Today the gaming world saw the release of the next big game from acclaimed developer From Software: elden ring. The brains behind titles like Dark Souls and Axe worked with Game of Thrones writer George RR Martin to bring this elden ring to life, and I’ve been fortunate enough to spend a lot of time with the game over the past week. While I’ll bring you an in-depth feature later today with some tips and tricks to get you up to speed as you explore the Banished Lands, I also wanted to focus on one part of the experience that can really change the way you play it out. Namely cooperative and competitive multiplayer.
you see while elden ring can certainly be played and enjoyed solo, there are a number of different multiplayer options that can make your life easier or harder (and I mean that in a good way). As you play the game, you can summon other players to help you in tough boss fights or dungeon exploration, or even head-to-head battles. Like many of the game’s mechanics, the co-op and multiplayer system can be a bit obscure and not the most user-friendly experience, so I thought now would be a good time to break down how it works and what you need to use and how the game relates to it relates.
who is who
The first thing we need to address is how the game relates to the players and their roles. The host is literally just that: the person hosting the game instance. If the host needs help, they can call allies, either to defeat bosses and enemies or to help them fend off other players in PvP. These players will be called opponent and it comes in two flavors, one that is invited to a duel and one that intrudes to spoil the fun of the host.
How the summoning mechanic works
As you explore the world of Elden Ring, you’ll likely notice small stone carvings that look like a person attached to a crescent-shaped symbol. That is a Portrait of the M artyr
An important note: you can exercise more control over which players can access your summoning mark by setting a matchmaking password in the “Multiplayer” tab in the menu. Just create a password, share it with the friend (or friends) you want to play with and they’ll know they’re the only characters you’ll see.
The items you need
Online co-op and competitive play elden ring isn’t as easy as some games, but it’s made a lot easier compared to that Dark Souls games. Still, you’ll need to find or craft some items to get in on the fun. Here’s what you need to take part in the promotion.
Clouded finger – This allows you to place a summoning sign in a specific spot (e.g. in front of a boss door) so that everyone can call you into their game for help in co-op.
Small golden effigy – Send a cooperative summoning sign to all nearby active summoning pools.
Furlcalling finger remedy – As mentioned above, this item allows you to see all the summoning marks on the ground around you. While this isn’t an infinitely usable item like the Furled Finger and Golden Effigy, you can easily craft one of these in the crafting menu using two of the basic flowers found throughout the starting area.
Duelist’s Coiled Finger – This creates a summon sign for competitive PvP multiplayer.
bloody finger – Do you want to invade another player’s world? You can use one of these, but you’ll have to craft a new one once you’ve returned to your own world. You also only get it after a few (or more!) hours of play.
Little Red Effigy – Send a competitive summoning sign to all nearby active summoning pools.
And there you have it elden ring‘s co-op and competitive multiplayer in a nutshell. While it’s likely that only a few players will decide to try out the competitive multiplayer offerings, cooperative multiplayer will certainly be a big part of it elden ring experience for many players. Speak from experience with the Dark Souls Gaming, I often spend many hours just hanging around boss doors, waiting to help other players in exchange for some XP and that warm, fluffy feeling you get from helping those around you.
