Once in a very blue moon, there are games that come along that make me think to myself, "this is one of the best video games I've ever played". Hours upon hours are sunk into these titles without me seeming to notice, and I gasp when I look at the counter on Steam and see how much time I've spent playing that game. Elden Ring isn't just one of these games. It may be the best one yet. Don't get me wrong, games like Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II, Halo 3, and RuneScape will always be masterpieces in my eyes, but Elden Ring is something truly special. I'm two years too late to write about this and be up with the times, but I'm going to anyways, because it's just that God damn good. I wish I could go back in time, grab myself by the collar, give myself a hard shake, and yell "Hey, stop rage queuing Valorant, and go buy Elden Ring!" Being a souls-style game, I really didn't get the initial hype. Sure, Souls games are fun, but people didn't lose their mind over Dark Souls 3 like this. People didn't lose their minds over Sekiro like this. I didn't want to drop the 60 dollars, so I waited. I waited until the first DLC, Shadow of the Erdtree, dropped last month. Surely, the base game would go on sale? I got impatient though, and paid full price. Good. GOOD! This game could sell for 150 dollars and I'd pay it. It's that good (From, don't get any ideas). Seriously, open world games haven't exactly been lacking recently. We have titles like Tears of the Kingdom, No Man's Sky, and Sea of Thieves all bringing really unique, fun takes to the genre. But Elden Ring? ELDEN RING? My God man, this world is addicting. Every nook and cranny is intriguing. There are no quest markers. No hand holding. No journal to even explain what you're supposed to do. The only thing you get by way of guidance is a faint gold trail and a dude saying you are depressingly single (screw you Varre). It's a good thing! You have to figure it out. You have to immerse yourself in this world. You could never do it all in 1 playthrough. It's not possible. New Game Plus used to be a novelty in Souls Games. Now it feels like a natural evolution, and a requirement to enjoy the full experience. I'm going to play through this game at least 3 times. Don't even get me started on the lore. My God, the **lore**. Bringing in GRRM to write about the world before the shattering was a genius move (mainly because he didn't have to finish the story). The world **was** enthralling. Now that everything has fallen apart, it's become a morbid curiosity that has me doing hours of PHD level research. I'm serious, I've read the equivalent of published academic articles on this stuff. Who is the Gloam-Eyed Queen? Is Rykard really immortal? Why is Godrick obsessed with grafting? These are the questions that keep you up at night (playing this game). The RPG elements are fantastic. The limit on builds is strictly what you can imagine, and how many larval tears you're currently holding. I have played as a black flame reaper, as a Glintstone wielding magician, as a giant sword swinging barbarian, and I've tried less than 1% of the builds I've saved to my watch later on YouTube. The variety is endless. There are so many ways to play, that replay ability seems endless. They didn't have to do this by releasing quarterly seasonal content or post launch updates. They released **one** DLC, that is seemingly the size of the base game itself. There are people who have beaten NG +100. **100**. That's insane, but it shows the quality and variety that this game brings to the table. I know that From has stated that this is going to be the only DLC for Elden Ring, and while I don't mind that, I hope they continue with the franchise. Don't you dare Bloodborne us again, From. You have magic in a bottle. You have a money printer. You have one of the best video games of all time. Except for the parkour, seriously, screw the parkour.