FromSoftware’s open-world RPG Elden Ring shook Internet up with its release last week. However, among the plethora of praises and compliments, it also received a number of complaints mostly related to the PC performance and the overall difficulty of the game.
FromSoftware’s director Hidetaka Miyazaki participated in an interview about the subject with Simon Parkin from New Yorker. Coming as the latest installment in the Souls-like games, like the Dark Souls, Demon’s Souls, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice (that also had its accessibility debate!), Elden Ring takes a similar approach to the in-game deaths of player characters, treating them as a part of the overall experience and a milestone to overcome.
“I do feel apologetic toward anyone who feels there’s just too much to overcome in my games,” Miyazaki said. “I just want as many players as possible to experience the joy that comes from overcoming hardship.”
George R.R. Martin, best known as the author of the fantasy saga The Song of Ice and Fire, commented on the game’s release in his official blog:
“The wait is over. Years in the making, ELDEN RING was released last week, and has been taking the gaming world by storm. But don’t listen to me. From Software brought me on to do their worldbuilding, so I can hardly pretend to be objective.”
The game community has been working hard to enhance the already magnificent experience. Among other notable fan-made mods is the “Pause The Game” mod by TechieW, available for PC users via Nexusmods. As comes from its name, it allows players to pause the game by pressing P. If you are interested in using it, make sure to check the installations instructions provided on the mod’s page, it requires disabling the anti-cheat.
Additionally, Elden Ring is undergoing maintenance to improve some of its multiplayer functions. Check out the Twitter thread for the precise timing.
