The Elden Ring review embargo has lifted two days ahead of release and the game has secured near-perfect scores from critics, making FromSoft’s latest game one of the highest-rated modern games ever. Elden Ring, is the newest action RPG from the Dark Souls developer, FromSoftware. Along with the normal FromSoft names like Hidetaka Miyazaki, the game also has the notable credit of Game of Thrones creator Geroge R.R. Martin, who helped build out the game’s lore. Our review, which will be coming from Nick, is still a while away, but in the meantime, this is what everyone else is saying.
Easy Allies | 9.5 out of 10
- Any new From Software game comes with a lot of expectations, and Elden Ring delivers. It’s a thrilling adventure that provides a wonderful sense of discovery through an expertly crafted world, seamlessly incorporating the excellent combat and encounters the studio is known for. The level of difficulty may be off-putting for some, but Elden Ring is so fantastic that it’s absolutely worth fighting through to the end.
Game Informer | 10 out of 10
- Elden Ring challenged me, captivated me, and enchanted me, an unyielding deluge of discovery and artistic vision unbound. 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 | 10 out of 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. From the moment you step foot into The Lands Between you’ll be engrossed, and while you’ll no doubt experience some setbacks on your adventure – such as a boss that at first seems impossible to defeat – there’s always somewhere else to go to cool off, pick yourself up, and perhaps power yourself up before returning to have another go. That is to say, you don’t just play Elden Ring; you live in its world for hours at a time. It will consume you, but you’ll willingly throw yourself into its maw with fervour.
GameSpot | 10 out of 10
- In a genre that has become wrought with bloated and over-designed games, Elden Ring is defiantly contrarian in almost every way. Its commitment to design by subtraction and to placing the responsibility of charting a path through its world entirely on the player makes it stand head and shoulders above other open-world titles. Elden Ring takes the shards of what came before and forges them into something that will go down in history as one of the all-time greats: a triumph in design and creativity, and an open-world game that distinguishes itself for what it doesn’t do as much as what it does.
God is a Geek | 10 out of 10
- Deep, wide, and absolutely packed with adventure, Elden Ring’s immense, deadly open world is nothing short of game-changing.
Guardian | 5 out of 5
- Video games can be all kinds of different things, representing all manner of artistic ambitions. Most, however, share a common goal: to conjure a compelling fictional reality, filled with beckoning mysteries, enchanting secrets, and enriching opportunities to compete and collaborate. They aim to provide a liminal space in which a determined player can fix that which is broken, order that which is chaotic. By this definition, at least, Elden Ring is the finest video game yet made. Its final gift is the assurance that, whatever monsters lurk in a broken world, with perseverance and cooperation, they too can be overcome – all without losing the mystery and wonder that makes our existence beguiling, infuriating, and fascinating.
IGN | 10 out of 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.
Respawn Station | 9 out of 10
- Elden Ring truly is one of the finest examples of an engaging and fun open-world game that the genre has ever seen released. It’s a game that is as wide as it is deep, it’s full of sights to see, wars to be waged, and moments to be experienced that you simply won’t find in many other games.
As you can see, Elden Ring is being hailed as nothing short of a masterpiece. The most common criticism about the game is the rather vague narrative that threads the gameplay together, but at this point, that is more or less FromSoft’s signature. Other than that, Elden Ring boasts a sprawling open world packed with things to see and bosses to face. While the game is still difficult, it is apparently a much more manageable dose of punishment. And thanks to the game’s design, if a boss is giving you trouble, you can step away and grow stronger elsewhere before going back for round two.
One important thing to note is that Elden Ring does not have a quest tracker like most other open-world games. This has led quite a few critics to advise players to keep a notebook handy to keep track of names and corresponding quests.
In short, if you are a fan of Souls games, then you can rest assured that this is the best game in FromSoft’s resume. It’s a hauntingly beautiful world full of terrifying monsters that want nothing more to make you break your controller. Elden Ring is out this Friday for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC.
