Chapter 830: I'm Destined to be the Elden Lord!

As soon as the promotional trailer for Elden Ring was released, it was like a stone dropping into a calm pond, stirring up a huge commotion.

It wasn't because the game's CG quality was too stunning, nor was it because players had been eagerly anticipating it for too long.

Rather, the style presented in the trailer made many players feel a sense of déjà vu.

Meaningless plot introductions, a somewhat dark art style, coupled with a so-called Demigod War and the breaking of the Elden Ring, and the absence of a king. These elements combined made many players think of a particular game genre under Nebula Games: Souls-like games.

It's well known that Souls-like games, with their distinct characteristics, from the two Dark Souls titles that started it all, to the later Bloodborne and Sekiro, are brimming with passionate fans.

Of course, many players are the type who spend 10 minutes fighting Gundyr but watch 20 hours of video walkthroughs.

But the reputation of Souls-like games among players is by no means inferior to some AAA-tier IP titles.

"Holy cow, it can't really be a Souls-like game, can it? Epic fantasy storyline, rich equipment system, certain puzzle-solving elements—it all seems to fit!"

"It… can't be, right? After all, isn't this an open-world game? Haven't Souls-like games always been box garden exploration types?"

"Not necessarily. Think about Dark Souls Prequel; from Firelink Shrine, you could go to the Catacombs, or the Undead Burg Outskirts and New Londo Ruins. That was actually quite open."

"Right, right, thinking about it that way, it doesn't seem impossible!"

"Don't jump to conclusions, guys; there's no definite proof yet, it's not certain!"

"Even without concrete proof, don't you feel that this CG is too familiar? And more importantly, Mr. Chen hasn't revealed any news but clearly values it greatly. Given Mr. Chen's personality, don't you think that's strange?"

"Indeed! Mr. Chen is sneakily mischievous. This kind of behavior suggests either a heartbreaking plot twist, killing off one or two important characters, or hardcore, high-difficulty gameplay to torment us."

Naturally, many loyal fans of Souls-like games were also getting excited.

Even after all this time, there are still quite a few Souls scholars studying various elements within Souls-like games.

From the plot to the gameplay, including speedrunning, players have continuously researched them.

The possibility that Elden Ring might be a Souls-like game made these players incredibly thrilled.

………………

Facing the countless players' confusion and speculation, Chen Xu did not directly respond after releasing the first promotional trailer. Instead, he successively released some character concept art and related game settings.

For example, the Tarnished, and Melina, who guides players in increasing their strength, among others.

The release of this content, although without actual game footage, led players to a common realization: this really might be a Souls-like game.

Because based on the revealed settings and art style, the 'flavor' was incredibly strong!

Especially the Redmane led by Starscourage Radahn and the Cleanrot Knights under the Valkyrie, seeing those familiar armors immediately reminded players of Dark Souls.

Amidst all the players' discussions, anticipation, and controversies,

Elden Ring officially launched.

Unlike its previous life, in addition to being VR-adapted, Chen Xu made two very important changes to the game.

In its previous life, one of the main criticisms players had about Elden Ring was not only the numerical balance issues but also 'input reading.'

To give a simple example of 'input reading,' in Sekiro, Genichiro, when a player drinks from their Healing Gourd, would inevitably pull out his great bow to shoot them in the face during his first two phases, and in the third phase, he would invariably use a Thrust Attack that could be Mikiri Countered.

In response, Chen Xu utilized AI to better enable the game's BOSSes to plan their moves.

Of course, it was still a process of memorization.

Secondly, concerning the Ashes of War for summoning spirits, the BOSSes also had a dedicated Aggro analysis system.

"I wonder if Elden Ring is a Souls-like game! If it is, an open-world Souls-like game sounds incredibly interesting!" Song Ren and Zhang Yi chatted in the voice channel while waiting for the game to launch.

"Don't worry, if you encounter a BOSS you can't beat, you can team up with me. Your Sun-Daddy will help you defeat it," Zhang Yi said with a chuckle, wasting no time in taking advantage of Song Ren's words.

"Shut up, you noob! Didn't you always ask me to team up to get souls when you couldn't beat a BOSS before? Forgotten already?" Song Ren retorted disdainfully.

"Proof! A society governed by law requires proof, otherwise, you're slandering me!" Zhang Yi shamelessly argued.

"Just keep talking nonsense! I'm not blabbering with you, I'm going to check out the game first!" Song Ren snorted, then, seeing that it was time, quickly entered the game.

The view slowly darkened, light completely cut off, replaced by pitch black.

Then, a golden light appeared in his vision.

A hoarse narration sounded in his ear.

'The leaves whisper tidings: In the Lands Between, our home beyond the fog, the great Elden Ring has been shattered...'

The gigantic Erdtree and the Royal Capital appeared before Song Ren.

'Eternal Queen Marika vanished, and on the Night of the Black Knives, Godwyn the Golden became the first to perish.'

'Marika's offspring – the Demigods – claimed the shards of the Elden Ring, but were corrupted by its power, falling into madness, sparking The Shattering...'

The Demigods, locked in battle, appeared before his eyes. Finally, the scene froze on the battlefield of General Radahn the Starscourage and Valkyrie Malenia.

'At the end of that war, where no king stood, the Greater Will banished them.'

'O, Tarnished – still-living dead, unable to truly die!'

'The Grace that we lost long ago is calling out.'

Behind him, a gigantic lion-like beast and a warrior pierced by countless arrows appeared.

'Hoarah Loux, Lord of the Badlands.'

A mysterious figure, fallen like a sunflower onto rune-etched ground.

'Goldmask.'

A maiden amidst piles of countless corpses.

'Fia, the Deathbed Companion.'

A bizarre person, hanged on a gallows, dressed in something resembling octopus suckers, with a sun etched on their chest.

'The reviled Dung Eater.'

A knight lying in a stone coffin covered by countless silver coins.

'Sir Gideon Ofnir, the All-Knowing.'

In the darkness, a glimmer of light appeared.

'The lost Grace has once again returned to the nameless Tarnished.'

'Go forth, beyond the fog, to the Lands Between, seek the Elden Ring, and become the Elden Lord!'

As the opening CG concluded, Song Ren was 80% certain.

This CG style!

It was definitely that distinctive flavor!

It was full of that Dark Souls vibe!

And as the CG ended, the character customization interface that appeared before him turned his 80% certainty into 100%.

The traditional character customization system! And those familiar starting Keepsakes.

"But it feels a bit like a Spiritual successor to Dark Souls, it's so similar!"

Looking at the game's interface, Song Ren couldn't help but smack his lips.

From the storyline, isn't the Tarnished just an Undead?

And isn't the Elden Ring basically the First Flame?

And these classes:

Knight, Thief, Astrologer, Warrior, Wretch... and the later selection of starting items, it's totally Dark Souls déjà vu!

The only difference was that he saw an easter egg: a special class called Samurai.

Originating from the Land of Reeds, this was clearly a Sekiro easter egg.

"Samurai, this class looks a bit cool! Too bad I won't choose it," Song Ren smiled faintly, decisively selecting Knight.

Since he was almost 100% sure this was a Souls-like game,

There was practically only one class choice, the essential one for early-game progression: Knight.

Although it might be overweight starting with armor, just take off a piece of armor if needed.

As for Astrologer, Wretch, these probably corresponded to Mages and other strange classes; you definitely couldn't choose them for early-game progression!

As an experienced veteran Undead, he understood perfectly!

Regarding the starting Keepsake, he didn't understand many of the items, so after some thought, he chose the versatile [Golden Seed]; from the description, it could give him an extra Blood Vial.

Clearly, the Blood Vials in Elden Ring corresponded to Dark Souls and Sekiro, not like in Bloodborne.

With his class confirmed, after darkness, Song Ren appeared in a room. From a nearby corpse, he picked up a Tarnished's Old Paper. Having played Souls-like games, he was familiar with it; it was an item for leaving in-game messages.

But what surprised him the most was that the game's controls were not an entirely new combat system like Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice.

Instead, it was like Dark Souls, the only difference being that the Undead now had knees and could jump.

Ignoring the new player tutorial messages on the ground, Song Ren practiced in the dark room and quickly figured out the basic action commands, as he already had experience.

He then opened the equipment interface and confirmed that he was not overweight.

"So, this is an open-world Dark Souls! Isn't that invincible?"

"As an experienced Firelinker, this journey to become king should be smooth sailing, right? I'm destined to be the Elden Lord!"

(End of Chapter) <>