Cover artwork I generate from the game data. I do not use publisher artwork.
Game profile
Elden Ring
From Software brings the Souls formula into an open world full of secrets and brutal boss fights. Freedom to explore meets a ruthlessly fair challenge.
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What kind of game this is
At its core this is RPG / Soulslike, set in a fantasy world. Visually it is going for realism, and the overall tone stays dark throughout. The world is open, so wandering off and ignoring the main path is part of the deal. It rewards long uninterrupted stretches more than quick check-ins.
It is genuinely demanding, and repeated failure is part of how it is designed. The story matters and gives the mechanics a frame, without taking over. You can play it with others cooperatively or go head to head. It is available broadly, on 4 platforms. It sits in the mid price bracket.
What stands out
- Massive open world
- Demanding boss fights
- High degree of freedom
This fits you if
- exploring for its own sake is the point for you
- you are after a proper adrenaline rush
- you can sit down for a proper long stretch without interruptions
- you like getting lost and ignoring the main objective for hours
- you want real resistance and are fine with dying a lot
- you have someone to play with
Look elsewhere if
- you want to relax and not be punished for mistakes
- you do not have 60 hours to give a single game
- you only ever get short bursts of play time
- you want something light and easy going
What it costs you in time
About 60 hours in total. At three evenings a week and two hours each, you will be busy for roughly 10 weeks, or 30 sessions.
How the rating ranks
Critics settled on 97 out of 100, which puts it above 100 percent of the 1206 games here and at rank 5 overall. That is top tier. Only a handful of games here score higher.
For comparison, RPG averages 82 points across the database, so this one sits 15 points above its own genre. The figure rests on 2225 collected ratings.
Released in 2022 and 4 years old. Recent enough to look and run modern, old enough to be patched and often discounted.
The facts
- Release year
- 2022
- Genres
- RPG, Soulslike, Action
- Playtime
- approx. 60 hrs.
- Difficulty
- Demanding, punishing
- Story weight
- Present and relevant
- Play with
- Solo, Co-op, Competitive
- Setting
- Fantasy
- Visual style
- Realistic
- Price bracket
- Mid price
- Platforms
- PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch
- Critic rating
- 97 / 100
Direct comparison
| Genres | Release year | Playtime | Critic rating | Price bracket |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elden Ring | 2022 | approx. 60 hrs. | 97 | Mid price |
| Dark Souls III | 2016 | approx. 33 hrs. | 86 | Mid price |
| Nioh 3 | 2026 | approx. 55 hrs. | 90 | Full price |
| Lies of P | 2023 | approx. 30 hrs. | 86 | Mid price |
If you liked this, try these
- Dark Souls III Shared: RPG, Soulslike, Fantasy, shorter
- Nioh 3 Shared: RPG, Soulslike, Fantasy
- Lies of P Shared: RPG, Soulslike, Fantasy, shorter
- Black Myth: Wukong Shared: RPG, Soulslike, Fantasy, shorter
- Bloodborne Shared: RPG, Soulslike, Fantasy, shorter
- Nioh 2 Shared: RPG, Soulslike, Fantasy