We’re finally getting details on the next game from FromSoftware, Elden Ring, after a roughly two-year span of agonizing silence following its announcement at E3 2019. The Soulsborne developer released a gameplay trailer at Summer Game Fest and provided an official launch date, and Game Director Hidetaka Miyazaki sat down for an interview with IGN to go even deeper on the gameplay, the story, and what sets Elden Ring apart from the Souls series, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, and Bloodborne. While Elden Ring will hit consoles and PC next year, it’s possible we may see it appearing in more media as well. Bandai Namco CEO Yasuo Miyakawa has suggested there are more plans for Elden Ring beyond just the game itself. However, don’t get your hopes up just yet for TV shows, movies, and comic book adaptations. The publisher laid out no specifics, and it could simply be a suggestion of merchandising plans.
Elden Ring’s release date is currently set for January 19, 2022, on PC, Xbox Series X/S, and PlayStation 5. But, it will also come to the previous-gen Sony and Microsoft consoles at the same time – no word on availability for Nintendo Switch, though. If you’ve been unable to get your hands on the latest generation of consoles, you’ll be happy to hear that Elden Ring will support upgrades for players who purchase the game on PS4 and Xbox One and then upgrade to the newer consoles later on.
[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/06/11/elden-ring-release-date-and-new-gameplay-trailer-revealed-ign-news"]
Given Elden Ring is coming from FromSoftware, it should be no surprise that it’s set to feature some grueling combat and exploration. But, from what we’ve seen in the Elden Ring gameplay trailer and learned from Game Director Hidetaka Miyazaki, Elden Ring will bring some new ideas to the table that give players a lot more options.
You can still expect dangerous enemies ranging from the human-sized to the utterly mountainous, and you’ll still be dodge-rolling your way to safety while fighting back with a combination of magic, swords, spears, and other medieval weaponry. But, Elden Ring will be adding in new combat opportunities.
Rather than having certain skills attached to specific weapons, Miyazaki explains that “you’re actually able to freely interchange skills between a large variety of weapons.” He also mentioned there are something like a hundred skills in total, and there will surely be no shortage of different weapons in the game. Factoring in magic abilities as well, Miyazaki suggests, “... the build customization is going to be even richer and even more varied than before.”
[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/06/10/elden-ring-first-gameplay-reveal-trailer"]
The way in which you can approach enemy encounters also promises to be more varied. Elden Ring’s world is a little less linear than past Soulsborne games, and to that end, approaching combat will be less linear, too. There will be some stealthier options available, like sneaking through tall grass to avoid combat or get the drop on enemies with a backstab. You can also explore the game world to hunt down and collect enemy spirits, giving yourself an ally you can summon in combat. And if enemy spirits don’t quite do it for you, you’ll still have the option to summon other human players for cooperative play.
Traversing in Elden Ring will be a little different from the usual Souls formula. You won’t just be hoofing everywhere you go. The game does include a fast travel system, but it will also include player mounts. And, for those of you who hate not being able to get over a two-foot-tall obstacle, your character will also be able to jump.
You’ll need those faster methods of transport, too, as this is FromSoft’s biggest game yet. That scale might make it intimidating to explore, as past Soulsborne games would see you drop all of your XP if you died somewhere and you’d have to go track it down after respawning or risk losing it forever. So, to keep you encouraged to explore further and continue progressing, the game will include more ways of healing, including the ability to craft items on the fly and gather the necessary materials to do so.
Elden Ring will take place in The Lands Between, a vast area to explore. You’ll start in a linear opening area, presumably to set up the story and explain the game mechanics, but then it will broaden. There will be a lot to explore, including six key domains that are each ruled by a demigod, twisted by the power of a shard of the Elden Ring - but more on that later. That world will feature plains, mountains, and everyone’s favorite: swamps. You’ll also find castles, fortresses, and catacombs scattered around the game world, off the beaten path.
[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/06/14/elden-ring-how-fromsofts-largest-most-free-form-map-works-summer-of-gaming-ign-news"]
With that large map, FromSoft is giving players the freedom to approach and explore the game world how they want. Miyazaki explains ”there is an element of guidance, particularly at the beginning. There is a mainline that [players] can follow, but at any time they’re free to break off this route and to take the untrodden path.”
Elden Ring will also feature a dynamic weather system and night-and-day cycle, to help keep its world feeling alive.
The game world will also be populated by enemies and NPCs alike, all with their own stories and motives. And then, of course, some slightly anthropomorphized pots wandering about. Fortunately, Miyazaki has confirmed players won’t encounter Mimics in this game world. Unfortunately, Miyazaki only confirmed that players wouldn’t encounter Mimics “in that exact same form.” What that means is anyone’s guess.
With the latest reveal, we’ve learned a bit more about Elden Ring’s story. It will take place in The Lands Between some time after the destruction of the Elden Ring and the scattering of its shards, known as The Great Runes.
Players will take the role of a Tarnished, part of a population that had long ago lost the grace of the Elden Ring and the Erdtree, which symbolized the presence of the Elden Ring. The Tarnished were banished from The Lands Between before the destruction of the ring, and they have been summoned back after the shattering of the ring.
The Tarnished will set off with the goal of finding and defeating the demigod offspring of Queen Marika the Eternal. Each of these demigods possesses a shard of the ring and has been tainted and twisted by it. The ultimate goal for players is to collect all of these Great Runes and become an Elden Lord. Whether doing so will actually be a good thing remains to be seen.
[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/06/11/elden-ring-new-plot-synopsis-revealed-ign-news"]
Like the story in Dark Souls, much of the plot will come down to players finding and piecing together the details themselves (a little bit like piecing together the fragments of the Elden Ring, perhaps?). That said, Miyazaki has explained that the story may be easier to understand and more accessible than the story in the Dark Souls franchise.
Game of Thrones (or A Song of Ice and Fire) fans may have hoped that George R.R. Martin wrote every line of dialog in Elden Ring, but his responsibilities lay largely in shaping the lore and mythos of the game world. So, while not everything will feel like you’re playing through a Martin narrative, you will still be inhabiting a world he dreamt up.
In contrast to past Soulsborne games, Martin’s worldbuilding took place prior to FromSoft’s development of game systems, so the gameplay should be more informed by the game world than before. Martin also played a part in creating the main bosses of the game. Each Demigod has their own mythos and lore behind them, and it's from that background that their new, tainted forms have stemmed.
Even if Martin didn’t write every character interaction, Miyazaki suggested Martin “brought things to the table that we couldn’t have done by ourselves, in terms of that rich storytelling and that sense of character and drama.”
[widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="slug=elden-ring-gameplay-trailer-4k-screenshots-summer-of-games&captions=true"]
While Elden Ring will hit consoles and PC next year, it’s possible we may see it appearing in more media as well. Bandai Namco CEO Yasuo Miyakawa has suggested there are more plans for Elden Ring beyond just the game itself. However, don’t get your hopes up just yet for TV shows, movies, and comic book adaptations. The publisher laid out no specifics, and it could simply be a suggestion of merchandising plans.
[poilib element="accentDivider"]
Mark Knapp is a regular contributor to IGN and an irregular Tweeter on Twitter @Techn0Mark
Continue reading...
When is the Elden Ring Release Date?
Elden Ring’s release date is currently set for January 19, 2022, on PC, Xbox Series X/S, and PlayStation 5. But, it will also come to the previous-gen Sony and Microsoft consoles at the same time – no word on availability for Nintendo Switch, though. If you’ve been unable to get your hands on the latest generation of consoles, you’ll be happy to hear that Elden Ring will support upgrades for players who purchase the game on PS4 and Xbox One and then upgrade to the newer consoles later on.
[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/06/11/elden-ring-release-date-and-new-gameplay-trailer-revealed-ign-news"]
What will the Elden Ring gameplay be like?
Given Elden Ring is coming from FromSoftware, it should be no surprise that it’s set to feature some grueling combat and exploration. But, from what we’ve seen in the Elden Ring gameplay trailer and learned from Game Director Hidetaka Miyazaki, Elden Ring will bring some new ideas to the table that give players a lot more options.
You can still expect dangerous enemies ranging from the human-sized to the utterly mountainous, and you’ll still be dodge-rolling your way to safety while fighting back with a combination of magic, swords, spears, and other medieval weaponry. But, Elden Ring will be adding in new combat opportunities.
Rather than having certain skills attached to specific weapons, Miyazaki explains that “you’re actually able to freely interchange skills between a large variety of weapons.” He also mentioned there are something like a hundred skills in total, and there will surely be no shortage of different weapons in the game. Factoring in magic abilities as well, Miyazaki suggests, “... the build customization is going to be even richer and even more varied than before.”
[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/06/10/elden-ring-first-gameplay-reveal-trailer"]
The way in which you can approach enemy encounters also promises to be more varied. Elden Ring’s world is a little less linear than past Soulsborne games, and to that end, approaching combat will be less linear, too. There will be some stealthier options available, like sneaking through tall grass to avoid combat or get the drop on enemies with a backstab. You can also explore the game world to hunt down and collect enemy spirits, giving yourself an ally you can summon in combat. And if enemy spirits don’t quite do it for you, you’ll still have the option to summon other human players for cooperative play.
Traversing in Elden Ring will be a little different from the usual Souls formula. You won’t just be hoofing everywhere you go. The game does include a fast travel system, but it will also include player mounts. And, for those of you who hate not being able to get over a two-foot-tall obstacle, your character will also be able to jump.
You’ll need those faster methods of transport, too, as this is FromSoft’s biggest game yet. That scale might make it intimidating to explore, as past Soulsborne games would see you drop all of your XP if you died somewhere and you’d have to go track it down after respawning or risk losing it forever. So, to keep you encouraged to explore further and continue progressing, the game will include more ways of healing, including the ability to craft items on the fly and gather the necessary materials to do so.
What do we know about Elden Ring’s world design?
Elden Ring will take place in The Lands Between, a vast area to explore. You’ll start in a linear opening area, presumably to set up the story and explain the game mechanics, but then it will broaden. There will be a lot to explore, including six key domains that are each ruled by a demigod, twisted by the power of a shard of the Elden Ring - but more on that later. That world will feature plains, mountains, and everyone’s favorite: swamps. You’ll also find castles, fortresses, and catacombs scattered around the game world, off the beaten path.
[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/06/14/elden-ring-how-fromsofts-largest-most-free-form-map-works-summer-of-gaming-ign-news"]
With that large map, FromSoft is giving players the freedom to approach and explore the game world how they want. Miyazaki explains ”there is an element of guidance, particularly at the beginning. There is a mainline that [players] can follow, but at any time they’re free to break off this route and to take the untrodden path.”
Elden Ring will also feature a dynamic weather system and night-and-day cycle, to help keep its world feeling alive.
The game world will also be populated by enemies and NPCs alike, all with their own stories and motives. And then, of course, some slightly anthropomorphized pots wandering about. Fortunately, Miyazaki has confirmed players won’t encounter Mimics in this game world. Unfortunately, Miyazaki only confirmed that players wouldn’t encounter Mimics “in that exact same form.” What that means is anyone’s guess.
What’s the Elden Ring story about?
With the latest reveal, we’ve learned a bit more about Elden Ring’s story. It will take place in The Lands Between some time after the destruction of the Elden Ring and the scattering of its shards, known as The Great Runes.
Players will take the role of a Tarnished, part of a population that had long ago lost the grace of the Elden Ring and the Erdtree, which symbolized the presence of the Elden Ring. The Tarnished were banished from The Lands Between before the destruction of the ring, and they have been summoned back after the shattering of the ring.
The Tarnished will set off with the goal of finding and defeating the demigod offspring of Queen Marika the Eternal. Each of these demigods possesses a shard of the ring and has been tainted and twisted by it. The ultimate goal for players is to collect all of these Great Runes and become an Elden Lord. Whether doing so will actually be a good thing remains to be seen.
[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/06/11/elden-ring-new-plot-synopsis-revealed-ign-news"]
Like the story in Dark Souls, much of the plot will come down to players finding and piecing together the details themselves (a little bit like piecing together the fragments of the Elden Ring, perhaps?). That said, Miyazaki has explained that the story may be easier to understand and more accessible than the story in the Dark Souls franchise.
How was George R. R. Martin involved in Elden Ring?
Game of Thrones (or A Song of Ice and Fire) fans may have hoped that George R.R. Martin wrote every line of dialog in Elden Ring, but his responsibilities lay largely in shaping the lore and mythos of the game world. So, while not everything will feel like you’re playing through a Martin narrative, you will still be inhabiting a world he dreamt up.
In contrast to past Soulsborne games, Martin’s worldbuilding took place prior to FromSoft’s development of game systems, so the gameplay should be more informed by the game world than before. Martin also played a part in creating the main bosses of the game. Each Demigod has their own mythos and lore behind them, and it's from that background that their new, tainted forms have stemmed.
Even if Martin didn’t write every character interaction, Miyazaki suggested Martin “brought things to the table that we couldn’t have done by ourselves, in terms of that rich storytelling and that sense of character and drama.”
[widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="slug=elden-ring-gameplay-trailer-4k-screenshots-summer-of-games&captions=true"]
Is there anything else exciting for Elden Ring?
While Elden Ring will hit consoles and PC next year, it’s possible we may see it appearing in more media as well. Bandai Namco CEO Yasuo Miyakawa has suggested there are more plans for Elden Ring beyond just the game itself. However, don’t get your hopes up just yet for TV shows, movies, and comic book adaptations. The publisher laid out no specifics, and it could simply be a suggestion of merchandising plans.
[poilib element="accentDivider"]
Mark Knapp is a regular contributor to IGN and an irregular Tweeter on Twitter @Techn0Mark
Continue reading...