TEST Elden Ring: lose your life to earn it

Elden Ring is a production expected by a good number of players. And for good reason, the great George RR Martin, author of Game Of Thronesembarked on a crazy collaboration with Japanese developers from FromSoftwareknown for great franchises like the Dark Souls, Bloodborne or Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. An open world filled with fantasy, populated by creatures of all kinds, inevitably, there is something to make your mouth water. We have finally completed this great adventure, let’s not be afraid of words, what an incredible video game work… But let’s go into a bit more detail!

The art direction is absolutely phenomenal.

The visual part is the first point that jumps out and, yes, the game is amazingly beautiful. First of all, if you have an adequate screen at home, you have two choices in the settings. On the one hand, you can prioritize quality. Elden Ring then becomes much thinner, the depth of field is much sharper and environments are more shimmering. The problem is that the title falters in the 30 fps. When several elements are exhibited, the frame rate drop slightly. Conversely, when we are in a less crowded place, the number of images per second increases, the movements are then more fluid. Disturbing? Let’s say it’s up to your peepers to adapt, but we advise you to play with the other mode, Performance.

We had concerns about thealiasing and the latter has (a little) disappeared; we have the impression that this production has had the right to a little polish in recent weeks, before it appears on our shelves. So of course, the backgrounds are blurry, but damn it’s nice to play in 60 fps, especially when it comes to such a demanding game. And sincerely, our peepers feast on all sides, do not hesitate! Regarding the HDR option, do not look and activate it. Layers of light overlap to deliver a realistic look to the image, it’s impressive. For example, the rays of the sun in the sky, crossing gloomy clouds, tore our jaws so well done.

Besides, the art direction is simply phenomenal. Whether outdoors or indoors, the developers have done research and have certainly been inspired by famous works (such as the illustrations of Gustave Doré, especially his representation of paradise) to lay an enchanting universe. The bestiary is well thought out and varied. Species of wolves, giant snakes, crazy crabs, bats, dragons, gloomy and creepy creatures, the visual monotony is not there. We’ve been praising for a while, but Elden Ring are there any flaws? Who says open-worldsaid small bugs. The one that comes to mind: collisions. We were stuck in a wall, while monsters went through walls. It can be boring, but also… practical. In effect, when an enemy got stuck in a rock, we did not deprive ourselves to finish him off with ease. So don’t panic, it happens from time to time, it’s not recurrent and the experience is good overall. Of course, there is a bit of popping concerning the textures, but here too, nothing too bad. And note that, as long as you don’t die, load times don’t exist. in-gamewhich means: no black screen in full exploration and that’s good.

This journey begins with the creation of his character. We then have to choose a class (there really is a choice) and then design the appearance of our protagonist. Strong point, there are a lot of options to get a looks according to his desires, even in his image. In other words, it’s super comprehensive. Regarding orders, if you are used to handling this type of production, you will quickly find your bearings. Indeed, by tapping on a few keys, our hero can run, crouch, jump and attack gently or violently. Nothing fancy, in short.

Everything is there to help us a minimum, without ever really giving us a hand.

Without surprise, FromSoftware obliges, during a fight, it is not enough to hammer his joystick to win the victory. We must analyze, understand and study the opponent to put him down. Thus, you have to dodge, counter and attack at the right time to lower your life gauge. An endurance bar also gives rhythm to our steps and our assaults. The higher it is, the faster and more lively the sequences will be. So take the time to breathe at times, even if the big beast in front of you spits fire. Another point, the equipment and utensils collected along the way are a great help to progress. If we block on a supercharged creature, nothing prevents us from fleeing and coming back to give it a little spanking once the muscles are tenfold. And that’s the beauty of Elden Ring: the freedom.

We discover a vast and diverse world. Damp corners, caves, underground passages, forests, castles, the expedition is crazy and incredible, since the game constantly invites us to travel. We are therefore not cloistered between four walls and have no obligation to go through a visible place, which catches the eye, to move forward. You just have to go around it to discover other plains, often less dangerous. A veiled world map is made available (where it is possible to place markers), which grows over our escapades. It is by flushing out fragments on our way, that we can dissipate the fog on our map and thus make the environments appear.

Of course, and fortunately, we use a steed to move quickly. But what we liked, it is the faculty of being able to move instantaneously towards specific points ; mainly the places where we found kinds of small luminous stelae, the “Sites of grace”. And sincerely, it takes a weight off, we are less oppressed. The reason ? After a defeat, we lose our Runes (exchange currency ofXP, etc). Here, no need to run in all directions, biting your fingers trying to avoid death again (which makes us permanently lose our property), just open the map, teleport to the location closest to our lost riches, and voila. How many times we blew, it feels good.

Resources are everywhere and important since they are used to crafter a lot of little things to boost us. The weapons are also scattered from right to left and have very specific faculties. To sum it all up in a nutshell, feel free to roam around to get good abilities. If a confrontation is difficult and if a small icon appears in the vicinity, a spirit can be summoned. The latter is not very powerful, but it has the merit of distracting the enemy’s attention. The player only has to inflict a few blows (from behind) to kill the beast once and for all. Everything is there to help us a minimum, without ever really giving us a hand.

I’between-earth is a torn kingdom… A queen, Marika the Eternale, possessed theElden Ring which maintained order and balance. The latter was shattered into several pieces which are now held by four demigods; descendants on the way from Marika. A war broke out between each clan claiming parts of theElden Ring in order to become the lord of this land that has become cursed. This is where we come in! Our goal is to recover each segment in order to take control of this world.

You’re not going to let go of the controller anytime soon.

The story is really captivating and grips from the start. The narrative kicks in as we find new key locations/characters. In short, we are not going to say more to leave you the pleasure of discovery, but just know one thing, hard to unhook once started. Moreover, there is not only one quest to be carried out, Elden Ring is so huge, that you’ll embark on dangerous missions to find better skills and equipment.

On our side, we couldn’t resist going through every corner of thebetween-earth. Hold on tight, but it took us about 60 hours to get to the end of the tunnel. If you only focus on the main adventure, and especially if you are used to Dark Souls, the circle is completed in a good thirty hours, or even a little less. However, the title invites us all the time to search, to browse, to visit this universe from top to bottom, you will not want to run, but rather to drag your feet. Again, you’re not going to let go of the controller anytime soon.

And the soundtrack in all this? She is… masterful! It’s sweet when the mood is calm, wild when creatures attack, and phenomenal when colossi surface. Penetrating and captivating hearts caress our esgourdes with delicacy, to pulsate our heartbeat. It’s simply incredible, enjoyable and epic! In addition, we are entitled to a well-made English dubbing and the sound effects are very good. In short, in two words: a delight.

FromSoftware steps out of its comfort zone to give birth to an extraordinary production that makes an impression. We feel that The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild was a source of inspiration for the developers, sinceElden Ring offers a striking open world, where the word “freedom” takes on its full meaning ; do what you want, when you want. Yes, the game is hard, very hard, but it is not insurmountable. All you have to do is move around, develop your hero and understand your defeats to progress.

Absorbing storytelling, compelling art direction, heart-pounding handling, heartbreaking soundtrack, Elden Ring is an exciting video game masterpiece that directly touches our soul. Once the credits are in front of you, you will feel fulfilled and sad at the same time. And for good reason, who wants it to end when we have fun? Don’t miss such a marvel…

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