Summary
The game design of studio FromSoftware has always made the most of encouraging exploration and discovery through secrets, but this has also been a consistently frustrating component of their releases for some players.Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtreehas introduced a more streamlined map design which evokes much of what made theElden Ringbase game’s legacy dungeonsappealing, but it still ultimately falls into some of these traps. After this approach to hidden quests and bosses has appeared in FromSoft titles for years now, it may be time to offer more accessible content that can be more easily found by players without external help.
While difficulty has been at the forefront of many discussions regarding criticism of Soulsborne design, there’s another prevalent form of it beyond just the strength of enemies and bosses. A lack of clear directions within NPC quests can make the guesswork required to figure them out overwhelming, leading many players to resort to seeking out answers from online posts. With some key items and important encounters being hidden behind these barriers across several notable games, the release that followsElden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtreecould benefit from the implementation of more intuition into its optional routes of progression.
Hidden Content Has Always Played a Role in FromSoftware’s Soulsborne Game Design
The Inherent Appeal to Discovering Bosses and Items
They may be out of the way, but there are several examples of FromSoft’s dedication to making secrets feel worthwhile paying off throughout its catalog. With areas like Ash Lake inDark Soulsand theNightmare Frontier ofBloodbornebeing completely optional and able to be missed without investigation, they are true rewards for players who deeply explore the world. The hidden bosses Darklurker ofDS2and Nameless King ofDS3, while capable of being climactic moments in their respective titles, are also unlikely to even be found without some research into their requirements.
FromSoft’s Content Obscurity Can Detract From the Gameplay Experience
The need for external help to find or complete content in an RPG can end up breaking immersion, as there’s a distinction between solving a puzzle and exploring a world. It can feel like a player is missing out on the full experience of a game likeElden Ring’s most hidden questswithout the support of supplementary material, as the relocation of NPCs throughout a vast map can quickly become an esoteric exercise in combing through points of interest.
Less Obtuse Design Doesn’t Have to Betray FromSoftware’s Style
The Future of Soulsborne Can Feature Accessibility Concessions Without Losing the Element of Mystery
Elden Ring’s DLC offers a more direct form of storytelling in its main quest, but it also leaves some of its most important content behind deeply obscure steps for the player to follow. With a unique gesture having to be used at a specific place in order to unlock one of the prerequisite areas for facing theShadow of the ErdtreeRemembrance boss Metyr, Mother of Fingers, it’s entirely possible to miss out on one of the most impressive set pieces of the expansion.
In an interview withThe Verge, Hidetaka Miyazaki expressed awareness of these sorts of issues in a light that implies they will be addressed in the future:
“Traditionally we’ve always liked the higher difficulty curve type of games and experiences, but I think that nature in and of itself alienates a good portion of the game playing audience,”
Moving forward, there will beopportunities for FromSoft to make these sorts of hidden pathsmore reasonably understood without sacrificing the element of mystery. By tying these secrets to more intuitive parts of exploration than rare gestures behind secret barriers, a more inclusive experience that doesn’t compromise on challenge has the potential to be achieved.
Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree
WHERE TO PLAY
Shadow of the Erdtree is the first and only DLC expansion for FromSoftware’s groundbreaking Elden Ring. It takes players to a whole new region, the Land of Shadow, where a new story awaits the Tarnished.
