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Julius

Elden Ring (25th February 2022)

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Note to self: Don’t constantly back away from a boss without knowing what’s behind and then fall off a bloody cliff. :laughing:

Had a blast playing this over the weekend. Made a lot of progress with exploring the map and pinching loads of items on horseback! :D

Also made it to what I imagine is the first big cheese of the game. Was actually kicking his ass on the very first attempt (with the assistance of my ghost wolves :heh:) but then the bugger started using a dragon head to breathe fire everywhere, and in trying to avoid the flames I did the very stupid thing that I mentioned at the start of this post. :grin: 
Got him on the second attempt though. :cool:

So yeah, now I have this special rune thingy. Am I right in thinking it can either be changed into one of the boss’s weapons, a temporary buff, or simply converted to a large number of standard runes?

I took a look at the weapons it would unlock with creepy no eyeballs lady near the giant fingers, but reckon I’d prefer to just get the runes from it and add a couple more levels to my character. :hmm:
What do those that have finished the game recommend?

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5 minutes ago, RedShell said:

What do those that have finished the game recommend?

Never ever in a souls game use boss rewards to gain runes.
It's not worth it and everyone will hate you. Not in the game, but in real life.

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3 minutes ago, drahkon said:

Never ever in a souls game use boss rewards to gain runes.
It's not worth it and everyone will hate you. Not in the game, but in real life.

But the weapons look so crappy. :hehe: And I don’t even currently have the strength/dex to use ‘em. ::shrug:

You just want to force me to grind, don’t you? :heh: 

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What would I recommend? Screw faffing on with the various systems the game has to offer and just grind to victory!

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Just now, RedShell said:

You just want to force me to grind, don’t you? :heh: 

No, I just don't want you to experience hate :p 

It's all a matter of what you want...do you want to try out some new weapons and/or go for full completion (trophy/achievement)? If so, don't use them for souls.
Do you want to quickly gain a few souls that you will eventually get anyways via regular play and therefore waste the boss items and be hated by all? Go ahead. No judgement.

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Credits rolled for this last night. It’s weird though, despite having played it for 60+ hours and “finished” the game, it still feels as if I’ve only just scratched the surface! :eek:

But yeah, I definitely get why Elden Ring has received so much praise, it is absolutely crazy for a game that is so gargantuan to also be so polished, and the amount of content it offers at such a high quality level is quite frankly ridiculous. :o

It’s certainly not perfect, although any complaints I have are pretty minor really, stuff like the mini dungeons becoming somewhat repetitive as the game progresses and UI related things, like not being able to compare the stats of your equipped gear to that of the gear sold by traders. 
There were a handful of iffy AI situations during my adventures as well, almost exclusively involving winged enemies, where they would end up landing from higher areas and killing themselves in the process, it even happened one time with a boss! :laughing: Those were some easy runes. 

I ended up sticking with my starting gear (the bog-standard axe :heh:) for basically 90% of the game, even defeated the fire giant with it. :cool: But I switched to a samurai sword for the final sections which had an amazing special move that could easily take out multiple small enemies and deal serious damage to bosses too. Probably should’ve started using it sooner, but oh well. :hehe:

@drahkon, you’ll be happy to know that I didn’t end up using any of the boss runes to level up. :D In fact, most of them are still just sitting in my inventory gathering dust. Did get a couple of weapons from them, but I was happy enough with my crappy axe/samurai sword combo so never even used those boss weapons in combat. 

Anyway, think I’ll still be playing this for a while yet, the exploration aspect is really enjoyable and I know for sure there’s a lot of stuff I’m yet to discover. Would also like to spend some more time with the multiplayer aspects.

Speaking of multiplayer, I did have a funny experience one time when I summoned assistance for a particularly tricky dungeon. The place was a right maze with loads of intertwining spherical tunnels, I ended up getting separated from my helpers and despite their best efforts to then guide me (using those little light crystals to create a path) I just couldn’t for the life of me figure out where the hell to go! :laughing: 
I’d always somehow end up on the other side of a room to them, and just when I thought the situation couldn’t get anymore embarrassing, I was invaded and the invader proceeded to destroy me while my helpers watched from the other side of that inaccessible room! :blush: They were probably glad I got killed actually. :grin:

Anyway, fantastic game, glad I finally got around to playing it and also finishing it before the end of the year. :) 

Edited by RedShell
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25 minutes ago, RedShell said:

@drahkon, you’ll be happy to know that I didn’t end up using any of the boss runes to level up. :D 

Phew, ban averted :p 

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Happy to see that you enjoyed it, @RedShell. It really is a special game.

I'm in stitches here reading your story about you and your helpers. I bet they were fuming with you. :D 

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15 minutes ago, Hero-of-Time said:

I'm in stitches here reading your story about you and your helpers. I bet they were fuming with you. :D 

Hehehe! Yeah, it went on for quite a long time too, so I imagine they might’ve been pretty pissed. :laughing: Hopefully they saw the funny side though. :hehe:

I started cracking up afterwards at the thought of them potentially streaming their gameplay. That would’ve made for an entertaining show! :D

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The game has sailed by the figure of 20 million units sold:

Per Gematsu:

Quote

Total worldwide shipments and digital sales for Elden Ring have surpassed 20 million units, publisher Bandai Namco and developer FromSoftware announced.

The open-world action RPG was last reported to have shipped 16.6 million units as of June 30, 2022, meaning an additional 3.4 million units have been sold.

Crazy figures, and very much deserved ones. 

Still patiently waiting on that DLC... :p

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Vaati with a wonderful vid to commemorate this game's first anniversary (spoilers for those who haven't played Elden Ring!):

How the hell has it already been a year?! 

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We finally have a title and a piece of artwork for the upcoming DLC expansion: Shadow of the Erdtree

Let's. Freaking. Gooooooooooooooo! 

michael-scott-the-office.gif

No date, no footage, but I guess this was the closest day to the one year anniversary that they'd be willing to drop some news. 

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And that's totally our boy Miquella riding Torrent :bouncy: I would assume going off to see what he can do about the whole Godwyn situation? I also can't help but wonder if this is a post-ending DLC? Might make sense given that I feel it's been implied that there might be more than one expansion coming – and expansion is the word being used, so it sounds like it'll be pretty sizeable, based purely on what I'm reading about how this is apparently the first time Bandai Namco have used that phrasing for From DLC (apparently Sony used it for The Old Hunters with Bloodborne?). 

Man, it kind of feels like nothing, but...it also feels like a lot to drop so randomly :D having recently played through Artorias of the Abyss and completing The Old Hunters last night, it's fair to say that some of From's best work is hiding away in their DLC, so my body is ready.

I'm ready to rise once more :bouncy:

EDIT:

Quote

And that's totally our boy Miquella riding Torrent

Or is it? I would assume so based on his braids, being barefoot, the white cloth he wears, but I've read around a bit today and seen a really interesting theory that this is in fact a young Marika heading towards the Erdtree after it has been struck by an Elden star. 

And then another awesome theory based on it being Miquella is that he's trying to fuse his soul with Godwyn's body. 

So many possibilities. This can't come soon enough! 

Edited by Julius

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From an interview at the PlayStation Awards, Lead Producer Yasuhiro Kaito has said that the DLC is "still a little ways off, but progress is going well."

Screenshot_1.png?ex=657c2f91&is=6569ba91

So...that'll be any time between mid-to-end Q1 and the end of 2024, then :p

Just please be at the TGAs...please. I need a trailer. Heck, maybe just another piece of concept art. I need something

(it is getting to that point where I'm considering replaying the game just to try out another build and refresh myself on everything before the DLC lands, though)

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@Julius

With how things are moving on Steam and Youtube...are you doing ok or suffering from all the excitement? :p

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17 minutes ago, drahkon said:

@Julius

With how things are moving on Steam and Youtube...are you doing ok or suffering from all the excitement? :p

I'm just patiently waiting, ya know, reeeeeeeeeally patiently...

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...nah, who am I kidding, let's gooooooooo :bouncy:

I will say, I do think the barrage of new releases we're about to walk into is keeping my hype somewhat in check, as I'm forcing myself to hold off on a lot of next month's releases besides Rebirth. I selfishly hope they aren't silly enough to drop it on the game's anniversary towards the end of next month, but I also hope that that's exactly what they do :D

Really curious to see just how big this DLC has got as well as how it's priced, as releasing DLC after nearly two years of near radio silence and a year after it was announced is insane, to the point I'll be shocked if it's not at least some 20-30 hours? Especially for the type of game it is...

But yeah, patiently waiting. I'll take whatever we get, even if it's only two hours of Ranni talking to us about the weather :laughing:

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Trailer for Shadow of the Erdtree premieres tomorrow at 15:00 GMT! 

Let's. Freaking. Gooooooooooooo

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Per Billbil-kun, Shadow of the Erdtree and various complete editions of the game - a GOTY Edition and Collector's Edition - could be arriving 21st June. 

4 months seems like a reasonable wait from a proper reveal to launch for what I'm assuming is some very substantial DLC.

The summer is looking awfully quiet at the moment, too, so I'd be very happy with a summer return to The Lands Between :D

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To be honest? I don't care that much :p

Would I like to play it? Yes, eventually.
Do I want to buy a new copy and the DLC? No. At least not anytime soon.

But yay for those who are looking forward to it ( @Julius:D)

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Shadow of the Erdtree arrives 21st June! 

Quote

In the Land of Shadow, Miquella awaits the return of his promised Lord.

The Land of Shadow.

A place obscured by the Erdtree. Where the goddess Marika first set foot.

A land purged in an unsung battle. Set ablaze by Messmer's flame.

It was to this land that Miquella departed. Divesting himself of his flesh, his strength, his lineage. Of all things Golden.

What a trailer. Oh my goodness. 

:bowdown:

Edited by Julius

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Some more details and a separate trailer (without the countdown):

The expansion will be priced at $39.99 USD. 

There will be a Collector's Edition. 

lYkoIWa.jpeg

Really digging just how distinct the environmental design is compared to the base game! And that Gatling crossbow (and that guy's armour)! 

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Quote

"ELDEN RING" is an action RPG set in an authentic dark fantasy world. The game allows players to explore vast fields and dungeons to discover the unknown and enjoy the sense of accomplishment that comes from overcoming obstacles and challenges. Combining the development capabilities of FromSoftware and the marketing power of Bandai Namco Entertainment's overseas network, this title has been played by fans around the world since its release on February 25, 2022, and has shipped more than 23 million units worldwide. In addition, the game's gameplay and unique worldview have been highly acclaimed, and the game has won the four main game awards around the world, including "The Game Awards 2022," "Golden Joystick Awards 2022," "26th D.I.C.E. Awards," and "Game of The Year" at the "2023 Game Developers Choice Awards," and many other famous awards in the world

Very much deserved.

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The price for the DLC is very interesting - suggests this really could be almost a full game again?

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2 hours ago, Sheikah said:

The price for the DLC is very interesting - suggests this really could be almost a full game again?

It's a really interesting price for DLC honestly (£34.99 who hasn't seen the UK pricing for it yet), and yeah, I do think everything we know about it - and it being in development for nearly two years now - certainly points to it being incredibly substantial. 

The Eurogamer interview with Miyazaki revealed that, based purely on surface area, the location it takes place in will be larger than Limgrave; there will be more than 10 new bosses; and 8 new weapon types, which is certainly a lot. 

Miyazaki also talks in this IGN Japan interview about there currently not being plans for a sequel or any further DLC - makes sense, we've waited nearly 2 years for this as it is - so I think it's reasonable to expect it to be pretty sizeable considering they're taking a one-and-done approach to DLC this time around. 

I've seen some say they think this will weigh in at 50 - 70 hours...which seems pretty preposterous, to me. I think realistically we're looking at something more akin to the length of their more linear titles with this all - seemingly? - taking place in the size of a larger region, so it all being condensed and focused in one area, with a bunch of legacy dungeons, etc., so I think it'll be something like 20 - 35 hours, obviously depending on skill level, how much you explore, etc. 

Anyways, still waiting for Vaati to turn up with a breakdown, but Quelaag had an awesome breakdown on the new trailer that's worth checking out if anyone else likes to speculate:

And, additionally, I found Ratatoskr's (and the more widespread) idea on the origins of Messmer's title as "the Impaler" (the boss front and centre of Shadow's marketing) pretty damning: this dude totally impaled Marika. 

Seriously weighing up whether I want to replay this game before the DLC drops, because otherwise I think I've got an incredibly hefty re-spec on my hands, as playing Bloodborne and Armored Core VI last year sold me on a completely different approach to the combat in these games that I hadn't tried out in Demon's Souls, Dark Souls, or Elden Ring before (speed and dodging vs traditional sword and board). 

Hmm. 

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