How much harder does each new game get in Elden Ring? A complete guide

If you‘ve played through the epic open world of Elden Ring already, you may be wondering what awaits you in New Game Plus (NG+). Does simply replaying the game offer much of a challenge? Or does the difficulty ramp up dramatically with each new cycle?

In short, the enemies and bosses in Elden Ring get steadily tougher with each additional playthrough. The health and attack damage of foes increases exponentially from NG+1 through NG+7. You‘ll face remixed enemy placements, expanded boss movesets, and greater rune rewards.

While NG+1 feels moderately more difficult than the first playthrough, the challenge quickly scales up until only the most skilled players can reach NG+7. Each new cycle tests your combat abilities and game knowledge without completely breaking the experience.

As an avid Elden Ring enthusiast with over 500 hours invested, I strongly recommend giving NG+ a shot if you crave more challenge and rewards. In this guide, I‘ll break down exactly how much harder each run gets and whether diving into multiple playthroughs is worthwhile. Let‘s explore what awaits beyond the first completion!

What is New Game Plus?

For those new to FromSoftware titles, NG+ essentially lets you restart the entire game with your character and most gear/progress intact. After defeating the final boss, you have the option to begin a new game cycle.

The world resets, so you‘ll need to collect map fragments, Sites of Grace, and keys again. Enemies respawn as well. But you keep your level, weapons, spells, flasks, Great Runes, ashes, and more.

NG+ isn‘t solely about slogging through tougher enemies though. It also provides opportunities to see new questlines, grab rare loot, and experiment with different builds. I‘ll touch on some of those incentives later.

First, let‘s analyze exactly how much more challenging enemies and bosses become with each successive NG+ run.

Enemy and boss stat increases per NG+ cycle

Enemies and bosses receive a major stat boost in NG+ compared to the base game. This multiplier increases further with each additional cycle up to NG+7.

Here is a breakdown of how much extra health and damage output foes gain in New Game Plus modes:

As you can see, the curve is exponential rather than linear. The difficulty spike between NG+1 and NG+2 feels dramatic, and it keeps accelerating from there.

Based on my experience, here is a rough estimate of how each NG+ feels in terms of challenge:

• NG+1: Enemies feel about 20-30% tougher than the first playthrough. Still very manageable but provides a nice balance of challenge and fun.
• NG+2: At least twice as hard as the base game. Most early game bosses can potentially one-shot you now.
• NG+3: Feels up to 3X harder than NG. Mid-game bosses are like end-game bosses on NG. Sadly no achievement for clearing NG+3!
• NG+4: A huge jump in difficulty. Foes have 2.5X HP and damage. Basically "expert" mode requiring perfect play. One mistake means death.
• NG+5-7: The difficulty spike hits a ceiling. While runs get progressively harder, there are diminishing returns. Few players even reach NG+7.

So while up to NG+3 feels fun and rewarding, pushing beyond that requires a high skill level and tolerance for punishment. I‘d only recommend NG+4 and beyond if you love grinding challenges.

Now let‘s explore some of the other changes and incentives unique to New Game Plus cycles:

What else changes in NG+?

• Enemies drop more runes – Defeating enemies yields way more runes in NG+. After a few major boss kills, you can gain 20-30 levels easily.
• New enemy placements – Foe and ambush locations get remixed, keeping you on your toes even in familiar areas.
• Expanded boss movesets – Many iconic bosses gain dangerous new attack patterns in higher NG+ cycles. Gotta relearn their movesets!
• Special NG+ rings – These offer effects like HP regen or higher item discovery to aid your journey.
• Ancient Dragon Smithing Stones – Only found in NG+. Needed to max out weapons to +10 or +25.
• Other rare materials – Used to craft potently consumables and spirit ashes. Makes tougher bosses possible.

The extra runes in particular help accelerate subsequent playthroughs. And the new crafting materials let you power up gear to ceiling levels.

The new enemy layouts force you to reconsider strategies and pathing, even if you know the world well. And the enhanced boss movesets keep battles intense.

There are also some cool secrets that only NG+ players can access, like the Cave of the Forlorn. So replay value goes beyond just stat changes.

How many NG+ runs are worthwhile?

As mentioned earlier, the enjoyment starts to decline after NG+3 or NG+4 for many players. The difficulty spikes considerably, while the rewards and surprises dwindle.

Here‘s my personal recommendation on NG+ cycles based on your skill level:

• For casual players, 1-2 playthroughs is ideal. NG+1 is very rewarding, and NG+2 lets skilled casuals push themselves.
• For seasoned vets, 3-4 cycles hits the sweet spot before frustration sets in. You see most of what NG+ has to offer.
• Only hardcore masochists will want to grind all the way to the NG+7 cap. It‘s more an endurance test than fun.

I‘d advise most players to stop before NG+5 unless you really love banging your head against brick walls! NG+3 felt like the pinnacle of challenge vs. reward for my playstyle as an experienced player.

The important thing is recognizing when the difficulty stops being enjoyable and focusing on other goals like PVP, co-op, or new builds instead. No shame in moving on once you‘ve had your fill of NG+ punishment!

Is New Game Plus worth playing?

While NG+ isn‘t for everyone, I firmly believe it‘s a rewarding experience for certain players. Rather than just an extended victory lap, it provides genuine challenges that force you to master new strategies and optimize your build.

If you fall into one or more of these categories, you‘ll likely appreciate what NG+ has to offer:

• You crave challenging PVE content after beating the game once.
• You want to hunt rare weapons, spells, or upgrade materials.
• You enjoy testing the limits of different character builds.
• You want to see how storylines play out differently.
• You simply can‘t get enough of Elden Ring‘s world and want to spend more time there.

However, if you found the base game painfully hard already, further NG+ cycles will likely feel frustrating rather than fun. The same goes if you primarily enjoy casual exploration rather than difficulty.

It comes down to your personal preference as a player. But for fans who desire more challenge, NG+ is a fantastic way to experience fresh content within the same world.

The new obstacles force you to adapt rather than relying on familiar strategies. And unlocking new gear enables exciting build options you couldn‘t access before.

Final thoughts

While Elden Ring‘s vast open world alone provides 100+ hours of content, New Game Plus extends the journey for those hungry for more. Instead of invalidating your progress, it offers the chance to re-experience the game with a fresh perspective.

The ratcheting difficulty creates motivating milestones to test your skill. And the new crafting materials and gear acquisitions enable quirky niche builds you likely didn‘t try the first time around.

Rather than grinding to arbitrarily higher character levels, NG+ emphasizes mastering mechanics, enemy movesets, and powerful gear combos. In contrast to many open world games, Elden Ring offers satisfying replayability rather than one-and-done completion.

So if you can‘t get enough of Elden Ring‘s gorgeously haunting world, I strongly recommend giving New Game Plus a shot. Just be ready for a white-knuckle challenge! Hope this guide gives you a realistic picture of how much harder each run gets. Now get out there, Tarnished!