Is Elden Ring Hard for Beginners? Don‘t be Afraid to Rise to the Challenge!

As an expansive open world action RPG from renowned developer FromSoftware, Elden Ring has developed a reputation for its punishing, uncompromising difficulty. For gamers new to FromSoftware‘s signature Soulsborne style of gameplay, Elden Ring‘s ruthless enemies, intricate combat, and imposing bosses can seem intimidating at first glance. However, while Elden Ring certainly presents a significant challenge, with the right mindset, builds, and strategies, new players can find deep reward and satisfaction in rising to meet its demands.

How Does Elden Ring‘s Difficulty Compare to Other FromSoftware Games?

While easier than Sekiro according to popular opinion, Elden Ring retains the DNA of challenge found in Dark Souls, Bloodborne, and other FromSoftware titles. According to data aggregated on HowLongToBeat, the average time for completing Elden Ring sits between 130-150 hours for completionists, demonstrating the scale of its challenge. In comparison, a full completionist run of Dark Souls 3 averages around 90 hours. Elden Ring‘s epic scope compounds its difficulty.

However, key elements like its open world design, customizable spirits summons, expanded character builds, and cooperative multiplayer help offset its harsh difficulty when leveraged properly. Elden Ring‘s challenge lies more in its scale and depth rather than purely punishing combat. For reference, the notorious boss Sister Friede in Dark Souls 3 takes on average over 50 attempts to defeat according to player data, while notorious Elden Ring boss Malenia takes around 30 attempts on average.

Top Tips for Surviving Elden Ring as a Beginner

While daunting at first, learning a few key strategies can help beginners overcome Elden Ring‘s steep learning curve:

Take it Slow and Steady

• Elden Ring rewards patience and avoiding reckless heroics. Observe enemy patterns from a distance. Draw individual enemies away from groups. Avoid unnecessary risks.

• Thoroughly explore the open world before tackling major dungeons. Completing side content nets you crucial upgrade materials, talismans, flask upgrades, and runes to level up.

• If you hit a wall, go elsewhere and come back stronger. Elden Ring‘s open design means you can always find easier areas to explore and return to challenging ones later.

Prioritize Leveling Vigor First

• Having a large health pool is critical early on. Prioritize pumping Vigor to at least 20-25 before other stats, keeping your weapons upgraded as you go. Surviving hits is key.

• "Soul leveling" by repeatedly defeating groups of enemies to amass runes can give you a quick vigor boost early. Look for mining tunnels, caravans, or forest camps with plentiful weak enemies to farm runes from.

Take Advantage of Spirit Summons

• Spirit summons offer invaluable distractions and damage versus groups and bosses. Look for summon signs near tough enemies indicating they can be used.

• Lone Wolf, Demi-Human, and Skeletal Militiaman are excellent early game summons available on the Weeping Peninsula and Limgrave. Upgrade them regularly by gathering grave gloveworts.

• Mimic Tear obtained from Nokron doubles your damage output by cloning your build. Highly useful for boss fights later on.

Leverage Cooperative Multiplayer

• Playing co-op divides boss aggression among players, making encounters much more manageable. Friends or random summons can provide huge help.

• To co-op, use Furlcalling Finger Remedy to see gold summon signs and activate them to summon players. Or place down your own gold sign and be summoned into others‘ worlds.

• Nearby players will show pools of blood messages you can interact with to summon them. Look around major bosses for bloodstains.

Why Elden Ring‘s Difficulty Should Not Deter Beginners

While brutally challenging, Elden Ring‘s difficulty is also deeply rewarding in ways few other games can match. The feeling of overcoming relentless foes, seemingly impossible bosses, and sprawling dungeons through patience, skill, and perseverance is profoundly gratifying.

Elden Ring expects a lot, but returns as much to players willing to rise to the task. Its difficulty curve also means starting out is the hardest part. As your powers, resources, gear, and knowledge expand, fearsome foes become manageable. Challenge breeds mastery. Trading hits becomes fluid, beautiful swordplay.

Savage enemies reveal rhythms to exploit. Imposing citadels give way to intimate layouts. Each accomplished step, from lighting your first Site of Grace to felling legendary dragons, compounds a sense of hard-fought achievement and adventure. Through its uncompromising yet rewarding difficulty, Elden Ring captures the emotion and heroism of mythic fantasy.

So while daunting, Elden Ring‘s difficulty provides worthy challenges to overcome and stories to share. With the right mindset and help where needed, any player can rise to the Lands Between‘s challenges and emerge all the richer for it.

Conclusion – Persevere, Tarnished!

For beginners to FromSoftware‘s iconic style of unrelenting yet gratifying gameplay, Elden Ring may seem an insurmountable mountain of difficulty at first. But by taking it slowly, studying enemy patterns, upgrading vigour, utilizing spirit summons, and playing cooperatively, new players can adapt to its demands.

Elden Ring hands you the tools not just to survive, but rise to the task and master its many challenges through patience and determination. Traverse its realm both cautiously and courageously to uncover treasures no other game can offer. Let its difficulty forge you into a champion. Persevere, Tarnished! Glory and victory await those willing to try.