Elden Ring was one of the most highly anticipated games of 2022, and it appears to have lived up to the hype in the eyes of many. Its wide array of intimidating enemies and fearsome bosses have cemented the game's reputation as FromSoftware's most ambitious title yet. However, one Elden Ring fan shares a clip that shows how even the walls in this game can be dangerous.
FromSoftware's games are notorious for being incredibly difficult, but most of that difficulty comes from their grueling combat systems. The entire soulslike genre is set up so that even a single random enemy encountered on the map can demolish an unwary player. This encourages the player to hone their skills and approach each battle with caution.
Redditor Thenadamgoes recently shared a short video clip showcasing a bizarre encounter where the game's walls almost got a player killed. In the video, an Elden Ring player is shown edging along a narrow stone path overlooking a long drop, with a sheer cliff face on the right side. They're proceeding carefully forward when they suddenly encounter an armed knight on the path ahead of them. Unfortunately, this encounter occurred at what may be the worst spot possible.
Thenadamgoes' character is armed with a long sword, which would normally be a solid choice of melee weapon. However, when the player goes to attack the knight, their blade bounces off the nearby cliffside. The video is nine seconds long, and most of the runtime consists of the player trying to attack the enemy and failing because of the wall. Their blows keep being intercepted by the wall instead of hitting the enemy, allowing the enemy to freely assault them. Finally, the player manages to force the enemy back and their blows begin connecting.
In the accompanying text, Thenadamgoes called this encounter the most stressful fight they'd had in the game. Apparently, this happened because of the specific location the attack takes place in--namely, a curve to the right that makes it difficult for a melee fighter to engage with an opponent. This effect occurs in real life as well, which is part of why medieval castles often had winding staircases. The idea was that a right-handed fighter would be at a disadvantage when climbing the stairs with a sword. Invaders would be forced to round the curve entirely before they could reliably hit any defenders, allowing defenders plenty of time to take them out.
Elden Ring is available for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
