Elden Ring has been my obsession for the last 2 months it seems. Ever since I got the game, I've been blown away with how the game keeps surprising me with new things, with new thrills of weapons, playstyles, enemies, and gorgeous vistas. It has truly taken an allotted time out of my life, and I can't say that I'm disappointed with how much it has taken over my free time.
Its difficulty is no joke, but I stem the utmost pleasure in finding to overcome that difficulty, this game has the leniency to allow you to take everything at your own pace and leisure, and yes, the amount of choices you can make with how you play can affect your difficulty or enjoyment of the game drastically. That is to say, it might be fun for some, and not so for others.
However, the mere fact that it allows for such versatility breathes in life that I myself have not seen other games do. Usual Rpgs have a certain touch of linearity that can't be described, but can certainly be felt, and Elden Ring, while still honing on those design choices, take a whole new approach to letting the player take control of their own in this world. It is quite a marvel to see a game that is so fresh in a world where games feel like they are money grabs nowadays.
I am 50 hours into the game and I'm not even near the ending it seems, it has a lot of content, and most of it is repetitively fresh. It's way of handling combat is typical of action rpgs, but it slews in more of the souls-like elements that I certainly enjoy. Even then however, Elden Ring vastly improves on the design that the souls franchise have been known for, it takes the whole 'I can go to that place beyond the horizon' type of level design into another level. The world feels massive, it feels alive and lived in, and like a post-apocalyptic setting, it feels barren but rewarding to explore.
This game, even when I haven't finished it yet, I can truly say is a masterpiece, it has some quirks with difficulty spikes in terms of damage values and health, but I think it might be a design choice as a result of its open world nature. I will finish this game, and I will come back to see how far it has come with what is available. I love this game, and anyone with the chance to play, should absolutely give it a shot.
