After last month’s extensive gameplay preview, you’d think people would be able to keep calm until Elden Ring releases in February. That was surely enough to tide us over, but Bandai Namco seems to be in the giving spirit of the holiday season. As excitement builds, the developers felt it necessary to give us a little Christmas gift in the form of a very brief glimpse of the Elden Ring world. The caption hints at the various paths players may take on their adventure and hints that just because you’re playing a hero doesn’t mean you’ll need to act like one.
Last month saw fifteen minutes of gameplay footage for the upcoming open-world title, highlighting the six areas players will be able to explore. It also detailed the new Grace mechanic, which will guide players towards important objectives or areas of interest. Online multiplayer will be available and will include co-op, PvP, and the invasion mechanic from both Dark Souls and Bloodborne. The world of Elden Ring was created by Game of Thrones author George R.R. Martin, so there’s no doubt that it will offer plenty of depth and an expansive narrative. (Let’s just hope the ending is decent.)
The game’s story will begin sometime after the destruction of the Elden Ring and the scattering of its shards. Though once protected by the Ring and the Erdtree, the realm is now ruled by the numerous demigod offspring of Queen Marika the Eternal, each corrupted by shards of the Ring. As a Tarnished–an exile from the Lands Between who lost the Ring’s grace–summoned back after this great Shattering, the player will traverse the lands to find the Great Runes, restore the Elden Ring, and become the Elden Lord.
Elden Ring is now scheduled to release on February 25, 2022, and will be available on PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. A closed network test took place from November 12 until November 15, which was marred by scalpers selling keys for upwards of $300 on eBay. Earlier last month, a gameplay preview was released on Bandai Namco’s YouTube channel highlighting gameplay, story, weapons, classes, and more.
