In the end, it triumphed. The competition was fierce and formidable, but Elden Ring was chosen as Game of the Year 2022. What can I say? After playing it for (Steam says) 276 hours… I couldn’t be happier.
An Epic of 276 Hours
I had plenty of time to appreciate the sheer amount of work and the absolute quality of the artistic direction in every detail of this title. Sure, it still has some flaws — first and foremost the exaggerated difficulty of the bosses. I spent entire weeks trying to defeat every single boss. Literally weeks.
The satisfaction once they were defeated was immense. But if I had to weigh the time spent in a constant state of frustration from continuous defeats against the joy of finally winning… I’m not sure which way the scales would tip.
The Exploration: Something Truly Unique
What is certain is that Elden Ring is a truly stunning game. Setting aside the exaggerated boss difficulty, the exploration was something absolutely unique. I’ve never seen environments so vast yet so densely packed with things to discover, not to mention the sheer beauty of the vistas.
Unique views at every turn in a setting halfway between the fairytale and the gothic — in certain moments of a beauty truly without precedent, at least in my experience as a gamer.
Congratulations to the entire team at From Software and Bandai Namco… you truly deserved it!
