Who doesn’t like travelling right? Well, that may depend on the person, but we do some sort of travel everyday don’t we? Sometimes that travel will involve going to a new place and exploring what it may offer. Think of starting a new job at a shiny new office, beginning your workout journey at a new gym or discovering a new restaurant. That sense of curiosity about experiencing something for the first time, whether it turns out to be serendipitous or trivial, and its eventual occurrence leads to new memories.

When it comes to gaming, I love trying new games, both big and small. Many of these games offer abstract worlds to explore. Worlds that only once can imagine, or dream about, or maybe even have nightmares about. Once such game that cruised into my radar was Elden ring. Yes, the game has existed for a while now and even has an expansion in the form of DLC (downloadable content) and a spin off title for people who love cooperative play. 

The only reason I feel that compelling itch to write about this particular game and my experience with it is simply because no other game felt quite like it. I have played games that are widely considered masterpieces in open world design, and I wholeheartedly agree with them. But Elden ring elevated the open world experience by maintaining the high-risk high reward souls-like gameplay style that the developers are known for. My temptation to explore the game overcame my hesitation in trying games that fit into the souls-like genre. 

The experiences I had with this game still linger in my head and thoughts sometimes overflow every time I think about the first time I played the game. This in no means is a review but a journey of all the things I felt, experienced and discovered throughout my time with the game and the strong sense of exploration that came along with it. This is the story of how I journeyed across a brutal yet beautiful game. 

The game

What is it?

In short, open world dark souls. Saying that will be sufficiently descriptive for veterans of the souls-like genre but to those who may be unaware I would love to describe the game for you. These are the developers that started the “souls-like” genre and influenced many other games with their challenging gameplay mechanics and a dynamic system in how you progress your character. For Elden ring, the developers signified a substantial evolution to the souls-like gameplay they were so well known for. Here, they added new ways to play, a dedicated jump command (trust me, this is huge in making traversal less annoying) and a few more tricks. This biggest addition though? A sprawling open world map, with very. Very minimal guidance and a not so minimal freedom of approach. 

George R. R. Martin, yeah, him, he was involved in this game to assist with world building. These are the bits of story and lore that exist and tell the player about their surroundings and the history of the fictional location of the game. Elden ring however does not have the storytelling or cutscenes like, let’s say The Witcher 3. Here, story is fed to player passively, through notes or weapon and armor description, NPC dialogues and is one of the ways the game makes exploration worth it. 

Then there are the weapons, spells, incantations and the various combinations of weapons and one of my favorite parts of the game, the armor pieces. Be it armor that makes you strong or look like a total badass, you can mix and match, or wear pieces from the same set, to satisfy the need to make your character look cool, or like a total goof just for the kicks. Whatever you choose, the game has options on weapons and armor, how to approach boss fights (they can be brutal) and the overall pacing of the game. 

All of this coupled with a beautiful visual style that gives a dark, gloomy vibe through the design but also vibrancy with the choice of colors used. You got to see it to believe is the only other way to describe it, but it fits the tone of the game well.  

Who are you?

Every game has a main character or someone you can create. Here, it’s the latter, and you are simply called, The Tarnished. Being a nobody in the vast world of Elden ring quickly becomes reaffirming when you first step out of the tomb you start from. No, this doesn’t mean your character has no significance in the grand scheme of things, but the brutality of the game does initially make it seem so. 

What do I mean by that? Well, when it comes to other RPG open world games, yeah you start weak but being the hero of the story, you still feel impactful. Not the case with Elden ring. You are part of the narrative and a prophecy where an unknown warrior sets out to achieve certain goals while having to traverse difficult terrain and angry godlike beings. 

The Tarnished, that’s who you are referred to as, making it more conspicuous and validating the fact that you are just a nobody in the massive world of Elden ring. The silver lining, however? You are not the only Tarnished. There are other central characters you meet along the way that were “blessed” with the same task as you, but your actions are autonomous and have complete agency with how you deal with situations. Initially, that may feel daunting, why even play the game then? You see, this type of a game gives you a character that is essentially a blank slate, a canvas of sorts for players to create, and not just cosmetically. You are given options for a baseline character, say a soldier, rogue, sorcerer, however the game is designed to help progress your character however you envision it.  

A huge task lies ahead for you oh tarnished one. The world of Elden ring is not for the faint hearted, and the game makes sure to remind you right from the start. At this point you’ll be wondering, what is it even that you do in Elden ring? Starting as a nobody, expected to do great things apparently? Yeah, let’s get into the action. 

What do you do?

A lot. Sense of overwhelm comes bundled with this game and that is absolutely normal. The game wants you to feel that way which only makes small, or large victories that much more satisfying. The gargantuan task of Elden ring is to repair this relic called, you may have guessed it, the Elden ring. This has been shattered into ‘Great runes’ and guarded by certain demigods. Each of these demigods seek control, naturally, who doesn’t want to be an all-powerful god of ‘The lands between’, which is what they call the realm, or land where the story takes place. 

‘The lands between’ is a weird place. This is not your typical medieval kingdom ruled by kings and queens, well that does exist, but it is heavily influenced by a greater god known simply as ‘the greater will.” The land is governed by the “golden order”, a belief strongly associated with Goddess Marika, an in-game entity worshipped by those who conform to her order. Central to the lands between is a massive golden tree known as the “Erdtree” that serves as the symbol for this order. Now what does this mean for you as the player? Life and death operate differently which justifies why you simply resurrect upon death (the many, many times it happens).

The group of tarnished are there to make sure the ring doesn’t reach the wrong hands, of which there are many. The game has main and optional boss fights sprinkled at key locations of the map. But those are not all, field bosses exist as well, just chilling in the open world waiting patiently to slaughter you. The game however doesn’t force you to challenge them immediately in the due to possibility of you not being powerful enough. This is where the game shines. 

From the get-go you have the option to linger around, look at the pretty details of the map, explore some caves and ruins while trying to kill some lower-level enemies to get runes, which serve as currency and a means to level up. This gets you gradually stronger and help wield better weapons and armor you may find. The game does point out the “main path” you are to take and along the way, lets you meet some friendly characters that offer some sort of assistance, like a mount (looks like a horse and donkey at the same time) and a magic lamp to summon ghostly specters to fight with you. Discovering these items, accomplishing goals and getting stronger are all aspects of the game that are paced the way you want. Fight enemies like a maniac rather than taking it slow? Go for it. Want to explore the map, find lore and piece together the story? Yeah, go ahead. Want to take it slow, fight a few enemies, get a bit stronger but explore every part of the map to find new items? This is also viable. It almost feels like the game rewards you regardless of your approach. This, this is what made me love the game. 

My way or the highway

The first steps

My experience with Elden ring was filled with moments of joy in achieving a goal, frustration over dying constantly and a genuine sense of curiosity fuelled by the design of the game. A mix of emotions while playing the game is pretty much expected. This is how it went for me. I find an interesting ruin, or a cave and get hit with curiosity, what if there’s a good weapon or armor in there, some item that might make me exponentially strong? So, I decide to explore it. A group of enemies run straight at me, in the words of the ever-wise Jeremy Clarkson, “how hard can it be?” This is the point you as a player must evaluate yourself. I for one, charge straight at them and realize there’s way more enemies ahead and end up dying.

I will say this, unless you try, there’s no way to predict what enemy lurks in what corner of what cave or castle in Elden ring. But there is always something to find. That cave example I mentioned earlier? I eventually cleared it, overcame with joy when I killed the boss at the end of it and was rewarded. And that’s what kept me going. Now I expected to be rewarded every time I did something in the game. This is my pitch to anyone who wants to try the game. It’s not all sunshine and rainbows, however. The game does humble you especially when you start to feel strong, and sometimes when you’re simply minding your business and exploring.  

The first image is the moment you step out into the world of Elden ring. The second image is the same moment but for the expansion which introduced a new location Both quite distinct but give you a sense that you’re about to explore a vibrant, abstract new world. The instant you step out in the bright and vibrant open world in Elden ring, out from the initial ruined church/catacomb/decrepit building like location, you are greeted with the first field boss. A menacing, relentless and ruthless horse rider that will punish you for walking close to him. This is the START of the game mind you, you are weak, very weak and you die quickly if you pursue him. This is the games way of reminding you, you are not a hero, or a god send, or knight in shining armor. That is where the open world became my playground. Like a cat that is distracted by wanting to eat and looking out the window, I started exploring other places away from the big baddie boss. This is where locations like the cave I mentioned or other little structures with easier enemies helped in me getting my character stronger.  

Feeling a sense of confidence, I went back to the location of the mean horse rider, this time, with my own horse-donkey hybrid. Guess what, I died again but I understood his fight patterns and continued trying. Eventually when I did get him, the sense of accomplishment is inexplicable. This is what kept me going in the game. The fear of death followed by the willingness to fight back and eventually being greeted by happiness and relief in defeating the odds. Elden ring in a nutshell. There are various contributing factors other than the need to simply fight and win. Every location is different; every castle has variety of rooms and secrets to explore, and every major boss fight is so well designed that it becomes a captivating experience. 

Exploring further

Locations in Elden ring aren’t random, bosses aren’t just there to bully you, but everything ties into a wider narrative of the game. Why a certain location looks bleaker than another, why a boss is specifically located at a certain place and why certain friendly are motivated to fight alongside you or on their own. To keep you motivated, characters you meet will offer advice, key information that makes progressing the game even more immersive and worthwhile. It may not make immediate sense but piecing some dialogue, even those from the bosses you fight paints a picture of a world that sparks intrigue every time you discover something new. This is the aspect of Elden ring that feeds your decision making and adapts to your choices. 

The adaptive nature of the game’s narrative and the outcomes of your choices is not immediately apparent but be assured, when you do realize that your game is suddenly progressing differently from others who play it, it adds to the bespoke nature of the gameplay. There are plenty of actions leading to a tangential outcome that made me realize, this game is a personalized experience.  

Like a tourist visiting a new country, I look through every nook and cranny of the game only to be distracted by something even more intriguing off in the distance. Doing so, then means you either meet a new character to talk, or a bunch of enemies. Either way, there are new experiences to be had, new items to be found, new lore to be heard and more potentially deadly encounters to be had at every corner. 

Be whoever you want

This is where every aspect of the character design funnels down to. Being whoever you want. The game presents you with a clean slate of a character with minimal choices to guide your imagination. Just like the approach of the game, you have the agency to build out your character as you see fit or experiment till you are satisfied. All this within the set boundaries of the game, but it never felt limited. 

The game offers ways to experiment with the type of weapons and armor you equip. When it comes to me, if a game offers multiple armor pieces, I love to mx and match and make it fashionable. There’s a reddit thread called Elden Bling just for the stylistic aspect of the armor pieces where players post the best look they could come up with. Here are some examples. 

And my personal submission…… (don’t judge me)

These and many more can be found here https://www.reddit.com/r/EldenBling/. Gander at some of the most absurd and/or creative submissions and tell me you’re not tempted to try it for yourself.

Armor does influence on the game and your character statistics like damage negation for example but who cares when you look cool right? I find myself spending 5 minutes every time I begin my game just to try different armor pieces. You change your clothes every day, why not in this game too right? So, be whoever you want as a warrior in a brutal world, but also do it style, that’s Elden ring for me. 

Magic is also a key component of the game. Apart from the swords and shields (of which there are many types) and other physical weapons, you can be a mage, wizard, sorcerer, whatever you want to name it. I loved casting some spells, like lightning strikes or shooting flames from my eyes, but my favorite one must be where you summon a giant dragon foot and slam it to the ground. Sounds bizarre, doesn’t it? The further along I went in the game, the crazier it got. Unintentional or not, this among many things was a strong hook for me. 

If one way shuts close, try another. When a game offers multitude of choices in approach, character statistics and pacing, dying to a tough boss repeatedly, while frustrating, can never be boring. I can’t count the number of times I changed weapons or spells, armours, or my approach until something clicked in my brain, and I found my footing. Practice makes perfect, and the practice itself is the fun part. Elden ring was not just a game but quickly became a unique and memorable experience. Some good games are forgotten as time passes, but the sheer focus and time I put in this game have created a solid memory in my brain. I became who I wanted and had fun doing it. 

To conclude

Why did I bring up a relatively older game when newer ones exist? It’s not always that a game hits the right spot on so many different levels. Did Elden ring have flaws Yes. Imagine having a decent gaming system and the game still stutters and outputs inconsistent frames. The experience was very unplayable in certain scenarios in the game. 

But when a game instils you with feelings of genuine awe and surprise through its art style, sense of satisfaction over defeating tough bosses and a constant itch to play over and over again, it dilutes some of the negative elements of the game. There are games that did perform better and looked significantly “next – gen” when compared to Elden ring, but they never felt special, lacking in either a captivating gameplay style or that organic natured open world.  

I love talking about games, especially those that left me with a profound sense of pride for playing it. These are the types of games that make you reminisce your time playing it. Elden ring is one of those unique games that confidently set itself apart, did not conform to industry norms but rather set itself upon a pedestal so high that it holds a unique spot in gaming history.  

This makes me question, do I want more games like this? Elden ring did have an expansion that continued on the base games success and delivered another worthwhile (and even more brutal) experience. Does Elden ring remain as a one-of-a-kind game, or does it need sequels (not a spin off like Elden ring nightreign) to try and further iterate on a formula that was a hit, and potentially risk tarnishing (see what I did there) its identity?

I want to feel that same sense of exploration, escapism when I first played Elden ring. The expansion, Shadow of the Erdtree only satisfied a tiny itch for me. If the developers cook and make the franchise even more flavorful, I am in favor of exploring a new land, admiring a pretty looking game before getting brutally killed by tough enemies and getting addicted to more Elden ring style gameplay once again.