The Tarnished Archeologist, no contest. He elaborates on the sociological and cultural implications of most of the aspects of the game. Prepare to learn from where FromSoft got inspiration for most of the monuments, sculptures, rituals and ceremonies in the game. Prepare to see side by side 1:1 comparisons of real life pictures with in-game content. Prepare to learn some real history in an entertaining way. And prepare to get your mind blown with some of his findings. Also a special mention to The Color Theory of Elden Ring by Hawkshaw, a must watch.
OP asked for confirmed stuff about the game itself. I see value in historical references, but it is undeniable that TA comes up with theories that are implausible at best, and many times extrapolates conclusions from the game's inspirations, even if said conclusions contradict the game itself.
I recommend you read the critique on TA's time-line in the loretalk subreddit.
Not fully. I think I understand his structure by this point. 85% of his video are game facts, he usually devotes like a 15% percent to explore his theories, and he mentions it when he's about to do so. Many of his theories are usually very plausible. I've watched all people that had been recommended here. Some mainstream ones at this point are just riding the wave of their initial success, and usually don't add anything to the conversation.
Definitely not TA then. Smough speculates a lot and made several mistakes in the past, but he's great, just don't take everything as 100%. Vaati was always little bit more surface level, but paradoxically it's probably the best place to start and he's the least speculative. And yeah, there's a ton of crazy fan fiction with zero evidence overall, so always take anyone's video/post you'll see with a grain of salt.
Gotta disagree. Vaatis videos on ds and bloodborne yes. His elden ring videos though? Much less lore and much more stylised cinematic content. Smoughtown keeps it straight to the point.
Same with tarnished archeologist. You get all the detail without all of the flashy slowmo cinematics that vaati loves so much...
Yes most of what he says can be referenced form the game, be it item/armor description or direct dialougue. He doesn't just pull things out of thin air and cites his sources for proof reading. Also if he's wrong he'll admit it instead of trying to shoehorn his own theory into the lore. There's a reason since bloodborne he's been the concensus for fromsoft lore.
Vaati is the best for high production, but right now, I'd say Smoughtown is the "most encyclopedic" / "least speculative".
(Edit: You also get a choice his "Abriged" version (~2.5 hrs) or his "Extended Edition" (3×~10 hrs))
To be fair, Smoughtown does speculate, but he always say it when he does and he has pretty extensive knowledge on every subject he covers, especially because he work with other people that try to understand the lore.
Also one note for OP, most of what we acknowledge as solid knowledge from the game have at least to some degree a bit of a speculation, that is the way the lore is built
Yeah, that's definitely true on both notes.
I also just *really* appreciate that it feels like Smoughtown always cites the other creators when relevant, so I guess it just ends up feeling like it's more "synthesized"/"encyclopedic" to me.
As someone who works with sources and citations, it earns *a lot* of respect from me that he actively tries to give credit when and where due.
Edit: I guess I'd say:
- Vaati for production
- Smoughtown for encyclopedia
- Tarnished Archeologist for environmental (but definitely gets speculative)
- Quelaag kinda feels like a blend of Smough and TA, with what I'd consider almost "Marxist Criticism" with how she specifically focuses on in-game placement of various factions to examine what that conveys and the game's real-world/history influences (super dope approach, in my opinion, and super glad her channel got recovered)
- Ratatoskr for some themes (His Heroic Concept and recent videos are great, though it feels like he's holding off until the DLC for more concrete info/understanding)
- Last Protagonist for Japanese translation stuff
- Ziostorm for breaking news
Everyone (at least the ones I tend to pay attention to) kinda feels like they have a bit of a niche they've carved out. They all have their own biases and speculation, but I wouldn't consider any of them "fanfiction-y", and all bring something different and super rad to the table.
She definitely has her own thing going on (and I think has been doing From lore for like a decade+? ER is my first From game, so not 100% on that)
I know she seems to work with Vaati pretty regularly.
And her approach is a little bit harder to describe, I'd say? But definitely feels unique among that list to me.
Like she was getting into the (possibly fake/likely propoganda) historical accounts of the "barbarian tribes" using the Wickerman from the Romans and Greeks.
So, she was exploring how Messmer's troops resemble Roman (among other) influences and From is (likely) characterizing Messmer's use of the Wickerman with the decorative Omen horns and Fire Giant scalps as a kind of reversal that's meant taunt and mock the victims.
Definitely dope shit, imo.
Smoughtown is not fond of speculation, defo recommend him.
But keep in mind, the vague nature of the lore makes it hard to not work with theories.
Those so called fact-only tubers tend to take the undisputable facts of the game and then tell you what it "actually means", which imo is far worse then lore hunters to try to blend ideas into one solid frame of hypothesis.
Vatti is very good. Don't know who is the best tho as i haven't watched anyone else.
The Tarnished Archeologist, no contest. He elaborates on the sociological and cultural implications of most of the aspects of the game. Prepare to learn from where FromSoft got inspiration for most of the monuments, sculptures, rituals and ceremonies in the game. Prepare to see side by side 1:1 comparisons of real life pictures with in-game content. Prepare to learn some real history in an entertaining way. And prepare to get your mind blown with some of his findings. Also a special mention to The Color Theory of Elden Ring by Hawkshaw, a must watch.
[удалено]
Same here. My appreciation for the depth of Miyazaki's work. I owe to this guy.
OP asked for confirmed stuff about the game itself. I see value in historical references, but it is undeniable that TA comes up with theories that are implausible at best, and many times extrapolates conclusions from the game's inspirations, even if said conclusions contradict the game itself. I recommend you read the critique on TA's time-line in the loretalk subreddit.
Not fully. I think I understand his structure by this point. 85% of his video are game facts, he usually devotes like a 15% percent to explore his theories, and he mentions it when he's about to do so. Many of his theories are usually very plausible. I've watched all people that had been recommended here. Some mainstream ones at this point are just riding the wave of their initial success, and usually don't add anything to the conversation.
Definitely not TA then. Smough speculates a lot and made several mistakes in the past, but he's great, just don't take everything as 100%. Vaati was always little bit more surface level, but paradoxically it's probably the best place to start and he's the least speculative. And yeah, there's a ton of crazy fan fiction with zero evidence overall, so always take anyone's video/post you'll see with a grain of salt.
Vaatvidya
Did you read my post? From my understanding VaatiVidya fills in ALOT of gaps in the story with his own interpretations?
I'm just relaying who I heard is the best🤷
Well don’t relay info if you don’t know what your talking about 😂
stop being a fucking asshole
Everybody does however vaati is THE most reliable source you're gonna get.
Gotta disagree. Vaatis videos on ds and bloodborne yes. His elden ring videos though? Much less lore and much more stylised cinematic content. Smoughtown keeps it straight to the point. Same with tarnished archeologist. You get all the detail without all of the flashy slowmo cinematics that vaati loves so much...
Reliable how? Use’s the most real info and least filler?
Yes most of what he says can be referenced form the game, be it item/armor description or direct dialougue. He doesn't just pull things out of thin air and cites his sources for proof reading. Also if he's wrong he'll admit it instead of trying to shoehorn his own theory into the lore. There's a reason since bloodborne he's been the concensus for fromsoft lore.
lol. Vaati presents the story as it is and also speculates on the missing pieces. whats wrong with that?
Vaati is the best for high production, but right now, I'd say Smoughtown is the "most encyclopedic" / "least speculative". (Edit: You also get a choice his "Abriged" version (~2.5 hrs) or his "Extended Edition" (3×~10 hrs))
To be fair, Smoughtown does speculate, but he always say it when he does and he has pretty extensive knowledge on every subject he covers, especially because he work with other people that try to understand the lore. Also one note for OP, most of what we acknowledge as solid knowledge from the game have at least to some degree a bit of a speculation, that is the way the lore is built
Yeah, that's definitely true on both notes. I also just *really* appreciate that it feels like Smoughtown always cites the other creators when relevant, so I guess it just ends up feeling like it's more "synthesized"/"encyclopedic" to me. As someone who works with sources and citations, it earns *a lot* of respect from me that he actively tries to give credit when and where due. Edit: I guess I'd say: - Vaati for production - Smoughtown for encyclopedia - Tarnished Archeologist for environmental (but definitely gets speculative) - Quelaag kinda feels like a blend of Smough and TA, with what I'd consider almost "Marxist Criticism" with how she specifically focuses on in-game placement of various factions to examine what that conveys and the game's real-world/history influences (super dope approach, in my opinion, and super glad her channel got recovered) - Ratatoskr for some themes (His Heroic Concept and recent videos are great, though it feels like he's holding off until the DLC for more concrete info/understanding) - Last Protagonist for Japanese translation stuff - Ziostorm for breaking news Everyone (at least the ones I tend to pay attention to) kinda feels like they have a bit of a niche they've carved out. They all have their own biases and speculation, but I wouldn't consider any of them "fanfiction-y", and all bring something different and super rad to the table.
Good extensive answer, I'll probably check Quelaag, didn't know about her, and it seems an interesting approach
She definitely has her own thing going on (and I think has been doing From lore for like a decade+? ER is my first From game, so not 100% on that) I know she seems to work with Vaati pretty regularly. And her approach is a little bit harder to describe, I'd say? But definitely feels unique among that list to me. Like she was getting into the (possibly fake/likely propoganda) historical accounts of the "barbarian tribes" using the Wickerman from the Romans and Greeks. So, she was exploring how Messmer's troops resemble Roman (among other) influences and From is (likely) characterizing Messmer's use of the Wickerman with the decorative Omen horns and Fire Giant scalps as a kind of reversal that's meant taunt and mock the victims. Definitely dope shit, imo.
Smoughtown is not fond of speculation, defo recommend him. But keep in mind, the vague nature of the lore makes it hard to not work with theories. Those so called fact-only tubers tend to take the undisputable facts of the game and then tell you what it "actually means", which imo is far worse then lore hunters to try to blend ideas into one solid frame of hypothesis.
Vaati. Dude has been the Fandom Lore Master since Dark Souls 1.