Unlike previous FromSoftware games, the open world of Elden Ring allows players more opportunities to explore alternate routes and level up before facing a boss that blocks the critical path through the game. Experienced players exploring all the optional areas in the open world may quickly find themselves ahead of Elden Rings’s difficulty curve.
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Experienced players that feel they have mastered Elden Ring’s difficulty by the late game can once again expect to be humbled in New Game+ mode. Reddit user Yaekai has shared a clip of the difficulty players can expect when they reach New Game+7. Simply titled “NG+7 is rough….” the clip shows the player applying a series of dramatic buffs to their character before a fight that is cut very short by a parry and critical attack by the enemy.
Having a New Game+ mode is a staple of FromSoftware games. After getting one of the game’s multiple endings, players are able to play through again, with increased difficulty. The difficulty caps on the 7th time around, meaning NG+7 is as difficult as Elden Ring will get. But with such a massive open world, and so many optional areas and bosses, Elden Ring also gives players the option to stay in their current playthrough after the credits. From here players are free to continue exploring anything they missed in the Lands Between with the same difficulty level as before.
The comments under the clip are more surprised that someone has managed to play through the game enough times to reach NG+7, with many fans lamenting their 80+ hour playthroughs that still aren’t finished. Elden Ring is a truly massive game for those that want to squeeze absolutely everything out of it. But some can already beat Elden Ring in a few hours. It is for these players that have mastered the game that New Game+ exists, by increasing the difficulty and giving players another taste of that first unfamiliar playthrough when every enemy was a threat.
Elden Ring is a game that goes far beyond its famous difficulty, however. It is an incredibly deep game full of interesting characters, locations, and lore, with some even written by George R.R. Martin. Most of this lore players could easily miss or ignore while playing. Depending on one’s preferences, elements like NG+ could detract from the game as a story and play too much into the aggressive “difficulty over everything” brand FromSoftware games are too often stuck with.
Elden Ring is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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