5/5 ★ – NaviNaviiii's review of Elden Ring.

What can I say about this game that hasn't already been said? It's easily one of the best action JRPGs I have ever played and one of the best games ever made. My journey with this game, however, is somewhat of a weird one tho. I first tried to get into the game a couple of months after it came out, and with it being my first entry to a Souls game, I played with extreme caution and haste. This led me getting frustrated in beginning portions of the game because of not understanding the basic mechanics of the game and being underleveled for not truly exploring everything. As well as playing on a last gen console with too many frame drops that would make something simple like dodging hard to execute. This led me to take multiple extended breaks from playing, which in turn ended up to my detriment since I would forget basic mechanics such as running for example. While there were glimpses of light of the potential the game had that I could see, such as when I beat the Tree Sentinel or Godrick for the first time and the euphoria that came with it, I inevitably put this game on hold as my ignorance of how to play the game "properly" became apparent. I was too busy trying to play the way I wanted to without first understanding how the game wanted me to play. After two years, a DLC came out and the resurgence of the Souls community online with new content, and with that, my interest for this game has sparked right back up. After watching some of my favorite creators make content for it, I went ahead and bought Elden Ring with the SOTE DLC with it and began my second venture into a Souls game. This time being equipped with knowledge on how the game worked, the early game that I used to get stuck on became a cake walk. Only taking less than 10 tries on bosses that I used to be stuck on for hours and now taking less than a sixth of that time, I was breezing through the early game. After catching up to where I was in my first playthrough in half the time it took me to get there, I was ready to face off all the new areas I haven't even touched. Elden Ring is such a fun game. Whether it was exploring the vast world of the Lands Between or fighting an incredible boss, there's so much that this game that does so well. From enemies to dungeon layouts to how everything is placed meticulously and how all the areas connected to each other, I was genuinely amazed and was so happy whenever I found a new route or shortcut to an area I already knew. The vast amount of weapons and playstyles is so overwhelming at first, but it ends up giving the game so much replayability that each playthrough could feel so different from each other. I can't wait to test out other cool weapons and builds in future playthroughs. This game is also visually one of the most beautiful games I have ever seen. So many of the areas of the game look like that came straight out of a painting and are so vivid and colorful that no two ever look the same. Whether it was the beautiful blue lakes of Liurnia or the drowned out grays of Crumbling Farum Azula, the range of these sights is unlike no other. I haven't said much on how I played, but I used to be very cautious and try to watch and dodge attacks and learn them without attacking. This would end up having long fights that were completely unnecessary and would usually result in me dying a lot. So I figured if I die a lot, I might as well start trying to get more hits in and that's when I became much more aggressive and it resulted in me getting better at the game (mostly) at a faster rate. I think this game really rewards aggression when used correctly. There are punish windows for a lot of bosses that would be completely missed if you're not ready to hit as soon as they're available. I know a lot of people don't like this, but for me, this made me understand the flow of combat much better and honestly, made a lot of bosses for me fun! I think there's an incredible amount of bosses in this game that are just either visually stunning or have such a unique moveset that leave an impressive on you. I will never forget the entrance of Radahn's castle and Festival with such a great build up and his fight with gravitational magic was the one coolest things I experienced in this game. Hoarah Loux chasing you soaked in blood like a mad man was one of the most intense and yet entertaining things I've witnessed. But when it comes to bosses, I have to talk about her... Malenia, Blade of Miquella is one of the most infamous bosses of all time. Regarded by many as the hardest boss Fromsoft has made, I knew for a fact that I would be on this boss for days, hell even months as from what I saw other players experienced, yet I was determined to not quit, so I went and dived right in. This fight is hardest boss fight I have ever fought in my life. This required patience, correct positioning, and tight reflexes as one mistake could easily snowball to a loss. It was tough, grueling, and was pushing me to my limits on how well I can play this game. It took me two days and 281 attempts to beat her. With that all being said, it was genuinely one of the most fun parts of any game I have ever experienced. Learning how to dodge her moves that seemed impossible at first, gave me such a confidence boost and adrenaline that kept going. The more I got better at fighting her, the more I knew I could do it. First it was learning how to dodge Waterfowl dance which is surprisingly not as difficult as you would expect. Then it was dodging her three quick slashes that would always seem to get me. Next was her scarlet rot dive bomb which allowed me to know I can keep up her second phase. Then finally, it was her the clone attack was when I knew that I could beat her, I KNEW I CAN BEAT HER that spurred me on to continue forward. I got out of my chair because I was so hyped to do this. I knew I could achieve victory. It would take a lot of skill, patience, and maybe a little bit of luck. Ok who I am kidding, it took a lot luck as well, but finally was able to achieve the impossible and defeated Malenia. The euphoric ecstacy was one of the best feelings I have ever had. The triumph over an impossible obstacle is one of a kind, and I will never forget for the rest of my life. Thank you, Malenia, for giving me that joy. This game might have turned me into a masochist and I genuinely may be insane for saying this, but I can't wait to fight you again. One thing I do also want to mention as well cuz I believe it is probably one of the most underrated things about this game is the story. It starts off fairly simple. After the death of her son, Godwyn, Queen Marika shatters the Elden Ring throwing the Lands Between in chaos and having her other children duke it out to become the next Elden Lord. We, the player, must defeat these shardbearers and become the next Elden Lord to restore peace. But as the game progresses, it becomes more apparent that these gods that rule were not as benevolent as they appear to be even before the ring was shattered. It's not until Ranni that wants to escape the power the gods have over her that the main story commences. I believe that this story is trying to say that people in power will always try to oppress over others, and it's up to the common citizen to rise up and stand against them and control their own destiny. You have character like Ranni who want to get rid of the status quo and let the people rule themselves with no outer gods interfering and with the help of you and her loyal followers. Rya, who is so sweet and innocent, learns of her ancestry and is ashamed of it that she rather die than live. Milicent who starts off so sickly, but then becomes an impressive warrior only to learn that it was to the machinations of someone else that had plans for her, so she decides to take fate into her own hands. Nepheli Loux, who learned of her adopted father's cruel acts, decides to stand up against in the name of what's right. Even Roderika and Master Hewg, early npcs you meet in the first hours of the game, are some of the most endearing because they're common folk that has helped you throughout your journey. Hearing Hewg call us Lord and Roderika begging us to defeat Marika might be one of the most subtle and yet impactful scenes in the game. I haven't done all the side quests or all the endings yet, so there very much be more, but this is what I gathered from playing this game. While I do have some criticisms with how NPC questlines are dealt with, some of them having very convoluted steps in thrm and looking them up can break immersion at times, I figure it is on par of the course when it comes to these types of games. It would be nice to have an ingame system of keeping track of these. Those are my feeling on this incredible game. I personally cannot wait to play more souls games and play this one again. It was such a refreshing experience and I'm glad to have take part of it. I was wondering if maybe these games may just not be for me, but I think that I might have just been wrong about that. Elden Ring is one of my favorite games now