BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment Elden Ring Launch Edition (Xbox)

The game is great, I don't think it needs to be said but I was hoping for a steel book case which wasn't there so was a bit disappointed. However the inclusion of poster and stickers is great.

The game itself would be amazing if it had been launched properly by bandai namco and From software,On Xbox you can't play with online features at all and most people are saying the same thing,The frame rates can be really good at times and then judder if you turn quickly,If you have a vrr monitor this probably won't happen but most won't have one,If the game is ever fixed properly with a good update in the near future that fixes online for Xbox and smoothes the game to constant 60fps then it will be a 5 star game,this could happen but don't hold your breath.The game world is wonderful to explore,it's huge with tons of secrets,It's not that hard,Play as the mage character,The astrologer,you can kill most monsters at a distance with powerful long range spells and run away or use your horse if they get too close,just run around the first area and level up your character to about 80,find some better armour,use spirit wolves to distract big monsters while you hammer them with spells,start with the golden seed,find other golden seeds and level up your mana flasks to keep shooting spells,easy peasy,try it and it becomes a lot easier,The game is not too hard,it's about how you approach it.Its a shame it wasn't launched in a better state although I would still give it 8 out of 10 as it is now and probably a 9.5 if they ever fix it.If you don't want to play as a magician use the samurai he has a bow and arrow to kill things with and a sword and armour,next best choice for an easier game,avoid sword and shield only characters,you need to attack from a distance to survive and enjoy the game,if you still fail then look on YouTube for tips,there's hundreds of videos on it already,It's only hard if you don't find things out to help you,I still highly recommend the game even offline,I hope they get it fixed soon,so we get what we should.If you want to play with the online features then wait to buy but definitely buy it once they fix Xbox online issue. Online now fixed and working fine,frame rates holding up well now on series x.I would now say it's a 5 star game and buy it now.

Having only briefly played souls like games before, I thought I would give this a try...especially as the reviews were incredible. This game will drag you in and beat you down with sadistic pleasure. You have to "get gud" If you spend time on exploring and building up your character ,you will soon find the enemies that made your life a misery at the start are getting easier. There is an almighty grind to this game but I generally use the pattern of grind-explore-die-repeat. Stunning vistas (the in game artwork outweighs the graphics fidelity) Weird and wonderful weapons and bosses that can be stupidly hard (I'm looking at you fire giant) Amount to a game you can put in 100's of hours without realising it. One of the best games in modern gaming times... I love it!

The Souls series by From software have easily surpassed all other games as my absolute favourite of all time. Each entry has been a delight to me, with rewarding gameplay, amazing and imaginative world and characters, secrets galore and innovative and emotional stories that reward those who seek them out. Every game in the series and those adjacent were sublime. And Elden Ring stands highest among them, pushing every facet seen before into deeper, yet more accessible levels. If you've loved any of the Souls games you will not be disappointed. If you've bounced off them, this might aurally be the one that works for you and let's you see what all the fuss has been about.

This game is very good however if you have never played a souls game, it can be quite challenging and frustrating at first but take your time and just explore if you get stuck at a certain part of the game.

Do you like RPG's? How about one where you'll die lots? This is FromSoftwares Elden Ring Launch Edition, includes poster, prints, stickers, patch and 1000pts to spend in the Bandai Store (won't get you nada). If you are a big fan of RPG's then this is for you, it takes all the bad / good from Dark Souls, adds in some Elder Scrolls Online and then top off with some Kingdom Come Deliverance. You have a choice of character class who you will need to increase stats (one point per level) through playing and gaining experience (runes), the stats are much like D&D but a little dumbed down. Whether you want to tank or use magic, the choice us yours. But I do wish I'd chosen Samurai now, purely for the katana from start ha. The runes can be spent as currency or put towards levelling up. So you can take a few paths levelling up, by playing n killing, dying n respawning loads. Or by farming materials and selling. Or you can just roam round the massive map, exploring. There are no rights and wrongs in this game. One thing that is odd, is the lack of detailed tutorial, it more or less throws you in the deep end, which can be very frustrating but also satisfying when you find stuff out. I found myself asking mates or looking on YouTube for advice, just for menial stuff like crafting or even arming torches or bow or shield to quick menu. After 20hrs I'm upto level 41, I'm in no way nails, I still die a lot and yes, I still run away. This game is frustrating, sometimes madening, but overall it is sublime when something works out. OK the graphics, animations and NPC AI are not that great when you've been playing ESO or KCD, but it's early days and will only get better. But don't get me wrong, they are still good. Overall I'd definitely recommend this game if you want to throw your marriage, ignore yer kids and smash 20 controllers. But believe me, it's worth it purely for the messages folk leave round the world, yes, we are all school children deep down. Right off to ride Torrent and trying hard to not accidentally keep pressing dismount FFS.