Elden Ring Review (PS5)

excellent
key review info
  • Game: Elden Ring
  • Platform: Playstation 5
  • Show system requirements
  • Reviewed on:
Elden Ring artwork

Just like every other From Software project, Elden Ring became one of the most anticipated games the moment it was announced. The collaboration with George R.R. Martin made it even more popular among Souls fans. Suffice to say that the hype around Elden Ring was something that few other titles in the making have experienced. Did From Software delivered on that hype? I think it did and then some.

Elden Ring is not really a departure from the previous Souls games. The only thing that’s changing is the fact that the Souls formula is no longer confined in linear designed levels and put instead in an open-world environment. It’s been often compared to Zelda: Breath of the Wild and I think it’s a fair comparison.

Having played and finished a few Souls games, I think it’s safe to say that Elden Ring is the most approachable. However, that doesn’t mean that the Souls games have suddenly become easier. Bosses will still punish you for the smallest mistake, but you have more options at your disposal. For example, if you feel like your character is underleveled for a boss, you can explore other areas and come back later.

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Since Elden Ring is now set in an open-world environment, the gameplay loop is very different than what we’ve been used to. The linear level design aspect of the Souls games has been kept untouched in Elden Ring in the form of “dungeons.” Smaller in size and with fewer enemies in the starting zones, dungeons become massive labyrinths in the latter part of the game. Each of these dungeons have a mini-boss at the end, which drops a piece of gear.

The world of Elden Ring is absolutely massive. Even after many dozens of hours, you can still find new areas in zones that you think you’ve already explored. The addition of a horse, Torrent, that players can ride while roaming the open-world is another important addition to the Souls formula. Of course, that also involves mounted combat! Have you have dreamed of playing as a lancer? Well, now you absolutely can, at least while you’re not running a dungeon or fight a world boss.

In fact, there are so many ways to play Elden Ring that I’m pretty sure its replayability value is to the roof. There are 10 classes you can choose from in Elden Ring and while they start with different stats and equipment, that’s not going to matter at all in the long term. The only thing that really matters when choosing a class is the starting gear. You’ll be leveling quite fast, and the starting stats won’t longer matter when you reach level 50. Basically, play what you like and change it on the fly if you feel like what you chose doesn’t click.

One other important aspect that makes Elden Ring such a delight is the exploration aspect. Although the game does feature a map, it’s completely blank at the beginning and you’ll have to find fragments to reveal it. Think of the map like a big puzzle that you must complete to have the bigger picture. There’s no handholding when it comes to quests or where you should go next and what you need to do to progress the story. Although some NPCs will subtly point you in the right direction, think of these as bigger objectives that must be tackled after you’ve been exploring a big chunk of the map.

The world of Elden Ring is fascinating. You can meet a certain kind of enemies during that day, and a completely different on during nights. There are even bosses that only appear during nighttime. Also, there are several important NPCs that you’ll meet throughout the world, each with their own quests. Completing these quests usually takes a lot of time, but they will reward you with very nice gear. Please don’t kill NPCs, you might miss a nice questline and good item.

The combat system while largely remains the same, introduces a very important mechanic that makes fighting bosses a little bit easier. You can now easily stagger bosses by hitting them with charged heavy attacks. When an enemy is staggered, you have a small window of a few seconds in which you can apply a critical hit that does a ton of damage. I can’t stress enough how important this mechanic is for all types of classes.

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Even mages can stagger bosses by repeatedly hitting them with certain spells, so it’s not just melee classes that benefit from the new mechanic. By the way, this is in addition to the parry mechanic, which is just a powerful if you’re an expert.

As far as the weapons and armor in Elden Ring, I’m very happy that From Software now allows players to modify a weapon’s affinity. Basically, that means that you can change a weapon’s scalability stats making a sword scale with magic or faith in addition to strength and dexterity. That’s now possible with the introduction of so-called Ashes of War, special items that allow you to replace not just the affinities of your weapons, but also the weapon skills.

Many weapons come with one weapon skill/technique/art, which can be replaced or removed completely if you don’t want to use it. Of course, unique weapons can’t be modified, just upgraded, but you can easily turn a standard weapon into a completely overpowered killing machine. The Ashes of War adds another important layer of complexity to the game, as it offers tons of customizations on top of the bucketload of weapon types available in the game.

Armor in Elden Ring remains a fashion thing. Although the rule of thumb is to always use the piece of armor that offers the highest protection (poise being very important), the numbers become irrelevant at higher levels. Few pieces of amor offer benefits other than just better protection against physical/magic damage, so you’ll want to aim for these in mid- to late-game.

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What version should I play: PlayStation 5 or PC?

I had the chance to play both versions of Elden Ring and hands down the PlayStation 5 is the better version. I’ve been experiencing the stuttering issue that many PC players have been complaining about since the game’s launch, and it’s quite annoying. The PlayStation 5 has its own issues like texture pop-in when you’re entering a new zone, but they’re not even close to the problems that PC players have been experiencing. It’s true that the PC version is slightly better visually, but it’s not an acceptable trade-off. If you can, definitely go for the PlayStation 5 version.


The Good

  • Massive world to explore
  • Great worldbuilding
  • New mechanics elevate an established formula
  • Boss design and fights
  • Amazing art

The Bad

  • Some technical issues
  • An upgrade to the UX is needed
  • No accessibility options

Conclusion

Elden Ring is everything that I dreamed of and more. Although I did expect From Software to refine the Souls recipe, I was quite surprised by the large amount of new mechanics and how well the Souls formula has been implemented in an open-world environment.

But it’s not just the exploration aspect that makes Elden Ring the best Souls game out there. The massive open-world that doesn’t feel empty at all, the huge number of bosses and dungeons, as well as the boss fights elevate it to an entirely new level. Elden Ring is From Software at its best.

Review codes provided by the publisher.

story 9
gameplay 9
concept 10
graphics 8
audio 9
multiplayer 9
final rating 9
Editor's review
excellent
 

Elden Ring screenshots (41 Images)

Elden Ring artwork
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