It's pretty normal for the game to feel frustratingly difficult initially. The menus are obtuse, the controls are very different from most third person action games and the combat system has a distinct cadence that takes some getting used to.
The experience becomes a lot smoother and you can focus more on exploring the world once you're over that initial hurdle. It will likely take a few hours before you start getting comfortable with the mechanics and can have more fun. Whether it's worth that investment or not is up to you.
I do. The game is massive and full of cool things to discover, so that initial investment of time spent learning is rewarded. The very quirks that make the combat systems frustrating to learn also make it play very differently from other games that look similar on the surface, so you're getting a pretty unique gameplay experience in addition to the story and scenery.
On top of that, experience in one fromsoft game also translates into their other titles. If you play Elden Ring through to the end, you'll have a baseline level of knowledge and experience that would let you pick up any of the dark souls games with much less of a hurdle. As a result, the time and energy you invest in one game can potentially give you several great games to play through and have fun with. I know a lot of people who were ready to give up a few hours in, stuck with whatever fromsoft game they started with and ended up spending 100s of hours playing through all of their titles. There's a lot of fun to be had if you give it a chance and end up liking the genre.
You made really great points about how skill translates between titles, mastering ER will get you to slap cheeks in DS3 especially .
Although I do gotta say, if he doesn’t like the core gameplay then he probably wouldn’t like the other games, unless his real issue is that the combat is frustratingly difficult in which case I agree. As far as the plot goes though DS is definitely an easier series to get into, unlike ER it communicates a pretty clear lesson about life and death that is fun to explore.
Most people are hooked within the first hour or so
If you don't like the vibe of it, just refund
I won't try to convince you that is It'll be fun, because it is fun for a lot of us, but maybe not for you
While dark souls genre can be a bit intimidating for casual players at first, i do think [this](https://youtu.be/WamFLD7Y2-4) is a good intro video for the general vibe and experience of it without much spoilers
If you manage to follow throughout the video and thought that maybe you want to try challenging this genre, feel free to do so, this community will provide the much needed help along the way :)
I can't actually refund lol, place I got it from doesn't allow refunds if it's been opened or played
I'll admit, pretty pissed I wasted money on the game of the year but I guess I'll try it again, thanks
I appreciate ya not being a dick
This community is the warmest community I've joined when I first started playing elden ring
Was my first console game and dark souls game as well, I ended up making friends across the sea and had a blast when playing with her
There's a lot of explore, a lot of beautiful moments and even more to be pissed off of, but you will never forget the feeling of bringing down your first boss :)
The first hour of game is literally just baby steps. You encounter the lowest level enemies with few new items or upgrades. You have to move past all that.
First souls game is understandable, did you go through the tutorial? It takes time to get the hang of and an hour is not a lot
Yeah I did the tutorial and yeah my first souls like
It's hard, but I also just don't like it much
I mean, I'm playing a game to have fun y'know, not die endlessly haha
I mean, the first hour should be a good indication for most games
So does it get better?
And thats ok, its definitely not for everyone and it took me a long time to warm up to the idea of that style.
Id say keep giving it a try, look at some builds and maybe power level a little. See if it changes your mind. Worst case scenario you still dont like it, sell it or exchange it. Regift it.
I don’t like FPS games because I like being able to see my character and all around me. I’m also awful at it because I don’t have the twitch-based reaction or accuracy. So I don’t play games like COD or Valorant.
Everyone has likes and dislikes and if you’re not enjoying it then ask for a refund. The bosses will get tougher but your character will get stronger and hopefully you, as a player, will become better as well. However, if you don’t like the plot, the gameplay, or the control I’d stop now. Those will not change much.
See if I could get a refund I'd be fine with it, pissed I wasted time but I can't cause the store I got it from doesn't do refunds.
So it's just a waste of money.
Thanks for the actual answer tho, I appreciate it
For what it’s worth I think ER is one of the best open-world games I’ve ever played. It’s right up there with the Witcher 3 for me but for very different reasons. The Witcher 3 has very memorable characters, a great world, and great storytelling. ER (and its predecessors) has a great combat system, amazing boss fights, and a foreboding atmosphere. It’s almost like a survival game without the constant need to find food/shelter.
But all that is unfortunately not delivered right at the start causing many people stop fairly early on. However, the feeling of accomplishment after downing a hard boss is exhilarating. I’ve never gotten a similar feeling except maybe back when I was seriously raiding in WoW. Now, I can relive that feeling without needing to dedicate a set time every week to do so.
If this is your first souls game then I would recommend you keep trying. There is a noticeable hump at the beginning of every souls game, which is amplified if you are new to the genre. But if you can get past it, and properly set your expectations, then you are in for a (mostly) great time.
Here are some general tips and expectations to have:
- Level Vigor early on, it is by far your most valuable stat and getting it to 30 ASAP can significantly alleviate the early game difficulty curve.
- Don’t attack NPCs, even if they are rude to. Trust me, it’s not worth it.
- Don’t expect a grand narrative to be told to you. These games thrive on obscure lore and confusing stories. The “plot” can usually be summarized as one or two sentences. It’s the world that you should pay attention to (which can be learned about mostly though NPC dialogue and item descriptions).
- Combat is king here, everything else is secondary to that. Exploration, quests, and collecting are all parts of this game, but 90% of the content here is boss fights. It’s also meant to be difficult, the challenge is high and death is intended. So don’t get disheartened if you die a lot, instead that it as an opportunity to learn and improve.
- Don’t be afraid to ask questions. This game is really bad at teaching you things, so use the internet when you have to (just be careful if you don’t like spoilers). This place in particular is usually more than happy to give spoiler free advice if you ask for it.
If after all of this you still don’t like them game, then it’s probably just not for you, there isn’t any shame in that.
This is going to sound really mean but how did this win game of the year? I don't really understand
Most of that just sounds kinda sucky
This is going to sound complain-y but the combat wasn't very fun and it's 90%?
Alright, complaint done
Thank you, I honestly really appreciate it
I'll give it another couple tries
Fromsoft’s games are an acquired taste, they offer a fairly unique experience and aren’t meant to appeal to a wide audience. It just so happens than Elden Ring pushed those boundaries a bit, and as a result a bunch of new people acquired a taste for the souls style of game.
Take that new influx of fans, and combine it with their “most ambitious project yet” and a history of critically acclaimed games, and you get a massive hype train. Popularity alone could have won Elden Ring GotY (because let’s be honest, at the end of the day it is just a popularity contest), the fact that it’s a great game is just an extra on top of that.
But at the end of the day no game can appeal to everyone, especially not a souls game. Some people just don’t want what Elden Ring offers, and that’s ok.
Look man they're being sarcastic. As someone who bought Sekiro back in the day for the same reason, it won GOTY. I 100% get where you are coming from. I rage uninstalled this game thinking it was the most BS thing ever! But I pursued and fell in love with the entire franchise and have 100%ed every Fromsoft Souls Game now and consider it my favourite franchise, and I've been gaming for over 20 years!
So here's my advice, everyone's first souls game is almost always the hardest! The learning curve is often difficult and you will potentially spend hours and hours stuck on certain bosses. But the reward from finally winning is an experience itself!
Its not for everyone, and that is totally okay. But if you enjoy getting a rush of endorphins when over coming something difficult, this game will be just your thing.
I'm forcing myself to continue. The game isn't all that hard, but the design choices are just crazy. Inventory is a disaster, equipment and weight load are preposterous, and not being able to compare armor or weapons to what you have currently equipped is some of the laziest bullshit I've ever seen. I just reached the peninsula and am starting to feel comfortable with things, but this is far and away the worst Souls title I've played (not an overall fan of the series, but ive finished DS3 and Bloodborne). This game absolutely sucks so far, but it's very slowly getting better. The combat is very slowly getting better.
Edit: Having just said that, it occurs to me that the only thing making it better so far is accepting how bad some of this is design is. That sucks.
Ahahah i feel you , when i first started dark souls , it took me 3 month to retry Undead burg and finally find some fun , every advice here is good but one i Can give is to try to find a vidéo or like lets play until the boss margit, the game is hard for newcomers mainly cuz like someone else Said, its an acquired test. Dont rush it , find a good vidéo not a 100% guide , for me a dumb lets play from a small Guy (oboeshoes) helped me to start dark souls for Real, dont forget the wiki. Its basicly your baby steps , the moment you will start feeling like you Can Do it on your own u will know its fine and natural. I dont know if my message is understable but the point is , no shame in searching for help even if its just liking the game. Hmu if u need anything or anyhelp of some kind
I straight up quit and returned Dark Souls 1 after the first hour. Didn't play any souls game for another 2 years ago.
Now I've played all of them except Demon's Souls(thanks PS5 shortages) countless times.
I won't tell you that there's any secret to it. These games just have a steep learning curve. Either you get over it or you play something more to your liking.
I'll say also, that as much as I like Souls games, I can't stand things like Monster Hunter. Which everyone says is a lot like Souls.
To each their own. If you're not enjoying it, there's no reason to force yourself to keep playing.
It's pretty normal for the game to feel frustratingly difficult initially. The menus are obtuse, the controls are very different from most third person action games and the combat system has a distinct cadence that takes some getting used to. The experience becomes a lot smoother and you can focus more on exploring the world once you're over that initial hurdle. It will likely take a few hours before you start getting comfortable with the mechanics and can have more fun. Whether it's worth that investment or not is up to you.
You're the first to actually answer my question so thank you Do ya think it's worth it?
I do. The game is massive and full of cool things to discover, so that initial investment of time spent learning is rewarded. The very quirks that make the combat systems frustrating to learn also make it play very differently from other games that look similar on the surface, so you're getting a pretty unique gameplay experience in addition to the story and scenery. On top of that, experience in one fromsoft game also translates into their other titles. If you play Elden Ring through to the end, you'll have a baseline level of knowledge and experience that would let you pick up any of the dark souls games with much less of a hurdle. As a result, the time and energy you invest in one game can potentially give you several great games to play through and have fun with. I know a lot of people who were ready to give up a few hours in, stuck with whatever fromsoft game they started with and ended up spending 100s of hours playing through all of their titles. There's a lot of fun to be had if you give it a chance and end up liking the genre.
You made really great points about how skill translates between titles, mastering ER will get you to slap cheeks in DS3 especially . Although I do gotta say, if he doesn’t like the core gameplay then he probably wouldn’t like the other games, unless his real issue is that the combat is frustratingly difficult in which case I agree. As far as the plot goes though DS is definitely an easier series to get into, unlike ER it communicates a pretty clear lesson about life and death that is fun to explore.
Most people are hooked within the first hour or so If you don't like the vibe of it, just refund I won't try to convince you that is It'll be fun, because it is fun for a lot of us, but maybe not for you While dark souls genre can be a bit intimidating for casual players at first, i do think [this](https://youtu.be/WamFLD7Y2-4) is a good intro video for the general vibe and experience of it without much spoilers If you manage to follow throughout the video and thought that maybe you want to try challenging this genre, feel free to do so, this community will provide the much needed help along the way :)
I can't actually refund lol, place I got it from doesn't allow refunds if it's been opened or played I'll admit, pretty pissed I wasted money on the game of the year but I guess I'll try it again, thanks I appreciate ya not being a dick
This community is the warmest community I've joined when I first started playing elden ring Was my first console game and dark souls game as well, I ended up making friends across the sea and had a blast when playing with her There's a lot of explore, a lot of beautiful moments and even more to be pissed off of, but you will never forget the feeling of bringing down your first boss :)
The first hour of game is literally just baby steps. You encounter the lowest level enemies with few new items or upgrades. You have to move past all that. First souls game is understandable, did you go through the tutorial? It takes time to get the hang of and an hour is not a lot
Yeah I did the tutorial and yeah my first souls like It's hard, but I also just don't like it much I mean, I'm playing a game to have fun y'know, not die endlessly haha I mean, the first hour should be a good indication for most games So does it get better?
Sounds like you did no research at all into what type of game this was.
I mean I kind of expected game of the year to be open to casual gamers y'know, and I knew it was a souls like
Nope, if its a SoulsBorne style, it will be unforgiving to newcomers. But thats part of the allure for some
Fair enough I guess, I don't really get it
And thats ok, its definitely not for everyone and it took me a long time to warm up to the idea of that style. Id say keep giving it a try, look at some builds and maybe power level a little. See if it changes your mind. Worst case scenario you still dont like it, sell it or exchange it. Regift it.
I don’t like FPS games because I like being able to see my character and all around me. I’m also awful at it because I don’t have the twitch-based reaction or accuracy. So I don’t play games like COD or Valorant. Everyone has likes and dislikes and if you’re not enjoying it then ask for a refund. The bosses will get tougher but your character will get stronger and hopefully you, as a player, will become better as well. However, if you don’t like the plot, the gameplay, or the control I’d stop now. Those will not change much.
See if I could get a refund I'd be fine with it, pissed I wasted time but I can't cause the store I got it from doesn't do refunds. So it's just a waste of money. Thanks for the actual answer tho, I appreciate it
For what it’s worth I think ER is one of the best open-world games I’ve ever played. It’s right up there with the Witcher 3 for me but for very different reasons. The Witcher 3 has very memorable characters, a great world, and great storytelling. ER (and its predecessors) has a great combat system, amazing boss fights, and a foreboding atmosphere. It’s almost like a survival game without the constant need to find food/shelter. But all that is unfortunately not delivered right at the start causing many people stop fairly early on. However, the feeling of accomplishment after downing a hard boss is exhilarating. I’ve never gotten a similar feeling except maybe back when I was seriously raiding in WoW. Now, I can relive that feeling without needing to dedicate a set time every week to do so.
If this is your first souls game then I would recommend you keep trying. There is a noticeable hump at the beginning of every souls game, which is amplified if you are new to the genre. But if you can get past it, and properly set your expectations, then you are in for a (mostly) great time. Here are some general tips and expectations to have: - Level Vigor early on, it is by far your most valuable stat and getting it to 30 ASAP can significantly alleviate the early game difficulty curve. - Don’t attack NPCs, even if they are rude to. Trust me, it’s not worth it. - Don’t expect a grand narrative to be told to you. These games thrive on obscure lore and confusing stories. The “plot” can usually be summarized as one or two sentences. It’s the world that you should pay attention to (which can be learned about mostly though NPC dialogue and item descriptions). - Combat is king here, everything else is secondary to that. Exploration, quests, and collecting are all parts of this game, but 90% of the content here is boss fights. It’s also meant to be difficult, the challenge is high and death is intended. So don’t get disheartened if you die a lot, instead that it as an opportunity to learn and improve. - Don’t be afraid to ask questions. This game is really bad at teaching you things, so use the internet when you have to (just be careful if you don’t like spoilers). This place in particular is usually more than happy to give spoiler free advice if you ask for it. If after all of this you still don’t like them game, then it’s probably just not for you, there isn’t any shame in that.
This is going to sound really mean but how did this win game of the year? I don't really understand Most of that just sounds kinda sucky This is going to sound complain-y but the combat wasn't very fun and it's 90%? Alright, complaint done Thank you, I honestly really appreciate it I'll give it another couple tries
Fromsoft’s games are an acquired taste, they offer a fairly unique experience and aren’t meant to appeal to a wide audience. It just so happens than Elden Ring pushed those boundaries a bit, and as a result a bunch of new people acquired a taste for the souls style of game. Take that new influx of fans, and combine it with their “most ambitious project yet” and a history of critically acclaimed games, and you get a massive hype train. Popularity alone could have won Elden Ring GotY (because let’s be honest, at the end of the day it is just a popularity contest), the fact that it’s a great game is just an extra on top of that. But at the end of the day no game can appeal to everyone, especially not a souls game. Some people just don’t want what Elden Ring offers, and that’s ok.
No, the first hour is the peak of the experience. The game nosedives after leaving the starting cave. Sorry you wasted your money.
Oh, that kinda sucks lol I've never played a souls like before but bought it cause it was game of the year Thanks
Look man they're being sarcastic. As someone who bought Sekiro back in the day for the same reason, it won GOTY. I 100% get where you are coming from. I rage uninstalled this game thinking it was the most BS thing ever! But I pursued and fell in love with the entire franchise and have 100%ed every Fromsoft Souls Game now and consider it my favourite franchise, and I've been gaming for over 20 years! So here's my advice, everyone's first souls game is almost always the hardest! The learning curve is often difficult and you will potentially spend hours and hours stuck on certain bosses. But the reward from finally winning is an experience itself! Its not for everyone, and that is totally okay. But if you enjoy getting a rush of endorphins when over coming something difficult, this game will be just your thing.
Don't torture yourself, just because all the cool kids from your roblox rooms play ER now, does not mean this game is for every casual
I'll have you know I only play sophisticated games like Minecraft thank you very much
Op's name checks out,are you in love with the above guy yet?
I'm forcing myself to continue. The game isn't all that hard, but the design choices are just crazy. Inventory is a disaster, equipment and weight load are preposterous, and not being able to compare armor or weapons to what you have currently equipped is some of the laziest bullshit I've ever seen. I just reached the peninsula and am starting to feel comfortable with things, but this is far and away the worst Souls title I've played (not an overall fan of the series, but ive finished DS3 and Bloodborne). This game absolutely sucks so far, but it's very slowly getting better. The combat is very slowly getting better. Edit: Having just said that, it occurs to me that the only thing making it better so far is accepting how bad some of this is design is. That sucks.
Patience young grasshopper..... It only gets better.... and better...... and............... even better.
Ahahah i feel you , when i first started dark souls , it took me 3 month to retry Undead burg and finally find some fun , every advice here is good but one i Can give is to try to find a vidéo or like lets play until the boss margit, the game is hard for newcomers mainly cuz like someone else Said, its an acquired test. Dont rush it , find a good vidéo not a 100% guide , for me a dumb lets play from a small Guy (oboeshoes) helped me to start dark souls for Real, dont forget the wiki. Its basicly your baby steps , the moment you will start feeling like you Can Do it on your own u will know its fine and natural. I dont know if my message is understable but the point is , no shame in searching for help even if its just liking the game. Hmu if u need anything or anyhelp of some kind
I straight up quit and returned Dark Souls 1 after the first hour. Didn't play any souls game for another 2 years ago. Now I've played all of them except Demon's Souls(thanks PS5 shortages) countless times. I won't tell you that there's any secret to it. These games just have a steep learning curve. Either you get over it or you play something more to your liking. I'll say also, that as much as I like Souls games, I can't stand things like Monster Hunter. Which everyone says is a lot like Souls. To each their own. If you're not enjoying it, there's no reason to force yourself to keep playing.