RPG games thrive on providing an immersive, living world, and Shadow 's Nemesis system grounds Tolkien's fantasy world, making it seem almost as if these orcs could burst from the game world and actually target the real-life player. It's the games' biggest selling point for a reason, and it's the most important Middle-earth: Shadow mechanic beginners should know before playing the ga
Multiplayer elements have been part of FromSoft's Souls-like RPGs since Demon's Souls , with Elden Ring expanding on that approach in an open-world setting. The context of this format was key to making multiplayer a realistically accessible part of the game, given that these games are already famous for their difficu
The Albinauric Mask helm is literally and grotesquely crafted from the face and hide of a second generation Albinauric according to its item description. Aside from granting an Arcane attribute bonus and letting player characters resemble pudgy-faced aliens, the Albinauric Mask (found near the Volcano Manor area of Elden Ring ), along with other Albinauric-themed game items, tells us a lot about who the Albinauric people are, and how thy came to ex
In place of the round, wide-brimmed hats associated with sorcerers in western fantasy fiction, the Glintstone Sorcerers seen in Elden Ring frequently wear sculpted stone masks with crowns made of Glintstone Crystal (which empower a Sorcerer's spell-casting abilities at the expense of resources such as Stamina). In-universe, the crystalline substance called Glintstone is what makes the scholarly discipline of Elden Ring 's Glintstone Sorcery possible, while the Azur's Glintstone Crown and Lusat's Glintstone Crown items , looted from mute NPCs encountered during the Sorceress Sellen quest-line, share the following passage in their item descripti
The books offer a medieval fantasy setting and also present a very complex and elaborated mythology and backstory of its lore, just as in Elden Ring. The figure of the champion and the concepts of good, evil, honor, and grace must have been a source of inspiration for the game. Needless to say, this combined with Tolkien's books must have greatly inspired the combat scenes of the g
Indeed, Ranni shares a lot with the Nox people. The Nox strangely have a great admiration for the stars despite living deep beneath the ground. However, this affinity makes sense when visiting either Nokron of Nokstella, as their false skies glitter with stars. Even the large, scorpion-skeleton hybrid creatures who use Gravity Sorceries in these locations are called "Malformed Stars." This calls to Ranni's goal in creating an Age of Stars in which the Greater Will is replaced with the Dark Moon and the Outer Gods are kept away from the Lands Between. Thus, stars play an important role in both Ranni's and Nox's mission, which are already similar in their
Author George R. R. Martin makes perfect sense to have been chosen to collaborate with Miyazaki and company. FromSoftware's Demon's Souls , Dark Souls trilogy, Bloodborne , and now Elden Ring are all sprawling and rich dark-fantasy universes that are a natural fit for the author of the A Song of Ice and Fire books and the catalyst for one of HBO's greatest original sho
Final Fantasy XIV is perfect for fans of MMORPGs in particular, but it's also a great entry point for fans of games like Final Fantasy to try an MMORPG for the first time since it plays very similarly to the single-player games, which are already RPG adventures. Explore the world or engage in quests; either way, it's a fun t
Blaidd, the half-wolf, greatsword toting guardian of Ranni the Witch, is an Elden Ring NPC with a popularity comparable to that of Solaire from Dark Souls , thanks to his friendly demeanor, combat prowess, and his disarmingly soft-spoken voice. Fortunately, Elden Ring gamers who want to give their character Story endings a wolf's head don't need to attack Blaidd for it. After beating the main boss in Caria Manor and progressing into the area beyond, players can acquire the "Black Wolf Mask" item by hopping up some walls near Seluvis's Rise, where Seluvis brews his potions . The description of this wolf head helm reads as foll
One of the central inclusions in both Elden Ring _ and Bethesda's seminal 2011 release The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim _ is the now-ubiquitous open-world map. As massive, highly detailed video games, both of these iconic releases place a heavy emphasis on things like scale, side activities, and traversal, with FromSoftware and Bethesda introducing innovation to the open-world formula in several ways. Connections have been drawn between Skyrim and Elden Ring locations like Blackreach , but there are many other ways in which the two games differ when it comes to their iconic m
Mass Effect 2 stepped up the story from the first game, innovating even further by using the Mass Effect 1 save file to influence the second game, so while players could go in without having played the first game, having done so provided an extra bonus. Without that, though, the story is still incredibly well-acted, written, and designed. Best of all, it's welcoming for new play