Elden Ring has proven to be a massive sales success for FromSoftware and Bandai Namco, with the game smashing records for the studio and earning near-universal acclaim in the process. It's already being hailed as one of the best video games ever made, but there's always room for improvement. FromSoftware itself knows this, as it's released various updates since Elden Ring's initial launch to add new quest phases, address balancing issues, and fix lingering bugs.
There are rumors that FromSoftware has even more ambitious plans for Elden Ring's post-launch support beyond the updates it's released so far. Elden Ring dataminers and leakers have managed to work their way inside the typically-inaccessible coliseums that dot the Lands Between, restoring functionality to reveal Sites of Grace, a sandy arena, and two enemies let loose to fight each other to the death.
One theory is that these coliseums are the groundwork for a future Elden Ring DLC expansion, but the other possibility is that these coliseums were planned to be featured in the game, only to be cut ahead of launch. Whatever the case may be, they represent a great opportunity for FromSoftware to rectify one of the bigger missed opportunities in Elden Ring, and that is the inability for players to relive boss fights without starting the game over.
The Elden Ring boss fights are a highlight of the experience, giving players a serious challenge while simultaneously showing off FromSoftware's impeccable sense of monster design. Unfortunately, in any given Elden Ring playthrough, players are only able to fight the bosses once with their own character. It's possible to fight the bosses again when joining others in co-op, but it can take some time to be summoned, especially as people move on from Elden Ring to new games. Otherwise, Elden Ring players have to start a New Game+ run or create a new character if they hope to take them on again.
Other games have utilized boss rush modes or have allowed gamers to otherwise relive their boss fights to great effect, and it would be great to see Elden Ring do something similar. The coliseums offer the perfect excuse for something like this, as they could be used to give Elden Ring players the chance to square off against some of the tougher bosses that they fought over the course of their journey in the Lands Between.
There could be some logistical problems with this idea, of course. The arenas wouldn't be big enough for players to have a proper boss fight with Radahn, but maybe the arena can work as a hub of sorts, transporting players to unique boss areas like the massive field where the Radahn fight takes place or the magical moon-lit world where players fight Rennala. Whatever the case may be, the coliseums in Elden Ring could give the game an added boost of replay value and keep Tarnished playing for the long-term.
Alternatively, maybe the coliseums would work better as a PvP arena. There's been some evidence to suggest that Elden Ring could add a PvP ranking system, or was considering it at one point, and the coliseums could provide centralized locations for fans to meet up. This would also fix the problem with AFK rune farming, as there would be nowhere for players to hide in the coliseums.
Elden Ring is out now for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
