Elden Ring Enjoys Staggeringly Successful UK Launch, One of the Biggest Games in Years

Was there really any doubt? The hype was huuuuuuge for this game.

Mandatory "yaaay im first" comment 🏆

That's some truly crazy sh*t.

I would love to know how many people bought it thinking it's basically a new Skyrim, however.

The hype is real. From Software haven't made a bad souls game yet. They deserve it.

@ShogunRok

Lots i suspect if you look at the amount of used copies at Cex also expected lots just bought because of hype and reviews.

Be interesting to see numbers of how many got exchanged or sold

@Col_McCafferty lol dude, you just can’t help yourself can you. No one forced anyone to buy this game. You don’t matter at all to fromsoft, move on. Enjoy Gran turismo and cyberpunk like you said you were going to. You add nothing to the conversation that is this game and I know you read my comment about pining for a woman that isn’t into you and yet you stick around like a weirdo.

I jus hope other developers AREN'T inspired by this game and make their own thing. Too much Soulslike stuff creeping into other games for my liking although at least these developers offer different difficulty settings.

😂

Well deserved as its fantastic, been playing it all afternoon

85% download on xbox to 50% download on PS is interesting and seems to confirm what most say about xbox being more digital

@Quadalog

Really can't seem to help themselves can they! After the hundredth post we all get the idea they don't like the games.

It's like some demented pariot that can't shut up.

@Col_McCafferty Objectively it is the most accessible From game, anyone whose actually played it and played past games from them can see that.

Is this really more "accesible" than other Souls games? I loved Bloodborne, but Dark Souls and Sekiro just did not click with me. Would be interesting to find out what Elder Ring seems more similar to as most reviews never really answer this question.

Way way better sales than I was expecting but it really is both fantastic and absolutely more universal than previous Souls games. Like I said in a previous article, you could have so much fun with this game without even being close to beating it!

@Col_McCafferty @Quadalog Alright, alright, let's not derail the comments section or we'll have to start removing posts.

They need to fix the pop in! Looks like a desert then pop! Some grass waving in the wind.

@ShogunRok Apologies but it just seems that you can't comment on this or any other FromSoft game unless it's pure unadulterated praise.

That's certainly not the case with any other developer or game including those made by a Sony Studio.

Crazy success, I'm sure it's a really good game and most are enjoying it.

2022 has been a wild year so far for obvious reasons but gaming has been crazy. Activision purchase, monopoly talk, Bungie and now actual must play and must have games for us all to enjoy.

I would imagine many casual gamers seen "George RR Martin" mentioned, thought it looked like skyrim and bought it.

Wish i could play these games, but tried bloodbourne for a few hours couldn't get past the first area where the dogs are and you get shot at... The crazy distance between checkpoints, moreso than the difficulty is what puts me off these games

@ShogunRok fair enough dude

Crikey, that really is something

Shocking but very well deserved. I'm about 20 hours in and I'm having a blast with it. Hopefully the folks that bought in on the hype alone are enjoying it. Congratulations Fromsoft! Praise the Fingers!

Nicely done. Good times for games right now.

Only played a bit but loved what I have seen. Once done with Forbidden West I'll jump right in.

@djhegzy i'm not saying jump into Elden Ring because it's sooo different but: loads of quality of life improvements in this game compared to previous Souls games. One of which is the checkpoint distance you mentioned. No more endlessly repeating the same run over and over again to get back to the boss. That said, it's still pretty much a From Software game and some bosses or enemies will be very challenging nonetheless.

I'd say Elden Ringis for those that were simply annoyed by certain design decisions such as repeating the same sections etc. but were willing to learn. People that expect an overall easier game in terms of combat difficulty might find that here and there but some sections will still be just as hard.

Nothing like seeing some strange figure at a distance on a giant horse on a rainy night slowly patrolling an area with incredible lighting and you're wondering "wtf is that?"... fantastic game!

Bloodborne was my first real Souls experience. I knew nothing about it, other than it looked cool and was a challenging game. I’ve never been and probably never will be a part of the souls subculture. I figured it out, little by little, on my own, because I loved the game, what it does and what it stands for. No “git gud” or any other belligerence. It stands to reason that there are many others out there in the same boat. Huge congrats to FS for sticking to their convictions and their vision. It’s resonating.

Definitely deserving. Game looks pretty gooooood

I'd have bought Horizon but Elden Ring was coming out a week later... It'll keep me busy for a long while too.

@Col_McCafferty it probably bothers you that Elden Ring has the same 97 rating as RDR 2, admit it! 🙃

That's very impressive for a game that isn't even trying to appeal to casuals in any way, I myself will wait till it's 100% patched to buy so I can have the best possible experience but I definitely want to play it.

Turns out when you break it down onto PS consoles only, HFW sold roughly the same.

So, there!

😝

Was still thinking about trying it but was unsure because not fan of past games, I tied it at my friends place to see if open world etc would change my mind, much more enjoyable than the last games but I didn't realise the games performance was that bad, so will give a miss until they fix it or the PS5 gets VRR.

It's everything I could have hoped for, easily one of the best games ever made. After playing Horizon Forbidden West the week prior, Elden Ring is simply in another stratosphere. I don't know why people keep trying to compare them, HFW is deeply average in comparison.

@Old-Red I feel really guilty for totally dropping Horizon for Elden Ring 😬

N.i.c.e.i knew this game was gonna be huge .it was always one of the most anticipated games ever.elden ring is a Instnt classic masterpiece.word up son.

@Col_McCafferty get off your bloody high horse - the game is doing well, and people are loving it, even people new to Souls games. If you could just drop the sanctimonious trolling for 5 mins and give Elden Ring a go, you might even find that you like it (maybe that's what you're so scared of!)

Yeah and I wonder how many actual knew about its difficulty and already gave up

No doubt because of the all the glowing reviews from reviewers that were already fans of souls games

@Col_McCafferty "Many parents of gamers may think this game is for them only soon to realise the truth"

It's called tough love. It'll make them better human beings. I force my nine-year-old play it for six hours a day, while repeating "I will git gud. I will git gud. I will git gud". He is granted a toilet break each time he beats a boss.

Congrats for FromSoftware, can't wait to play the game (still undecided to buy ps5 or xbox version)

Glad to see the success. I'm having to play on PS4 for the moment, but as a fan of From Software's previous games I'm impressed, it's an excellent game from what I've played so far (some technical issues aside).

I've been a fan since Demon's Souls PS3, but I'm happy to see new fans of the series!

If the mainstream of gaming shifts more towards the weirdness of From's output than the more formulaic AAA games of the last decades, that's definitely a good thing.

@Col_McCafferty you really are determined to hate From Software for what seems to be very little reason (certainly not that you've actually tried the games). Oh well. Hopefully you'll at least still benefit, if other AAA devs finally get the message that open world games with maps full of tasks and question marks are just getting tedious. By far, the most common praise I've heard about Elden Ring is that their approach to making an explorable open world is much more enjoyable than the Ubisoft clones that are in abundance.
Which is exactly the way breath of the wild did it too (hence all the comparisons), but this is the first notable multiplatform example

@johncalmc Sekiro had about four of five routes that you could go down, so even if you got stuck in one direction, you could try somewhere else

@Kidfunkadelic83 I would love it if the hardcore gamer games got really popular, but I can't imagine many people who bought Elden Ring will get very far with it. back when I had a Wii, I used to buy games just to play for a few hours, then I'd hit a wall and start playing something else. I remember Tenchu being particularly difficult. I used to socialize and go out quite a lot so I naturally dropped off of games without finishing them. I made a point of completing games when I got back into gaming with the PS4.

@ThePizzaMule in terms of what game it's most similar (other than Souls games), breath of the wild is a really good comparison, even if it's a bit overused at this point. Not so much to do with the game mechanics (no farming for constantly breaking weapons in Elden ring! And BotW is definitely not a souls like), as the fact that Elden Ring's approach to the open world map is fairly similar to BotW. The map isn't littered with tasks, quest markers and question marks - you have the option to place your own markers down but otherwise the map is very minimalistic, and exploration is very rewarding.
In terms of accessibility - you can now counterattack enemies while blocking (doesn't sound like a huge thing if you're not a souls fan but it really is - in previous games you could either block or parry- but if you don't time your parry just right, you get hit, so in practice the majority of souls players don't to to parry. The new counterattack lets you counter after you've blocked the attack, so timing is a lot less crucial), you also get health flasks refills whenever you defeat a group of enemies (meaning you're more likely to want to keep going afterwards, rather than have constantly depleting health + heals), riding on horseback is a huge thing too as it means dealing with groups of enemies is easier than it's ever been, as well as bosses that are out in the open.
It's still a souls game, but it's by far the most forgiving yet, most of the time

@get2sammyb far enough, you lose to much in written form. Like tone I suppose. But I erased the comment and I apologize for taking it the wrong way

Where are all those people that said Fromsoft needed to add difficulty options for their games to sell? 🤔 Seems like their games are selling just fine without them

Good news and not really that surprising. I really don’t care how much money they make of it but FS should be encouraged to keep this IP going and this type of world building. 👍🏻

FromSoft deserves this win! After Sekiro winning GOTY, it seems the path for challenging games is being paved.

I welcome it. I enjoy difficult games but really, Souls/Borne aren't that difficult. I'm afraid they're just not games where you can bash your way forward. Each to their own.

@Apfelschteiner i agree, man. I mean, im even stuck on the 2nd main boss in elden ring. Have been for 3 nights now. He just batters me all the time, even when summoning some help. Im still going to keep plodding on tho.

I thought I was buying the less popular game released in February. How wrong was I!

@lolwhatno it’s not so much that, it’s that he keeps saying the same thing over and over again. Putting your two cents in is fine whatever that entails though.

@get2sammyb I’m very close to buying it, even though none of the other souls really spoke to me. But it sounds like if I make a mage, it might be ok.

I’m strongly considering getting it.

I’ve still got some work to finish up in Forbidden West. But after that I have to choose. Elden Ring or Gran Turismo 7.

It’s actually a difficult choice for me. Elden Ring is the spiritual successor to a game series I never got into, but it seems like they solved a lot of the issues the Dark Souls series had. On the other hand, I haven’t owned a Gran Turismo title since GT6 on PS3.

@TheRedComet i'd really like to get gran turismo at some point but elden ring has really got its hooks in me..it all boils down to which game you think you are going to prefer playing out of the two..with myself it was a no brainer but i've loved all the other souls games...i'm sure whichever you choose you will love it as they are both amazing games..

@TheRedComet I'd say it really depends on what your issues were with previous Souls games. Happy to help in case you want to know something about it.

@dschons

I had a few. Now I only played Dark Souls 1. I never bought DSII or DSIII.

1. The load times after death. I don’t mind dying. I don’t even mind losing progress (I ran through Returnal multiple times last year and died A LOT on each playthrough) since that’s a core part of the Souls design. But I did mind having to wait what felt like an eternity to get another try. It eventually burned me out. Thankfully I have a PS5 and I’ve read that Elden Ring on the new consoles solves that problem admirably. So I know that complaint has already been fixed.

2. The stamina system seemed extremely punishing. I dunno if that was rectified in the later Souls games. I get what why the stamina gauge worked like it did; they were attempting to teach you to dodge and block with a plan and to maximize conservation of stamina, not just perform mindless random dodges (which is how one plays Horizon lol). But it always felt like it was tuned to punish you for the smallest mistakes in your defensive gameplan rather than attempting to teach you the lesson organically. I’m not sure how Elden Ring handles this aspect. Is the stamina system more forgiving or is it still extremely punishing?

3. The lack of any decent tutorials or even just a basic explanation of how the game’s systems worked. I don’t like using guides unless I’m trophy hunting. I’ve heard that Elden Ring drastically improves things in this regard. Would you agree with that take?

Those were my big three issues with DS1. Other than that, I thought it was a good game.

I played Sekiro a good bit and thought it was fantastic. I ended up trading my PS4 for a Switch so I never got a chance to finish it. So I do like Fromsoftware’s difficulty and challenging games in general.

I grew up on Contra and classic Castlevania. So the difficulty isn’t an issue, as long as the difficulty feels fair. Celeste is one the best games I’ve played in years and it’s HARD as hell. Like NES hard without all the BS those old games made you go through with limited continues.

@TheRedComet I'll make it "short":

1. no issues there. In addition, long boss runs are a thing of the past. In previous Souls games you sometimes had to rush through the entire area to get back to the boss.

2. It is pretty much the same still BUT whereas in Dark Souls 1 you had to drop a lot of points into endurance to get relief, this isn't the case any more. but you still have to manage your stamina in boss fights, yes. Just not as much if that makes sense. There are also items that boost stamina regen etc.

3. A lot of quality of life improvements, especially in comparison to the first Dark Souls. That said, it is still a easy to learn, hard to master type of game. There is a little tutorial dungeon right at the beginning explaining the basic controls. As for other mechanics such as crafting, it has gotten a ton easier and less convoluted. There's also a new manual section in the menu to look up stuff again. Other than that, the game still isn't in your face when it comes to explaining. But in the menus there is also a "help option" which explains every stat / attribute etc once you select it and item descriptions also reveal more info.

Hope that helped.

@Juanalf He really can't handle that a game he hates is doing better than a game he loves huh?

Awesome news for FromSoft. The game is fantastic and a lot of fun. I'm around 50 hours in and just taking my time exploring every nook and cranny.

So I played 3 hours...

I don't see the 97. I just see more of dark souls and it's honestly getting tiring. First 3 hours of demon souls remake had me more impressed.

Fantastic game. Now to over level myself so can beat a big boss, only beat dungeon bosses so far.

@TheRedComet Well the last GT game I owned was GT4 on PS2 so I hurriedly got GT Sport on sale last year just to satisfy the urge. I've played over 100hrs I'm sure, it's fun but at the end of the day you know you're just y'know...RACING. Elden Ring on the other hand is an adventure and experience you don't know about. It's something new, an open world from From for the first time, it's been highly praised, still sitting at 97 on MC. I'd say go for Elden Ring. You said you beat HFW's story already right, you need something to slow you down a bit, ER will, the difficulty helps with longevity. Don't fret, I'm also having a hard time with it. I used to listen to the internet and avoided From's games till I tried Bloodborne in fear, ended up loving the art, next thing you know I was so hooked I beat the game twice or thrice and got that plat.

@johncalmc Hmmm… Some other user on here was just telling me in the comments on the other article that ER is hands down the hardest FromSoft game of the bunch. When I said that I’ve been reading people that say it’s actually easier and more approachable, largely due to the open world design, he told me I’ve must have been reading “marketing bs” and “lies” and that the game design of ER unequivocally does not make it easier. Seems there is a differing opinion.

@Tchunga Ah yeah — there you are, bud. I’m still seeing lots of comments about this game being easier than other From games. There’s several in this comment section. I don’t think it’s gospel truth that this is the hardest game of the lot.

Not a From Software fan at all, but I'm actually really enjoying this quite a bit. The more traditionally Soulsian elements of the game blend well with the explorative openness of the larger world. Definitely their best release to date.

When I saw the first trailer I thought it was a RPG in a fantasy LOTR like universe written by GOT writer

@Th3solution Thing is, it's extremely hard, just that this time round the open world gives you the freedom to explore places where enemies are easier. The wide linearity of past games ensured that you had go through certain fixed paths and beat some bosses before you could progress. Plus there's a lot of save points in ER, you can easily boom past tough enemies on your mount, more reason why they say it's forgiving. But yeah the bosses are still tough!

Just started it and I’m reminded why I dislike the Souls series. I’m hoping it’ll grow on me like Elder Scrolls did.

@lolwhatno not really. The problem is with people who say it over and over again. Like, express your thoughts once or twice and then kindly move on to another topic. You don't have to click on every article and make the same point over and over again. I noticed that with TLoUII and certain users and I didn't even play the game, so I didn't care either whether they liked it or not; I just found it annoying.

@TheArt your not kidding that the bosses are tough. Ive not had alot of problems with side bosses or invading NPC's but Godrick the grafted... 😳 3 evenings i spent fighting him until last night. Both of us with 1 hit until death. Such a satisfying feeling. I even did a little jig afterwards. My wife thought i was mad but was happy i finally stopped shouting at the TV😂

@Kidfunkadelic83 it's such an incredible sense of achievement!

@Kidfunkadelic83 Lol I was actually really angry yesterday, I was getting pissed off by some little annoying creatures at a fort but I devised a way to pick them off one by one(being constantly defeated makes you think and strategize and that's the point of these games). Thank goodness enemies awareness level is set to low, else this game would've been impossible. As for the main story bosses I haven't even felled Margit yet, just wanna explore some more and level up.

@naruball defenately is and if i struggle too much i just fast warp somewhere else and raise my lvl a bit then warp right back although im lvl 40 now and its cost me 10,000 souls per lvl . The world is so accessible in this game and that makes the combat less infuriating imo. Its far quicker to get back to boss battles, lost souls etc.

@Col_McCafferty lol if it's too hard for you, just move on.

@TheArt thats the beuty of the game. You can play it how you want to at your own leisure and progress the story as you see fit. Ive played alot of the souls games but never beat any of them. Im defenately no master and usually die lots but im enjoying Elden ring so much on PS5.

@Kidfunkadelic83 I played several souls games, but never managed to beat any of them, as playing them eventually became a chore. Hope this is the one I can fully enjoy.

@johncalmc Makes sense. Thanks for the explanation. Looking forward to trying it one day, when I can clear the schedule. It’ll probably be months from now though.

So if i make a comment defending another poster on here explaining their use of a phrase thats not a "slur" but a bona fide term used to describe a disability then its classed as unconstructive now? I wasnt unpleasent or abusive in explaining it and it was not against push squares code of ethics (which is very inconsistant of how its applied) so please explain to me and the other readers here exactly how its unconstructive? You can email your reply if you wish..

@djhegzy I've also tried Bloodborne, mostly because it's free on PS plus collection and couldn't get into it. When I heard about Elden Ring, I wanted to try it so I started with Dark Souls to get familiar with it. And I have to say its much better than Bloodborne for me. Much more interesing and not so dark(well, depends on the area, I'm looking at you... Blightown). The lore is interesting and the meticulous and exact fighting has its advantages. Maybe try this instead? Now I'm thinking of playing Demon's Souls but can't decide whether to do it before ER or after.

This is hugely surprising. Couldn’t have forseen a fromsoft game was generating Rockstar levels of hype, don’t believe I’ve even witnessed one advert out here either. But then as we’ve seen in Thailand it’s a family affair…

@Th3solution Okay? My comment has nothing to do with Elden Ring being easier or harder than other Souls games. That's not the point. It's about it not having any difficulty sliders 🤔

But I wonder how many of those people are leaving the game disappointed? I mean I purchased it and so far I find the game a slog to play thru. It is nothing like the trailers made it seem to me. I wish there was a way to track how long people stayed with the game as that is the real metric on this game. The sales numbers help From Software but the staying power of the game would show how many bought it due to the dishonest way the game advertised itself and the 10/10 reviews that pushed it on to people who should probably not have attempted it.

@arzis100193 Since when is handing out a high score considered "pushing it onto people"? Pretty sure the reviewers just rated the game based purely off of their enjoyment of it. There is no ulterior motive here.

I knew Elden Ring's metacritic score would bring out the salt in some particulars but holy moly, some of y'all really just can't handle the fact that people are loving this game

@Tchunga Oh, I apologize. I was just reading your statement incorrectly I guess, which was:
“What you've been reading is either marketing bs or just a lie. Elden Ring is From Softwares most challenging game yet. And that's not a hot take either. It's a widely shared sentiment online”
I was merely pointing out a lot of players keep saying it’s much more approachable, or “easier” in a way due to the new design approach to the world. I theorized that FromSoft made changes which seem to have been a response to some of the pain points players complain about in previous games, so as to make ER more accessible (and the sales seem to support the fact that it worked). But I think you don’t share that opinion, which is fine. Whether the game is easier or harder than Dark Souls 3 or Sekiro isn’t something that can be defined objectively, but many feel it’s at least less frustrating and easier to get into.

@Th3solution The comment that you're referring to was on an entirely different article. I don't really see how it's relevant here. And even if it was relevant I never said it was the "gospel truth" that Elden Ring was the hardest Souls game. I merely stated that it was my opinion. I'm not really sure who this irrational character is you're painting me as but it sure ain't me

@Tchunga More people will look at the score and see the 10s and assume it is great for them even without learning anything else beyond the score and maybe a trailer at best. It's not the reviewers fault but who do you think the buyer will blame for the bad purchase? People tend to blame others for their mistake so they will blame From and the Review site that they thought was looking out for them.

@Apfelschteiner facts. the first game I ever actually completed was uncharted 4 because I was so engrossed in the story and gameplay. can't see alot finishing elden ring.

@Kidfunkadelic83 @naruball why buy a game you won't finish? is it because of the hype?

@middyone i really enjoy the gameplay but then i either hit a wall, take a break or get sidetracked with something else.

@middyone Some games are just too long and people with more money than time enjoy experiencing a game, but don't want to be bogged down in one game.
When I was a kid, I finished everything. When I first got a job and was really busy I got in the habit of buying one or two new games a month and playing each a few hours then got distracted by the new shiny thing.
When I got a PS4, I started playing The Last of Us Remastered on easy mode to just enjoy the story without being held up by the difficulty. What I understand now is that that kind of game is better on a harder mode because you feel the jeopardy. After that (maybe because I got into Trophies), I pledged to see games through to the end unless I legitimately hated them.
I bought Nioh because I love the setting and the historical character of William Adams. Apart from the difficulty, I thought the game was made for me. I gave up after beating the first boss and hitting a virual wall (actually the wall killed me). About a year later I came back to Nioh and forced myself to git gud. That gave me a renewed appreciation for challenging games that I used to have as a kid.
That experience opened up the possibility of Sekiro as the setting was awesome for me. I will eventually get round to Elden Ring, because the gameplay of Sekiro makes me want to play From Soft games.