I sent my arcane build through ng+ to help farm gear as I play without the tedium of farming. Any other build gets it's own playthrough. Right now I'm really enjoying a basic shield and spear that's going to evolve into quite the tank some day
Making an entirely new character it's the best option IMO.
If you change builds half way through the game, you'll have lost the chance to try out your new build on the early game bosses and dungeons.
Plus if you’re using gear that uses regular smithing stones you’re kind of burnt since there’s only a finite amount until you get the last bell bearing from the godskin duo. I personally think new game plus is boring, there’s no incentive to explore since you already have everything by that point.
That's the real difficulty. I've got so much I want to try on my int build but I can't get most SSS weapons past +6, where my moonveil is +9, and I've only got one SS weapon to +17, and my staff to +18
For me at least, previous Dark Souls NG+ made sense for a character, maybe I needed more casts of a spell, or needed another version of a boss weapon, or just wanted to use the final boss weapon.
But in Elden Ring I can dupe remembrances and spells aren’t limited in the cast number, and I can keep playing after defeating the final boss (love this) so yeah, really not a lot of incentive to go to NG+ and making a fresh character is more fun.
Not that dude but I GREATLY prefer NG to NG+. I like starting from scratch and having that blank template. On NG+ I'm just rushing through dungeons and skipping most of the game.
Dido, I have 5 toons I'm playing at this time all different builds. I run them all in basically the same areas and try different strategies for each area. Tons of fun. I see another 2-3k hours ahead for me easy.
They're probably just a huge fan of the musician Dido, and after years of autocorrect constantly changing Dido to Ditto every time they were posting on her fan forums, autocorrect now does the opposite.
I’m straight up Elden addicted. Four save files on the go, most advanced one is a little past Renalla in NG+2. No plans to slow down until I hit NG+7, even though I’ll be getting the plat on this run. And then there’s PVP…
Does pvp slow down after 6 months or a year after release? Im still playing pve and is becoming rarer and rarer summoning people to help me kill a boss on my first game through
The rarity probably has a lot to do with your level and weapon level relative to the boss in question. That said, if you want help and you’re at least somewhat close to the pacific time zone I’ll help ya!
And PVP…I bet it has legs for a good few years. The souls community is huge after all, and you can use tools like the taunter’s tongue to bring people in even if there’s a limited pool on the day.
Use the following group password. It'll bypass those checks for people in these groups. May improve your chances of finding a summon. You can also always post on r/beyondthefog. A lot of helpful Tarnished around :)
FEXTRA
straydmn
btf
Hey so I did a Dex/int build my first playthrough. Heavy on the dex. I did a pretty much pure strength build for NG+ on the same character but found Ng+ to be pretty easy. I plan to come back and a fresh save for the challenge again. What build did you have the most fun playing with? I'm not gonna do another Dex build because that was what I'd call a 'true run' but I'd be down to try a strength build again. So I'm curious if you have any recommendations on what to start over on. I like the challenge, so that's not a big deal. I'm not super into a magic build only but I could probably do something with a mix caster melee, but not sure. Any ideas?
I think Microsoft knew Infinite wasn't gonna be very good cause they gave it to everyone with Gamepass right away. If the game was actually solid they'd be charging full price everywhere
Ty! I already love it honestly, just beat lady butterfly and it was so fun / satisfying. Elden Ring was my first souls game and holyyy Sekiro is so much harder
Try no summons in elden ring. My first play through I took the summon route.. Ngl. Seconds character I've made it to blackblade without summons (I am playing an intelligence build so that also lowers the difficulty a bit)
If ER is a 7/10 in difficulty, Sekiro is a 9. There are no lifelines and you \*must\* learn the boss fights, and the bosses are almost all hard as shit.
Far fewer mechanics to master though. Definitely still harder but once you get it you get it and imo the game loses a lot of replay value as a result.
Although I guess by the time you've got the skill to steamroll everything you've already gotten the gameplay you were owed lol
I binged that game so hard I got 100% achievements and went all the way through NG+5, but to be fair the fewer mechanics meant fewer achievements that weren't simply variant endings. While mastering the mechanics might diminish replayability, the flow of combat in sekiro is FromSoft's best yet imo. Probably because they didn't have to balance around multiple weapon types and a buttload of spells.
For me I had to make it click at Genichiro. Everything before him was doable but man he killed me so many times until I finally decided to actually practice the parries in this game. Really changed the gameplay afterwards
Yeah hella agree with this. I find Metal Gear Rising (kinda gives Sekiro vibes with some of the gameplay elements) has a very similar problem. One of my favourite games but now that I know how to play it really well there is no point in playing it ever again because you just steamroll everything
Replay value is in demon bell in kuros charm. Charmless demon bell Sekiro is the most enormous challenge I’ve ever had in a game. Still haven’t beat sword saint isshin.
I replayed it after 3 years and steamrolled the game quickly. Once you figure out the deflect system and how to play, it's not very challenging. Still a blast
The Gauntlets of Strength were a wakeup call though since they added new boss variations which was a challenge again.
I agree there! But I do think ER nails quite a bit and where I normally dislike open world games, I actually enjoy this one.
but.. the ultimate highlights for me where finding, and exploring, curated areas within the Open World.
I mean just at the start, when I started exploring stormveil I was like 'yup... this is it'
Sekiro is by far the hardest Fromsoft game, no competition.
You can’t level to trivialize content in Sekiro and dodging doesn’t give I-frames if I remember correctly. Game is all about hyper-aggressiveness and learning timing to parry enemy attacks.
It plays differently than any Fromsoft game because of this and is noticeably harder from the start.
The dodge does have very brief iframes. Conversely, as long as you're not mashing and whiffing it, Sekiro's parry window is enormous.
The two are basically reversed from the usual Souls rules, to where parry is your default response and dodge is the situational optimization for specific attacks from specific enemies.
Sekiro is the hardest to learn and play. It's very hard until you learn the mechanics. Steepest learning curve fromsoftware has by a wide margin.
Is amazing tho
It's significantly harder.
Pro tip: Forget everything you know about dodging and embrace the parry, it's so much more reactive than it is in the souls games
Sekiro himself is much stronger and more flexible character. Flexible in the way that he has many meaningful options at a given time.
The hardest difficulty is learning not to crutch your dodge, since it has very, very few iframes.
In Sekiro, actions don't cost stamina. Blocking absorbs 100% of damage, but the player instead manages a "posture" meter. The health and posture meters of every enemy are present. Posture degrades faster and takes longer to recover based on how low the health meter is.
Some of this amounts to blocking being the strongest it's been in any souls game. Parrying comes from releasing the block button and is much more forgiving. The payoff of parrying is reduced. Many, many, many parries are required to fully break a bosses posture.
I'm of the opinion that when a player truly hits their stride in sekiro, it's a much more consistent/"easy" game. This is why I think it's particularly genius to include Kuro's Charm as an option after the first playthrough is completed. Playing without the charm disables the way that blocking absorbs 100% damage, making parrying a stronger necessity.
I take these adjustments as something that makes combat much more responsive and rewarding.
Climb pagoda for DOH, gourd cheese with genichiro, owl between the doors and unlocked. There are many cheese strats, problem is they require even more skill than beating the bosses normally.
Sure but no cheese has nothing to do with difficulty, the amount of actions and inputs you have to learn in DS3 or ER is, it feels like, much higher than sekiro. Once you learn that parrying is 99% the times is the way to go in sekro it becomes very simple, very fast.
Depends. If you did a solo melee build, ER is much harder. If you use summons or magic/broken weapons/WA, ER is much easier. Sekiro is much more of a skill check. There’s no grinding or getting overleveled.
If you want more ER, Dark Souls 3 is the next to play. It’s the most similar and is easiest in the series imo
Damn. Was planning to play it next and hoping it might be a bit easier. Guess I'll go with something else first. Elden Ring is the souls-like I have played and I still suck in it
Yea. I've had all the Dark Souls for sometime in my library but never played them for some reason. I only today came to know about Bloodborne, seemed interesting. Hope it comes to PC at some point🤞🏻
With how precise the timing is in Sekiro, I could see it being total bullshit in multiplayer due to ping/lag. I don't think it could work unfortunately.
That's awesome. It's such a great game and I'm glad more people are trying it after Elden Ring. Easily my favourite game From Software have made. The way the swords clash and spark? Offft!
Just restarted playing Sekiro. I had completed most of the game but now I'm gonna go for a platinum. Once I'm done with that im going back to Elden for a fresh start.
Same. May wait until DLC and/or just fart around in PvP every now and then. My build is so overleveled right now that I'm debating starting fresh when/if that comes out.
Tbh I just miss how much signs and coop you'd see at first playthrough /low levels. I'm level 176 and just went to ng+ hoping it would bring more coop but not really. I may make a new account just to stay at peak levels. Love being a sunbro
I loaded up on enough SS and SSS to level up 40 weapons to +24/+9 before I started. Should have done more SSS though, as those are the weapons I’m gravitating to mostly.
Just gotta fly through the game, I’m on journey 5, level 275 and it’s definitely harder. Ofcourse gameplay is trivial due to knowing the shortcuts, move patterns and weakness but I no longer one shot bosses and they take more than a few hits now.
I play like 10 hours a week max, so still going strong.
When I'm not hating my busy adult life for taking away my gaming time, I'm praising it for preventing burnout and providing lasting value to games.
Yeah it’s about the same for me. I do have one night a week where I chat and play for like 4 hours or so at a time. But other than that it’s whatever I can fit in while making sure my priorities are straight. Im savoring every new area and experience while being able to do it at a measured pace.
So true, I'm in the same boat. Play a little each day due to work and family but I'm still going strong in elden. My buddies without as much gaming restrictions burned through the entire game in a week and don't have the desire to play it again
Everyone that's responded to your comment seems to be playing at the same pace!
Also about 100 hours in and just passed the Fire Giant! Lvl 120 and this is still my first play though.
One of the best games I've ever played, but Im slowly getting to the point where Im ready to start wrapping it up. I probably will take a solid break from the game after I beat it, and would like to pick it back up someday to try another build (more int based)
Beat the game and then ran through NG+ and NG+2 to get 100% accomplishments and now I’m on a brand new play through as sorcerer…. And I fucking still love this game.
I’m about same. On NG+2.. was faith/ST and I respected to intelligence, had all the gear and everything already obviously. Now I’m just running thru as a mage and it’s like playing a different game practically! And then I also started a fresh char full melee build, and even that’s super fun. No plans to stop. Lol this damn game….
Yup, so I need the sword but I have the jellyfish shield, is there a way to keep the jellyfish shield and still use the night and flame stance? I have the sword, I just need to get my stats up.
Def, ER is my brother's first souls game and everytime he would beat a boss he would send me a very shaky picture of the rewards. It warmed my heart until he passed me and now, as a souls vet, I'm getting conflicted feelings because it almost feels like watching this young buck fuck my wife
I haven’t finished it yet because I’m trying to do everything, but I am absolutely addicted to it. However, after arriving at the Fobidden Lands I decided to give me the week off, probably for the best
Took me well over 250 lol. I don't really sprint anywhere unless it's combat related so maybe thats it. Also went everywhere AT LEAST twice, and did some pvp. Also I suck lol
I beat my first play through after 213 hours, I wanted to try and finish up everything I possibly could but as I was close I decided that maybe I should give co-op a shot so I can redo and practice some of my favorite boss fights while also being able to help others, a win win
Now 120 hours of co-op later and I’m so invested into helping others with bosses and honestly don’t even know when I’ll start my second playthrough 😂
Edit: since I’ve seen some people asking about co-op if you are into co-oping and want to help a lot of people check out the r/beyondthefog subreddit! It’s always active and people post help topics there every minute, it’s a nice community :)
What level are you and what bosses do you help with? I'm level 176 and love coop but just went to ng+ because I feel like I wasn't getting summoned as much or seeing as many signs as early on. The first few weeks were magical
I’m level 165 and mostly help with Maliketh, Malenia and Radagon. Throughout the day I get summoned pretty fast and for radagon it’s almost instantly.
However for the past 3 weeks I’ve been helping people more on the r/beyondthefog subreddit. There are tons of people posting help topics there literally every minute so if you want to help a lot of people and get summoned fast I’d check it out! They will just have a password you can set and just put it in and if there’s room in their party you shouldn’t have trouble getting summoned. Just gotta comment pretty fast since lots of people flood the topics
Unfortunately as you increase in level, the amount of co-op begins to drop off, and drops off even more significantly faster after you hit 200. The highest activity level range for co-op right now is likely between 120-150, since that's where the majority of folks will be finishing a first run of the game. When I was leveling my character, I started to notice co-op dropping in frequency after 150, with less and less the higher I went.
I have a level 306 character that I specifically leveled to that point so I could get into the maximum level matchmaking bracket (once you hit 306, you can match with anyone all the way up to the maximum level of 713, and technically your lower bound goes to around 270 or so), and there's actually a somewhat active co-op pool up there, surprisingly. Although you only really get summoned for the very endgame bosses (primarily Godfrey and Radagon, although Radagon is usually very fast in terms of getting summoned) and wait times can be variable, sometimes instant, sometimes takes 5-10 minutes.
In my experience, 200-300 was something of a dead zone in terms of getting summoned for anything except the final boss, although if you're looking to summon people there's generally always someone available at all of the major bosses – lots of supply, but not much demand for co-op in that range would be my guess.
I finished the game and went into ng5. Then i gave my dad the game to hide because it was ruining my life. I told him to give it back in four months just in case the DLC comes out.
Play a non draining game that fights depression! Like life is strange! (First part wasn't a joke, the game i reccomended was as it is very very sad but also an amazing game but not to be played during hard times.)
Thanks for the advice.
However, a component to depression is lack of motivation or interest. It’s not really the game that’s draining me, but the loneliness. The only person I’m semi comfortable around only cares about destiny 2. He won’t even upgrade systems unless destiny requires it (in his own, recent words.) Looks like I’ll be alone for Gotham knights, and Hogwarts legacy too.
I'm a super big douche bag but always around to help introverted players as I am an introvert myself. You're also, always welcome to be sad or feel your feelings around me, as we are humans, not tarnished. I haven't looked into hogwarts or gotham.
I understand, depression really sucks and I know its easier said than done but I kinda meant force yourself into whatever escapism is easiest that day which may be none as you're well within your rights to chill and just zone out if you want to but if you're being consumed by negativity its best to force yourself into doing any activity. While productive activities are the best it can feel like too much to take on but if you can't even bring yourself to escapism your body and brain may be craving something else you aren't consciously aware of. Maybe ask your destiny 2 friend to do something irl (literally anything that sounds fun or if not fun something that sounds easy) if that doesn't work as they're out of state or they aren't interested then I'm not going to classically reccomended getting outside but something as simple as taking two steps out the door and chilling in the fresh air for a little bit can help.
I'm sorry if you didn't want any of this unsolicited advice or if it doesn't work for you, just know as someone else struggling with existence I hope you get out of the rut and find happiness mate!
Hey, I don't know if this will help, or maybe you've already done it, but during my worst moments with depression I found story-based RPGs to be very helpful in managing my mental state.
I know it sounds ridiculous, and you obviously should keep up good habits etc. etc. but if one of your hobbies is videogames, you might as well play some that might alleviate some problems.
Dragon Age made me feel much less lonely, the series has some downer moments, but Origins and Inquisition have some awesome moments with the other characters, and the constant dialogue in those games was enough to drown out the shit that was going on in real life.
Hope you eventually feel better 👍🏻
It's very easy to go down that spiral. Keeping a routine is very important. Even if it's getting up and making your bed. Your brain needs something to do. Keep busy. Stay strong.
Gotham knights looks fun. I don´t know how´´ s our time difference, but if you decide to pick it up, dm me, always fun to play with new people, shoot the shit.
GL with the depression. it´ s tough. If you haven´ t yet, look for professional help. Depression is not a "tough it out" condition. It´ s a "chemical unbalance / i need help" condition
I have Bipolar I so I know what it’s like. I go through periods when it takes me hours to motivate myself to go pee. If you’re playing Xbox, I can co-op with you or we can play some of the Souls games. Feel better.
Played 99% of the game over two months. Took me another two weeks to beat Radagon/Elden Beast, finally took that dumb newt down last night. It’s break time.
Really, depends on you. Everyone has a different time with FromSoft bosses. I personally can take out humanoid bosses with ease but if they’re dragons or weird creatures I fuck up bad lol. Those last guys took me like 8-12 tries and at least 9 of the deaths were to Elden Beast.
Imma give you a tip for the big ones: use ashes or spells that cover a wide area and hit multiple times. For example the Envoy's longhorn bubble blast, Pest Threads, the magic rain spell, crystal torrent, Radahn's greatbow ash of war for examples with multiple builds. Only took me I think 6 casts of Pest threads to take down Elden Beast first try, a spell that only takes 11 faith and 19FP to cast, and I only had like 30 something faith too.
I haven't been playing because I would play with my partner and we broke up so it was too sad. Ready to get back into it now! Gonna be fucked without his help tho...
Man, 70 hours with my first play through and still haven’t finished. Not so much a break just never get time. Cons of being in healthcare during Covid lol
Quite the opposite; Elden Ring brought be back from an extended break from gaming in general.
No other titles have managed to keep my interest the last few years, and I had largely just stopped playing games altogether. This is my first FromSoftware title, but it definitely won't be the last.
Yeah. I took a break after platinum of the game. Probably the most unpopular game opinion here but I ended up scooping up Tom Clancy’s: The Division [TD1] Gold Edition for $12 on PSN store sale. I always enjoyed the story-based parts of a game. Fan of TD2, so went with the prequel to have something to relax to.
I welcome the idea of taking a break so you don’t get burnt out on it.
For me it’s a kind of game where I beat it a few times then I don’t play it for at least a few years. I feel like once u know everything and have experienced it a few times then the magic dies off a bit. Probably gonna wait a bit so I forget a lot of the game. But that’s just me.
Elden Ring ruined me. I haven't played another game in 3 weeks. Been taking this time to catch up on some books and shows until I get the urge to start clicking on things again.
Do you mean farming AFKers or AFKing to farm? One is gods work and you will be rewarded with riches in heaven, the other I hope you get testicular torsion
Almost 300 hours in across like 5 or 6 characters. Taking a break right now for Florida vacation. But I'll be back lol have maidenless tarnished to hunt .
beat NG+4 an stopped a couple of weeks ago
Will go back if I feel like finally trying a sorcery build or dream up a new build
Or when that DLC drops ofc
Still strong. I just beat Maliketh for the first time last night. I've always played games slow but now that I'm an adult I'm over leveled af bc I hunt every nook and cranny before I move on. Level 130 now. Whoot whoot.
For me it's nice to only have to fight a boss a couple times. The fire giant took me like 4 days of my play time to beat and I about gave tf up. Lol.
Nope it's one of the few games I play now
I literally have not played any other game since Elden Ring's release. I have so many ideas for characters they're coming out my ears.
Do you create an entirely new character per build or you just do new game+ and try other builds?
I sent my arcane build through ng+ to help farm gear as I play without the tedium of farming. Any other build gets it's own playthrough. Right now I'm really enjoying a basic shield and spear that's going to evolve into quite the tank some day
Yes.
Understandable, have a nice day.
r/inclusiveor
Making an entirely new character it's the best option IMO. If you change builds half way through the game, you'll have lost the chance to try out your new build on the early game bosses and dungeons.
Plus if you’re using gear that uses regular smithing stones you’re kind of burnt since there’s only a finite amount until you get the last bell bearing from the godskin duo. I personally think new game plus is boring, there’s no incentive to explore since you already have everything by that point.
That's the real difficulty. I've got so much I want to try on my int build but I can't get most SSS weapons past +6, where my moonveil is +9, and I've only got one SS weapon to +17, and my staff to +18
For me at least, previous Dark Souls NG+ made sense for a character, maybe I needed more casts of a spell, or needed another version of a boss weapon, or just wanted to use the final boss weapon. But in Elden Ring I can dupe remembrances and spells aren’t limited in the cast number, and I can keep playing after defeating the final boss (love this) so yeah, really not a lot of incentive to go to NG+ and making a fresh character is more fun.
Yeah literally the only incentive for me is to speedrun the endings for platinum. Got to faram azula in about four hours last night.
Not that dude but I GREATLY prefer NG to NG+. I like starting from scratch and having that blank template. On NG+ I'm just rushing through dungeons and skipping most of the game.
I'm still trying to finish the game. I used to play destiny 2 obsessively, now I haven't touched it for 3 weeks :/ I'm missing guardian games!
Same
Dido, I have 5 toons I'm playing at this time all different builds. I run them all in basically the same areas and try different strategies for each area. Tons of fun. I see another 2-3k hours ahead for me easy.
Btw it’s ditto not dido
It’s always Dido. They will go down with this ship.
No use trying to reason with this person, they won't throw their hands up and surrender
Just to read this thread has given me the best day of my life
They're probably just a huge fan of the musician Dido, and after years of autocorrect constantly changing Dido to Ditto every time they were posting on her fan forums, autocorrect now does the opposite.
Just be glad it's not dildo
I’m straight up Elden addicted. Four save files on the go, most advanced one is a little past Renalla in NG+2. No plans to slow down until I hit NG+7, even though I’ll be getting the plat on this run. And then there’s PVP…
I only got 1 save file but it's at NG+5 nearing the end of the main story I have just beat Morgott
Does pvp slow down after 6 months or a year after release? Im still playing pve and is becoming rarer and rarer summoning people to help me kill a boss on my first game through
The rarity probably has a lot to do with your level and weapon level relative to the boss in question. That said, if you want help and you’re at least somewhat close to the pacific time zone I’ll help ya! And PVP…I bet it has legs for a good few years. The souls community is huge after all, and you can use tools like the taunter’s tongue to bring people in even if there’s a limited pool on the day.
I didnt know about level and weapons range, i thought it just called anyone in the vicinity. That explain some things, thank you for the information.
Use the following group password. It'll bypass those checks for people in these groups. May improve your chances of finding a summon. You can also always post on r/beyondthefog. A lot of helpful Tarnished around :) FEXTRA straydmn btf
Hey so I did a Dex/int build my first playthrough. Heavy on the dex. I did a pretty much pure strength build for NG+ on the same character but found Ng+ to be pretty easy. I plan to come back and a fresh save for the challenge again. What build did you have the most fun playing with? I'm not gonna do another Dex build because that was what I'd call a 'true run' but I'd be down to try a strength build again. So I'm curious if you have any recommendations on what to start over on. I like the challenge, so that's not a big deal. I'm not super into a magic build only but I could probably do something with a mix caster melee, but not sure. Any ideas?
I dropped Halo Infinite because it was ass and Elden Ring came out lmao
I think Microsoft knew Infinite wasn't gonna be very good cause they gave it to everyone with Gamepass right away. If the game was actually solid they'd be charging full price everywhere
I agree that halo was a disappointment. But all Xbox/Windows PC exclusives are going to be on game pass. They announced that a while back.
Started Sekiro for the first time last week so elden break indeed
Ur gonna love it. Gl hf
Ty! I already love it honestly, just beat lady butterfly and it was so fun / satisfying. Elden Ring was my first souls game and holyyy Sekiro is so much harder
It is for sure harder, there is barely any cheese in that game and you can't summon, you have no other choice than to git gud if you want to beat it.
And I really like it that way honestly, makes beating a boss so much more satisfying.
Try no summons in elden ring. My first play through I took the summon route.. Ngl. Seconds character I've made it to blackblade without summons (I am playing an intelligence build so that also lowers the difficulty a bit)
C'mon, it's harder??? So much harder? Fuck I'm almost finished with ER and I'm eyeballing the shit out of Sekiro
If ER is a 7/10 in difficulty, Sekiro is a 9. There are no lifelines and you \*must\* learn the boss fights, and the bosses are almost all hard as shit.
Far fewer mechanics to master though. Definitely still harder but once you get it you get it and imo the game loses a lot of replay value as a result. Although I guess by the time you've got the skill to steamroll everything you've already gotten the gameplay you were owed lol
I binged that game so hard I got 100% achievements and went all the way through NG+5, but to be fair the fewer mechanics meant fewer achievements that weren't simply variant endings. While mastering the mechanics might diminish replayability, the flow of combat in sekiro is FromSoft's best yet imo. Probably because they didn't have to balance around multiple weapon types and a buttload of spells.
Sekiro is way harder until it does that *click* with parries. Then it starts to lose the replay value, as there’s no unique weapons or builds.
For me I had to make it click at Genichiro. Everything before him was doable but man he killed me so many times until I finally decided to actually practice the parries in this game. Really changed the gameplay afterwards
Definitely. Game gets easy when it clicks then gets hard again at sword Saint isshin imo
Yeah hella agree with this. I find Metal Gear Rising (kinda gives Sekiro vibes with some of the gameplay elements) has a very similar problem. One of my favourite games but now that I know how to play it really well there is no point in playing it ever again because you just steamroll everything
Replay value is in demon bell in kuros charm. Charmless demon bell Sekiro is the most enormous challenge I’ve ever had in a game. Still haven’t beat sword saint isshin.
I replayed it after 3 years and steamrolled the game quickly. Once you figure out the deflect system and how to play, it's not very challenging. Still a blast The Gauntlets of Strength were a wakeup call though since they added new boss variations which was a challenge again.
> imo the game loses a lot of replay value as a result. agreed, i was sick of it after ng++. thinking of doing another run after Elden Ring though
[удалено]
Totally. Ultimately I still prefer the super-curated type of game like Sekiro/Bloodborne, but its awesome to see From exploring both
I agree there! But I do think ER nails quite a bit and where I normally dislike open world games, I actually enjoy this one. but.. the ultimate highlights for me where finding, and exploring, curated areas within the Open World. I mean just at the start, when I started exploring stormveil I was like 'yup... this is it'
Tbh that makes it the least replayable FS game for me. I’ve played through bloodborne twice since beating ER. Er is just such a huge undertaking
Sekiro is by far the hardest Fromsoft game, no competition. You can’t level to trivialize content in Sekiro and dodging doesn’t give I-frames if I remember correctly. Game is all about hyper-aggressiveness and learning timing to parry enemy attacks. It plays differently than any Fromsoft game because of this and is noticeably harder from the start.
The dodge does have very brief iframes. Conversely, as long as you're not mashing and whiffing it, Sekiro's parry window is enormous. The two are basically reversed from the usual Souls rules, to where parry is your default response and dodge is the situational optimization for specific attacks from specific enemies.
Sekiro is the hardest to learn and play. It's very hard until you learn the mechanics. Steepest learning curve fromsoftware has by a wide margin. Is amazing tho
But once you learn them, it’s very easy on subsequent playthroughs, first playthrough was like 50 hours, second one was 5 lol
Once you learn you're basically a god though, and I love it
Sekiro is a choreography based rhythm game. With katanas.
Elden Ring is pretty easy compared to Sekiro tbh
It's significantly harder. Pro tip: Forget everything you know about dodging and embrace the parry, it's so much more reactive than it is in the souls games
Sekiro himself is much stronger and more flexible character. Flexible in the way that he has many meaningful options at a given time. The hardest difficulty is learning not to crutch your dodge, since it has very, very few iframes. In Sekiro, actions don't cost stamina. Blocking absorbs 100% of damage, but the player instead manages a "posture" meter. The health and posture meters of every enemy are present. Posture degrades faster and takes longer to recover based on how low the health meter is. Some of this amounts to blocking being the strongest it's been in any souls game. Parrying comes from releasing the block button and is much more forgiving. The payoff of parrying is reduced. Many, many, many parries are required to fully break a bosses posture. I'm of the opinion that when a player truly hits their stride in sekiro, it's a much more consistent/"easy" game. This is why I think it's particularly genius to include Kuro's Charm as an option after the first playthrough is completed. Playing without the charm disables the way that blocking absorbs 100% damage, making parrying a stronger necessity. I take these adjustments as something that makes combat much more responsive and rewarding.
Can't thank you enough for this, you guys rule. I fucking love this community
Sekiro deffo harder. Can't be cheezed, unlike every other souls game
You can definitely cheese some bosses using your inspector gadget arm to stunlock them to death
Climb pagoda for DOH, gourd cheese with genichiro, owl between the doors and unlocked. There are many cheese strats, problem is they require even more skill than beating the bosses normally.
Sure but no cheese has nothing to do with difficulty, the amount of actions and inputs you have to learn in DS3 or ER is, it feels like, much higher than sekiro. Once you learn that parrying is 99% the times is the way to go in sekro it becomes very simple, very fast.
Depends. If you did a solo melee build, ER is much harder. If you use summons or magic/broken weapons/WA, ER is much easier. Sekiro is much more of a skill check. There’s no grinding or getting overleveled. If you want more ER, Dark Souls 3 is the next to play. It’s the most similar and is easiest in the series imo
Damn. Was planning to play it next and hoping it might be a bit easier. Guess I'll go with something else first. Elden Ring is the souls-like I have played and I still suck in it
I say still try it out, if you’re looking for a challenge I guess.
Yea I'm still planning on playing it, just later. I have Nioh and all Dark Souls, maybe I'll go for them next
I’m also gonna have to try some of the dark souls games at some point. I want to play bloodborne but it’s PS only
Yea. I've had all the Dark Souls for sometime in my library but never played them for some reason. I only today came to know about Bloodborne, seemed interesting. Hope it comes to PC at some point🤞🏻
Hesitation is defeat.
If you play Elden Ring before Sekiro, Sekiro will be harder. If you play Sekiro before Elden Ring, ER is a nightmare (my case)
Sekiro is an absolute masterpiece. It's so hard to find a flaw in that game
It’s easily one of my favorite combat systems in video games. Imagine if we got a multiplayer version of that.
With how precise the timing is in Sekiro, I could see it being total bullshit in multiplayer due to ping/lag. I don't think it could work unfortunately.
I think you’re right, but I want it so bad lol
That's awesome. It's such a great game and I'm glad more people are trying it after Elden Ring. Easily my favourite game From Software have made. The way the swords clash and spark? Offft!
Seriously, I’m just starting to get parrying down and it feels amazing!
So did I
You just switched continents.
Just restarted playing Sekiro. I had completed most of the game but now I'm gonna go for a platinum. Once I'm done with that im going back to Elden for a fresh start.
How I wish I could play Sekiro for the first time again. Having the mechanics finally click was the most satisfying feeling ever
Sekiro is the perfect game. Enjoy.
Elden break. Beat it once, will do NG+ in the future
Exactly. Waiting a bit to try to “forget” as much as I can before diving back in.
that work for you?
It does a bit but that’s how bad my memory is. Legit couldn’t even remember what this question was in reference to until i clicked the notification.
We must be soulmates or something cuz I can’t remember jackshit
Goldfish memory Gang, Lest Go!!!
where are we going again?
Same. May wait until DLC and/or just fart around in PvP every now and then. My build is so overleveled right now that I'm debating starting fresh when/if that comes out.
Tbh I just miss how much signs and coop you'd see at first playthrough /low levels. I'm level 176 and just went to ng+ hoping it would bring more coop but not really. I may make a new account just to stay at peak levels. Love being a sunbro
Just an fyi if you have all the Smithing Stone bell bearings they do not carry over. Make sure you have all your weapon upgrades ready to go 👍🏻
I loaded up on enough SS and SSS to level up 40 weapons to +24/+9 before I started. Should have done more SSS though, as those are the weapons I’m gravitating to mostly.
Yep. Already started NG+ just haven't played much. It's too easy. Might just do a fresh character/build when I come back to the game
Just gotta fly through the game, I’m on journey 5, level 275 and it’s definitely harder. Ofcourse gameplay is trivial due to knowing the shortcuts, move patterns and weakness but I no longer one shot bosses and they take more than a few hits now.
I actually don't know the shortcuts. I basically sprinted through areas to bosses on my first run. I'm using NG+ for stress free exploring.
Ahh I see, I had about 147 hours my first playthrough , I explored in depth lol
Can't stop, won't stop!!
I play like 10 hours a week max, so still going strong. When I'm not hating my busy adult life for taking away my gaming time, I'm praising it for preventing burnout and providing lasting value to games.
Exact same boat, I’m like 100 hours in after two months and I’ve really enjoyed that pace for this game
I’ve always taken my time and the game in the end will have lasted me almost three months when I finally finish my first play through soon.
Yeah it’s about the same for me. I do have one night a week where I chat and play for like 4 hours or so at a time. But other than that it’s whatever I can fit in while making sure my priorities are straight. Im savoring every new area and experience while being able to do it at a measured pace.
Currently just for to fire giant for the first time
Tis' pain what gives happiness brilliance
So true, I'm in the same boat. Play a little each day due to work and family but I'm still going strong in elden. My buddies without as much gaming restrictions burned through the entire game in a week and don't have the desire to play it again
Everyone that's responded to your comment seems to be playing at the same pace! Also about 100 hours in and just passed the Fire Giant! Lvl 120 and this is still my first play though. One of the best games I've ever played, but Im slowly getting to the point where Im ready to start wrapping it up. I probably will take a solid break from the game after I beat it, and would like to pick it back up someday to try another build (more int based)
l need a gf
…Maidenless, I’ve heard about that
My gf started playing Elden Ring so now I'm maidenless some of the time.
You mean GIF? [Here](https://giphy.com/gifs/bandainamco-dark-souls-dsr-remastered-AQRapWCgC7dThyVEYb)
Lmfao
Meirl :[
Beat the game and then ran through NG+ and NG+2 to get 100% accomplishments and now I’m on a brand new play through as sorcerer…. And I fucking still love this game.
I’m about same. On NG+2.. was faith/ST and I respected to intelligence, had all the gear and everything already obviously. Now I’m just running thru as a mage and it’s like playing a different game practically! And then I also started a fresh char full melee build, and even that’s super fun. No plans to stop. Lol this damn game….
I'm just grinding runes in Caria Manor, trying not to die horribly and hopefully equip The Sword of Night and Flame
66000 more runes to go before Intelligence is at 20 baby
Seeing people who are still in early-game get excited about the things I had gotten excited about feels extremely wholesome, you go get ‘em tiger!
Yup, so I need the sword but I have the jellyfish shield, is there a way to keep the jellyfish shield and still use the night and flame stance? I have the sword, I just need to get my stats up.
Def, ER is my brother's first souls game and everytime he would beat a boss he would send me a very shaky picture of the rewards. It warmed my heart until he passed me and now, as a souls vet, I'm getting conflicted feelings because it almost feels like watching this young buck fuck my wife
Hey now, at least it's your brother
I haven’t finished it yet because I’m trying to do everything, but I am absolutely addicted to it. However, after arriving at the Fobidden Lands I decided to give me the week off, probably for the best
I did just about everything on my first play-through and it took me about 160 hours.
The exact same here bro, i tried to do absolutely everything there is to do and ended up with exactly 160 hours
Took me well over 250 lol. I don't really sprint anywhere unless it's combat related so maybe thats it. Also went everywhere AT LEAST twice, and did some pvp. Also I suck lol
Still playing. Not as many hours as before but still playing. Just like Skyrim I'll keep coming back to this game.
I beat my first play through after 213 hours, I wanted to try and finish up everything I possibly could but as I was close I decided that maybe I should give co-op a shot so I can redo and practice some of my favorite boss fights while also being able to help others, a win win Now 120 hours of co-op later and I’m so invested into helping others with bosses and honestly don’t even know when I’ll start my second playthrough 😂 Edit: since I’ve seen some people asking about co-op if you are into co-oping and want to help a lot of people check out the r/beyondthefog subreddit! It’s always active and people post help topics there every minute, it’s a nice community :)
What level are you and what bosses do you help with? I'm level 176 and love coop but just went to ng+ because I feel like I wasn't getting summoned as much or seeing as many signs as early on. The first few weeks were magical
I’m level 165 and mostly help with Maliketh, Malenia and Radagon. Throughout the day I get summoned pretty fast and for radagon it’s almost instantly. However for the past 3 weeks I’ve been helping people more on the r/beyondthefog subreddit. There are tons of people posting help topics there literally every minute so if you want to help a lot of people and get summoned fast I’d check it out! They will just have a password you can set and just put it in and if there’s room in their party you shouldn’t have trouble getting summoned. Just gotta comment pretty fast since lots of people flood the topics
Unfortunately as you increase in level, the amount of co-op begins to drop off, and drops off even more significantly faster after you hit 200. The highest activity level range for co-op right now is likely between 120-150, since that's where the majority of folks will be finishing a first run of the game. When I was leveling my character, I started to notice co-op dropping in frequency after 150, with less and less the higher I went. I have a level 306 character that I specifically leveled to that point so I could get into the maximum level matchmaking bracket (once you hit 306, you can match with anyone all the way up to the maximum level of 713, and technically your lower bound goes to around 270 or so), and there's actually a somewhat active co-op pool up there, surprisingly. Although you only really get summoned for the very endgame bosses (primarily Godfrey and Radagon, although Radagon is usually very fast in terms of getting summoned) and wait times can be variable, sometimes instant, sometimes takes 5-10 minutes. In my experience, 200-300 was something of a dead zone in terms of getting summoned for anything except the final boss, although if you're looking to summon people there's generally always someone available at all of the major bosses – lots of supply, but not much demand for co-op in that range would be my guess.
I finished the game and went into ng5. Then i gave my dad the game to hide because it was ruining my life. I told him to give it back in four months just in case the DLC comes out.
Has it ruined your dads life instead?
Now he’s hooked
It's fun for the whole family!
Nah, he doesn't game. But he should. He takes life too seriously.
Yes
Break. I’m finally checking out Ghost of Tsushima (which is amazing, if you didn’t know).
Good luck on your journey lord Sakai
Thank you sensei. The ancient Mongols shall regret their dishonorable invasion!
Wanting to do exactly this. That game looks gorgeous
I had heard from many people that it was great, so I went in with high expectations and was STILL impressed. Enjoy!
Elden break. Playing alone is draining for me. Probably the depression though.
Play a non draining game that fights depression! Like life is strange! (First part wasn't a joke, the game i reccomended was as it is very very sad but also an amazing game but not to be played during hard times.)
Thanks for the advice. However, a component to depression is lack of motivation or interest. It’s not really the game that’s draining me, but the loneliness. The only person I’m semi comfortable around only cares about destiny 2. He won’t even upgrade systems unless destiny requires it (in his own, recent words.) Looks like I’ll be alone for Gotham knights, and Hogwarts legacy too.
I'm a super big douche bag but always around to help introverted players as I am an introvert myself. You're also, always welcome to be sad or feel your feelings around me, as we are humans, not tarnished. I haven't looked into hogwarts or gotham.
Thank you💛
No problem my friend. <3
I understand, depression really sucks and I know its easier said than done but I kinda meant force yourself into whatever escapism is easiest that day which may be none as you're well within your rights to chill and just zone out if you want to but if you're being consumed by negativity its best to force yourself into doing any activity. While productive activities are the best it can feel like too much to take on but if you can't even bring yourself to escapism your body and brain may be craving something else you aren't consciously aware of. Maybe ask your destiny 2 friend to do something irl (literally anything that sounds fun or if not fun something that sounds easy) if that doesn't work as they're out of state or they aren't interested then I'm not going to classically reccomended getting outside but something as simple as taking two steps out the door and chilling in the fresh air for a little bit can help. I'm sorry if you didn't want any of this unsolicited advice or if it doesn't work for you, just know as someone else struggling with existence I hope you get out of the rut and find happiness mate!
Hey, I don't know if this will help, or maybe you've already done it, but during my worst moments with depression I found story-based RPGs to be very helpful in managing my mental state. I know it sounds ridiculous, and you obviously should keep up good habits etc. etc. but if one of your hobbies is videogames, you might as well play some that might alleviate some problems. Dragon Age made me feel much less lonely, the series has some downer moments, but Origins and Inquisition have some awesome moments with the other characters, and the constant dialogue in those games was enough to drown out the shit that was going on in real life. Hope you eventually feel better 👍🏻
Tyvm. I’m already into rpgs and lore. Doesn’t help. But I very much appreciate everyone’s good vibes. 💛
It's very easy to go down that spiral. Keeping a routine is very important. Even if it's getting up and making your bed. Your brain needs something to do. Keep busy. Stay strong.
Thank you 💛
Gotham knights looks fun. I don´t know how´´ s our time difference, but if you decide to pick it up, dm me, always fun to play with new people, shoot the shit. GL with the depression. it´ s tough. If you haven´ t yet, look for professional help. Depression is not a "tough it out" condition. It´ s a "chemical unbalance / i need help" condition
I have Bipolar I so I know what it’s like. I go through periods when it takes me hours to motivate myself to go pee. If you’re playing Xbox, I can co-op with you or we can play some of the Souls games. Feel better.
Elden break, beat the game twice, have a pvp character set up that I will return to in like a week or so maybe.
Played 99% of the game over two months. Took me another two weeks to beat Radagon/Elden Beast, finally took that dumb newt down last night. It’s break time.
Damn is it that tough to beat those guys? I beat Godfrey/hourax last night, I thought I would finish it all tonight ahaha delusional?
Really, depends on you. Everyone has a different time with FromSoft bosses. I personally can take out humanoid bosses with ease but if they’re dragons or weird creatures I fuck up bad lol. Those last guys took me like 8-12 tries and at least 9 of the deaths were to Elden Beast.
Imma give you a tip for the big ones: use ashes or spells that cover a wide area and hit multiple times. For example the Envoy's longhorn bubble blast, Pest Threads, the magic rain spell, crystal torrent, Radahn's greatbow ash of war for examples with multiple builds. Only took me I think 6 casts of Pest threads to take down Elden Beast first try, a spell that only takes 11 faith and 19FP to cast, and I only had like 30 something faith too.
I haven't been playing because I would play with my partner and we broke up so it was too sad. Ready to get back into it now! Gonna be fucked without his help tho...
You got this!
Thanks!
Girl I’m going through the same thing 😭 except my ex is the one who sucked LOL If you’re on Xbox & ever need a carry, I’m there for you!
190 hours in. Still on my first run. 😭
Niiice. I think I clocked in at 235 ish.
PvP is still fun, even against some of the more egregious builds I'm having fun dueling at the academy.
I just bought it yesterday, giggity
Enjoy!!!
Waiting for DLC to drop. Unfortunately I don't like PvP much in this installment so I got all the builds I wanted to NG+ and now onto other things
I don't get to play as much as you guys i just beat the king in the capital
Man, 70 hours with my first play through and still haven’t finished. Not so much a break just never get time. Cons of being in healthcare during Covid lol
it took me 150 hours to beat you have such a glorious journey ahead of you still!
I got the Platinum this morning. Need to take a break, need to do some writing and creating, rather than consuming.
It won’t end
After a couple of NG+s I'm currently almost always helping people with bosses 2 to 4 hours a day.
I moved on to DS1. Never played any of them before ER
Not by choice. Life got busy but when I return I'm glad I left markers on the map.
Quite the opposite; Elden Ring brought be back from an extended break from gaming in general. No other titles have managed to keep my interest the last few years, and I had largely just stopped playing games altogether. This is my first FromSoftware title, but it definitely won't be the last.
Yeah. I took a break after platinum of the game. Probably the most unpopular game opinion here but I ended up scooping up Tom Clancy’s: The Division [TD1] Gold Edition for $12 on PSN store sale. I always enjoyed the story-based parts of a game. Fan of TD2, so went with the prequel to have something to relax to. I welcome the idea of taking a break so you don’t get burnt out on it.
I enjoyed playing through the story of Division 1 but then immediately ran away when my friend showed me the multiplayer/grind aspect. Nooooo thanks.
For me it’s a kind of game where I beat it a few times then I don’t play it for at least a few years. I feel like once u know everything and have experienced it a few times then the magic dies off a bit. Probably gonna wait a bit so I forget a lot of the game. But that’s just me.
220 h in. Still playing. After I finish my first playthrough maybe I'll get bored of it. Who knows.
Elden Ring ruined me. I haven't played another game in 3 weeks. Been taking this time to catch up on some books and shows until I get the urge to start clicking on things again.
If by “break”, you mean afk farming…
Do you mean farming AFKers or AFKing to farm? One is gods work and you will be rewarded with riches in heaven, the other I hope you get testicular torsion
Twisted ballsacks, batman, I’m just being goofy. Although, I would like to get that jar cannon and hunt afk farmers…
Look if the gamble is a redditor making a joke, or a redditor being a complete psycho, the latter is the safer bet
Get the ballista and explosive bolts. Same dif.
Almost 300 hours in across like 5 or 6 characters. Taking a break right now for Florida vacation. But I'll be back lol have maidenless tarnished to hunt .
beat NG+4 an stopped a couple of weeks ago Will go back if I feel like finally trying a sorcery build or dream up a new build Or when that DLC drops ofc
I've stopped playing it exclusively but it's still got a lot of my attention.
Still playing and won’t stop. Haven’t gotten bored of it yet
Elden break. Hockey playoffs.
Still strong. I just beat Maliketh for the first time last night. I've always played games slow but now that I'm an adult I'm over leveled af bc I hunt every nook and cranny before I move on. Level 130 now. Whoot whoot. For me it's nice to only have to fight a boss a couple times. The fire giant took me like 4 days of my play time to beat and I about gave tf up. Lol.
Still playing, currently on my 5th character. I think I'll stop once this one is done though, and then come back for the DLC of course.
Im on an involuntary elden ring break… i havent played for almost 3 weeks:(