Are there more Elden Ring DLCs than DS3 DLCs?

While both Dark Souls 3 and Bloodborne boasted substantial DLC, Elden Ring’s upcoming Shadow of the Erdtree expansion promises to be FromSoftware’s most ambitious yet. The scale is expected to significantly surpass both The Ringed City and Ashes of Ariandel for Dark Souls 3, and even The Old Hunters for Bloodborne. Early speculation, fueled by the announcement trailer, hints at a potential expansion of the Lands Between’s lore and a significant addition to gameplay mechanics, possibly introducing new boss fights of unprecedented complexity and a substantial amount of new explorable areas. Considering the already vast size of the base Elden Ring game, this makes Shadow of the Erdtree a truly monumental undertaking for FromSoftware, setting a new standard for their DLC offerings.

What did Miyazaki say about Elden Ring 2?

Forget Elden Ring 2. Miyazaki himself stated, “We aren’t actually considering developments like Elden Ring 2.” That’s a direct quote, kid. Don’t get your hopes up for a direct sequel. He’s not ruling out revisiting the world, though. Think “spiritual successor,” not a numbered sequel.

What’s the takeaway? FromSoft is busy. They’re cooking up something new, something different. Multiple projects, varied genres. Some are Miyazaki’s, others aren’t. This isn’t a simple “we’re too busy” dodge. They’re branching out, experimenting. That means potential for new PvP meta-games we can all exploit.

What to expect (speculation, of course, but informed speculation):

New mechanics: They’re learning. They’re refining their PvP systems. Expect innovations, not just rehashes of Elden Ring‘s already rich mechanics. Think about how they’ve evolved from Dark Souls to Elden Ring. Expect more evolution.
New builds: Forget min-maxing the same old builds. New weapons, spells, and armor will demand new strategies. The meta will shift, requiring adaptability. Learn to adapt, or get left in the dust.
Different arenas: Elden Ring‘s open world offered unique advantages, but FromSoft might go back to more structured arenas. Maybe even something radically different. Be ready to learn new maps, new strategies.
Community influence: FromSoft watches. They listen (sometimes). The community’s feedback on Elden Ring’s PvP will shape their next move. Make your voice heard, but intelligently. Constructive feedback is far more effective than whining.

Bottom line: No Elden Ring 2 confirmed. But expect something new, something challenging, something that will test your skills as a PvP master. Prepare yourself.

What game engine was Dark Souls 3 built on?

Dark Souls 3 runs on a heavily modified version of PhyreEngine, FromSoftware’s proprietary engine. This isn’t your average off-the-shelf solution; they’ve tweaked it extensively to achieve that signature Dark Souls feel. It’s not just the graphics; the engine handles the game’s complex AI, physics, and network code incredibly well, especially considering the demanding nature of the online interactions.

Crucially, they also utilize Havok for physics, delivering realistic character movement and environmental interactions. This is a big deal because believable physics are fundamental to the challenging combat. Think about those satisfyingly weighty weapon swings and the impact of attacks – Havok’s a key player there.

Finally, for those stunning visual effects, YEBIS 2 handles post-processing. The lighting, bloom, and other effects all contribute massively to the game’s atmospheric world. It’s the secret sauce that makes the game look so gorgeous, even by today’s standards.

So, while the base is PhyreEngine, the real story is in the powerful combination of these three engines working in perfect harmony. It’s a testament to FromSoftware’s mastery of game engine development.

How is Elden Ring connected to Dark Souls?

Elden Ring’s a third-person action RPG, undeniably sharing a pedigree with the Dark Souls series. While not directly a sequel, it’s a spiritual successor, inheriting and refining core gameplay mechanics. Think of it as Dark Souls‘ big brother, having learned from its predecessor’s triumphs and refined its combat system. The stamina management remains crucial, punishing reckless aggression; strategic spacing and pattern recognition are paramount, just like in Dark Souls. However, Elden Ring expands the scope significantly with its open world design, providing more player agency and diverse build options. Think bigger scale, similar core loop. The difficulty curve, while challenging, feels more forgiving in certain aspects, allowing players more opportunities for experimentation, though the late game still retains that punishing Dark Souls intensity. Essentially, it’s Dark Souls but with a vast, explorable world.

Key Differences: While combat is similar, Elden Ring features a more dynamic open world, offering significantly more freedom of exploration and less linear progression. The summoning mechanics are also heavily enhanced, facilitating easier co-op experiences than its predecessors. Expect similar punishing boss fights, demanding precision and patience, but the overall experience offers a greater degree of player choice and freedom.

Which is harder, Dark Souls 3 or Elden Ring?

Dark Souls 3 retains a higher skill ceiling; its level design is more meticulously crafted for challenging combat encounters. Elden Ring, while undeniably difficult in many areas, offers more build diversity and options for overcoming obstacles, effectively lowering the overall difficulty curve for some players. Think of it like this: DS3 is a highly optimized fighting game with a limited move set demanding precise execution, whereas Elden Ring is a broader, more accessible MOBA, allowing for diverse strategies and a wider margin for error. The sheer volume of content in Elden Ring also dilutes the overall difficulty; you can level up more easily and grind your way through tough sections, unlike DS3’s more linear and unforgiving progression. Therefore, while individual boss encounters might be tougher in DS3, Elden Ring presents a more protracted and diverse challenge across a massive world. The “harder” game is ultimately subjective and depends heavily on player build and playstyle.

Is Elden Ring’s expansion harder than Dark Souls?

The question of whether Elden Ring’s expansion is harder than Dark Souls is multifaceted. While Elden Ring’s base game arguably offers a more forgiving experience overall, its DLC, specifically Shadow of the Erdtree (assuming this is the comparison point), presents a significant challenge. This isn’t simply a matter of increased enemy health or damage; the design philosophy shifts towards a denser, more intricate approach to level design and enemy placement, demanding greater precision and a more thorough understanding of combat mechanics. This contrasts with Dark Souls 3’s DLC, Ashes of Ariandel and The Ringed City, which, while challenging, offered more linear progression and clearer signposting. Bloodborne’s DLC, The Old Hunters, further emphasizes a relentless, aggressive combat style, making it arguably the most brutally difficult of the three. However, the difficulty curve is subjective. Experienced players accustomed to FromSoftware’s formula might find Elden Ring’s DLC less punishing due to the broader range of skills and builds available, allowing for more tailored strategies. Ultimately, the “hardest” DLC comes down to individual player skill, preferred playstyles, and build choices. Each expansion builds upon the core mechanics and expands them in unique, challenging ways. Consider also the prevalence and effectiveness of Spirit Ashes in Elden Ring, a mechanic less readily available in previous titles, affecting the overall difficulty.

Is Elden Ring the most difficult game in the world?

While declaring Elden Ring the single hardest game globally is subjective and depends heavily on individual player skill and experience, its placement within the Soulsborne genre makes a strong case. The game’s difficulty stems from several key design choices: unforgiving combat requiring precise timing and strategic thinking, a vast, interconnected world filled with hidden dangers and challenging optional bosses, and a deliberate lack of hand-holding forcing players to learn through trial and error. This fosters a steep learning curve, demanding mastery of mechanics like parrying, stamina management, and understanding enemy attack patterns. The community has developed an extensive body of knowledge including detailed boss guides, map exploration strategies, and build optimization guides readily available online to help navigate its complexities. Even with this readily available resource, many players find the relentless challenge and rewarding feeling of overcoming the odds to be a defining characteristic of the Elden Ring experience. The sheer scale and density of challenges, coupled with the lack of traditional difficulty settings, sets it apart from many other titles, solidifying its place among the most difficult games ever created.

What type of game is Dark Souls?

Dark Souls is best categorized as a third-person action RPG with a profound emphasis on exploration and emergent gameplay. While possessing RPG elements like character progression through stat allocation and equipment upgrades, its core identity lies in its demanding combat and intricate level design.

Key Defining Features:

Challenging Combat: The game famously emphasizes precise timing, pattern recognition, and strategic resource management in combat encounters. Death is frequent, but serves as a powerful learning tool, encouraging careful observation and adaptation.
Interconnected World Design: The interconnected nature of its levels fosters exploration and discovery, rewarding players for deviating from the main path and uncovering hidden areas and lore. This non-linear progression offers significant replayability.
Environmental Storytelling: Dark Souls relies heavily on environmental storytelling, presenting narrative information through item descriptions, level design, and enemy placement rather than lengthy cutscenes or exposition.
Souls Mechanic: The “souls” mechanic acts as both currency and a risk/reward system, penalizing death but incentivizing bravery and strategic risk-taking. This mechanic is deeply woven into the game’s challenge and reward loop.
Emphasis on Player Skill: Unlike many modern action RPGs, Dark Souls minimizes the reliance on simple button mashing, requiring players to master combat mechanics and utilize strategy to overcome obstacles. This fosters a sense of accomplishment.

Genre Influences and Innovations:

Legacy of King’s Field: The game’s design is clearly influenced by the King’s Field series, inheriting its cryptic storytelling and challenging gameplay.
Defining the Soulslike Genre: Dark Souls’ impact on the gaming industry is immense, spawning the “Soulslike” subgenre, influencing numerous games that adopt its challenging gameplay, interconnected worlds, and focus on environmental storytelling.

When will Elden Ring 2 be released?

Elden Ring 2? Dude, hype is REAL. It’s dropping May 30th, 2025 across all major platforms: PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and PC. Think of the builds! The PvP! The sheer *suffering*!

Closed beta was back in February 2025. Heard some whispers about new classes, crazy weapons, and maybe, *just maybe*, some seriously tweaked difficulty. Fingers crossed for less frustrating boss fights, but let’s be real, FromSoftware.

Here’s the lowdown on what we *think* we know:

New areas: Expect breathtakingly vast new landscapes. Rumor has it, we’re venturing beyond the Lands Between.
Revised combat: Likely refinements to the already amazing combat system. More fluidity, perhaps? Maybe less rolling.
Expanded build diversity: More options for character builds, hopefully addressing some of the limitations in the first game.

Oh, and the official Japanese website is your best bet for the latest news. Go forth and check it out! But be warned, the hype is strong with this one.

Key Dates to Remember:

February 2025: Closed Beta
May 30th, 2025: Official Release

Is Dark Souls 3 one of the hardest games?

Dark Souls 3’s difficulty is a frequently debated topic, and rightfully so. While it’s not objectively the *hardest* game ever made, its brutal challenge is undeniable. The game’s design meticulously crafts encounters that punish even minor mistakes. This isn’t simply about high damage; it’s about precise enemy placement, environmental hazards, and often unforgiving boss fights.

Areas of Extreme Difficulty: Many locations present significant hurdles, but certain areas stand out as particularly brutal for even experienced players.

Anor Londo: The architecture itself is deadly, with precarious ledges and numerous ranged attacks from both the environment and enemies. Mastering the area’s verticality is key to survival.
Irithyll of the Boreal Valley: The sheer density of enemies, combined with their varied attack patterns and the challenging layout, makes this a relentless gauntlet.
The Ringed City: The final DLC area throws unrelenting, highly aggressive enemies at the player in claustrophobic environments, demanding precise timing and aggressive play.

Strategies for Success: Surviving Dark Souls 3 requires more than just button-mashing. Effective strategies are crucial:

Mastering Combat Mechanics: Perfecting timing with your attacks, learning enemy attack patterns, and utilizing effective parries and dodges are fundamental.
Optimal Builds: Experimentation with builds is crucial. Different weapons, armor, and stat distributions cater to various playstyles and difficulties. A well-rounded build that addresses weaknesses is invaluable.
Resource Management: Careful use of Estus Flasks, consumables, and upgrade materials is essential. Knowing when to fight and when to retreat is vital for conserving resources.
Understanding Enemy AI: Learn each enemy’s tells, attack animations and movement patterns. Predicting their actions is critical for effective dodging and counterattacks.

Beyond Skill: While skill is paramount, even the most skilled players will find themselves facing intense challenges. Patience, persistence, and a willingness to adapt your strategies are equally important to overcoming Dark Souls 3’s difficulty.

Why is Elden Ring considered a difficult game?

Elden Ring’s difficulty isn’t about unfairness; it’s a masterful blend of systems designed to challenge you. It’s not just a high damage sponge; it’s a learning experience. Initially, you’ll die a lot. This isn’t a bug; it’s a feature. You’re thrown into a vast, unforgiving world with minimal guidance, forcing you to learn its rhythms.

The learning curve is steep, but rewarding. You’ll struggle initially because you haven’t discovered optimal builds, mastered combat timing, or learned enemy attack patterns. Think of it like a brutal tutorial: every death is a lesson.

Here’s the breakdown:

Resource Management is Key: You’re not just fighting bosses; you’re managing your flasks, your spells, and your consumables strategically. Experimentation is critical – find what works for *your* playstyle.
Build Diversity Impacts Difficulty: A poorly-built character will struggle immensely, regardless of skill. Understanding weapon scaling, stats, and ashes of war is crucial for optimal damage output and survivability. Don’t underestimate the power of Spirit Ashes.
Combat is Deliberate: Elden Ring isn’t about button mashing. It rewards patience, precise timing, and understanding enemy attack animations. Learning to dodge, parry (if you choose), and punish openings is paramount. Watch your enemy, not just the health bar.
Exploration is Essential: The open world isn’t just scenery; it’s filled with secrets, shortcuts, and items that dramatically boost your character’s power. Thorough exploration unlocks builds and strategies that fundamentally change the difficulty landscape.

Even as you become immensely powerful, the game retains its challenge. Yes, you’ll still die in a few hits from late-game bosses, but your increased understanding of enemy attack patterns, better equipment, and refined strategies drastically reduce the frequency of those deaths. It’s a testament to the game’s design: the challenge is constant, but so is the opportunity for mastery.

In short: death isn’t failure; it’s feedback. Embrace the struggle, learn from your mistakes, and you’ll conquer the Lands Between.

What game engine was Elden Ring built on?

Elden Ring runs on FromSoftware’s proprietary engine, Dantelion. While it leverages common middleware like Havok (for physics), FMOD (for audio), and potentially Bink (for video), the vast majority of its systems and formats are bespoke. This means it’s not based on a commercially available engine like Unreal Engine or Unity. This custom approach allows FromSoftware incredibly fine-grained control over every aspect of the game, resulting in the unique feel and performance characteristics we see. Don’t expect any easy modding scene or readily available tools; the closed nature of Dantelion makes reverse engineering incredibly difficult. This also explains why porting Elden Ring to other platforms is a significant undertaking. Understanding this engine’s idiosyncrasies is key to appreciating the technical achievement behind the game’s stunning world and challenging gameplay.

Key takeaway: The custom engine is a crucial part of what makes Elden Ring Elden Ring. It’s not just a game built on pre-existing tech; it’s a testament to FromSoftware’s technical prowess and commitment to their unique vision.

Interesting side note: The lack of readily available documentation and support for Dantelion likely contributes to the difficulty in troubleshooting performance issues or creating mods, further increasing the challenge for both players and developers.

How long does it take to 100% Elden Ring?

Elden Ring’s completion time is highly variable, depending on playstyle and objectives. A focused playthrough concentrating solely on the main story can be completed in approximately 60 hours. This involves minimal exploration, ignoring optional bosses and areas, and prioritizing the critical path. However, this represents a fraction of the game’s true potential.

Achieving 100% completion, encompassing all bosses, areas, quests, and hidden items, requires a significantly greater time investment, averaging around 134 hours. This estimate factors in exploration, multiple playthroughs (for certain endings or achievements), and significant time spent grinding for optimal build development. Factors like familiarity with Souls-like gameplay mechanics and player skill also influence overall playtime; experienced players may complete the game faster than newcomers.

The game’s vast open world and intricate systems contribute to its replayability. Discovering every secret, completing every questline, and mastering every weapon class will significantly extend the playtime well beyond the 134-hour mark. In fact, some players dedicate hundreds of hours to exploring the entirety of the Lands Between, meticulously collecting all items and mastering advanced combat techniques.

Therefore, while 60 hours represents a baseline for a straightforward playthrough, embracing the full scope of Elden Ring’s content demands a commitment exceeding 134 hours, and for perfectionists, the sky’s the limit.

Is Elden Ring harder than Skyrim?

While both Skyrim and Elden Ring are celebrated RPGs, their design philosophies differ significantly, leading to vastly different player experiences. Skyrim, a classic open-world RPG, prioritizes player agency and freedom. Its difficulty curve is generally forgiving, allowing players to explore at their own pace and gradually increase their power. The combat, while capable of challenge, is generally manageable through careful planning and strategic use of abilities and spells. The game emphasizes exploration, questing, and character development, offering a wide array of choices and playstyles.

Elden Ring, conversely, embraces a deliberate “Souls-like” design. Its difficulty is notoriously high, emphasizing precise combat, strategic resource management, and learning enemy attack patterns through repeated attempts. Death is frequent, but serves as a crucial learning mechanism. The game offers less hand-holding, prioritizing environmental storytelling and leaving much of the world’s lore to player discovery. While rewarding mastery, its unforgiving nature can be frustrating for players accustomed to more lenient difficulty settings. The experience is heavily focused on challenging combat encounters and overcoming difficult obstacles through skill and perseverance.

In short: Skyrim offers a more accessible and forgiving experience, prioritizing exploration and player freedom, whereas Elden Ring provides a brutally challenging, yet deeply rewarding experience that demands patience, skill, and a willingness to learn from repeated failures. Neither is objectively “better”; their contrasting approaches cater to fundamentally different player preferences. Skyrim’s accessibility contrasts sharply with Elden Ring’s demanding challenge.

Who is the easiest character to play as in Elden Ring?

Elden Ring: Best Starting Classes for Beginners

Choosing your starting class in Elden Ring can significantly impact your early game experience. Here’s a breakdown of beginner-friendly options, focusing on playstyle and early-game viability:

Samurai: The Ideal Warrior for Beginners
Excellent starting equipment: A katana provides high damage output early on, requiring less investment in upgrading early weapons. The Uchigatana is remarkably versatile.
Balanced stats: The Samurai’s stat distribution offers a good foundation for both melee combat and some minor spellcasting options later.
Effective against a variety of enemies: The katana’s reach and speed are beneficial against both smaller and larger foes.
Prisoner: The Versatile Soldier
Hybrid build potential: The Prisoner offers a good starting point for a hybrid build, allowing you to experiment with both melee weapons and sorceries, depending on your preferences and the resources you find.
Strong early-game spells: The Glintstone Pebble and other starting spells are helpful for ranged attacks and dealing with certain enemy types.
Decent starting stats for melee combat: Their starting stats aren’t as optimized for melee as the Samurai, but it’s manageable.
Prophet: Ideal for Mechanics Exploration
High Faith stat: Allows for early experimentation with faith-based incantations, opening up a unique playstyle.
Understanding Incantations: This class forces a focus on faith and incantations, which are a different and sometimes overlooked approach in Elden Ring.
Less forgiving early game: Requires a good understanding of spellcasting and stat investment to be effective, this isn’t for pure melee players.
Vagabond: A Solid, but More Challenging Choice
High Vigor: Offers increased health, crucial for surviving early encounters, but less versatile than the other options for a beginner.
Strong melee focus: This is a pure melee class, lacking range or spellcasting options, making early gameplay possibly harder.
Requires more careful resource management: Without alternative damage sources, players need to carefully use their limited consumables.

Note: “Vagabond” is considered a more challenging starting class for beginners due to its higher reliance on melee combat and potentially limited options early on. While powerful in the right hands, it requires a greater understanding of the game’s mechanics and resource management.

What genre is Dark Souls 3?

Dark Souls III is a third-person action RPG, a direct descendant of its predecessors. Gameplay, as director Hidetaka Miyazaki himself stated, closely mirrors Dark Souls II, but with refinements. Think challenging, deliberate combat requiring precise timing and skillful parrying. Expect a deep, rewarding lore unveiled through item descriptions and environmental storytelling, characteristic of the Soulsborne genre. Prepare to die… a lot. Master complex boss encounters demanding strategic thinking and adaptation, learning enemy attack patterns through repeated attempts. The interconnected world encourages exploration, rewarding patient investigation with hidden areas, powerful weapons, and cryptic secrets. It’s not just a game; it’s a brutal, beautiful, and unforgettable experience.

What game should I play after Dark Souls?

So you’re done with Dark Souls, huh? Been there, crushed that. Need something to scratch that same masochistic itch? Let’s dive into some killer titles, ranked by their Souls-like brutality.

Elden Ring (2022): FromSoft’s masterpiece. Open world, brutal difficulty, but with the depth and reward that makes it legendary. Consider this Dark Souls 4, but bigger and bolder. Master its diverse builds and you’ll conquer its unforgiving bosses. Expect endless replayability.
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice (2019): FromSoft again, but a different beast entirely. Focus shifts to precise parrying and aggressive, fast-paced combat. Still brutally difficult, but mastering its mechanics grants unparalleled flow. A fantastic alternative if you want a more action-oriented challenge.
The Surge (2017) & The Surge 2 (2019): Sci-fi Souls-likes. These games offer a distinct mechanical twist with limb targeting—a strategic element absent in Dark Souls. Brutal difficulty remains, but the setting and dismemberment add a unique flavor.
Nioh (2017) & Nioh 2 (2020): Think Dark Souls meets samurai. Deep combat system, tons of build variety, and a rich historical setting. Expect a steep learning curve, but the payoff is massive. Prepare for a marathon, these games are substantial.
Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty (2023): Another strong contender. This one blends Souls-like combat with Chinese mythology and a focus on parrying. If you enjoyed Sekiro, this is a must-try. Its strategic depth is top-notch.
Code Vein: Anime-styled Souls-like. It’s a decent alternative if you want something visually different. While not quite reaching the same heights of difficulty or depth as the others on this list, it still provides a satisfying challenge.

Pro Tip: Don’t be afraid to die. A lot. That’s part of the charm. Embrace the challenge, learn from your mistakes, and you’ll emerge victorious.