ELDEN RING

Elden Ring was my first soulslike.
It was kinda overwhelming when starting but I had tons of fun in my first blind run.
Like that's the great part of Elden Ring: you don't have to be this awesome Souls-Veteran to be able to enjoy the game.
You can just take your time with everything, explore the beautiful world, enjoy the view and smaller bosses.
The game doesn't push you to kill a certain difficult boss in order to get somewhere in-game. You're not forced to farm the same enemies for hours on until you're strong enough to continue your journey. You can just keep exploring & will eventually level up in the mean time. & if you're not getting any further with a specific boss, then you can just leave it be for now and do hundreds of other things instead.

---{ Graphics }---
☐ You forget what reality is
☑ Beautiful
☐ Good
☐ Decent
☐ Bad
☐ Don‘t look too long at it
☐ MS-DOS
---{ Gameplay }---
☑ Very good
☐ Good
☐ It's just gameplay
☐ Mehh
☐ Watch paint dry instead
☐ Just don't
---{ Audio }---
☑ Eargasm
☐ Very good
☐ Good
☐ Not too bad
☐ Bad
☐ I'm now deaf
---{ Audience }---
☐ Kids
☑ Teens
☑ Adults
☐ Grandma
---{ PC Requirements }---
☐ Check if you can run paint
☐ Potato
☐ Decent
☑ Fast
☐ Rich boi
☐ Ask NASA if they have a spare computer
---{ Difficulty }---
☐ Just press 'W'
☐ Easy
☐ Easy to learn / Hard to master
☐ Significant brain usage
☐ Difficult
☑ Dark Souls (duh, but a bit more forgiving imo)
---{ Grind }---
☐ Nothing to grind
☐ Only if u care about leaderboards/ranks
☑ Isn't necessary to progress
☐ Average grind level
☐ Too much grind
☐ You'll need a second life for grinding
---{ Story }---
☐ No Story
☐ Some lore
☐ Average
☐ Good
☑ Lovely
☐ It'll replace your life
---{ Game Time }---
☐ Long enough for a cup of coffee
☐ Short
☐ Average
☐ Long
☑ To infinity and beyond
---{ Price }---
☐ It's free!
☑ Worth the price
☐ If it's on sale
☐ If u have some spare money left
☐ Not recommended
☐ You could also just burn your money
---{ Bugs }---
☑ Never heard of
☐ Minor bugs
☐ Can get annoying
☐ ARK: Survival Evolved
☐ The game itself is a big terrarium for bugs
---{ ? / 10 }---
☐ 1
☐ 2
☐ 3
☐ 4
☐ 5
☐ 6
☐ 7
☐ 8
☐ 9
☑ 10

Rise, Tarnished!
Easily the best game I've played in many years, and it deserves a longer review than most of you have patience for. I highly recommend it, and here's why:
Like many who play this game, this was my first "Soulsborne/Soulslike" game, as it is the most refined and user-friendly version of FromSoftware's game design ethos. I avoided the Dark Souls series for many years. I had a presumptuous view of FromSoftware and their visual aesthetic that made me feel this game was just sad edgelord material. I was so wrong.
Like all FromSoftware games, Elden Ring revels in struggle. Only the most basic combat mechanics are explained to the player; the rest is trial and error. It challenges you to tease out its mysteries, not just of the world and lore, but of the combat mechanics and UI. The game asks you to STRUGGLE (you need to be open to that to fully enjoy it), and oh boy, did I struggle...
I struggled to simply navigate the user interface, to find the extra info on weapon damage and scaling, armor ratings and status defenses, even item descriptions full of implicit lore that give the player a small understanding of what's happening in the Lands Between. I struggled to accept that not every field boss in the overworld was meant to be defeated when you first encounter them. I struggled to avoid traps and ambushes. Even when I gave up trying to play solo and attempted to use the Co-Op multiplayer system, I struggled to understand the seemingly obtuse system of items that enable it. Even after, I struggled against skilled and relentless Invaders, many of whom have been invading players since Dark Souls 1. I'm ashamed to say I struggled to not uninstall the game and play an easier one with a more forgiving learning curve. Such was my frustration.
Most of all, I struggled to get acclimated to the combat mechanics... Until, a whole 40 hours (and many deaths) in, something clicked. I started seeing and feeling a flow to combat, requiring a skillful dance between dodging perfectly into attacks and identifying narrow windows for my own attacks. I started to understand every movement and attack option's purpose and viability in different scenarios. I started understanding how to most efficiently manage my stamina, consumables, and other resources. I started seeing challenges and opportunities where before I only saw difficulties and defeat.
This began a shift in my mentality. The developers were not taunting or trolling me, like many players seem to think; they were inviting me to experience a true power fantasy, to feel a tangible sense of actual progression in skill and understanding. The game does not say "git gud, noob"; it says "rise, Tarnished".
So many modern AAA games are released with a product mentality first and foremost, and not even as good products; they are often unfinished, rushed, bugged, and bloated with profit-maximizing strategies like microtransactions. Elden Ring is the first game I've played in a decade that felt like a complete game, full of hundreds of hours of content.
So many games frontload their "best" content and force you to engage with it to force your interest, but much of Elden Rings best content is hidden or blocked by combat and platforming challenges. I have almost 3k hours logged, and I'm still finding out new things the game has kept hidden from me. This speaks so much to the confidence the developers have in their vision of an adventure fantasy game centered around discovery.
The game is not perfect. There are still some bugs and glitches present from launch that have no clearcut development solution. Many bosses, enemy types, and other assets are re-used all over the map to mixed effect. Some lategame and endgame content feels rushed and spread out. Perhaps worst of all, like all games with an active PvP element, the player community is rife with toxic players who seem hellbent on griefing others into making them uninstall the game.
Even with these glaring imperfections, this game shines like a diamond in a sea of coal coated with cheap craft glitter. It stands head and shoulders above almost all other modern AAA games in terms of intrigue, combat satisfaction, exploration, and story, and it doesn't even flaunt it. An understated and nuanced gaming experience is such a delight in an era where games are intended to feel more like blockbuster Hollywood movies rather than progressive adventures. Elden Ring is the culmination of FromSoftware’s singular and robust design philosophy, honed over decades of trial and error.
If you experience only one Soulsbourne game in your entire life, let it be Elden Ring.

Welcome To Elden Ring -A Dying Simulator-
This game delivers the entire experience in a way I've never quite seen. I'm new to the souls-like genre, and FROMSOFTWARE games. Here are the thoughts:
I've spent 200+ hours in this game as of writing this and I've barely left the starting area - Limgrave. My nightmares consist of Runebears, traversing the mist, and boss fights. I've been startled, pillaged, rekt, and absolutely confused many times, but I wouldn't change any of it. I remember the first time I saw a giant I had Attack on Titan flashbacks and began trying to summon my inner Captain Levi. It's just a blast. An absolute blast. The greatest feeling of accomplishment is when you start to beat bosses or new enemies on your first attempt. You can feel your ability, your reaction time, your muscle-memory coming more and more into play as you practice, and it creates a thrilling experience. Struggling with an enemy type for hours only to come back a few days later and realize how much stronger and faster you've gotten is a very rewarding experience.
I was a bit nervous about the difficulty as I'm not usually a fan of hard content (or very good at it), but to my pleasant surprise, it wasn't as daunting as I'd thought it'd be, and it actually ended up becoming one of my favorite games.
I can't remember the last time I had this much fun just exploring and running around in a game's open world, and realizing the sheer scale of it all was both exciting and overwhelming. I spent something like 50 hours exploring Limgrave alone and getting familiar with the gameplay and controls.
If I had trouble with a boss or an area, I'd just go somewhere else on the map until I felt ready to take it on, and there's plenty of things to do before even beating the first story boss. Discover new dungeons, Cave, Hidden Item, Secret Spells, Underground, Mini bosses etc.. Summoning Spirit were also a huge help, and I was very happy with the options available. Trying out new weapons art was fun, and even finding new ones for the lore bits was very compelling and made me want to collect them all.
Even if the game seems difficult, I think giving it a chance is really worth it. The game gives you a lot of options In open world amazing quest, beautiful scenery that is pretty enough reason to try it. If you're struggling, and there are plenty of play-styles, magical spells build as well to play with.
This is the game which actually teaches you that Quitting is not an option but dying is

---{ Graphics }---
☑ You forget what reality is
☐ Beautiful
☐ Good
☐ Decent
☐ Bad
☐ Don‘t look too long at it
☐ MS-DOS
---{ Gameplay }---
☑ Very good
☐ Good
☐ It's just gameplay
☐ Mehh
☐ Watch paint dry instead
☐ Just don't
---{ Audio }---
☑ Eargasm
☐ Very good
☐ Good
☐ Not too bad
☐ Bad
☐ I'm now deaf
---{ PC Requirements }---
☐ Check if you can run paint
☐ Potato
☐ Decent
☑ Fast
☐ Rich boi
☐ Ask NASA if they have a spare computer
---{ Game Size }---
☐ Floppy Disk
☐ Old Fashioned
☐ Workable
☑ Big
☐ Will eat 10% of your 1TB hard drive
☐ You will want an entire hard drive to hold it
☐ You will need to invest in a black hole to hold all the data
---{ Difficulty }---
☐ Just press 'W'
☐ Easy
☐ Easy to learn / Hard to master
☐ Significant brain usage
☐ Difficult
☑ Dark Souls
---{ Grind }---
☐ Nothing to grind
☐ Only if u care about leaderboards/ranks
☐ Isn't necessary to progress
☑ Average grind level
☐ Too much grind
☐ You'll need a second life for grinding
---{ Story }---
☐ No Story
☐ Some lore
☐ Average
☐ Good
☐ Lovely
☑ It'll replace your life
---{ Game Time }---
☐ Long enough for a cup of coffee
☐ Short
☐ Average
☑ Long
☐ To infinity and beyond
---{ Price }---
☐ It's free!
☑ Worth the price
☐ If it's on sale
☐ If u have some spare money left
☐ Not recommended
☐ You could also just burn your money
---{ Bugs }---
☑ Never heard of
☐ Minor bugs
☐ Can get annoying
☐ ARK: Survival Evolved
☐ The game itself is a big terrarium for bugs
---{ ? / 10 }---
☐ 1
☐ 2
☐ 3
☐ 4
☐ 5
☐ 6
☐ 7
☐ 8
☐ 9
☑ 10

I initially dreaded playing Elden Ring, but the moment I began, its captivating beauty drew me in. Despite my initial frustration and hesitation, the game's challenges became opportunities for growth. After conquering a formidable boss, my satisfaction was immeasurable.
As I explored the game's lore and landscapes, my initial hatred transformed into a deep love. Elden Ring had turned reluctance into reverence, demonstrating the power of unexpected beauty and challenge.

---{ Graphics }---
☐ You forget what reality is
☑ Beautiful
☐ Good
☐ Decent
☐ Bad
☐ Don‘t look too long at it
☐ MS-DOS
---{ Gameplay }---
☑ Very good
☐ Good
☐ It's just gameplay
☐ Mehh
☐ Watch paint dry instead
☐ Just don't
---{ Audio }---
☑ Eargasm
☐ Very good
☐ Good
☐ Not too bad
☐ Bad
☐ I'm now deaf
---{ Audience }---
☐ Kids
☑ Teens
☑ Adults
☐ Grandma
---{ PC Requirements }---
☐ Check if you can run paint
☐ Potato
☑ Decent
☐ Fast
☐ Rich boi
☐ Ask NASA if they have a spare computer
---{ Difficulty }---
☐ Just press 'W'
☐ Easy
☐ Easy to learn / Hard to master
☐ Significant brain usage
☐ Difficult
☑ Dark Souls
---{ Grind }---
☐ Nothing to grind
☐ Only if u care about leaderboards/ranks
☐ Isn't necessary to progress
☑ Average grind level
☐ Too much grind
☐ You'll need a second life for grinding
---{ Story }---
☐ No Story
☐ Some lore
☐ Average
☐ Good
☑ Lovely
☐ It'll replace your life
---{ Game Time }---
☐ Long enough for a cup of coffee
☐ Short
☐ Average
☑ Long
☐ To infinity and beyond
---{ Price }---
☐ It's free!
☑ Worth the price
☐ If it's on sale
☐ If u have some spare money left
☐ Not recommended
☐ You could also just burn your money
---{ Bugs }---
☑ Never heard of
☐ Minor bugs
☐ Can get annoying
☐ ARK: Survival Evolved
☐ The game itself is a big terrarium for bugs
---{ ? / 10 }---
☐ 1
☐ 2
☐ 3
☐ 4
☐ 5
☐ 6
☐ 7
☐ 8
☐ 9
☑ 10