you its location. And before you say quest compass, Elden Ring marked where you had to go for several quests too.

BotW was also handholding. The game explicitly did not let you leave the Great Plateau until the devs knew you could play the game. But the shrines themselves were often about teaching you a new way to utilize your abilities. The game also had a quest marker, and the towers would be conveniently placed, you could spot most of the shrines on top of them.

Both games held your hand. They just didn't insult your intelligence while doing so.

Zelda has been an rpg-light for a very long time. Time to wake up. With BOTW its more rpg than ever before. Keep denying it all you want, but deep down, you know this is true.

If both games were holding your hands, you wouldn't be hearing "i quit playing because i had no idea where the f i am supposed to be going" in ER, and we had/have a bunch of these, so don't even try to prove a point by showing me a picture of an altar that reveals 1/20th of the map lmao. Play AssCreed, a game you might fall in love with, and it will teach you what hand holding means. You're always trying so hard to shit talk ER, but your takes and opinions are always garbo, maroxad. At this point i feel like you're trolling me, and this makes me very very sad.

Maroxad's tirade against Elden Ring has been pretty entertaining to follow. He makes no sense and I love it, there's a hater for everything.

@hardwenzen: How are you taking it? It's his Halo Infinite.

Infinite state was/is so bad they fired their higherups while pretending it was a medical issue. So lets just say that my moaning is perfectly justified. Its just that people on SW refuse to criticize titles that are on their system of choice, and that's the only reason nobody is talking about the damn game. But if you look at actual halo centered forums, youtube comments, halo focused twitch streamers and twitter comments of fans that do play the game, and want it to be what the series once was, they're bitchin' more than i do. Come to think of it, i believe SW is full of fake ass Halo fans. No way they'd be defending not just a 4th failure in a row, but a 4th failure with EXTREMELY overpriced mtx and non existent content support. Oh and lets not forget about all their lies related to local coop that they promised since 2017 or whenever it was.

The state of ER/Fromsoft and Infinite/343i is galaxies apart. Fromost, with every new entry, is approaching closer and closer to be the best developer the gaming industry has ever seen. 343i, with Halo 4, began at a 5/10. Got to a 5.5/10 with Halo 5. A 2/10 with the broken MCC and are now back to 5/10 range with Infinite. Actually, because its been a year and barely anything was added to A LIVE SERVICE GAME, we're more in the 3/10 range when it comes to Infinite.

I am at a point where even i am getting tired of talking about infinite simply because nobody seems to give crap about the state of the game. The few Infinite defenders we have on SW are all fake ass Halo fans that don't play the game since month one.🙄

There is absolutely nothing BotW has in common with Tabletop RPGs (AKA the games that defined the genre). What you can do in that game is entirely depandant on what you can do as a player. Rather than what your character can do. This is completely contradictory to what actual RPGs are about where your character's abilities determine what can and cannot be done. BotW has more Simulation Elements than RPG elements.

The picture I showed was a marker on the map which shows you exactly where you find a map fragment, upon acquiring this map. THe game would highlight most points of interest on the map for you as well. This is no different from what Asscreed does. Except they removed the tower and replaced it with a map shrine. Both have you go to a point of interest (tower/map shrine), before theen highlight all the other points of interest (most other in ER). Barring sidequests, the game VERY much holds your hand throughout. Not that this is a bad thing, works for a themepark game like Elden Ring.

Play an actual sandbox game, and you will see what no handholding looks like. Maybe it will also be a fresh breath of air to you, so you can play something other than themeparks for once. But we all know what you will do, and call those "Ant Games".

I seriously can't believe you are denying the blatant handholding elden ring does. Just because it isn't patronizing about it (just like what BotW and Super Metroid do) doesnt mean it isn't holding your hand. The game is constantly nudging you, and telling you where to go, just doesnt do it via tooltips or voiced help lines.

This is in stark contrast to games me and the TC plays, games like Factorio, Satisfactory, Cities Skylines, Rimworld and more. They might have a small tutorial, but after that, the player has to figure everything out themselves. If I wanted to, I could make a large post praising the genius of Elden Ring's invsible hand. But I didn't see a need since I thought everyone who had played the game already knew that part. But if the TC wants, I can make the post.

I have only played about 15 hours of ER so far but I would tell you the visuals and artwork of the Elden Ring world are outstanding. You can liken it to any open world game you want but ER is a step above most.

The game's hype is another good reason you should play it. Hype? Why would I play it just based on that you might ask? Well you might have a friend or somebody else you can talk to about it most likely versus picking random steam game #3428482.

It's difficulty or complexity is not really as daunting as it appears at first sight. Can't beat an enemy? Go slay some weaker enemies until you have better levels, gear, spells, etc.

I got the game for Christmas and it is in fact epic. Slaying big enemies is satisfying and a bit of a rush when you finally overcome a big challenge.

@Maroxad:

Yeah, to say these games are without handholding is false lol. I mean, in Elden Rings case, specifically have Grace on the map and in the world pointing you to the next objective. If a player can't figure that out, it's on them.

Definitely get the point that they're relatively hands off compared to other popular modern games (a low bar), but really not so far off from what gaming used to be like. Though if you're looking for truly hands off in the Zelda series, would have to go all the way back to the original. Dealing in riddles at best, but otherwise it's up to the player to sort it all out.

Of course some level of guidance isn't inherently a bad thing, have to look at how it's handled per game. For example, Platinums games are pretty shit about explaining things to the player and should do better. Whereas something like Skyward Sword, polar opposite of BotW, just won't stfu about telling you what to do and is definitely worse off for it.

Though to the point of this being the basis of comparison between the two, yeah it's a reach. I can appreciate that both games allow the player a long leash, leave them to their own adventuring, it's great. But it also does fuckall to describe what these games are about in the moment to moment play. And yeah, they're not really similar. ERs strengths and BotWs strengths are polar opposites. Your typical loop in one isn't a reflection of the other. The only significant common ground they share is a real drive for exploration and discovery, but even in that they're significantly different approaches.

Helps if the person you're debating with has played both games, which is why I usually just leave it alone.

Exactly my point :)

Both BotW and Elden Ring give you quite a bit of guidance. But it is done in a good way. I think people get too offended by certain descriptions they immideately try to refute them without first understanding what they mean.

On the PC gaming board a while back, there was this guy, who got EXTREMELY defensive after people pointed out EverQuest was a themepark mmo. No one was using that as a critique, but rather as a way to describe its structure and progression. Same here with pointing out that Elden Ring holds the players hand. This isn't a bad thign, because without guidance, otherwise, most players would run into serious issues of tedium. Where they would spend most of their time looking for where to go. Rather than doing the actual content the game has to offer. There is still enough content that give 0 direction, to encourage community debates too.

The genius of both BotW and ER's handholding, and how they tell you where to go is that it is done in a way that comes across as non condenscending. In BotW, as stated shrines arent that difficult to find on the top of the towers. In ER, the dungeon and point of interest markers felt like a natural part of the map, rather than a seperate UI element. This made them a part of the world, rather than an element there to patronize you. The best games WILL hold your hand, but do so in a way the average player won't realize it.

I do agree also that the one thing they do have in common is that they made curiousity vehicle that drives the player, rather than a desire for rewards.

Yeah, I knew I said somewhere in this thread that I appreciate Elden Ring's lack of handholding, and just to be clear, I don't consider all guidance "handholding". I use the word "handholding" for a very insulting way of guiding the player, and I never felt like Elden Ring did that.

Super Metroid is indeed great at guiding a player. Actually, nothing that game does is bad. Probably a 10/10 game.

I consider handholding to be when the game always makes sure you are given some guidance or idea what to do. Good forms of handholding, usually do so by respecting your intelligence and curiousity, with hints and nudges. Bad forms use Fi from Skyward Sword. Or pollute your screen with HUD elements all fighting for your attention.

Elden Ring, as you can probably tell, does the good form, same with BotW.

It is necessary themepark design, always make sure the player is on the next ride. BotW is more of a themepark composed of sandboxes though. If you don't hold their hand, you get CastleVania 2.

Not sure this quesiton should be in system wars.

I play all kinds of games and enjoy them for what they are.

Elden Ring isn't everyones cup of tea. Its not the best game every made but it defo worth having a go.

I've yet to finish it as it got to the point where there where more fun games I could play. But I'll go back to it at some point.

You can see what its about in a couple of videos, its one of the best of those type of games so if you like that kind of thing you should get it.

If its not there are better games.

@Litchie:

I get you, that's usually how I interpret it as well. More of a relative thing, a figure of speech and not literal.

Just seemed to be getting literal in this weird BotW/ER comparison and it's like nah.

No, don't play ER. Let us all dunk on it together and make SW hell for wenzen.

@mrbojangles25: I have the game, got through the first zone and got bored. The gameplay is too slow.

Been playing vampire survivors instead. Vampire survivors is 100x more fun than Elden Ring. Fast pace fun. Like smash TV.

Elden Ring just has cool art and enemy design. Combat slow and borring like all souls games. The only souls like that kept me hooked was nioh and it wasn't even a fromsoftware game 😂

NOoooooOOOOoooooOOOOOooooooOOOOOOoooooo.........OOOOOOooooOOOOOooooOOOOOooooooOOOOOooooope

Elden Ring is a journey and an experience - the process of figuring out what you need to do and how to approach your challenges and finally overcoming it. No 2 players ever have the exact same experience, which makes for a good campfire conversation with another player who faced his/her own adversities and overcoming it just like you but in his/her own way.

The same cannot be said for most other games. Take God of War: Ragnarok for instance. What's the likelihood that another player bothers to tell you his story of how he defeated Thor? Almost zero. And why? Because he probably won on 1st try, just like you did. Same goes for Odin.

I have friends who doesnt even dare playing any fromsoftware games. The reason is they play to relax and not to get stressed. Personally, i prefer these types of games but if its not your cup of tea there is nothing wrong with it. You can try the previous installment first since its very cheap then once you get hook you wont look back.

Wtf is this toxicity, bruh? First it was pooping on my gow2018, and now on ER? This doesn't sit right with me, and i wanted you to know that.

@mrbojangles25: lol. I love these threads. It gives me another chance to trash this game. Belden rings is garbage my friend, no need to try it you arent missing anything.

They recycled the assets everywhere and made the map uselessly large. Even the bosses and enemies are all recycled assets. The game is repetitive, highly repetitive. The only ones to like this game are the shills and the Kool aid drinkers and they sure drank that kool-aid, they dunked their face it it and slurped every drop. Make sure you grab it...when it's $10 on sale in the clearance bin, then you can laugh at it like the rest of us. Heck yeah!

Halo Infinite >>>> Belden Rings. It's not even close.