Opinion: Elden Ring Is One Of My Favourite Games That I’ve Hardly Played
A Nintendo Life opinion piece explores the author’s long-standing relationship with Elden Ring, highlighting an unusual pattern: despite deeply enjoying the game across multiple playthroughs, the author has made surprisingly limited progress. The writer has initiated four separate save files and dedicated a minimum of 15-20 hours to each, accumulating over 60 hours of total playtime. Their current playthrough on Nintendo Switch 2 represents a significant milestone—the first time they have successfully progressed beyond Limgrave, the game’s opening region that functions as an extended tutorial area.
The article contextualizes this apparent paradox, suggesting that while spending 60 hours in what is technically a tutorial might seem excessive to players unfamiliar with Elden Ring, it reflects the game’s expansive scope and design philosophy. The piece underscores how Elden Ring’s complex systems, challenging difficulty, and open-world design can deeply engage players in its early regions for extended periods before they venture further into the Lands Between. This commentary speaks to how the game’s structure and accessibility challenges influence player progression patterns.