Tangentially related, I played over 30 hours of Elden Ring before learning there were Map Fragments. The first one I found was way up north. I just assumed the world map was supposed to be dogshit.
I wasn’t happy for having gotten through without them, I was honestly just kinda pissed that they didn’t do some minimal nudging towards the first one.
The graces pointed me up the gulch to the north, after first pointing to the encounter with what’s-her-name. They did not at any time point at the map fragment. It wasn’t big and glowing, it was quite tiny when I finally went back to investigate.
Maybe something they’ve changed with patches 🤷🏻
Also it’s “marked” on the unrevealed map, but unless you know what the mark means, it doesn’t look anything like a map.
But that’s literally the point of these games compared to everything else that’s out there.
I don’t think that’s entirely true. There are lots of people who play them mostly for the challenge of learning and beating the (mostly) well designed bosses.
Where else do I get cryptic puzzles and unforgiving exploration without a map full of markers?
But the bosses are only half the game if that. The getting to the bosses and exploring an unforgivable world is so core to the experience that you can’t just overlook it.
There are also a lot of games out there like monster hunter that focus on quick boss action.
Outer wilds has a great story but no combat and Subnautica has way too much resource gathering and open world grinding a la Minecraft.
The fromsoft Souls games are still the place for unforgiving exploration and combat. They shouldn’t have to compromise on the unique experience and simplify it for everyone and ruin what makes them good.
If you try to appeal to everyone you loose what makes you special and become generic. Look at resident evil 6 for the perfect example.
( I do have to note I’m all for accessibility options, giving more people access is very important, but it shouldn’t change the core game into something else. Just play a different game, we have so many options nowadays it’s overwhelming. )
They shouldn’t have to compromise on the unique experience and simplify it for everyone and ruin what makes them good.
When was this ever about compromising the vision or changing the games? I thought this was about the use of guides while playing.
I’m perfectly happy for all the players who spend thousands of hours scrounging every surface, making conspiracy-boards out of item descriptions and feverishly figuring out every hidden secret in these games by themselves.
It’s still completely valid to enjoy all the rest the games have to offer and look at the wiki for how you access the secret area with the hidden boss.
But that’s literally the point of these games compared to everything else that’s out there.
Where else do I get cryptic puzzles and unforgiving exploration without a map full of markers?
Tangentially related, I played over 30 hours of Elden Ring before learning there were Map Fragments. The first one I found was way up north. I just assumed the world map was supposed to be dogshit.
I wasn’t happy for having gotten through without them, I was honestly just kinda pissed that they didn’t do some minimal nudging towards the first one.
The first one is a big glowing item by a big stone marker that the graces point you to. It’s also marked on the unrevealed map.
The graces pointed me up the gulch to the north, after first pointing to the encounter with what’s-her-name. They did not at any time point at the map fragment. It wasn’t big and glowing, it was quite tiny when I finally went back to investigate.
Maybe something they’ve changed with patches 🤷🏻
Also it’s “marked” on the unrevealed map, but unless you know what the mark means, it doesn’t look anything like a map.
I don’t think that’s entirely true. There are lots of people who play them mostly for the challenge of learning and beating the (mostly) well designed bosses.
Outer Wilds? Subnautica?
But the bosses are only half the game if that. The getting to the bosses and exploring an unforgivable world is so core to the experience that you can’t just overlook it.
There are also a lot of games out there like monster hunter that focus on quick boss action.
Outer wilds has a great story but no combat and Subnautica has way too much resource gathering and open world grinding a la Minecraft.
The fromsoft Souls games are still the place for unforgiving exploration and combat. They shouldn’t have to compromise on the unique experience and simplify it for everyone and ruin what makes them good.
If you try to appeal to everyone you loose what makes you special and become generic. Look at resident evil 6 for the perfect example.
( I do have to note I’m all for accessibility options, giving more people access is very important, but it shouldn’t change the core game into something else. Just play a different game, we have so many options nowadays it’s overwhelming. )
When was this ever about compromising the vision or changing the games? I thought this was about the use of guides while playing.
I’m perfectly happy for all the players who spend thousands of hours scrounging every surface, making conspiracy-boards out of item descriptions and feverishly figuring out every hidden secret in these games by themselves.
It’s still completely valid to enjoy all the rest the games have to offer and look at the wiki for how you access the secret area with the hidden boss.
Lunacid