Elden Ring
Genres: Action role-playing
Website
Developer: From Software
Publisher: Bandai Namco Games
Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch 2
Released: 2022, February 25
Rated: M for Mature
Elden Ring is a 2022 action role-playing game developed by FromSoftware and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment. It was directed by Hidetaka Miyazaki with worldbuilding provided by the American fantasy writer George R. R. Martin. It was first released on February 25, 2022 for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S. Set in the Lands Between, players control a customizable player character on a quest to repair the Elden Ring and become the new Elden Lord.
Elden Ring is presented through a third-person perspective with players freely roaming its open world. The six main areas can be traversed using the player character's steed Torrent. Linear, hidden dungeons can be explored to find useful items. Players engage enemies using various weapons and magic spells, and can focus on non-direct engagement enabled by stealth mechanics. Throughout the game's world, checkpoints enable fast travel and allow players to improve their attributes using an in-game currency called runes. Elden Ring features an online multiplayer mode in which players join through cooperative play to fight bosses or engage in player versus player combat.
FromSoftware wanted to create an open-world game based on Dark Souls. Miyazaki admired Martin's previous work and hoped that his contributions would produce a more accessible narrative than those of the company's earlier games. Martin was given freedom to design the backstory, while Miyazaki acted as lead writer for the in-game narrative. The developers concentrated on environmental scale, stat management, and the story; the scale required the construction of several structures around its world.
Elden Ring won several Game of the Year awards and has been cited as one of the greatest games of all time, with praise directed towards its open world, gameplay systems, and setting. It sold over 30 million copies, also making it one of the best-selling games of all time. The downloadable content (DLC) Shadow of the Erdtree follows the player character in the Land of Shadow. It was released in June 2024 to similar acclaim and sold over ten million copies. A multiplayer-focused spinoff game, Elden Ring Nightreign, released in 2025.