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Elden ring is out and I played for 2 hours...

elguapo

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and it SUCKED!!! designed for xbox geeks and not kb/mouse. controls were horrid, slow, and clunky. had to right click /back to get out of each layer of the menu. No map, no quests with icons where to go, just run around and try not to die in the start area to 3 big ass mobs that 1 hit you.
 

Clayton

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Elden Ring, to my knowledge, is basically Dark Souls 3 with a Breath of the Wild influenced open world.

People who look at metacritic will see Breath of the Wild, Red Dead Redemption 2 and Elden Ring all alone at the top but the reality is that they all have specific audiences they are catering to. You really need to put in the time to appreciate all three games. They aren't as immediate as a lot of lower-scored games.

I have heard that console is the way to play Elden Ring atm. Im sure that will change here in the upcoming weeks.
 

Sharkonabicycle

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It's Dark Souls 4. I really don't even call it Elden Ring anymore. IMO it's a 7.5/10 game... you play it for the scenery, music, cool enemies, and replayability. I've played it for about 12 hours, gotten past a few of the story bosses.. it's OKAY. At some point I'll beat it but when I discovered it's just another Souls game I was like, "Eh, not in the mood now. I'll finish it later." I thought we were getting something actually new like Sekiro.

My issues with it are:

Player and Enemy Combat:
Combat has gone backwards for the player. We went from DS2 to Bloodbourne which was refreshing, then to DS3 which wasn't really different but improved the response time and character movement. Then we went to Sekiro which was a HUGE step forward and the best From Software combat to date. Then we went to Dark Souls 4 (ER) which is like Dark Souls 1? What!?

Meanwhile, the bosses in Elden Ring are now acting like Bloodbourne/Sekiro bosses. VERY fast infinite combo strings, unpredictable movesets or ones where you almost need to guess what they'll use (since the animation can lead one of two ways). In Sekiro/BB this was fine because they gave the player abilities/dodge mechanics and tools to overcome it. DS1 does not... so the only way past certain bosses or to progress the story is: 1) Be naturally good at these games... you've played plenty of them so you know the routine, or 2) FARM THE SHIT OUT of the 'open world',

Controls:
Kind of touched on above but good lord From Software. It's over a decade since you got Dark Souls going and the control scheme outside of adding a jump button is still the EXACT same clunky mess of a system. The UI is as usual clunky and terrible... nothing has changed since DS1. Navigating the menus is a pain, and for God's sake, if you're going to start releasing games on PC (you've done it now with DS3, Sekiro, and now DS4) for the love of God get some keyboard/mouse support. What blows my mind is Sekiro was okay on mouse/keyboard... the controls in that game were very tight. Other games like Fallen Order (IMO a superior game, better graphics, sound, story, CONTROLS, etc.) seem to do it just fine. WTF is the problem here? Basically get a controller or get F'd.

Technical Issues:
When a 3090 is dropping sub 40 FPS in some areas..... across MANY (if not all) users, that's inexcusable. Your game is optimized horribly, end of discussion. It doesn't look that great to begin with and the 'open world' (I'll get to that) is not that taxing compared to what's going on in games like GTA, Cyberpunk, hell even Far Cry 6, so what the F is the issue here? They clearly rushed to get this out and threw it on PC because Sony/MSFT F'd up their console releases. BUT, even PS5/XBOX are having frame issues and mass glitches. Save files are getting corrupted, etc. I think some of it is their stupid Anti Cheat that was thrown on last minute, but c'mon... I9 and Ryzen 9 processors should be handling that with ease. You optimized your game half assed and patches are in order ASAP.

Open World:
Is meh.... it's basically a place to go farm levels that makes it seem less mundane than other Souls games where you just stayed in the same area. Killed mobs, bonfire, killed mobs, bonfire. Now you get an 'open world' to explore. That open world is not very appealing mind you. There's no NPCs, towns, lore, random cool things. Skyrim is FAR superior yet people are treating this like it's some God send game. That leads me to....

Shuns Newcomers:
RDR2 and BOTW never really did this because the games were.... let's just say it mechanically sound and easier. The controls were easier to use and get familiar with and when you died you generally knew WTF happened. RDR2 generally told you where to go but with games like RDR2/Skyrim the exploration was interesting. IMO BOTW was not that interesting of a world... it was very bland like Dark Souls 4.

That said, you're thrown into this game in a huge open world map with no real direction or dialogue. The game TELLS you where to go at the start by saying, "Go to this castle!" So you go there... and encounter a HORRIFICALLY overtuned boss. As someone who's played a # of the From Software titles I was blown away. This is no Taurus Demon, Last Giant, Gundyr, Bell dude, etc. Margit is almost like an end game (or second half) boss. So unless you're a HUGE vet to the series and used to the mechanics because you played the hell out of the other games... you have one option. Go FARM. Now From and critics have put a nice little tag on that and called it "EXPLORE" but no. It's go farm levels by killing mobs and then come back when you're overpowered. And until then F off.

Reviews in General:
OH MY GOD you'd think this was the second coming of Christ. 10/10, Game of the Year, REVOLUTINARY, best game ever released.

WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK!? It's Dark Souls 3 with a 'meh' open world map, you dorks. Now I enjoy my Souls fix (from time to time), and will admit it's fun for those that like that kind of experience, but it is in no means revolutionary or what I'd expect from a 2022 title. 2016's Dark Souls 3 was better in many ways.

It's a 7.5 with the tech issues, 8 at best out of 10 if those are fixed.
 
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Clayton

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RDR2 is one of my biggest disappointments in gaming. I think its a boring slog. It is an interesting world but man do I not enjoy playing it at all. Once you get into the missions it no longer feels like a world anymore. Just follow the straight line and dont mess up.

I also have never been able to get into Skyrim but thats partially because I destroyed Oblivion and that was enough to satisfy me. Skyrim is a much better game than RDR2 from what Ive played, though.

From's biggest mistake is making Sekiro before Elden Ring. They look like they're at the opposite ends of the spectrum and Sekiro fans are going to get bored. I'm hearing a lot of Sekiro fans being the most disappointed with this. This seems to be catered to BOTW fans and Dark Souls 1 fans. Im glancing at reddit and still seeing a ton of love for Elden Ring so there is an audience for it.

I do think Horizon Forbidden West and Elden Ring releasing next to each other is smart, though. I think they have opposite approaches to the open world formula.
 
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Mebert

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RDR2 is one of my biggest disappointments in gaming. I think its a boring slog. It is an interesting world but man do I not enjoy playing it at all. Once you get into the missions it no longer feels like a world anymore. Just follow the straight line and dont mess up.

I also have never been able to get into Skyrim but thats partially because I destroyed Oblivion and that was enough to satisfy me. Skyrim is a much better game than RDR2 from what Ive played, though.

From's biggest mistake is making Sekiro before Elden Ring. They look like they're at the opposite ends of the spectrum and Sekiro fans are going to get bored. I'm hearing a lot of Sekiro fans being the most disappointed with this. This seems to be catered to BOTW fans and Dark Souls 1 fans. Im glancing at reddit and still seeing a ton of love for Elden Ring so there is an audience for it.

I do think Horizon Forbidden West and Elden Ring releasing next to each other is smart, though. I think they have opposite approaches to the open world formula.
I plan to get that game when it reaches PC, the first one was a blast. Elden ring did not really appeal to me, and it sounds like it has had a rough launch
 

Clayton

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I plan to get that game when it reaches PC, the first one was a blast. Elden ring did not really appeal to me, and it sounds like it has had a rough launch
Rough PC launch is what Ive heard.

Im not actually sure Horizon Forbidden West will be on PC anytime soon but four years can fly by in no time. Dark Souls 3 is one of my favorite games of all time so Ill probably give Elden Ring a try but 'massive 100 hours game where you can get lost a bunch' doesnt have the same appeal to me as it did before I got married and had a kid. Now I'm looking more for '40 hours and you can optionally explore some more if you want' which is more Horizon Forbidden West.
 

Mebert

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Rough PC launch is what Ive heard.

Im not actually sure Horizon Forbidden West will be on PC anytime soon but four years can fly by in no time. Dark Souls 3 is one of my favorite games of all time so Ill probably give Elden Ring a try but 'massive 100 hours game where you can get lost a bunch' doesnt have the same appeal to me as it did before I got married and had a kid. Now I'm looking more for '40 hours and you can optionally explore some more if you want' which is more Horizon Forbidden West.
Yeah, it will take a long time for the game to reach PC, but games like that are not playable IMO until they are on PC. I do like taking down giant robot dinosaurs with a stick though.
 

Clayton

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Yeah, it will take a long time for the game to reach PC, but games like that are not playable IMO until they are on PC. I do like taking down giant robot dinosaurs with a stick though.
Horizon Zero Dawn is way better on PC than PS4. When Forbidden West finally comes out on PC I expect there might be a similar leap in quality.
 

MAIZEandBLUE09

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and it SUCKED!!! designed for xbox geeks and not kb/mouse. controls were horrid, slow, and clunky. had to right click /back to get out of each layer of the menu. No map, no quests with icons where to go, just run around and try not to die in the start area to 3 big ass mobs that 1 hit you.
IDK, I've really been enjoying it. Love the open world, love the loot and upgrade system. My only problem with it is that it's extremely difficult for new players to understand what's going on. Basically took an hour of watching youtube videos in order to be able to understand the game. I play on series X, so I don't know how it is for K&M but it plays really well on a controller.

I think the plot is a little flat and could use a better, more engaging, storyline to follow. IT seems that most of the things you're doing are side quest type things for people you meet in the open world with really no direction on how to do them. A lot of the time you just accidentally finish a quest by exploring.

It's been a lot more fun recently now that I've got my character in the mid 30s for level and have taken the time to go out and find weapons and armor. I find that most of the time I fight from the horse thing because that gives you a huge advantage on the mobs that attack. Just circle and swipe.
 

MAIZEandBLUE09

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RDR2 is one of my biggest disappointments in gaming. I think its a boring slog. It is an interesting world but man do I not enjoy playing it at all. Once you get into the missions it no longer feels like a world anymore. Just follow the straight line and dont mess up.

I also have never been able to get into Skyrim but thats partially because I destroyed Oblivion and that was enough to satisfy me. Skyrim is a much better game than RDR2 from what Ive played, though.

From's biggest mistake is making Sekiro before Elden Ring. They look like they're at the opposite ends of the spectrum and Sekiro fans are going to get bored. I'm hearing a lot of Sekiro fans being the most disappointed with this. This seems to be catered to BOTW fans and Dark Souls 1 fans. Im glancing at reddit and still seeing a ton of love for Elden Ring so there is an audience for it.

I do think Horizon Forbidden West and Elden Ring releasing next to each other is smart, though. I think they have opposite approaches to the open world formula.
That's silly. RDR2 was fantastic. But it was fantastic on a single playthrough .The multiplayer sucked.
 

Clayton

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That's silly. RDR2 was fantastic. But it was fantastic on a single playthrough .The multiplayer sucked.
I think maybe one of my issues with RDR2 is that I played in on console. The controls in that game are ass. And the pacing is slow and very rigid within the story structure. And its a prequel so you kinda know where the slow story is going. Its been out almost 4 years and I still haven't been bothered to get all the way through it.

I suspect I'll like Elden Ring a lot, though. Just by glancing through impressions, it kept the hard bosses of Dark Souls 3 and Bloodborne and it kept the abundance of bonfires from Dark Souls 3. It also looks like it adds exploration that Dark Souls 3 lacked. My only two issues with Dark Souls 3 is that when you need to farm it sometimes just picking the same two or three enemies and just repeating for 5-10 minutes. Dark Souls 3 is also a game where you can do everything in two playthroughs or 1 if you're thorough so the replay value isnt as good as other FROM games. I still really love it, though. And I suspect Ill really like Elden Ring.
 

MAIZEandBLUE09

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I think maybe one of my issues with RDR2 is that I played in on console. The controls in that game are ass. And the pacing is slow and very rigid within the story structure. And its a prequel so you kinda know where the slow story is going. Its been out almost 4 years and I still haven't been bothered to get all the way through it.

I suspect I'll like Elden Ring a lot, though. Just by glancing through impressions, it kept the hard bosses of Dark Souls 3 and Bloodborne and it kept the abundance of bonfires from Dark Souls 3. It also looks like it adds exploration that Dark Souls 3 lacked. My only two issues with Dark Souls 3 is that when you need to farm it sometimes just picking the same two or three enemies and just repeating for 5-10 minutes. Dark Souls 3 is also a game where you can do everything in two playthroughs or 1 if you're thorough so the replay value isnt as good as other FROM games. I still really love it, though. And I suspect Ill really like Elden Ring.
I just played it last year for the first time on my series X, so I don't know what it was like initially. I thought it was excellent. And I really don't play these kind of games much, but I've really gotten into these huge open world games. Elden ring is my 3rd ever after BOTW & RDR2. Took me a second to really enjoy Elden Ring because it's so hard up front, but if you get through that it really does open up into a beautiful game with all sorts of different kinds of gameplay. I just wish it was al ittle more heavy on the story.
 

elguapo

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IDK, I've really been enjoying it. Love the open world, love the loot and upgrade system. My only problem with it is that it's extremely difficult for new players to understand what's going on. Basically took an hour of watching youtube videos in order to be able to understand the game. I play on series X, so I don't know how it is for K&M but it plays really well on a controller.

I think the plot is a little flat and could use a better, more engaging, storyline to follow. IT seems that most of the things you're doing are side quest type things for people you meet in the open world with really no direction on how to do them. A lot of the time you just accidentally finish a quest by exploring.

It's been a lot more fun recently now that I've got my character in the mid 30s for level and have taken the time to go out and find weapons and armor. I find that most of the time I fight from the horse thing because that gives you a huge advantage on the mobs that attack. Just circle and swipe.
most of my issues are the controls of kb&m but absolute no idea of where to go and what to do was also quite annoying

What class did you play, i started with samurai and I read that new peeps should go magic class as it is more forgiving?
 

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RDR2 is one of my biggest disappointments in gaming. I think its a boring slog. It is an interesting world but man do I not enjoy playing it at all. Once you get into the missions it no longer feels like a world anymore. Just follow the straight line and dont mess up.

I also have never been able to get into Skyrim but thats partially because I destroyed Oblivion and that was enough to satisfy me. Skyrim is a much better game than RDR2 from what Ive played, though.
Oh god, yeah this. I was stoked for this game but pretty quickly realized the game is specifically designed to not let you have any fun. If you really want to sit around playing the most tedious cowboy simulator ever it's objectively great. But if you want to goof around and actually enjoy yourself it's impossible. I specifically remember one situation where I jumped on the very back of a moving train trying to see if I could make it to the front by taking out everybody on board. Well, I shot the first guy I saw and immediately the train stopped and within a minute 6 guys on horseback were riding towards the exact car on the train where I was sneaking around. What the fuck man, how does that make sense? Between shit like that and not even being able to stab a dog in a corner with no witnesses without the entire map trying to kill you it's just not a fun game. I don't know that I made it more than 10 hours in.

Skyrim is 100% better all around. It can be glitchy but it actually allows you to do whatever you want.
 

Cave_Johnson

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As far as Elden Ring goes I've seen a few clips of randos playing it on Youtube and it looks like one of those games with an ass load of trial and error trying to figure out how many frames of invincibility or vulnerability certain characters have in different situations. Hard pass but I'm sure if you're into that it's good.
 

MAIZEandBLUE09

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most of my issues are the controls of kb&m but absolute no idea of where to go and what to do was also quite annoying

What class did you play, i started with samurai and I read that new peeps should go magic class as it is more forgiving?
I think the magic class is easier to get to a point where you can destroy everything. But I typically hate the magic stuff so I went with Vagabond. I like more of the combat stuff in these games. I've compensated the no magic with leveling up a bow pretty early on. Helps with some range stuff. But early on I went and found the Samurai sword because the blood loss effect is killer really early on.
 

MAIZEandBLUE09

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As far as Elden Ring goes I've seen a few clips of randos playing it on Youtube and it looks like one of those games with an ass load of trial and error trying to figure out how many frames of invincibility or vulnerability certain characters have in different situations. Hard pass but I'm sure if you're into that it's good.
I think those clips are usually the people who sit on the bosses for 2 hours and try everything to beat them. I took the opposite approach and I just like wondering around finding stuff in the open world. And this game does a really good job at putting something around every corner.
 

Clayton

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As far as Elden Ring goes I've seen a few clips of randos playing it on Youtube and it looks like one of those games with an ass load of trial and error trying to figure out how many frames of invincibility or vulnerability certain characters have in different situations. Hard pass but I'm sure if you're into that it's good.
Thats pretty much Dark Souls in a nutshell.

The gist I've gotten from the FROMSOFT games:

Demons Souls: RPG, long levels, hub world, fairly easy bosses, lack of checkpoints makes dying very stressful. Magic is easy mode.
Dark Souls: RPG, Metroidvania world, mix of easy and moderate bosses, lack of bonfires makes dying very stressful.
Bloodborne: RPG/action hybrid, Metroidvania with a hub world, very hard at first but gets easier once you learn it.
Dark Souls 3: RPG, levels close to being linear with a hub world, mix of easy and harder bosses, tons of bonfires
Sekiro: Action, hard bosses across the board, emphasis on using specific methods to beat enemies

I'm guessing Elden Ring is RPG, open world, hard bosses, emphasis on exploration to eventually level up and beat bosses
 

elguapo

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what is the bloodstains and signs all about? anything useful?
 

MAIZEandBLUE09

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what is the bloodstains and signs all about? anything useful?
Sometimes very useful (the signs) sometimes they're just there to troll you, but that's kinda funny. The blood stains are where other people have been dying. So it usually indicates there's a stronger enemy there, or something like a cliff that people keep falling off. If you touch the blood stain you can see a 5 second hologram of them dying. So it gives you a hint at what might be ahead.
 
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