FromSoftware's upcoming fantasy action RPG Elden Ring has been a long time coming. Since its reveal, Elden Ring has generated enormous hype that comes from FromSoftware's consistently high-quality roleplaying releases in the past decade and the collaboration with acclaimed novelist George RR Martin. As such, Elden Ring has a lot to live up to, even more so since the release of Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice in 2019, which, despite not addressing the never-ending video game accessibility debate, attracted a bunch of new players.

Elden Ring may be a true successor to Dark Souls, which sets unprecedented expectations of its own. Naturally, this means that it may require more time in the oven to get everything right, especially with the ongoing pandemic. Hence, despite Elden Ring having a concrete release date, fans are worried that another delay may be on the horizon. Here's why it will likely not happen.

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FromSoftware's History With Delays and How It Influences Elden Ring

Elden Ring Screenshot Analysis

FromSoftware has a fairly simple pattern when it comes to developing and releasing its AAA titles. Most of From's AAA projects from the last decade were three to four years in the making. Dark Souls 3 started development in 2013 and got released in 2016. Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice's development kicked off in 2015, after the release of Bloodborne's DLC, and shipped in 2019. The development for Elden Ring began in 2017 after FromSoftware released Dark Souls 3's final DLC and should ideally target a 2021 or 2022 release window.

What's even more important to note is the gap between the release date announcements and the release. The release dates of some of past FromSoftware titles got revealed just about four to six months before their releases. For instance, Sekiro's March 2019 release date got announced in August 2018, whereas Dark Souls 3's March 2016 release date got announced in December 2015. Furthermore, both these games never received any delay. On the other hand, Bloodborne's release date of February 2015 was announced in September 2014, which then got pushed to March 2015, the announcement of which took place in November 2014. If all of this is any indication, Elden Ring's current release date may be the one that's final. While a delay is still possible, given From's record, it may not be more than a few weeks, if at all, which shouldn't come as a major disappointment.

Elden Ring's Unspoken Advantage

elden ring map

Elden Ring's open-field structure adds more freedom and variety in terms of exploration and combat. Elden Ring's gameplay trailer indicates a newfound focus on stealth that seems straight out of Sekiro, plus new aggressive combat maneuvers whose influences trace back to Bloodborne. Elden Ring unhesitatingly borrows from its predecessors, which could be the reason why FromSoftware may never make a Bloodborne or Sekiro sequel. All of this paints a picture of a game that is seemingly FromSoftware's most ambitious to date, which in turn would require more work and development time - though the studio has an unspoken advantage as far as Elden Ring's development is concerned.

Although not officially confirmed, Elden Ring seems to be running on the same graphical engine that FromSoftware has used since 2009's Demon's Souls. This information comes from notable influencer Lance McDonald who took to Twitter to address some fans' concern over Elden Ring's seemingly dated visuals. As Lance explained, this doesn't mean that FromSoftware hasn't overhauled its game engine since the days of Demon's Souls, with titles like Bloodborne and Sekiro a clear indication of the technical and artistic wizardry FromSoftware's team is capable of achieving with their current graphical engine.

FromSoftware's years' long experience with the technology it's using to make Elden Ring may have fastened if not steadied the development of the game. It's no surprise that transitioning to an entirely new and different graphical engine imposes challenges of its own. 2018's God of War took five years to make, which the game director Cory Barlog explained in an interview with Kotaku, was due to logistical issues. He also assured fans that the next God of War game won't take as long to make, which isn't false as it's now slated to release four years after the last game. As it turns out, Elden Ring has the same advantage as the upcoming God of War sequel.

Elden Ring's Current Development State

elden ring horse-faced enemy feature

In December 2020, a rumor from game journalist Federico Fossetti suggested that Elden Ring's development had finished and was now in the polishing stages. While there wasn't any evidence to support the rumors then, Elden Ring's gameplay trailer that surfaced six months later seemingly indicated the same. The trailer made the game look incredibly polished, and in an era where most AAA publishers emphasize stylish CGI trailers that leaves many fans unsatisfied, Elden Ring's gameplay-driven trailer was brimming with details that made up for the painstakingly long silence that followed its initial reveal.

There are also rumors that indicated that the long-awaited Elden Ring trailer was due at Geoff Keighley's The Game Awards 2020, which then finally surfaced during this year's Summer Game Fest, also coincidentally hosted by Geoff Keighley. It could be that Keighley approached FromSoftware for The Game Awards reveal, though the studio may not have been ready to talk and show more of the game yet. The six-month period between the shows, where Elden Ring reportedly went into the polishing stages, must have seen enough progress made for FromSoftware to finally lift the curtain.

All of this doesn't necessarily mean that a delay for Elden Ring is impossible. However, this does indicate FromSofware's diligent approach to revealing more information on its highly anticipated title when it's actually confident to do so. In this regard, Elden Ring and Starfield have much in common, the latter of which also has a concrete release date in which its developer and publishers seem pretty confident.

For what it's worth, fans may not have to wait very long to find out. At Gamescom 2021, new Elden Ring gameplay details emerged that sound very promising. While only a handful of journalists and influencers had the opportunity to see fifteen minutes of new Elden Ring gameplay then, it shouldn't be long before the footage is made available to the public. With the game seemingly in a great state, it is likely to hit its release date.

Elden Ring launches January 21, 2022, for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.

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