With Elden Ring, FromSoftware has gone all out and created not only a gigantic world but also lifted all barriers of the familiar Souls series. Despite the huge freedom, our MeinMMO author Christos Tsogos believes that Elden Ring cannot offer replay value.
The world of Elden Ring is impressively large, tells a mysterious story in an exciting way, and features spectacular boss battles. These reasons should actually be enough for me to want to explore the fantastic Lands Between over and over again. However, for me, the air in Elden Ring is already out after just one playthrough.
For although the world is packed with great content, Elden Ring has nothing that makes it worth spending dozens more hours in New Game Plus. This is particularly regrettable because especially the Dark Souls parts could excite me repeatedly for years.
What I miss most are Oaths, so-called factions to which I could join and serve. With them, you were rewarded whether you helped other players honorably or hypocritically destroyed them in an invasion. As a reward, you received Oath items that you could redeem at various altars to gain important items for trophies. However, there are no direct Oaths in the Lands Between.
You can only equip Great Runes in Elden Ring and either support players with the right multiplayer items or invade their worlds. Neither Oath rewards nor other items are given to you when you’ve proven yourself – only lousy Rune bows, of which you are anyways overwhelmed.
However, this was one of the highlights for me in Dark Souls 1-3. Either protecting the Darkroot Garden or confronting PvP groups in Anor Londo that outnumbered you. However, this is not the case in the new installment, as such mechanics have been completely omitted.
There are also many locations for self-organized PvP arenas in Elden Ring, but these are too small due to the maximum limit of 4 players. Since the map and the overall volume of the new action RPG appeared overwhelming, my disappointment grew even more when the maximum player number in co-op and PvP was revealed.
Not even trophies require effort
Another reason is the too easy completion of trophies in such a brutally difficult game. In Dark Souls 3, for example, you needed all 107 rings for the achievement “Master of Rings,” which could only be found through further journeys into New Game Plus – in Elden Ring, there are only eight measly legendary talismans. Once you have them, the trophy is yours. This can be achieved in one playthrough.
Such trophy requirements used to motivate me in the old Souls parts. They didn’t have an open world but rather a comparatively small and restricted world, but I still always felt: “I still have so much to do.”
The platinum trophies felt rewarding and fitting for the investment made, but in Elden Ring, I felt rather shortchanged. Little effort for a trophy that everyone can get.
There were also no secret items to discover, like in Dark Souls 2. In Elden Ring, you go into New Game Plus, go through the story again, collect the same items, and that’s it. No new secrets to discover that would justify another playthrough of the story.
Elden Ring is of course not called “Dark Souls,” and it doesn’t have to be the same. But those who know Dark Souls notice how much character from the original older installments is present in the new title of the brilliant Souls creators. The more disappointing it is when the only overwhelming feature of Elden Ring is the large map with its various dungeons.
Nevertheless, I still hope that Elden Ring could offer more variety in the future. DLCs have not been confirmed, but almost every successful title from FromSoftware has received at least one. Since the action RPG enjoys great popularity and many elements, like the large arenas, are still unused, DLCs cannot be ruled out.
With updates, quests are still being completed, like that of the small vessel child or patches of the rogue. Elden Ring has not yet arrived in its final form. So it’s still exciting whether more content will be added that contributes to replay value.
What do you think about the replayability in Elden Ring? Do you agree with me that the new FromSoftware title is missing something that makes it more attractive for further playthroughs? Or are you already so satisfied with what Elden Ring has to offer? Let us know in the comments!
