Hidetaka Miyazaki greatest work – review of the game “Elden Ring”

Over a decade ago, Hidetaka Miyazaki left a significant mark on the pages of electronic entertainment history, revealing Demon’s Souls to the world . A seemingly inaccessible production, with a high entry threshold and an enigmatic story, unexpectedly won the hearts of players around the world. Subsequent productions from FromSoftware, led by the flagship series Dark Souls , created a separate genre, commonly known as soulslike, enjoying unwavering popularity to this day. Over the years it has evolved at a slow pace, the culmination of which is described in this review.

A game of Eldens Thrones

We are the Tarnished – a creature spitting in the face of inevitable destiny every step of the way. Our fate is closely related to that of the Inbetween Lands, which are in decline. For we are to contribute to the death of the demigods in order to collect the once shattered parts of the Elden Circle. Their dormant power gives enormous power, and is at the same time the source of the Golden Tree’s strength – a key element for the existence of the entire land. George RR Martin, the author of the popular saga A Song of Ice and Fire , what to feel while delving into this complicated story, lent his pen in building the plot .

The slowly led story is wrapped in a thick fog of mystery and understatement. The order in which individual threads are developed depends on us, thanks to the openness of the world. We sew the next pages of the intricate book together thanks to the descriptions of objects, environmental narratives and characters who tell puzzles, whose fates are as mysterious as tragic. This solution has two sides of the coin – it leaves room for interpretation, while making the whole thing incoherent and in some respects incomprehensible to the average recipient. Well, that’s the charm of souls poetics.

It should be noted that the story is not connected with the trilogy about dark souls, although there are numerous references and analogies to it. We have a kind of a curse, a repeating cycle, or some kind of base that is a refuge for important NPCs. Weapons, spells, and some characters also look familiar. Probably many will also be pleased with the presence of the tireless, hairless trickster who has – as always – a lot to say.

There’s no place like home

Dark Souls veterans will feel at home from the very first minutes – I had an overwhelming impression that this is just a new installment of the popular series. Therefore, it bears all the hallmarks of ancestors, from the narrative method, through the artistic vision, to the specific game. We start, as usual, by choosing a class and creating a hero, as well as a short tutorial, to be battered by the first boss a moment later. From that moment on, we will learn the rules and secrets of the game on our own, using the perfunctory tips of our allies and other players.

In addition, the creators provide us with sporadic information about important mechanics, thus meeting the needs of newcomers. The core of the game has remained basically unchanged from Souls – we explore the game world and fight stronger and stronger enemies, systematically growing in strength. Of course – as befits a FromSoftware game – each death ends with the loss of the most valuable currency, in this case, Runes. We have a chance to regain a valuable loss by returning to the place of death, if we do not smell the flowers underneath on the way.

I am sure that faithful fans would be satisfied with more of what they have known well for years. On the other hand, I admit that the breath of freshness brought by the creators significantly diversified the proven formula. The most important novelty is undoubtedly the focus on the open world, which at the same time raised the greatest concerns. After all, one of the showpieces of soulslike are carefully planned locations, connected by clever shortcuts, so such a significant change could be disturbing. As it turns out – unnecessarily.

Ride into the unknown

The cavernous land open to us is initially overwhelming and gives us a feeling of being lost – after all, we are used to a basically closed level of design. It is true that Dark Souls has never led by the hand, but it was much easier to choose a specific direction of travel. Here, almost from the very beginning, we can see in front of us – seemingly – endless areas to be explored. A map and a compass come in handy, facilitating navigation and orientation in the field. In addition, practically at the beginning, we unlock a quick trip to the places of grace we have visited – the equivalent of bonfires.

We will make the necessary improvements and preparations for further journeys. They are scattered quite densely on the map, so we will avoid tedious wandering after death. Moreover, optional respawn points and special teleports have been implemented. Golden streaks spread from the aforementioned places of grace, pointing the way to the main adversaries. All of this makes exploration a swamp and not frustrating in the long run. I felt like Nathan Drake, scouring the area for cleverly hidden treasures and moving to new areas of this beautiful, dreamlike land. The openness of the world can sometimes be a trap if we go too far into the deadly embrace of the most powerful creatures.

For lovers of tight spaces, delicious dishes were also served, in the form of crumbling fortresses and castles, decorated with hidden passages and shortcuts. We often find ourselves in musty dungeons full of traps, reminiscent of the Dungeon of the Chalice from Bloodborne . We find valuable items in them, but also hard creatures, including mini-bosses. The downside, however, is the repeatability of these dungeon structures, which is easy to spot after a few visits.

Moving around the game world is greatly facilitated by another novelty – a nice Strug mount, which is a kind of hybrid of a goat and a horse. It helps you reach hard-to-reach places with vigorous leaps, and thanks to acceleration it often saves you from oppression. He can also be hellishly effective in battle – in the case of a few opponents, he is even necessary (eh, those damned dragons). The clashes, in which we play the role of a tireless cavalryman, provide a considerable dose of adrenaline and give the fight a new dimension.

It should be added that the protagonist has become more mobile thanks to the free jumping and sneaking skills; this opens up new possibilities in both combat and exploration. The hunt for unknowing prey under the cover of lush vegetation is reminiscent of the silent elimination in Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice . By the way, it does not require too much finesse from us, because enemies do not sin with perceptiveness. Speaking of which, it’s time to move on to the crème de la crème of the popular series.

Two katanas or maybe powerful spells?

The well-known and well-liked combat system, thanks to several innovations, definitely took a blush – the battles have become more dynamic and more varied compared to Dark Souls III , giving us a wide range of possibilities. Patience, careful observation of the actions of opponents, appropriate tactics and controlling the level of endurance are still important. Skillful attacks break the opponent’s stance and allow him to deal the unfortunate person with an effective critical blow, significantly cooling his enthusiasm. Mastering dodging, parrying and blocking is also invaluable.

Here comes a useful novelty, the opportunity to use a strong counter right after a successful cover. This opens up new opportunities and is less risky than trying to pair, although not as effective. Another diversion are Ashes of War, which are special skills assigned to weapons. Like all magical arts, they deplete Focus Points, but have no special requirements. Therefore, it is an ideal option for people who avoid getting their hands dirty with magic, but want to enrich the usual exchange of blows in an effective way. And it was not the porridge that he was blowing. We will be able to perform devastating AoE attacks, make lightning dodges, strengthen the hero or give weapons lethal effects.

As if that was not enough, we will summon various ghosts to help, using their ashes. They are especially useful against groups of enemies, and these parade us quite often. Camps laden with the army or guarded caravans with precious valuables are a common sight on the trail. By the way, the diversity and design of opponents is an art in itself. Sure, weird creations like fire snots do happen, but most of your opponents definitely deserve credit, especially those gargantuan sizes. Interestingly, the occurrence of some monsters sometimes depends on another novelty – the day and night cycle.

The boss of all bosses

The pearls in the crown are, of course, the bosses. We meet them a lot – in fact, some of them repeat themselves in different configurations or are familiar from somewhere, but it does not spoil the overall impression. The lion’s share of “bosses” does not cause much trouble, but the farther into the forest, the harder it is. More than once I had to change my habits and properly prepare for a given skirmish, devising the best tactics. The rich repertoire of hostile moves and the next phases of the fight are often surprising – a moment of bravado and it’s over. At times it is difficult to feel the timing of the blows, and time-consuming treatment does not help in surviving the storm of blows. I still dream of a few exhausting battles at night.

Fortunately, we have arguments to defend ourselves. We will get dozens of sets of armor and weapons for both hand-to-hand combat and sewing from a distance, including the equivalents of the iconic killing tools. There are also new gems – for example a korbacz or a cannon. There are also throwing weapons and useful items that increase combat potential. We create them thanks to the newly introduced crafting option, and we obtain the necessary raw materials from numerous specimens of fauna and flora, scattered throughout the land.

As usual, the number of available maneuvers, combinations and attacks depending on the weapon scaling with specific stats deserves a thunderous applause. Jump or momentum punch? Please kindly. Loaded attacks or a dynamic series with two katanas? Of course! A jump from a galloping mount with the blade pointed at the face of a raging beast? Play it to me! We are also given a multitude of spells and incantations (a combination of faith and pyromancy). Some spells and special attacks amaze with spectacular animations, reminiscent of scenes from the best anime – it’s hard to look away.

It is very satisfying to develop your protagonist, improve your equipment and choose the best gear. Experimenting with different builds is one of the most enjoyable parts of Souls , and it’s no different this time. The Elden Ring offers even more options to create a hero prepared for any occasion. Naturally, no one prevents us from playing the skin of an archetypal warrior or mage, but it is more fun to combine magic and a sword. After hours of trial and error, I knew perfectly what style of play suits me best, and I easily adapted my hero to it.

If we want a company or a duel with a live player, we will have a reliable multiplayer mode. Players leave valuable tips here and there, we also learn from other people’s mistakes by following the record of the last breath of a random unlucky guy. The community built around the series can be extremely helpful, but it’s worth taking a fix for the ubiquitous trolling, otherwise we’ll practice the art of falling. The confrontation of combat skills in fierce PvP duels and fighting side by side with the boss in co-op mode is a pleasure and for many the quintessence of this type of games. If you belong to this group, you will be pleased, especially since the process of summoning helpers has been facilitated.

Beauty and the Beast

At first glance, the artwork does not seem too dark, but these are only appearances. We will find here more, let’s call it fairy-tale locations, but it’s still dark fantasy of the highest order. The unique atmosphere even spills out of the screen – the title in question captivates with its artistic vision and ingenuity in designing original locations. The monumental, gothic buildings, ruins gnawed by the tooth of time, caves bathed in darkness and surreal landscapes clad in intricate constructions inspire admiration. There were also grotesque views straight from Beksiński’s paintings, evoking goosebumps and a feeling of anxiety. There was also a place to refer to Berserk– a strong source of inspiration for the Japanese studio. In this way, the memory of Kentarou Miura, the creator of the manga, who died last year, was commemorated.

The designs of characters, gear or enemies are a feast for the eyes, while the delightful design of the bosses and their animation are a show of exceptional creativity and attention to detail. Unfortunately, this is where the visual praise ends. The game is rooted in the previous generation, scaring here and there with low-flight textures and objects read in front of our noses. Sometimes I also had the impression that the area could be better developed – usually looking for something interesting in empty spaces or dead ends. Remember, however, that in Soulsach , the overall quality of graphics or advanced technology has never mattered. The artistic vision and original aesthetics play the first violin here, building a unique atmosphere.

A spoon of tar are certainly problems with optimization, even on powerful computers – I mean mainly animation drops. Nevertheless, it is not particularly bothersome, which will be confirmed by everyone who used to interact with Demon’s Souls or Dark Souls on PlayStation 3. There it was just a slide show. The music, on the other hand, maintains a high level – the sound is convincing, and the calm songs playing in the background perfectly correspond to the unique atmosphere. You will especially appreciate the soundtrack during fierce battles with bosses, caressing your ears with epic compositions.

There can only be one king

It’s probably a matter of many years of experience with titles of this kind, but the Elden Ring turned out to be much less demanding than I thought. A number of amenities and new solutions made the game more accessible, especially for new players. This does not mean, however, that I was disappointed, quite the contrary! Many times my hands really got sweaty and I cursed under my breath during over 70 hours of play. During this time, I tried to look at every corner, although I already know that I missed a lot of secrets that I will gladly explore during the next approach.

The time of the game is therefore fully satisfactory – the developers have prepared a lot of attractions and exciting challenges. As if that weren’t enough, the reliable multitplayer mode can brazenly steal many extra hours from your life. Elden Ring is an amalgam of the best features and the essence of the achievements of the FromSoftware studio to date. A breath of fresh air in soulslike productions and at the same time the greatest work of Hidetaka Miyazaki. Not without flaws and shortcomings, but only small scratches on a real diamond. Git gud!