A Legendary Game, An Instant Classic
Fromsoft's Elden Ring is an awe-inspiring title. Breaking away from the semi-open-world level design of previous souls-games, Elden Ring features a world ripe for exploration. The world invites the player to search high and low, every corner of the map, rewarding those who take the time to look with various items to further their progression and 'ease' some of the combat.

To those who have been curious of playing souls-games but worried about the difficulty, Elden Ring is great game to give it a shot. While Elden Ring can be challenging, the game is easier than its Dark Souls cousins. Co-op is more encouraged with plentiful materials to craft the needed co-op item to play with others. Remember, there are always players ready to help others near tough bosses.

Short Summary
Elden Ring invites the player into a fractured world that has fallen from its glory. With few friends to guide the player, it is up to them to restore order to the world, however, if that is indeed their choice. The classic elaborate dungeons from Dark Souls entries is still present in the form of "Legacy Dungeons". These dungeons retain the same feel Dark Souls dungeons have on a smaller more varied scale. Contrasting against the tight dungeons, the open world lets the player breathe, letting them explore the vast world to level up, complete quests, and gain better gear. With the ability to traverse great distance on horseback, the rich world of Elden Ring awaits you to become the next Elden Lord!

Summary Extension
As is tradition, Elden Ring does very little to hold-the-hand of the player, respecting the player's intelligence to find the next main boss, the next quest location, etc. Listening to dialogue in Elden Ring is as important as ever, skipping it is a surefire way
to send you to a quest guide, though, never hesitate to consult it.

Elden Ring Has multiple endings and as of writing this 6 have been found. Each one has its own pre-requisite that is tied to getting a certain item or completing a certain quest. The player will have a moment after defeating the final boss on choosing which ending they can take.

Some Note Worthy Positives
Elden Ring's combat is near identical, if not completely, as previous souls entries. Those who have played other souls titles will feel right at home. The precision of combat is all present and feels great. The weighty, slow, methodical combat is a staple of what makes souls-combat enjoyable and gratifying once a challenge is overcome.

The musical scores in this game are god-tier. Not much else to say.

Boss designs are as fantastic as ever, each with their own unique ways to send you back to bonfi- I mean 'sight of grace'. The visual spectacle of watching their flurry of attacks in their arenas is enough to make the first few deaths painless.

Some Negatives
This game could have been near-flawless if not for some glaring issues: lack of proper keyboard/mouse support & performance issues.

The keyboard/mouse support is bare-bones. HUD icons are shown in the Xbox controller format which is as helpful to the player as not showing anything at all. Rebound keys do not update said icons and not all actions can be rebound. For example, to open the map, you need to hit 'G', which isn't told to the player in the beginning except for the controller button. The same goes for switching between tabs in your inventory and accessing your pouches by holding 'F'. Fromsoft can 100% be criticized for their lack of support for keyboard/mouse users, I can only hope their next title can better it.

As of writing this, performance issues such as stuttering or low frame rates in certain areas can certainly take the player out of the game or worse, greet them with an untimely "You Died". Elden Ring is not the kind of game you want these issues with, the combat is tight and the boss fights near pixel-perfect. Hopefully these are fixed in the coming months.

Closing Thoughts
All-in-all, Elden Ring is a fantastic, near-perfect game plagued only by technical issues. With great gameplay and a deep, intricate story at play, this game is sure to be remembered for years to come.