Elden Ring – Colosseum
Real friends murder each other
Not everyone enjoys PvP in FromSoftware games, myself included, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy a spot of it here and there on my terms. The main issue for most is that invaders seem to know instinctively when you don’t want to be invaded, and then position themself as minibosses that you just don’t have the brain power or healing capability to defeat.
Fortunately Elden Ring’s colosseums don’t invite the sweaty try-hards (people who beat me) or noobs (people I can beat) into the world, they let you go and take PvP at your own pace. It’s a simple idea, and one that’s been present in FromSoftware’s games for a little while, but it just feels so much better in Elden Ring.
There are two main reasons for this. For starters, the sheer number of options you have for combat is immense. Sure, there are more meta weapons to go for, and I’m not going to blame you if you want to slash away with the Rivers Of Blood katana, but you haven’t lived until you’ve punched a mage to death using nought but some caestus while wearing no more armour than a loincloth.
Then there are the different modes offered by the colosseums themselves. You can only duel one-on-one in Caelid and the Royal Colosseum in Leyndell, for example, while Limgrave and Caelid offer ‘every fighter for themself’ combat ordeals for up to six combatants. Each of the three has slightly different rules to follow (only Caelid permits use of Spirit Ashes), and mixing them up to find your favourite is fun.
It’s also a lot of fun to finally prove to your friends that you’re
You haven’t lived until you’ve punched a mage to death using nought but some caestus.
better at the game than them, that all your time in the Lands Between has paid off. Sure, they’ve got a build that actually does damage to bosses in the game, but you’ve got the kind of skills that they could only dream of. Unless you lose the match, in which case they were obviously hacking, and the game is rigged. (And perhaps you should try joining up in a team match next time.) Hooray for Elden Ring’s PvP, then – when it’s done our way.