Elden Ring: 15 Minutes Of Gameplay Showcases Open World Traversal, Boss Fights, And More

FromSoftware releases 15 minutes of Elden Ring gameplay. This includes some open-world traversal within The Land Between and Souls-like combat. There is also a glimpse at some of The Land Between’s dungeons.

The entire showcase heavily emphasizes player choice when navigating the world of Elden Ring. Unlike previous FromSoftware games which are more akin to wide-open, interconnected areas rather than a full-on open-world, Elden Ring’s world is completely open, allowing players to tackle objectives how they see fit.

You might open the main gate and go into the castle. Perhaps you’re worried about a secret archer that might snipe you down when you walk through the gates so you take a side route instead? The choice is seemingly yours and that seems to be a running theme through Elden Ring – do what you want, when you want.

Now, that’s not to say that Elden Ring will allow you to do that easily. Something tells us the game will have its own way of telling players, “no, not yet,” but only time will tell for now. In fact, Elden Ring has a guiding light that seems to nudge players in a suggested direction, but as the gameplay showcase narrator notes, players don’t have to choose to follow it.

It is possible to be thrown off the path by massive, fire-breathing dragons who appear out of nowhere. We also get a look at some of the many NPCs we’ll run into in The Land Between, including the Iron Fist aka Big Pot Boy (it’s an NPC that appears to be a large pot with arms).

In perhaps the most surprising reveal in the video, FromSoftware showcased Elden Rings’ map, which is new to the FromSoftware formula. To help navigate The Land Between, players can set beacons which act as waypoints. A new view is also given to the Spirits of Elden Ring. These are summonable allies that can be used in online co-op. Here, we’re treated to some of the more Sekiro-like stealth that can be used to skulk around the world.

Elsewhere in the video, we witness a fight between the playable charater and the massive hulking boss that wields a golden axe featured heavily in Elden Ring’s marketing thus far. That boss appears to be no joke, either – it seems to have multiple phases, fire magic, massive leap attacks, and more.

It’s safe to say that we’re shaking in our armored boots just thinking about having to fight this boss when Elden Ring is released on February 25, 2022.

You can find out more information about Elden Ring here Game Informer’s Elden Ring previewThen, read on about how The delay was extended to next yearYou can find out more at See also Game Informer’sA breakdown of all we know about Elden RingAfter that.