Elden Ring - Shadow of the Erdtree Expansion Announced

[Flub]

I'm not great at these games but this one I'm enjoying a lot. So much to explore. I ended up googling beginners tips and Eurogamer told me where to find a nice weapon. I checked the requirements and created a new character that would be quickest to grind runes for stats. That was a samauri. I now have a nice twinblade and a shield that tanks 100% physical.

 

The first main story boss...wow. I'm gonna need to summon some help for that

 

The sheer freedom is amazing. Just pick a direction and go exploring. You'll find something to do...or something to plummet from the sky, roar and try to eat you.

 

Also crabs.

 

FPS is a bit random on my SX. Rain hurts it. There's one area I found that just hits it hard (Fog this time I think). VRR is helping it not be unplayable but it's disappointing. There are also some random spots where the framerate tanks a bit but then later in the same place no problems. It's not weather in general though. An early area is very windy with lots of particle effects and trees blowing. I've never seen the fps hit there. It's very weird.

[Anne Summers]

This is just fabulous. 

Played 2 hours and already seen so much cool stuff but haven't even set foot inside the first "main quest" dungeon area. Or fought anything that seems like a proper boss. Lots of roaming bosses and mini bosses. I found somewhere called a 

 

Spoiler

Catacombs

 

But turned around and walked straight out again because fuck going into somewhere called 

Spoiler

Catacombs

 

early on in a Souls game. Fool me once etc...

 

Think I made the right decision going PS judging by what everyone is saying, haven't come across any frame rate issues at all and it looks amazing in HDR. 

[amc]

I'm up all night with this sucker. Not planned but what can you do.

 

Cheers.

 

[Mitchell]

1 hour ago, amc said:

I'm honestly really impressed how it's running, was a bit worried due to the reports of poor performance but it's running superbly here. Sure there's been a new patch.

 

Hopefully people calm down and not expect miracles with older hardware too. Shame to review bomb such a masterpiece, especially when it seems to be running so well, should scale too.

 

Older hardware seems to work better.  🤷‍♂️  it really doesn't scale.  And I suppose people are entitled to review poorly if...it runs poorly?  Reviews back now....sitting at 63%. 

 

1 hour ago, amc said:

To be honest, after typing the above about Steam reviews I may be being a little premature. I think Gsync/VRR may be helping me out a fair bit. There's deffo fluctuations in different scenarios but my setup seems to be handling it really well, all variables jiving together.   

 

Either way, hopefully patches bring happiness and people can just crack on. It's utterly superb.           

 

I mean, you only have to have a scan at the link below to see the extent of the issues.  Not just stutter/freezing leading to dying, but controllers not working, invisible enemies...a couple of people actually solved an issue with it not loading by installing/updating Epic Games.  I am not kidding!  

 

https://www.resetera.com/threads/elden-ring-pc-performance-thread-you-see-that-mountain-you-can-stutter-there.556231/page-19

 

Surprising none of this came out in any of the glowing reviews...only place I saw it called out was Digital Foundry.

 

Anyway, I'll shut up about it now so you can all get back to dying and that.  

 

🙏  ☀️

[dug]

Well, this is just magnificent, isn't it? Three hours of pure discovery and fun (and dying), and I haven't even started going the way it wants me to go yet.

 

I've already caught up with all the work I need to do, so tomorrow I'm pulling an all-fucking-dayer.

[Len]

This is, utterly, utterly magnificent. I crumbled and started on pc, runs really well for me so far (may be the 3090 brute forcing?)

 

No shield is a complete mare as a wretch but sod it, trying to get enough cash for one from that first ncp merchant you meet.

 

Dinner, kids to bed, coffee and specific gummies () chosen then back at it. No idea where I'm going to go and absolutely love it.    

[amc]

@MitchellWeird, and such a shame. From certainly have the stones when it comes to design but they do seem to drop the ball when it comes to their engine/performance. Yeah, of course people should complain if it's not performing well for them. I was just honestly surprised how well it's running for me after watching and reading a few things, stuff that was talking about the latest patch, well before unlock. I'll have to see if they have actually released another patch at the 11th hour. No idea.

 

I was expecting a horror show, and believe me I'm a miserabilist complainer when it comes to poor performance (Horizon is getting swerved until there's a patch that cleans up performance mode) but it's pretty great for me atm. 

 

I hope they sort any problems people seem to be having, quick.

[CrichStand]

Played 3hrs of this and I’m not really getting all the ott praise for it so far. It’s good but it definitely doesn’t seem great. Graphically it looks very last gen, on a par with PS4 games running on PS5. Some of the ambient audio is really nice though. In terms of gameplay it’s just more Dark Souls, only with bells on. I prefer Demon’s Souls myself and it’s more focused design. So far this feels a bit aimless and a bit......dull. In BOTW the exploration rewards you with say a Shrine, that has some fun puzzles to solve etc. In this, you just find well, more enemies to fight, at least so far. 
 

Also, It’s waaaaaay easier. For the first 2 and half hrs I was running around one hit killing and cutting through large groups of enemies with ease. Absolute piece of piss! At the same time it’s also waaaaaay harder! I opened a random chest and was suddenly transported to another area, and I’m now trapped there. When I die it starts me in that area every time there’s seemingly no way out. All the enemies one hit kill me, including some from range and I can’t damage them. I’m getting poisoned by the environment. I’m getting status effects that fuck me up. I’m running around trying to find a way out and just dying.....and dying......and dying.....and dying......and dying.....over and over and over again. Which is not even remotely close to being enjoyable, it’s just really annoying and in any other game would be flagged up as appalling design. 
 

There’s also the same old flaws in the combat still there too. Namely, my attacks are missing for no reason, even when I’m locked on and right against an enemy. My sword passes straight through them and.......nothing! Of course an enemy can then suddenly do a string of ludicrous attacks out of nowhere, that it’s never done before, which hit me multiple times in a row and kill me outright. There’s also still a lot of trial and error involved too.
 

New problem I’m noticing - it’s more annoying getting your stuff back when you’re killed. The other games where more linear so, losing your stuff usually meant a run back in that direction anyway. Now the world is more open it feels more of a chore to trudge back to where you died to collect shit.

 

Anyway, will play some more tmw and hopefully it’ll click a bit more.......if I can even get out of the location I’m now in! 

[amc]

Fucking hell, all the early doors nobs leaving "Hidden path ahead" messages. Can't wait until that chills out. Not that I'm fooled, mind. Well, most of the time anyway.

[Retroid]

An hour and a bit in, just had my first "real" death in a dungeon which was filled with little enemies and lots of fire, still, I think I survived a *load* of the traps - felt good, my favorite moment so far was just running the little shits in the fire when I realized I was overwhelmed; which is probably intended but still made me feel smart. Got chased a lot on the over-world and was surprised by how far and what these big enemies can traverse and still be effective.

 

Having fun!

[Floshenbarnical]

My Amazon copy is delayed until Saturday. 

[spanx]

Woke up early like a kid at Christmas, excitedly chanted “ELDEN RING ELDEN RING ELDEN RING ELDEN RING!” to myself and booted the PC up. 50gb patch apparently. 
 

Very happy I have a gigabit connection right now. 

[CrichStand]

And I’m finally out. Had to run and dodge for about 20mins past multiple high level enemies.......mini bosses........and a fuck off screen filling enemy.........to get back to safety. Then I opened my map........and it looks like you can just instantly travel to any bonfire you’ve found. Fuck’s sake! So yeah, if you make the mistake of opening the chest I found, which is near to the start of the game, don’t forget you can do that......better than throwing your controller through the screen. Lol

 

Edit - And of course back at the start I run forwards a few metres and the game decides to throw up a tutorial and tell me that I can warp to any bonfire on the map. That shit should have been explained at the very start. Can see some people quitting and never playing again if they end up where I was, without that bit of info.
 

Running across the map I noticed there’s a lot of draw in and pop up. Not in the distance either, but close up. Some of the load times are longer than most next gen stuff too. Technically it’s a bit of a mess compared to most next gen stuff I’ve played.

[CrichStand]

So went “the way you’re supposed to go” from the opening........fucking hell, it’s miles better! Feels a lot like Demon’s Souls, the graphics look a lot nicer inside and the music is absolutely fucking amazing. Really, really atmospheric. Wish I’d just gone this way 4-5 hrs ago. Don’t want to stop playing but I need to get some sleep. I’ll be absolutely fucked tmw.
 

Oh yeah, also had a good laugh at the enemy placement in this early section. Textbook! Loads of newcomers will definitely be getting smashed to bits. 

[Mike S]

4 hours ago, amc said:

Man, I'd love to find that little shit down a hole somewhere in this.

One of the voices in the final trailer sounded suspiciously like him!

[spanx]

Trying to beat…

 

Spoiler

Cave beast man shithead. My skills are weak!

Wahey, first boss fight beaten!

[Simmy]

Folks - sorry to be the one asking this but has anyone got a video I can watch regarding the combat and how to do it?

 

Just has to be something simple if possible - like how to block, how to dodge etc.

 

Also timing - is it like pinpoint reflex every time? I've always really struggled with that - like reloading in gears of war I'd often just miss or overshoot the button press for reloading. I'm going to struggle I think but wanted to check.

[Minion]

36 minutes ago, Simmy said:

Folks - sorry to be the one asking this but has anyone got a video I can watch regarding the combat and how to do it?

 

Just has to be something simple if possible - like how to block, how to dodge etc.

 

Also timing - is it like pinpoint reflex every time? I've always really struggled with that - like reloading in gears of war I'd often just miss or overshoot the button press for reloading. I'm going to struggle I think but wanted to check.

 

Just play the game dude, you'll pick it up.

 

 

I'm going in, here we gooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

 

[spanx]

Well I’m quite lucky I have a pretty beefy GPU (3080) but so far it’s been pretty smooth sailing on PC. No idea what people on Steam are going on about saying they’re getting awful performance on the same GPU in 1080p, seems pretty smooth at 4K for me. Little bit of stutter here and there but nothing disastrous yet. 

[spanx]

Already well in to “fuck that, run past the enemies” mode in this. I just want my horse. 
 

This is very very good, although I am still woeful. Took 20 attempts+ at a so called easy first mini boss so I will definitely have a hard slog ahead

[fattakin]

What’s the best class for a newcomer who generally likes combat over managing magic spells and combining shit before battle?

[Minion]

3 minutes ago, fattakin said:

What’s the best class for a newcomer who generally likes combat over managing magic spells and combining shit before battle?

 

Vagabond comes with a 100% block shield, just be sure to unequip one of the weapons so you aren't fa rolling.

 

So it appears messages and bloodstains are on even if I've chosen offline? Or do I relaunch? Edit - yes relaunch fixed it. Woohoo!

[jonamok]

Two hours before bed, thoughts:

 

PS5 performance feels rough to me. Lots of hitching and perceptible frame drops on panning the camera in any location. Nowhere near smooth. And that’s on framerate mode. Quality mode is a nauseating, blurry mess with any camera movement. Definitely needs more work, and this is after the patch. I’d have certainly flagged it were I reviewing it.

 

Graphically it’s nice. Nothing amazing so far. Larger scale DS3 perhaps.

 

Open world is dizzying, enticing and terrifying. 

 

Wretch start is hard, fuck me. No way to block or parry was brutal. Bought me a shield ASAP. Fought some wolfies, and died to them a fair bit. Found a miniboss, he one shot me. At least I’ve finally found the first map fragment.

 

Next up is to find the horsey lass. Onwards.

[Len]

This is absolutely nuts, staggering. 

 

Just went down to

Spoiler

Sofia River Well Depths

by complete chance. WTF, the scale?!?!

 

And the whole thing is so, so atmospheric.

 

Found a map for

Spoiler

East Limgrave

but nothing for the rest so far but have an idea. So much I want to talk about.

 

My wretch now has a sword, shield and raggetaggedy outfit but it'll do for now.  

[Hylian]

Highly recommend the PS4 version on PS5. Seems a flawless 60. 

[jonamok]

2 minutes ago, Hylian said:

Highly recommend the PS4 version on PS5. Seems a flawless 60. 

Tempted.

[LaveDisco]

Still can’t play till tonight holding the line. 

[Goemon]

12 minutes ago, jonamok said:

Two hours before bed, thoughts:

 

PS5 performance feels rough to me. Lots of hitching and perceptible frame drops on panning the camera in any location. Nowhere near smooth. And that’s on framerate mode. Quality mode is a nauseating, blurry mess with any camera movement. Definitely needs more work, and this is after the patch. I’d have certainly flagged it were I reviewing it.

 

Graphically it’s nice. Nothing amazing so far. Larger scale DS3 perhaps.

 

Open world is dizzying, enticing and terrifying. 

 

Wretch start is hard, fuck me. No way to block or parry was brutal. Bought me a shield ASAP. Fought some wolfies, and died to them a fair bit. Found a miniboss, he one shot me. At least I’ve finally found the first map fragment.

 

Next up is to find the horsey lass. Onwards.

Ha! I started as a Wretch, thinking I’ll just pick up a load of bits and pieces and let what I find dictate how I play…an hour in and I’ve got fuck all! Still legging around in my loincloth with the club.

 

[beakbeak]

I feel humbled to have a game like this in my possession. It’s astonishing.

 

playing on the base ps4 and it’s excellent! At least as good as any other souls game in terms of performance (which I know isn’t exactly praise!)

 

got twatted about 40 times by the first boss (ertree grave hound or whatever it’s called?) which is nuts because it’s the first boss and I beat dark souls 3 without summoning… maybe im just rusty.

 

anyway, I can’t believe it exists. It’s just insane. The scope, the vision, the graphics, everything. Wowser.

[Kirby]

I'm reading a lot of performance woes. For PS4 this looks almost next gen and despite all the extra stuff going on its running better than DS3 particularly  when I triggered half a dozen enemies. Maybe this was their original "base" and they've rushed next gen ports? Just a thought. How are other PS4 owners finding it?

 

Combat feels solid and a million times better. And jumping attacks are awesome.

 

TLDR