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ELDEN RING | Reviews Mega Thread

Draugoth

Gold Member
I will update this with all reviews possible
This is a spoiler free thread!


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Genre: ARPG, Open-World

Platforms:
  • PlayStation 4
  • PlayStation 5
  • Xbox One
  • Xbox Series S|X
  • PC
Media:
Developer: FromSoftware Info
Publisher: Bandai Entertainment JP - FromSoftware
Price: $59.99 USD / £49.99 GBP / 59,99€ EUR / $79.99 CAD
Release Date: February 25, , 2022
More Info: | Wikipedia Page

Patch 1.02 details:
  • Improved player controls
  • Addition and adjustment of BGM
  • Text adjustments
  • Balance adjustments
  • NPC event fixes and adjustments
  • Fixed frame rate drops under certain conditions
  • Fixed text bug in some languages
  • Fixed a bug that prevented the Xbox wireless headset from working properly

Review Aggregator (Opencritic):

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OpenCritic - 97 average - 100% recommended - 108 reviews [Cross-Platform]

Review Aggregator (Metacritic):

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Positive Points from Critics
  • Open World Feels absolutely incredible.
  • Game is absolutely filled with content (60 hours is not enough).
  • Game LORE is fantastic.
  • Most inovative souls game since Demon's Souls.
  • Hard game just like previous titles.

Negative Points from Critics
  • New Souls players may have a hard time getting invested in the game due ot the difficulty.
  • Xbox Series S|X reportedly suffers from performance issues (FPS drops)

Critic Reviews

Cerealkillerz - Gabriel Bogdan - German - 9.5 / 10
Elden Ring surpasses all expectations, eliminates all doubts that we had and surprises more than any other soulsborne game so far. If you can live with rare repetitive bossfights and enemy appearances due to the open world design, you'll get the most extensive and exciting game FromSoftware has created so far.
Checkpoint Gaming - Elliot Attard - 9.5 / 10
The hype behind Elden Ring was always going to be a challenge to match, yet the game succeeds in almost every way. This detailed and exciting world is full of wondrous moments and brutal fights as the excellent Souls gameplay finds itself being utilised in a freshly open-world format. The variety of ways you can approach combat and the sheer volume of viable tools you can use to take down gruesome and frightening foes makes for an experience that never gets old. A game unwavering in its vision, Elden Ring stands out as a monumental 2022 release.
Console Creatures - Bobby Pashalidis - Recommended
Elden Ring is unabashedly a FromSoft title and without a doubt was worth the wait. It provides a challenge; it gives us a vivid world that feels like a dream and challenges us at every turn.
Cultured Vultures - Mike Worby - 10 / 10
An uncompromising vision of wonder and terror, Elden Ring is the ultimate dark fantasy odyssey. It will ask much of players who tackle its challenges but the rewards of seeing your adventure through more than make up for the effort.
Digitally Downloaded - Matt Sainsbury - 5 / 5
With Elden Ring, we're in masterpiece territory.
Easy Allies - Brad Ellis - 9.5 / 10
Elden Ring is an unforgettable journey that masterfully weaves in its excellent combat with an expertly crafted world, resulting in one of the best open-world games around.
Eurogamer - Aoife Wilson - Essential
Grandiose, mysterious, but now a touch more welcoming, Elden Ring tweaks the FromSoft formula to open up its world.
GGRecon - George Yang - 9 / 10
It may sound reductive, but Elden Ring is a fourth mainline Dark Souls title in all but name. The game’s open-world structure feels very organic - there aren’t lists of activities with checkboxes that players need to cross off. The Lands Between is filled with visually stunning locations and deadly enemies to ensure that the perilous journey to become the Elden Lord is at least pretty to look at. While Elden Ring stumbles a bit in some areas, it still has all the hallmarks of what makes FromSoftware’s games so enticing: it’s fun, challenging, and rewarding.
Game Informer - Daniel Tack - 10 / 10
Elden Ring represents a truly amazing combination of various game elements that all come together to create something fascinating, special, and unforgettable. Elden Ring isn’t just the best game this year; it’s one of the best games ever made.
GameSpew - Richard Seagrave - 10 / 10
Combining the deep and challenging combat FromSoftware is known for with a vast and varied world that’s always a pleasure to explore, Elden Ring is quite simply incredible.
GamesHub - Edmond Tran - 5 / 5
Elden Ring is an exceptional, accomplished work that realises a fantasy world of solemnity, beauty, and menacing uncertainty you can’t help but lose yourself in.
Gaming Nexus - Henry Yu - 10 / 10
FromSoftware effortlessly immerses you into the beautiful world of The Lands Between, with challenging enemies, secret treasures, and deep lore tucked away into every corner. This is, without a doubt, FromSoftware's best project yet, showcasing a culmination of all their previous games. I can't wait to jump back in The Lands Between… See you there, fellow Tarnished.
Hardcore Gamer - Adam Beck - 5 / 5
Elden Ring is one of the best games in years, with a breathtaking vast world to explore, and one of the most satisfying combat systems in an RPG. This is the accumulation of FromSoftware's work over the last thirteen years and an evolution on its inspiring formula.
Hey Poor Player - Jon Davis - 5 / 5
If FromSoftware was The Fellowship of The Ring, then Elden Ring is Mt Doom; the terminus of an epic journey spanning over a decade. It consolidates all the acclaimed Japanese studio's ideas into one cohesive and brilliant package. Its art design, lore, and world design are arguably the studio's most inspired work to date. And considering these are the folks that created Dark Souls, Bloodborne, and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, this is high praise indeed. Elden Ring's open-world design is almost puritan in its purpose, reflecting the single-mindedness behind all the previous Souls games.
Infinite Start - Mark Fajardo - 9.5 / 10
What makes Elden Ring work is a deep understanding of both what players like about the games and what makes the setting different. It should immediately feel different, yet the same, making for a wonderful experience. Some might be put off by the more accessible nature, at least initially, though it does a good job of offering this without taking away from what makes the experience special. You’ll still struggle, die, make another mistake, die, get to the boss and then die again. Just instead of putting people off, it encourages using the awareness to your advantage. For these reasons, along with the wonderful cutscenes that touch on a fascinating narrative and delightful scenery, it’s easy to recommend Elden Ring.
Inverse - Joseph Yaden - 9 / 10
This isn’t just Dark Souls with an open world tacked on. Instead, developer FromSoftware weaves its familiar formula into a massive playground so expertly that we can’t help but wonder how we ever played Dark Souls without it.
Kakuchopurei - Jonathan Leo - 100 / 100
Elden Ring is a triumph in game design. I respect and like Elden Ring and From Software for sticking to its guns but also adding in much-welcome changes and additions to make it more “accessible”.
MonsterVine - Diego Escala - 4 / 5
Elden Ring feels like the culmination of everything FromSoftware has been building upon with each of their games. Unfortunately, some severe performance issues hamper what’s easily one of their best games yet.
Niche Gamer - NECRO XIII - 10 / 10
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One More Game - Ricki Buzon - Buy
Elden Ring is the logical evolution in the trademark souls formula, borrowing the best features from previous titles and blending them into a finely-tuned mix of intense combat and high-pressure precision. While veterans will surely enjoy the punishment that comes with it, newcomers are treated to what could arguably be one of FromSoftware's more approachable titles to get into.The Lands Between is vast and full of danger at every turn but heavily encourages exploration, offering handsome rewards for those who choose to face the dangers head-on. Capped off by a beautiful open-world brimming with mind-blowing monster and level design, Elden Ring easily rises to the hype and exceeds expectations.
PCGamesN - Jordan Forward - 10 / 10
A supercut of FromSoft's very best work, transported to a totally new space. Elden Ring is not only a masterpiece by its developer's lofty standards, but in packing so much density into the Lands Between, it lights the path ahead for open-world games in general.
PSX Brasil - Francisco Maia - Portuguese - 95 / 100
‎With Elden Ring, From Software de-graces an ideal model in open-world game design.
Press Start - Harry Kalogirou - 9.5 / 10
While it feels like the impact of Breath of the Wild is waning as the open world genre starts to stagnate again, Elden Ring stands out as not only an achievement in FromSoftware's hall of fame, but also as an open-world RPG. Elden Ring is without a doubt, FromSoft's most ambitious undertaking yet, and like Dark Souls before it, I believe it will leave a permanent mark on both the open-world genre and the games industry in general.
Prima Games - Jesse Vitelli - 9.5 / 10
Plot threads will pull you all over, mysteries lie just beyond reach, and getting to them is half the battle. Elden Ring promotes exploration and a sense of place. Each enemy, item, and piece of scenery is placed with purpose.
RPG Site - Bryan Vitale - 9 / 10
Elden Ring deftly refines and boldly reimagines FromSoftware's tried and true formula.
Rock, Paper, Shotgun - Ed Thorn - Unscored
Elden Ring is an action-RPG with an open world that's not only incredibly rich, but encouraging too. This game will be the talk of the Blighttown for years to come.
SECTOR.sk - Oto Schultz - Slovak - 10 / 10
Elden Ring is the embodiment of From Software's best work yet. Top-notch quality of another huge soulslike adventure persists, especially in the cryptically epic story cowritten by George R. R. Martin and in the ingeniously vast and visually stunning world of Lands Between that sets the new standard for open world games. And of course, you can expect a lot of dying, rolling, and rage-quitting. Elden Ring is a must play for every fan, but it also makes so many good steps towards accessibility for greater audience.
Shacknews - Sam Chandler - 9 / 10
Simply put, Elden Ring is Miyazaki and FromSoftware’s magnum opus.
Sirus Gaming - Adrian Morales - 9.5 / 10
Elden Ring feels like a culmination of everything that FromSoftware has created in the past 13 years. Refining, reworking, and incorporating the best parts of their whole catalog into one complete package. The Lands Between is one of the most extraordinary open worlds I have ever had the pleasure of experiencing. It’s a world that you can’t help but lose yourself in for hours at a time thanks to its classic RPG sense of exploration and curiosity. This is the cherry on top for a team that has been firing on all cylinders for over a decade. Elden Ring is a triumph.
TechRaptor - William Worrall - 9 / 10
Elden Ring takes the best elements of all past FromSoftware games in recent memory and mashes them together. While it's not inviting to newcomers, this is certainly the definitive FromSoft experience.
The Outerhaven Productions - Keith Mitchell - 5 / 5
Elden Ring Review - Elden Ring is the perfect mixture of the Soulslike genre and open-world games. It's simply that good. Fromsoftware has taken everything it has learned, from both the Dark Souls, Demon's Souls, Bloodborne, and Sekiro games, and combined with a vast and amazing open world, and it works better than it probably should.
Total Gaming Network - Shawn Zipay - 5 / 5
FromSoftware's largest and most ambitious title is also its best yet.
TrustedReviews - By Alastair Stevenson - 4.5 / 5
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Twinfinite - Zhiqing Wan - 5 / 5
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VGC - Jordan Middler - 5 / 5
Elden Ring is a fantastic game that can still deliver the unmatched thrill of defeating a tough boss after an hours-long battle. Those who worship at the church of Souls-like will find a game that’s basically everything they ever wanted.
Wccftech - 10 / 10
Elden Ring is not only the best action RPG developed by From Software but one of the best open-world titles ever made. A masterclass of game design, Elden Ring isn't just a game but an epic dark fantasy journey that no one will be able to forget for a very long time.
We Got This Covered - David Morgan - 5 / 5
Elden Ring is a marvel with scope and diversity of mind-boggling proportions. At the risk of hyperbole, it has dethroned Bloodborne as my favorite game of all time. It's all I've been able to think about since I got my hands on it, and the only thing I want to do now is play it with the rest of you.
Worth Playing - Chris "Atom" DeAngelus - 9.5 / 10
Elden Ring is exactly the game people were hoping it would be. It's the biggest FromSoft Soulslike to date, with a ton of polish and a bucketload of content. It won't change your mind if you don't enjoy the genre, but Elden Ring accomplishes what it had set out to do. Not every new feature hits, and it sometimes felt a touch too familiar, but when the biggest complaint I can think of is, "It feels like some of the best games ever made," that is a sign of its quality. Elden Ring is the game we've all been waiting for.
Xbox Achievements - Matt Lorrigan - 90%
Elden Ring offers up a gorgeous open world that is enticing and exciting to explore, along with excellent combat variety, amazing bosses to fight, and intricate dungeons to tackle. It might feel a little familiar, but this could well be FromSoftware’s best game to date.
XboxEra - Jesse Norris - 9.8 / 10
Elden Ring is a masterpiece of a title, with only a few minor issues. The co-op summon system is a pain, and mounted combat doesn’t always feel the best. Other than that this game is staggeringly good in every single area. It does for open-world games what people claimed Breath of the Wild did. Every part of the experience is elevated by an insane attention to detail. Few games have ever left me feeling so enthralled for the entirety of my playtime. Whether you’re going it solo or with a friend Elden Ring is one guaranteed to be one hell of a time.
IGN - Mitchell Saltzman - 10 / 10
Elden Ring is a massive iteration on what FromSoftware began with the Souls series, bringing its relentlessly challenging combat to an incredible open world that gives us the freedom to choose our own path.https://www.gaminginstincts.com/review/elden-ring-review-a-world-class-craftsmanship/
GamingInstincts - Leonid Melikhov - 10/10
Elden Ring not only has met my personal expectations, but surpassed them. It has also pushed the standard for future open world titles.


Other Relevant Information:

Jason Scheier:
The thing that surprised me most about Elden Ring is how good the exploration is. Better than BOTW in some ways. There's always some wild new distraction or surprise around the corner. Every ten minutes my mouth was on the floor and I was texting friends who are playing. Trust me: a quest log would make this a far worse experience. One of the reasons Elden Ring is so special is that it doesn't feel like so many other open-world checklist games. Quests and NPCs weave in and out as you play. They're opaque and surprising and brilliant
FWIW I've been playing on PC and while there are a few bad stutters (and a couple of crashes), it has mostly run just fine. Checked out the PS5 version and (to my untrained eye) the frame rate did not seem nearly as smooth, so I went back to PC.
USA today:
What sets this apart from other FromSoftware games isn’t the worldbuilding – it’s the world itself. [...] If you’ve played a triple-A game in the past decade, you know the drill. But a FromSoftware open world doesn’t feel like any other you’ve explored."
The Washington Post:
"Elden Ring is a game about discovering and pushing the limits of possibility. It dares you, over and over, to keep pushing, making this unlike any other adventure I’ve experienced. It would be understatement to say [ER] has exceeded my expectations."
Polygon:
"From Software has done more than just remix its earlier games and layer on open-world influence with [ER]. The studio’s conversation with the player goes in fascinating new directions, and there are great surprises here for longtime fans of Souls games"
Dan Ryckert
I haven’t been a huge Souls guy traditionally, but Elden Ring is one of the most impressive games I’ve ever played. I’m 36 hours in and I feel like I’ve barely scratched the surface. It’s the first game since BOTW that’s given me a similar sense of wonder and discovery.
Opencritic:
Elden Ring is the 2# best reviewed game on Opencritic
Gene Park Souls
Elden Ring is the easiest Souls game to get into. This does not make the game easy by any means. But it’s now almost impossible to be “stuck.” If a boss is halting your progress, simply start walking in another direction. Find something else to do. Elden Ring has generous checkpointing that almost eliminates the Souls “boss rush,” fighting your way thru a gauntlet to your lost experience points and to the boss. Here, if you fight a boss, you can usually fight it again in seconds.

Video Reviews ( With No Spoilers)

Gamespot:



SphereHunter:



IGN:



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Elder Legend:

 
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TintoConCasera

I bought a sex doll, but I keep it inflated 100% of the time and use it like a regular wife
The aggregated scores are a full grade above what I thought the top range of most scores would be. I think this just moved from wait for sale to preorder status. no experience with these games, but the Eurogamer review leads me to believe that doesn’t matter too much.
I've read many times that this one has a great tutorial for beginners, and the open world nature of the game should make it less frustating thatn the previous titles.

Hope you like the game dude. BEst case scenario you'll have a ton of souls games to play after this one.
 

Banjo64

cumsessed
Thanks OP. Had this pre-ordered at full price on PS5 since pre-orders went live. Think I’ll buy on Xbox as well. These reviews feel like a watershed moment for gaming in my opinion. Still can’t believe it.
 

CGiRanger

Banned
So it seems the open-world infused Souls worked out quite well going from the impressions available. Curious to experience that's for sure.

Also, morbidly curious about any outlier low-score reviews that may appear and seeing if their complaints are legitimate of if they're just trolling for attention
 

Draugoth

Gold Member
Nice. I was wondering what the hell happened in the other thread.

> creates official review thread

> doesn't update official review thread

> abandons official review thread

> Draugoth Draugoth posts a summary of all the reviews literally 314 posts into the thread




Draugoth Draugoth the hero we need but don't deserve

I was planning to maker this thread. But the other OP did it first and it's now locked.
 
Nice. I was wondering what the hell happened in the other thread.

> creates official review thread

>doesn't update official review thread

> abandons official review thread

> Draugoth Draugoth posts a summary of all the reviews literally 314 posts into the thread




Draugoth Draugoth the hero we need but don't deserve
He created it super early, got locked, created another pretty early. He apparently just wanted to have his name atop of the thread without the effort.
 
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AV

We ain't outta here in ten minutes, we won't need no rocket to fly through space
Holy shit. The only souls like I’ve played was dark souls 1 and I hated it. Might have to give this a go

They've come a very, very long way from DS1. I adore DS1 but it does feel incredibly out of date now compared to what came after.
 

Midn1ght

Member
From Software is in a league of its own.
Congratulation to them and have fun everyone!

Steam numbers are gonna be fun this week-end.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Isa
I do think there's going to be some exaggeration here and there, but this is clearly a masterpiece. Here's a line from The Guardian that's obvious BS.

"Combat in Elden Ring is unmatched by any other game, with a sense of heft and precision that rewards patience and learning, whether battling with weapons or spells"

It just sounds like this game is firing on every cylinder with basically no real weaknesses.
  • Dark Souls style art design that we've seen before.
  • Dark Souls style combat that we've seen before.
  • Dark Souls style lore / story that we've seen before.
  • Greatly expanded scale, with great open world design.
  • Difficulty seems more suited to proper balancing, rather than punishment.
I can see how that cumulatively gets to a 10 if all the content is as good as they're saying. Very impressive. Did not expect this.
 
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