Elden Ring (PS5) Review

Victory at All Costs

Dark fantasy gaming may have reached its current zenith in Elden Ring, the latest game from the brilliant team behind Dark Souls, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, and Bloodborne. For Elden Ring, Game of Thrones writer George R. R. Martin famously added his worldbuilding prowess to the mix, resulting in The Lands Between, a world of intensely rich history. It’s a terrifying world full of giant beasts, conflicting prophecies, and gods that pull the strings from cosmic thrones all while having the iconic moment-to-moment danger of facing down insurmountable terror through sword and spell. While Elden Ring may be looked back on as not as focused as games like Bloodborne, a title that achieved an intoxicating atmosphere through Gothic themes and eldritch beings, it is a staggeringly huge game with similar feelings evoked through astounding level design and enemy placement. After seeing the game’s credits, I find myself still captivated with this particular flavor of epic fantasy and I could easily play the game again and again.

The most basic fundamental of Elden Ring is that it is a Dark Souls game but in a massive open world. The game starts like most titles from this studio. Players create a character and trudge through a dungeon, learning the ropes and maybe attempting an ultra-challenging section should they start their game with a key as their gift. After leaving this dungeon though, players are met with a stunning vista covered in ruined castles, dense forests, and a titanic golden tree that glows in the distance. This tree, known as the Erdtree, sits at the center of the game’s world almost always within view, serving as a physical manifestation of a holy order. 

Through exploring the world, players can find countless dungeons to delve and monsters to mash; or more likely to be mashed by. For players that enjoy setting off on an adventure, Elden Ring delivers on all fronts. Curiosity is frequently rewarded with a special item, armor set, spell, or weapon. There is a tremendous amount of items to explore and I think we’re just scratching the surface of the game’s systems. Player expression is abundant from the various weird voice boxes to the funny emotes to the particular ways players speak through the game’s limited messaging system. Few things are funnier than spawning in two mates who all crouch in rhythm as they march their way to a boss gate. 

I haven’t felt so utterly infatuated with a video game world in a long time. Many hours were spent just wondering what secrets were hidden in the mountains or what beast I would face next. Discovering Elden Ring through my close friends was so much fun as many of us refused to look up guides for clues. That said, many players will find using online guidance to be a necessity. Much like Dark Souls before it, Elden Ring does not reveal things outright and expects players to be observant and patient. 

There are many character questlines that I know I could not have seen were it not for a basic guide of where that character had moved. I’m also glad that I knew ahead of time to talk to characters repeatedly until they stop saying new things. Playing Elden Ring for the first time can feel like trying to learn a language, much like most high-fantasy novels, as the many voices of the Lands Between often spout nouns and names without much context. Through diligence and awareness though, the game’s world and story can be found through item descriptions, NPC dialogue, and architecture. That said, there are some incredible cutscenes for some bosses that offer some of the most epic moments. 

Elden Ring’s approach to fantasy is laced with delightful weirdness. One moment a weary blacksmith who spent a lifetime of suffering explains his singular goal of crafting a weapon that could kill a god. The next moment could result in a pleasant walk through a garden of rare flowers in a village of sentient pottery. I grinned from ear to ear when I stumbled upon a collection of tortoises all relaxing in a cave that rewarded my inquisitiveness with a special turtle amulet. I’ll never forget my shock when a dragon swooped down as I squinted my eyes at a campfire at the center of a misty valley. I laughed so hard when I first saw the stretchy bodies of the snake people of the Volcano Manor. The world is familiar through various fantasy tropes and similar creatures from previous games but it is so imaginative and playful that it felt so new. 

I did expect a more straightforward story when Martin was revealed to be assisting From Software but that did not happen. It does feel like the game’s story is there, lying just beneath the surface and after piecing together major arcs and themes I can tell how From Software benefited from the collaboration. I do hope that Elden Ring’s history is shared through a book or extra in-game content. That said, some of the themes in Elden Ring are fascinating, beautiful, horrible, and profound. In a world where actual gods and demigods exist in the physical plane, things are bound to get complex. 

Elden Ring expertly captures concepts of macro and micro design. On the macro level, players slowly uncover the various Outer Gods and wrestle with large questions of existence and how to steer the world’s next era through their choices. However, at the micro level, players are constantly under threat of a world that seeks only to devour them as even common rats could kill the player in a flurry of blows. 

My early game experience was one of sheer wonder and survival as I sprinted from location to location; bosses that gave me any sort of trouble I would quickly leave behind for another opportunity. This did create problems in the late game though as I started looking for unvanquished foes hiding in half-finished dungeons. I wish the game would show which dungeons have been cleared and maybe that’ll be added in a patch or even a mod. Suffice to say, Elden Ring’s crowning design achievement is the ability for players to choose what to tackle. There are a few required bosses in order to hit the game’s endings and some of them are some of the most annoying challenges in the entire game, maybe even From Software’s full history of frustrating players. However, so much of the game can be seen without beating any bosses, giving players ample chance to build their strength and arsenal. 

I truly hope that more game design has the confidence to just let players explore without feeling the need to show them every single part of the game. Almost 90% of Elden Ring is optional and it’s rewarding to share experiences with others. We are all Tarnished trying to figure out this alien world we’ve been dropped into and sometimes it takes hundreds of people working together to solve a problem. 

The collective nature of playing Elden Ring at launch is how I was able to finish the game. Souls games are difficult. They always have been, and there have been countless debates on the need for an Easy Mode. In many ways, Elden Ring is one of the most approachable games from this development company. Players can summon other players just like before but they can also summon the spirits of other monsters and characters in certain areas. I adore the spirit summoning as I’ve always been fond of summoners in games like Final Fantasy. Through this, and the plethora of combat options, I didn’t need player help until the game’s final hours. I am pretty bummed that my east-street ticket was nerfed through; I used both the Sword of Night and Flame as well as the Great Turtle Shell shield which had their effectiveness significantly reduced in an update. I eventually finished the game with Rivers of Blood, a powerful katana, after reallocating my character’s stats with Renala. There are a lot of opportunities to respec one’s character so don’t be afraid to try new things!   

Throughout my playthrough, I steadily accepted the fact that Elden Ring was going to test me, and often it would outright betray me through near-impossible tasks. Soon after facing down the Fire Giant and repeatedly getting stomped into the snow-laden earth, I vowed that I would beat Elden Ring at all costs. I summoned full teams of players. I found the game’s most broken attacks and spells. I farmed for hours to over-level my character. 

I took every exploit I could find in the name of absolute victory. 

Even though I played the game outside of the spirit of the series or through unintended methods I still felt so overwhelmed with joy when I saw that final beast fall. I couldn’t have done it without the other players I came across on my journey. The way I want to play Elden Ring next is by helping players with the same friction points that I ran into, though I so desperately need to play some other games again. 

As for the game’s performance, it could be better even on PS5. I came across several dips in framerate and I do wish some of the game’s assets were of higher quality. Yet, it’s hard to complain about these things when the game keeps players in the action, only really breaking immersion upon death or warping to another area. It’s amazing how breathtaking the art direction is despite these technical aspects with countless breathless moments, leaving me in silent awe. There is an amazing amount of consideration and design to almost every area in the game. If assets are re-used it is in creative ways or patterns that are designed to surprise. I’ve heard that the game’s initial launch on PC was rough but I expect Elden Ring’s performance to improve over time. Needless to say, I thoroughly loved playing the game on PS5. 

Elden Ring is a generation-defining game that will undoubtedly sear itself into the minds and hearts of millions of people. I expect Elden Ring to engage players just as long as games like classic Doom or Skyrim or Minecraft. If From Software choose to continue expanding on this type of open-world design and support the game long-term through updates, we are in for decades of fun. Provided the game’s modding scene expands, this could be a beautiful new template for incredible community-created content.

It’s always hard to predict how From Software will continue to improve its style but I do hope that the team gets plenty of opportunities to explore their creativity. I would love to see a new first-person fantasy game like maybe a new take on their King’s Field series. There are rumors of them returning to Armored Core, a crunchy mech game popularized on PS2 that rewarded experimentation through a deep system of customizable robotics. At the very least, I hope that From Software is able to keep its games available through remasters and collections. Almost every Bloodborne fan I know has been desperate for an updated version and modders have already created 60fps patches. Bloodborne PSX and Bloodborne Kart have both made incredible waves after indie developer Lilith of LWMedia revealed these two projects. A recent full-conversion mod of Dark Souls III called Archthrones was also celebrated, though there are apparently many creative ones to enjoy. With Elden Ring, we may end up with millions of more Souls fans which could make for games and experiences. 

Like many Dark Souls games, there is profound hope and beauty that undercuts the many weights that burden the characters of Elden Ring. There are a dozen meaningful messages and emotions laced throughout this game and some players will only experience a few of those moments. Many will be stunned by the beauty of the millions of stars that sparkle above the underground cities. Several will shout in triumph upon defeating a stubborn opponent. Some will find the simple joy of assisting others in their quest and maybe making them laugh in the process. A few may feel more connected and represented, as a character embodies their experience and the need to be themselves despite how they were born. Others may smile after finding a particularly interesting treasure or find themselves at peace after a long horse ride through the plains. 

I think that there are many opportunities to feel something powerful in Elden Ring. 

The fantasy worlds created by From Software almost always offer a light in the stark darkness. Our world can feel like it is on the brink of collapse both at large in our societies and in the most personal reaches of our minds. Sometimes we fight to live through stubborn perseverance and sometimes we need the help of others but we are always capable of hope. 

Elden Ring was one of the best game experiences I’ve played and it was a joy to be able to spend as much time in its world as I did and I think I may have learned a thing or two along the way. I hope that I continue to find joy and wonder in The Lands Between. 

SCORES

GAMEPLAY - 10/10

VISUALS - 10/10

SOUND - 10/10

CONTROLS - 10/10

REPLAY VALUE - 10/10

OVERALL - 10/10

More information about Elden Ring can be found on the official website. A physical PS5 copy was purchased by the reviewer. All screenshots were captured using native PS5 features.