So first mea culpa error. I was fine with it convinced That Elden Ring was not a good entry point for newcomers. The game mechanics are not simplistic compared to games like Dark Souls or Bloodborne. On the contrary: additional layers have been added, such as the somewhat unique Ashes of War system.

Moreover, the open world design almost forces you to skip things or overlook them completely. Think about the basic parts, such as improving your weapon scaling with specific stats or so-called spiritual ash that you can summon to help you. There are plenty of reasons why someone could still fall apart on the Elden Ring very quickly.

But this is not what happens. At least not yet anyway. There is a huge difference with the previous games from FromSoftware. This has to do with the open world, which ensures that as a player you have more time and space to fall in love with how weird and mysterious a game like this can be.

Being able to decide for yourself what challenges you will face with what equipment and when is actually possible in the Dark Souls series, but only if you know exactly where to look and what to skip. In short: This personal choice was meant for extremists who didn’t need that kind of freedom at all.

Elden Ring gives all players the same freedom and that makes a different world. Nobody I’ve talked to about this game has ever gone down a similar path, and I’ve talked to a lot of people about it. It’s funny how they talk about “first big boss” and “third story boss”.

There is no such fixed system at all. You’ll likely be the first to bump into Margit, Fell Omen at Stormveil Castle, but you can skip this entire castle. Then suddenly the “first” and “third” indicators no longer equal that much.

Being able to skip or delay some challenges lowers the threshold you have to cross before Souls gets really interesting. Not everyone wants to meet their boss after 10 minutes who won’t let you pass. Then as a lover of these types of games you can start talking about the depth, the space for the different game modes, the great puzzles and the special characters, but that doesn’t do anyone any good who doesn’t get past the first boss.

How different is the Elden Ring. Judging by Steam stats, more than 70 percent of all players on that platform have already defeated Margit. That’s a pretty high percentage, especially when you consider the size of the group of people who play it.

This includes a lot of people who have never tried this type of game before. Still more than two-thirds managed to beat Margit. And who knows what they did too. How many things have they discovered on their own? How many plans should they go to this one place.

I love seeing how people around me discover Elden Ring in their own way. Remarkably, they all interpret the things they encounter along the way a little differently. This also leads to further repercussions in their experiences.

Some immediately run out of that very difficult area to teleport to, while others see it as an opportunity to collect some really powerful items and use them to their advantage in the starting area. It just depends on where your head is at that moment.

This new addition also ensures that the community aspect comes alone more than ever. Campfire stories about what everyone has been through constantly raises the need to keep playing on your own. In this way, the newcomers help each other better prepare for what is to come. Where do you find this great sword or that wonderful amulet.

So please don’t be put off by that group of “fans” who say that using Soul Ash is cheating, that magic is a convincingly easy situation and that you should immediately give up your player license if you dare to kill another player. asking for help. Unfortunately, the gatekeepers will always be there, but there are always plenty of other doors to open in the Elden Ring.