From Software Elden Ring - From Software's new game with writing by GRRM

[d1r]

On a more serious note, Elden Ring doesn't seem to have good world building. The world is empty and could have run on a ps3. Visually it's more than 5 years late to the standard of 2021. The story telling will be once again non-existent when they could have made some effort into it.
Bloodborne is still beautiful and always will be, not this game.

Does your dad work at Nintendo too!?

 

[perfectslumbers]

On a more serious note, Elden Ring doesn't seem to have good world building. The world is empty and could have run on a ps3. Visually it's more than 5 years late to the standard of 2021. The story telling will be once again non-existent when they could have made some effort into it.

Oh by world building you just meant visuals

 

[Silentstorm]

My favorites are Inner Isshin, Inner Owl and Lady Butterfly. Fantastic bosses.

I do love that in a supernatural world where you fight dragons, ogres, ghosts and genetically modified samurai, the final boss and a really tough fight happens to be...a normal samurai, because Isshin is just that, a guy, albeit one that is really damn skilled and talented with the sword to a point they gave him the nickname of "Sword Saint" in-universe, dude's biggest twist is him having a freaking gun like many mooks, doesn't stop the guy from being tougher than way too many enemies and you can find corpses of enemies that Isshin also slays through the game.

He's kinda the closest thing to Sekiro himself in the game, only without a prosthetic arm, his main thing is just being good at fighting and he comes across as the best sword user in all of From Software's games, like the dude could go to Dark Souls or Bloodborne's world and still wreck damage, in other games he could be a main character...which is all part of what makes Isshin a cool boss fight.

 

[NJClaw]

Trees/castles and ruins : 10/10 world-building never been done before...

Please stop, you're embarrassing yourself.

 

[Lyric Suite]

The world is empty and could have run on a ps3.

I'm going out of a limb and assume the fact it's open world made it so resource intensive they had to downgrade the graphics to make it run on consoles.

Dirty peasant hardware strikes again.

I was checking if Bloodborne on PS4 was any better than Dark Souls on PS3 and nope. Lucky to get 30 FPS there too lmao. Fucking peasants.

 

[Multidirectional]

With these retarded GPU prices I don't expect to be able to run things all that well in the future on PC either. I wouldn't be able to replace my 5 year old GTX 1060 with something even equally good if it died now. And to think I only paid 280 euro for it.

 

[Tyranicon]

My favorites are Inner Isshin, Inner Owl and Lady Butterfly. Fantastic bosses.

I do love that in a supernatural world where you fight dragons, ogres, ghosts and genetically modified samurai, the final boss and a really tough fight happens to be...a normal samurai, because Isshin is just that, a guy, albeit one that is really damn skilled and talented with the sword to a point they gave him the nickname of "Sword Saint" in-universe, dude's biggest twist is him having a freaking gun like many mooks, doesn't stop the guy from being tougher than way too many enemies and you can find corpses of enemies that Isshin also slays through the game.

He's kinda the closest thing to Sekiro himself in the game, only without a prosthetic arm, his main thing is just being good at fighting and he comes across as the best sword user in all of From Software's games, like the dude could go to Dark Souls or Bloodborne's world and still wreck damage, in other games he could be a main character...which is all part of what makes Isshin a cool boss fight.

From can make an entire game called Isshin Fighting Simulator, where they give Isshin different boss movesets (new shit similar to Orphan of Kos, Nameless King, etc), pump up the difficulty to x3 and sell it at $20-30 USD.

I would buy that shit so fast.

 

[Silentstorm]

Anyways, did anyone get to play Elden Ring beta/demo?

From what i understand, it's very much a Dark Souls like game, like, the difference isn't as big like it was with Bloodborne and particularly Sekiro which loves punishing anyone who dares play it like Dark Souls.

Elden Ring seems to be Dark Souls only a bit more permissive, in that like Sekiro you have infinite stamina while not in combat though you still have stamina during combat, there are kinda parries that allow retaliation moves, stealth options, fast travel is unlocked from the start and available at all times, you can get maps, special attacks are more varied and useful, you can jump around during combat, better blocking options and even stance disrupting attacks.

Seems to be easier than Dark Souls, at least it's more approachable to a larger audience, of course, saying it's a bit easier means it's still harder than most games and people who aren't great challenge gamers will have a tough time still.

Also, with the more casual approach, kinda suprised they didn't go full Sekiro and just ignore stamina altogether, i know not everyone has played that game, but at no point does stamina matter, Wolf can and will gladly run, jump and do all kinds of slashes for hours on end with no issue, granted, it's a different game, but hey, this seems like the closest thing to casual Dark Souls that Miyazaki will allow, but maybe infinite stamina was too much even for him to put on a second game.

 

[Child of Malkav]

Anyways, did anyone get to play Elden Ring beta/demo?

From what i understand, it's very much a Dark Souls like game, like, the difference isn't as big like it was with Bloodborne and particularly Sekiro which loves punishing anyone who dares play it like Dark Souls.

Elden Ring seems to be Dark Souls only a bit more permissive, in that like Sekiro you have infinite stamina while not in combat though you still have stamina during combat, there are kinda parries that allow retaliation moves, stealth options, fast travel is unlocked from the start and available at all times, you can get maps, special attacks are more varied and useful, you can jump around during combat, better blocking options and even stance disrupting attacks.

Seems to be easier than Dark Souls, at least it's more approachable to a larger audience, of course, saying it's a bit easier means it's still harder than most games and people who aren't great challenge gamers will have a tough time still.

Also, with the more casual approach, kinda suprised they didn't go full Sekiro and just ignore stamina altogether, i know not everyone has played that game, but at no point does stamina matter, Wolf can and will gladly run, jump and do all kinds of slashes for hours on end with no issue, granted, it's a different game, but hey, this seems like the closest thing to casual Dark Souls that Miyazaki will allow, but maybe infinite stamina was too much even for him to put on a second game.

No I haven't. It seems they took multiple elements from their previous games and put them together in one big open world, as someone said "biggest hits". Why they made certain decisions and not others is anyone's guess but apparently this is supposed to be the culmination of everything they learned. I'm pretty sure they haven't showed everything and there are still surprises left. For example in Sekiro we didn't know there was going to be swimming but not only it was implemented but it also had diving and basic water combat together with "sprinting" in it.
And yeah, it seems to be the easiest game they've made, with the exception of bosses. The multiple approaches that open world allows for plus the various tools and stealth and all that, yeah it will be pretty accesibile.
You do have infinite stamina when not in combat, as seen from CNT footage.

 

[Lyric Suite]

Some of those changes seem consistent with the decline inherent in open world design. Can't have stamina drain if you are roaming around an open area, it would be too annoying. Likewise for the ability to skip mobs with stealth. You can't exactly be fighting every inch of the way in an open world.

I only hope there will be areas with real level design or this is going to be even worse than DS3.

 

[MajorMace]

I only hope there will be areas with real level design or this is going to be even worse than DS3.

Demo area included some sort of secluded castle nestled on a cliff. I assume there are actual levels/dungeons which are built in the same fashion as the average series area so far.
But I agree that after watching some videos of the demo, the game seems to be DkS + open world shit slammed on it.

It's been 15 years roughly since Morrowind & GTA success started the never-ending hypetrain of open worlds -reinforced now and then by titles like AssCreed and such- and I still have very few examples of it being an asset instead of a detail or, even worse, a boulder.
If you want some semblance of hope about Elden Ring, you can try to convince yourself that if there's a dude who can lead a game to have an actually good open world, it'd be miyazaki, but I just couldn't so gl with that.

 

[Child of Malkav]

It won't differ much from any other open world games but at least it will have that level design in legacy dungeons (the castles of the demigods) and according to leaks there are vast subterranean catacombs and caves and tunnels with at least 2 or 3

Spoiler

eternal

cities. According to leaks and data mined audio files. Sorry for the spoiler. Plus some unique areas, volcano, snowy area and unfortunately no sign yet of a desert area.

 

[gerey]

And yeah, it seems to be the easiest game they've made, with the exception of bosses. The multiple approaches that open world allows for plus the various tools and stealth and all that, yeah it will be pretty accesibile.

Is it really that much easier than the "first" part of Dark Souls? What they've basically shown so far is the equivalent of Firelink Shrine > Undead Burg, capping it off with the game's equivalent of the Taurus Demon. You don't even get to fight the area's final boss.

Think back on that part of Dark Souls and try to recall a part there that was actually all that challenging. The only part that I recall being somewhat difficult is the room with with the shortcut to the Lower Undead Burg after you cross the bridge that is getting pelted with firebombs, and maybe the section near the Black Knight.

Even if you were to extend the comparison to include the Undead Parish and the fight with the gargoyles, outside the boss the only really challenging parts would be the big guy guarding the Firekeeper soul and the Channeler (whom savvy players will kill with a bow).

On the whole Dark Souls is not a difficult game, just one with a few poorly designed areas/encounters that trip people up (Capra Demon fight, Anor Londo archers, navigating Blighttown, Bed of Chaos) - and this is, naturally, excluding properly designed boss fights.

I only hope there will be areas with real level design or this is going to be even worse than DS3.

You will use up stamina in the open-world when in combat though, and the legacy dungeons or whatever they're calling them are going to be "proper" Souls levels.

 

[toro]

... data mined spoilers ...

Location: Romania

 

[Child of Malkav]

Is it really that much easier than the "first" part of Dark Souls?

I said it seems to be. You also have more tools at your disposal this time around: stealth, sleep arrows, horse and mounted combat, summons that actually distract your enemies acting as tanks, crafting, killing a group of enemies restores 1 flask of crimson tears or so etc.

 

[Child of Malkav]

... data mined spoilers ...

Location: Romania

Care to elaborate?

 

[gerey]

I said it seems to be. You also have more tools at your disposal this time around: stealth, sleep arrows, horse and mounted combat, summons that actually distract your enemies acting as tanks, crafting, killing a group of enemies restores 1 flask of crimson tears or so etc.

Stealth was already present as far back as Dark Souls 1, if in a more rudimentary fashion - if you were walking and the enemy had his back turned you could sneak up to him and perform a backstab. How overpowered stealth will be in ER really depends on the ability of the enemy to detect you and raise the alarm. That being said I do view the sleeping arrows as far too OP and it's obvious they need to be nerfed so you can't just one-shoot a giant and put him out of commission.

I'm hoping the game will feature common mounted enemies with ranged attacks. It's already somewhat balanced for melee with how long it takes the player to get back up if knocked off his horse.

I've watched a few videos of people playing and how useful summons are really depends on the situation. The main boss of the demo has no problems dispatching mob summons, or melee and ranged ones either, and plenty of the dungeons bosses that have AOE attacks deal with mobs easily. And to be fair, Dark Souls also had potent summons that could turn difficult fights into a cakewalk (Beatrice and Iron Tarkus come to mind).

I like crafting, since it beats having to trudge back to a merchant every time you need to stock up on consumables and allows the player to create the kind of items he requires for any given environment/situation. Also, what I found interesting is that the game is now placing a much greater emphasis on rechargeable items - like your flasks, and it seems even bombs are rechargeable (you collect/buy pots, and how many pots you have determines how many bombs you can recharge whenever resting).

As for the flask refilling, and don't quote me on this, but I got the impression is that it only happens when you complete specific encounters (like the enemy camp guarding the carriage or the carriage being pulled by giants), and it's not something that happens every time you end combat, and doesn't seem to happen at all in legacy dungeons. It's really there to keep the game moving at a reasonable place and remove the hassle of having to go back to a bonfire after every encounter.

 

[Jaedar]

It's really there to keep the game moving at a reasonable place and remove the hassle of having to go back to a bonfire after every encounter.

It's one of those mechanics From seems to have a hard time to really get right. Going from grass, to estus, to blood vials, to both and then back to estus. I like it when you hit a flow with vials/grass, as progressing gives you the resources you need to push further, but I hate the grinding that inevitably happens when you run into a hard boss or two.

 

[Child of Malkav]

I said it seems to be. You also have more tools at your disposal this time around: stealth, sleep arrows, horse and mounted combat, summons that actually distract your enemies acting as tanks, crafting, killing a group of enemies restores 1 flask of crimson tears or so etc.

Stealth was already present as far back as Dark Souls 1, if in a more rudimentary fashion - if you were walking and the enemy had his back turned you could sneak up to him and perform a backstab. How overpowered stealth will be in ER really depends on the ability of the enemy to detect you and raise the alarm. That being said I do view the sleeping arrows as far too OP and it's obvious they need to be nerfed so you can't just one-shoot a giant and put him out of commission.

I'm hoping the game will feature common mounted enemies with ranged attacks. It's already somewhat balanced for melee with how long it takes the player to get back up if knocked off his horse.

I've watched a few videos of people playing and how useful summons are really depends on the situation. The main boss of the demo has no problems dispatching mob summons, or melee and ranged ones either, and plenty of the dungeons bosses that have AOE attacks deal with mobs easily. And to be fair, Dark Souls also had potent summons that could turn difficult fights into a cakewalk (Beatrice and Iron Tarkus come to mind).

I like crafting, since it beats having to trudge back to a merchant every time you need to stock up on consumables and allows the player to create the kind of items he requires for any given environment/situation. Also, what I found interesting is that the game is now placing a much greater emphasis on rechargeable items - like your flasks, and it seems even bombs are rechargeable (you collect/buy pots, and how many pots you have determines how many bombs you can recharge whenever resting).

As for the flask refilling, and don't quote me on this, but I got the impression is that it only happens when you complete specific encounters (like the enemy camp guarding the carriage or the carriage being pulled by giants), and it's not something that happens every time you end combat, and doesn't seem to happen at all in legacy dungeons. It's really there to keep the game moving at a reasonable place and remove the hassle of having to go back to a bonfire after every encounter.

Agreed with everything you said but if you look more closely, the summons take aggro completely from the player. Obviously they're not going to resist much longer once that happens but it can give you the time to launch a really powerful spell or use a specific ash of war or just heal. That's the one thing that I noticed immediately, how as long as they're active, the boss focuses solely on them. They could tweak a lot before launch.

 

[Silva]

It's really there to keep the game moving at a reasonable place and remove the hassle of having to go back to a bonfire after every encounter.

It's one of those mechanics From seems to have a hard time to really get right. Going from grass, to estus, to blood vials, to both and then back to estus. I like it when you hit a flow with vials/grass, as progressing gives you the resources you need to push further, but I hate the grinding that inevitably happens when you run into a hard boss or two.

I think From knows they hit the nail with Estus flasks. Everything else they try is more for experimenting and whatnot. At least that's my suspicion.

 

[toro]

... data mined spoilers ...

Location: Romania

Care to elaborate?

Data mined spoilers will degrade the first hand experience for everyone not to mention that probably From Software is not happy about the entire situation.

 

[gerey]

Going from grass, to estus, to blood vials, to both and then back to estus.

I think going back to estus was the smart choice. In Demon's Souls and Bloodborne (and DS2 to a lesser degree) the pace was dictated by your stockpile of healing items, and the moment you ran out it was back to grinding for currency or the item itself until you stocked up again - rinse and repeat.

It's why I prefer the recharge mechanic of the estus flask and was actually hoping they would have applied it to (nearly) everything. It cuts down on tedious grinding, but also limits the amount of consumables a player has at any given moment, and is much easier to balance around.

That's the one thing that I noticed immediately, how as long as they're active, the boss focuses solely on them. They could tweak a lot before launch.

Oh yeah, I noticed that too, and it's not just the bosses, but common enemies too. They do need to tweak that a bit.

Also, another thing I noticed is that some ashes were pretty overpowered (the one that summons the four daggers comes to mind), especially in PvP and how little it costs in terms of focus.

Another thing I'm curious about is how equipment load being tied to STR will pan out in terms of balance. I can see why they did it - STR builds with slower attacks can tank hits from DEX builds and not get staggered as easily when their attack is winding up - I just hope it's not a repeat of the adaptability debacle from DS2.

Then again, FROM seems to have put everything they've learned from all the previous Souls games (and Sekiro) to use when making this game, so here's hoping they succeeded.

 

[The_Mask]

Think back on that part of Dark Souls and try to recall a part there that was actually all that challenging. The only part that I recall being somewhat difficult is the room with with the shortcut to the Lower Undead Burg after you cross the bridge that is getting pelted with firebombs, and maybe the section near the Black Knight.

Dark Souls is not hard. It just filters the idiots and the weak-willed.

I smashed my face into that Black Knight about 30 times the first time I met him. And wanna know how I beat him? I just had a ton of souls because I smashed my face 30 times. I looked around. I saw guys tossing firebombs at me, and I thought to do the same. Grabbed 60 firebombs and killed him.

 

[perfectslumbers]

Dark Souls is not hard. It just filters the idiots and the weak-willed.

Dark Souls isn't hard (except maybe some bosses.) But it is hard if you play it like any other action game imo. The best part of Dark Souls is that it forces you to approach it thoughtfully which really draws you in, unlike say DS3 where you have nigh infinite stamina and just need to roll at the right time.

 

[Sunri]

Think back on that part of Dark Souls and try to recall a part there that was actually all that challenging. The only part that I recall being somewhat difficult is the room with with the shortcut to the Lower Undead Burg after you cross the bridge that is getting pelted with firebombs, and maybe the section near the Black Knight.

Dark Souls is not hard. It just filters the idiots and the weak-willed.

I smashed my face into that Black Knight about 30 times the first time I met him. And wanna know how I beat him? I just had a ton of souls because I smashed my face 30 times. I looked around. I saw guys tossing firebombs at me, and I thought to do the same. Grabbed 60 firebombs and killed him.

Ot you can just beat him with random stick