My brain is still baffled by the scale and beauty of Elden Ring's world.
As 2022 comes to a close, it's natural that we all take a look back at the year behind us and think about the games we've played. This year, for me, was mostly taken up by some amazing narrative indies like The Case of the Golden Idol and Strange Horticulture. But really, a large part of my heart belongs to Elden Ring, and in particular Elden Ring's environment.
I explored Elden Ring with a continued wonder, always searching and seeking out the unusual and unknown. In previews, before the game was fully released, I got the opportunitywithout any knowledge of what the game held. I galloped furiously across the opening areas. Seeing monsters, beasts, giants, and NPCs, noting where everything was for guides, opinion pieces, and to relay that information as best as I could to the PC Gamer team.
Its gothic, still interior was so peaceful as I gazed through the doorway. The mist, and the gentle green grass was so inviting, compared to the horror I saw at Castle Morne. I stepped inside, seeing some movement, some shimmer of alive being in the distance curious as to what it could be. The spine curling shudder I then experienced when I encountered the Fingercreepers in Caria Manor was unlike anything even Dark Souls made me feel.