elden ring is a 2022 action role-playing game developed by fromsoftware. it was directed by hidetaka miyazaki with worldbuilding provided by fantasy writer george r. r. martin. it was published for playstation 4, playstation 5, windows, xbox one, and xbox series x/s on february 25 by fromsoftware in japan and bandai namco entertainment internationally. players control a customizable player character who is on a quest to repair the elden ring and become the new elden lord. — the elden ring wikipedia entry

i was introduced to elden ring during e3 2019. the announcement trailer intrigued me, though i, quite frankly, had no idea what i just witnessed. all i knew was that i LOVED it - and, from that moment, i kept an eye out for updates on what appeared to be a very, very cool game. over time, my interest in elden ring grew and grew as teasers about its storyline were released. all of the characters' designs were utterly beautiful - in particular, malenia totally captivated me - and the environments that were shown were all jawdroppingly fascinating. i committed myself to finding a good playthrough to watch when the game dropped.

you might ask: "wait, jamie, what? if you were so into this game, why didn't you want to play it?" my reason for this was honestly pretty boring. developed by the acclaimed fromsoft, elden ring is a soulslike - so i figured that there was no way that i'd be good enough to play it. back then, i had some exposure to the soulslike community, but a lot of the people who i saw online were a little... intense. big egos. etc etc. the works. i didn't really want to be privy to that sort of Gamer Energy, so i figured that hanging out on the sidelines was good enough for me.

but then the release date was finally upon us, and i was so amazed by some of the visuals from the game that i said... fuck it. i'll at least give it a try. and so i did.

my first step into the lands between was completely and utterly magical. like, i'm not gonna try to temper that experience or mask it in any layers of irony. i stood up there, on that hill overlooking the sprawling landscape of limgrave... and i just felt like i was experiencing something really groundbreaking. fromsoft simply plopped my character down in this vast golden world and said that my adventure was my own. i set off with barely any guidance, ready to see if the rest of the game would live up to that breathtaking moment.

i then got totally lost. i stumbled into some catacombs and got stabbed to death repeatedly by terrible little gargoyles. and THEN... i was absolutely annihilated by the dungeon's boss. this was NOT a plot boss, btw. it was just some random little nobody who i thought i'd be able to beat up with ease. i was pretty horrified. i still remember that feeling of dread; that "oh, fuck, i just wasted money on this game that i'll never be able to even beat ONE boss in" moment. but i decided to keep on trying, as i am a leo (JOKING, though i am a leo... LMAO) and my pride simply wouldn't let me return it. i'm really grateful that i didn't, because, after a few more tries, i beat that boss. and the pride i felt over that? i remember that, too. it's pretty laughable to look back on, now, but... when i laugh, it's in a good-spirited way. it was the first step i took; the first indication that i could, in fact, Play This Game. it's a memory that means a whole lot to me.

my journey through the lands between ended up surpassing my expectations. the open world of elden ring is my favourite one in any game i've played thus far - which is kinda wild, considering that 99% of it was actively trying to destroy me. LMFAO. but, seriously: it was a total delight to explore all of the different areas. there was so much to do in each of them that i'm certain i could boot my game up right now and find something that i missed. and the plot? dear god. the plot was absolutely incredible. the storyline shared just enough lore to get me deeply invested in the universe while also leaving so much unanswered. it whet my appetite for lore, which is partially why i decided to make this page. it's amazing when something is so Good that it makes you want to know everything you can about it.

also, how could i summarize my experience without mentioning the bosses? the difficulty of the encounters made each boss defeat feel all the more special. learning each boss' abilities, movement patterns and the like made for an incredibly satisfying experience. that lost, bumbling player who got repeatedly annihilated by some giant cat statue thing that could breathe fire down in the catacombs ended up growing a whole lot!

furthermore, i realized that a lot of the people whose attitudes dissuaded me from the soulslike genre were actually not all that prominent in the community at all; that most were more than willing to offer helpful advice to people who sought it out. every community has its assholes, to be sure - and i'm not about to defend people who are content to be cruel to others - but the fact of the matter was that i didn't need to give those people even an ounce of my attention. i set up my own cozy corner where i could play the game the way i wanted to play it and it made for a genuinely healing experience. people sometimes think i'm joking around when i say that elden ring is one of my comfort games, but it is genuinely just that.

on that note, i want to be perfectly clear that the people who decide against playing elden ring (or any other soulslike, for that matter) are perfectly valid! it's not a genre for everyone! at times, due to the difficulty of some of the encounters, i wanted to snap my controller into two distinct halves...! but if what i'm talking about seems kind of familiar to your experience, please consider it a sign to give elden ring a shot.

anyway, when i finished playing through elden ring's plot for the very first time, i felt a genuine sense of accomplishment. i felt like i worked hard for my victories and that i grew alongside my character. and, as is the way at the end of every great adventure, i also felt a deep and profound sadness that it was over. elden ring may have a lot of opinions directed towards it due to its popularity, but the truth of the matter is that this game accomplished what it set out to do.

and, in my opinion, it's a masterpiece.

i'm seriously so grateful for getting the chance to experience it.

also, can i just say that i miraculously managed to beat malenia around 2 hours after first encountering her... but we somehow ended up killing each other at the same time?!?! it's such a cherished memory of that playthrough that i made a whole page for it on this site. LMAO. i got her eventually, though. i got ALL of those bosses eventually! >:) being able to say that i got all of the achievements in elden ring is really, really cool - but i know that i can always improve, and that there are still countless adventures to be had in the lands between.