Souls games from FromSoftware offer a unique co-op system that provides a special way to play together. In Elden Ring, it’s no different, but many players are bothered by this. A mod thus fulfilled the dreams of fans and ensured seamless co-op. What the director has to say about the mod and what you can expect in the future will be revealed here.
What did players miss? In Elden Ring, seamless co-op was the main focus, as it was completely absent. Players could summon each other with their crooked fingers and help out. However, once the boss of an area was defeated, the party was over.
Each player then had to return to their own world in order to be summoned in the next suitable area. Torrent, your loyal steed, could also not be summoned, which meant fans had to make long treks to get from one area to another.
This left many players bewildered, as the RPG offered a huge world, but it could only be explored clumsily with friends. A mod provided a remedy, allowing players to be summoned seamlessly in every area. For many, this was a glimmer of hope, but this “update” is not official.
A new interview with Hidetaka Miyazaki, the director of Elden Ring, has now provided new insights into seamless co-op and the future plans of the developers.
In the future, seamless co-op without restrictions?
What was said? The gaming site “pcgamer.com” flew to Tokyo to play the upcoming DLC “Shadow of the Erdtree”. Hidetaka Miyazaki, the director of Elden Ring, was also present and gave an interview. A major topic was co-op. The author Wes Fenlon asked what Hidetaka Miyazaki thinks of the seamless co-op experience:
It is definitely not something we want to actively reject or downplay when we play through the whole game together. With Elden Ring, we simply wanted a relaxed, casual style – jump in, defeat a boss, and jump out. Players are not imposed with technical limitations; they can just finish their focus and then move on.
Hidetaka Miyazaki says
The focus in Elden Ring was on simplifying co-op. Compared to older Souls games by the developer like Dark Souls 1 or 3, co-op has become much more accessible.
Players no longer have to complete oaths or farm humanity; instead, there is crooked finger medicine that can be easily crafted in the starting area. Additionally, players can be found much faster at summoning pools if they fail at bosses or dungeons.
Hardware is also an important point. Your systems would need to be able to render the map and your fellow players for a longer duration. This might work well on PCs but could pose a problem on consoles.
Additionally, Hidetaka adds that FromSoftware is not averse to trying new things for co-op. Such ideas could be implemented in future games. Which games that might be remains open from the director.
How will co-op be in the upcoming DLC? In the upcoming DLC “Shadow of the Erdtree”, there will be no changes to the co-op. Players will be able to summon just like in the base game.
However, there is an interesting adjustment and that is the strength of your hero. This is now decoupled from your stats and shares a similar system to that of Sekiro. If you defeat strong bosses, you will also become stronger to deal more damage. What you should know about this is here: New mechanics in the Elden Ring DLC should also provide a challenge for the strongest among you
