Recent reviews by Kophy

I was about half way through my first play through where I realized that this game checks every box for, and is simply by the numbers, my favorite game of all time.

The categories are:

Rich, engaging storytelling that captures an almost melancholic mood.
This was originally Majora’s Mask’s strength where every set of people interacted had a certain, sadness, to their point in life where you come and help, more hopeful in the end but as it’s a Zelda game, absolutely permissible.
Elden Ring manages this as a trait. The NPC storylines are without a doubt the best of the Soulsborne games, each leading into the next step of their story very well and pointing to a melancholic feel of stagnation.

The next criteria is one that is without a doubt what is expected of Elden Ring. That being it’s fantastic atmosphere in setting and exploration.
Originally I would have used Dark Souls as my example of the best version of this, so it’s of little surprise that Elden Ring manages so well.
You engage in a setting that, WANTS you to explore it, there is a reward with every question, and a unique experience of opportunities so completely dense that it gives you near constant possibilities.

And the final criteria is a rich sense of deepens to everything experienced. The Elder Scrolls:Morrowind was so invested in its lore, that everything felt detailed as to why it might be in a place and who these major players in the setting are.
Elden Ring has George RR Martin’s sense of grand worldbuilding as a feature and I felt that at nearly every step. Whenever I viewed a new locale the sense of worldbuilding and scale always felt appropriate and meaningful.

Now, with all of these criteria it’s notable that gameplay itself isn’t mentioned. Though all of the comparison points I made are 3D real time medieval adventure games. And in gameplay, it’s as tight and fun as any game I’ve played. The feel of being a character and navigating the world is what I most want, and not only does it deliver on that, it delivers on the best balance of challenging. But strategic combat I’ve experienced while still clearly communicating deficiencies in a character should those crop up in an area.
Pay attention to what the game is attempting to tell you when you play, it will do so effectively and it’s always possible to adjust for it.

So, overall, it’s my favorite game and deserves every ounce of recognition it receives.