180 Fun Facts About Elden Ring

On what date was Elden Ring first released?

It had been delayed five weeks from January. A closed network test ran in November 2021.

Which fantasy novelist provided the worldbuilding for Elden Ring?

Martin was given freedom to design the backstory, while Miyazaki wrote the in-game narrative.

Who directed Elden Ring?

He wanted it to be a mechanical evolution of Dark Souls, and became FromSoftware's president in 2014.

Which company published Elden Ring outside Japan?

FromSoftware developed it. Kadokawa owns 70% of the studio, with Tencent and Sony holding minority stakes.

What is the name of the land where Elden Ring is set?

It has six main areas, from grassy Limgrave to the rotting wasteland of Caelid.

What is the player character called?

The Tarnished are exiles summoned back after the Shattering to repair the Elden Ring and become Elden Lord.

Which queen shattered the Elden Ring, triggering the war called the Shattering?

Her demigod children then warred over pieces of the Ring. Her consort Radagon turns out to be inhabiting her body.

What is the name of the spectral steed the player rides?

Despite being called a horse he has goat-like horns, and he was the first mount in a Soulsborne game.

Who gives the player their steed and offers to be their Maiden?

She later carries the Tarnished to the hub area, and can sacrifice herself to burn the Erdtree.

What is the name of the hub where players gather to plan repairing the Elden Ring?

Its benefactor, the Two Fingers, sends players out to collect Great Runes. Nightreign reuses it in ruined form.

What is the in-game currency used to level up at checkpoints?

Souls, Blood Echoes and Sen are the equivalents in Dark Souls, Bloodborne and Sekiro.

What are the checkpoints in Elden Ring called?

Players respawn at the last one they touched, and can also revive at special stakes near boss arenas.

What are the enchantments that give weapons new skills called?

Spirit Ashes are the separate items used to summon spectral allies near Rebirth Monuments.

Where can spirit summons be used?

They are mostly found in large areas and inside boss arenas, so you can't summon a mimic in every fight.

What item does a host use to attract more invaders?

It also shortens the time between invasions. Invasions otherwise only occur when a host has co-op partners.

What is Godrick's gruesome practice, from which he takes his title?

Halfway through his boss fight he grafts a dead dragon's head onto his arm and uses it as a flamethrower.

Which boss guards the front gate of Stormveil Castle?

Stormveil is the game's first legacy dungeon, though a hidden route lets you skip most of it.

Which scheming castle servant offers you a choice of routes into Stormveil?

Nepheli Loux is the warrior you can befriend before the Godrick fight; she is fought as an ally, not a gatekeeper.

Which demigod guards the Erdtree in Leyndell and declares it will admit no one?

He is the same Omen you meet as Margit at Stormveil. His brother Mohg abducted Miquella.

Which two foes does the player fight inside the Erdtree at the end of the game?

Radagon is Marika's consort who had been inhabiting her body; the Elden Beast is the tree's guardian.

How many different endings does Elden Ring have?

They range from becoming Elden Lord to Ranni's Age of Stars and the Frenzied Flame burning everything.

What must the player obtain to set the Erdtree on fire?

If they instead take the Frenzied Flame, Melina abandons them and they must burn it themselves.

Which optional boss is widely considered the hardest fight in the base game?

Bandai Namco data showed she had killed 10 players a second since launch across 329 million attempts.

What is Malenia's title once she is overcome by the rot in her second phase?

The Scarlet Rot is a disease inflicted by an Outer God, and Miquella used Unalloyed Gold to try to ward it off.

Roughly how many times had players fought Malenia by March 2023?

That works out to about ten player deaths every second since launch.

What did the famous player 'Let Me Solo Her' wear on their head?

Otherwise unarmored and dual-wielding katanas, they beat Malenia for strangers thousands of times and won PC Gamer's Player of the Year.

Which twin sibling of Malenia is the focus of the Shadow of the Erdtree expansion?

Both were born Empyreans, candidates to become gods. His corpse is seen in a cocoon in the base game.

What is the name of Radahn's tiny horse?

He learned gravity magic specifically so his enormous body would not crush his beloved scrawny steed.

Why did Radahn study gravitational magic?

He also famously halted the stars in their courses, which is why Ranni's quest needs him defeated.

Under what alias does Ranni first help the player?

She meets you at the Church of Elleh and hands over the Spirit Calling Bell.

Who are Ranni's parents?

Radagon later left Rennala to become Marika's consort, and Rennala lost her mind at Raya Lucaria.

Which event did Ranni orchestrate to kill Godwyn the Golden?

The assassins used the stolen Rune of Death; she used the other half to kill her own body and live on in a doll.

Who is Ranni's half-wolf protector?

Iji is her war counselor and Seluvis her preceptor. Blaidd's own sidequest ties into hers.

How many arms does Ranni's doll body have?

It also has a spectral second face beside her own, and is built from tightly wound ropes under the clothing.

Which fictional fruit can be made into food that heals your spectral steed?

Healing yourself with the Flask of Crimson Tears also restores him.

How many copies had Elden Ring sold by April 2025?

It sold 13.4 million in its first five weeks alone, making it one of the best-selling games ever.

How many trophies did Elden Ring take home at The Game Awards 2022?

It won Game of the Year, Best Game Direction and Best Role Playing Game; God of War Ragnarök took six awards but not the big one.

What bizarre thing happened right after Elden Ring won Game of the Year in 2022?

Matan Even waited through Miyazaki's speech, then thanked his 'reformed Orthodox rabbi Bill Clinton'.

Roughly how many Game of the Year awards did Elden Ring collect overall?

That made it the most-awarded GOTY recipient, passing The Last of Us Part II.

Which of these did the director name as a design influence on Elden Ring?

He also cited Shadow of the Colossus, The Elder Scrolls and The Witcher 3.

At which event was Elden Ring first revealed?

It then went almost silent for two years before the gameplay reveal.

Which 2001 game inspired the future Elden Ring director to leave his job and become a game designer?

He had been an account manager at Oracle. He joined FromSoftware in 2004 and worked on Armored Core first.

Where did Elden Ring's director grow up?

Born in 1974, he graduated from Keio University with a social science degree.

What was FromSoftware's first video game?

Founded in 1986 as a business-software company, it released King's Field for PlayStation in 1994 and Armored Core in 1997.

Which company owns the majority stake in FromSoftware?

Kadokawa holds 70%, with Tencent's Sixjoy at 16% and Sony at 14%.

On what date was the Shadow of the Erdtree expansion released?

It sold ten million units by July 2025 and drew mixed reactions to its punishing difficulty.

What is the new region in the 2024 expansion called?

It has its own power system: collectible fragments boost attack and defense only there.

What collectible raises your attack and defense inside the expansion area?

Revered Spirit Ashes do the same for summons and Torrent. It was a deliberate way to level the field for players of every level.

Which two bosses must be beaten in the base game to access Shadow of the Erdtree?

Mohg's lair holds Miquella's cocoon, and following his trail leads into the Land of Shadow.

Against which faction did Messmer, the abandoned son, lead a crusade?

He had been abandoned in the Land of Shadow because of his malevolent nature.

Which 2025 spin-off is built around three-player co-op runs?

It was revealed at The Game Awards 2024, released May 30, 2025, and topped the May sales charts.

What is the procedurally generated map in the 2025 co-op spin-off called?

It's a shifting version of Elden Ring's first open area, and the play zone shrinks like a battle royale.

Over how many in-game days does an expedition in the co-op spin-off run before the final boss?

Teams of three prepare over three days, with the zone resetting after each day's boss.

What are the co-op spin-off's playable characters called?

The eight Nightlords are the bosses they hunt; Wylder is the greatsword-wielding lead.

Who directed the 2025 co-op spin-off?

He had been a designer on Dark Souls, Bloodborne, Dark Souls III and Elden Ring.

Which studio partnered with writer-director Alex Garland on the Elden Ring film?

Garland pitched with a 160-page spec script; the film was scheduled to open March 3, 2028.

What is the name of the Nintendo Switch 2 version of the game?

It adds two new classes and cosmetics for Torrent.

Which of these composers worked on Elden Ring's score?

Tsukasa Saitoh, Shoi Miyazawa, Tai Tomisawa and Yoshimi Kudo also composed for it.

How many main areas make up the open world of the Lands Between?

They can be crossed on the player's steed, with hidden dungeons scattered between.

Which region of the Lands Between is a wasteland home to undead monsters?

Limgrave, by contrast, is grassy plains and ancient ruins.

Besides a staff, what item lets a player cast the spells they have memorised?

Players can only memorise a limited number of spells at once.

Besides sites of grace, at what marker can players choose to respawn if they died nearby?

Dying twice without recovering your runes loses them forever.

What happens to dropped runes if a player dies again before picking them up?

Runes are the currency for levelling, buying items and improving gear.

Crafting recipes in Elden Ring are found inside collectibles called what?

Crafted items include poison darts and exploding pots.

What must a player possess to summon a particular ghostly ally?

Spirits can only be summoned near Rebirth Monuments.

How does a player offer to join another player's world for co-op?

The sign becomes visible to players who have used a corresponding item.

Who is the Roundtable Hold's benefactor that tells the Tarnished to collect Great Runes?

Each demigod holds a Great Rune, a shard of the shattered Elden Ring.

What blocks the interior of the Erdtree when the Tarnished first reaches it?

Melina advises seeking the Flame of Ruin to burn them away.

Taking which power causes Melina to abandon the Tarnished?

Taking it causes Melina to abandon the Tarnished.

To which ruined city is the Tarnished transported while the Erdtree burns?

There they must defeat Maliketh the Black Blade.

Whose Rune of Death is used to fuel the burning of the Erdtree?

Only after that does the Tarnished return to the scorched Erdtree.

Radagon, fought inside the Erdtree, had been inhabiting whose body?

Defeating him and the Elden Beast reveals Marika's shattered corpse.

In one ending, which character destroys the Elden Ring entirely?

Another ending lets the Frenzied Flame destroy the Lands Between.

Miyazaki compared George R. R. Martin's role on the game to what tabletop concept?

Martin wrote events before the main narrative; Miyazaki wrote the in-game story.

Production of Elden Ring began in early 2017 after which piece of DLC shipped?

That expansion was the last for Dark Souls III.

Elden Ring was developed alongside which other FromSoftware game directed by Miyazaki?

A co-director structure let Miyazaki oversee both at once.

Who served as Elden Ring's co-director, having previously directed Dark Souls II?

He also co-directed Dark Souls III.

Which of these did Miyazaki name as a design influence on Elden Ring?

He also cited The Elder Scrolls, The Witcher 3 and Breath of the Wild.

Which tabletop role-playing game did Miyazaki credit as an inspiration for the story?

He also cited The Lord of the Rings and The Eternal Champion novels.

How was some Elden Ring information leaked online before its reveal?

The game was formally revealed at E3 2019.

What was Elden Ring's originally scheduled release date before the delay?

A closed beta had run in November 2021.

What was the main technical complaint from players at Elden Ring's launch?

Bandai Namco addressed some issues through patches.

Which new content for the player character was announced for the Tarnished Edition?

It also added cosmetics for Torrent, available elsewhere as paid DLC.

What percentage of critics recommended Elden Ring according to OpenCritic?

Metacritic recorded 'universal acclaim'.

What is the name of the speedrunning trick that lets players warp across the map?

It let the game be beaten in under five minutes.

Using the map-warping exploit, Elden Ring has been beaten in under how long?

Journalists have covered the game's speedrunning scene closely.

How many copies had Elden Ring sold by the end of March 2022, about a month after launch?

It is the fastest-selling Bandai Namco game of all time.

Which game outsold Elden Ring in the United States in 2022?

Elden Ring was third in Europe and tenth in Japan at retail.

Which three categories did Elden Ring win at Geoff Keighley's 2022 awards show?

Its speech was interrupted by a stage-crasher named Matan Even.

How many nominations did Elden Ring receive at The Game Awards 2022?

Only God of War Ragnarök had more.

What US release date did A24 announce for the Elden Ring film?

Alex Garland wrote a 160-page spec script accompanied by forty pages of imagery.

How long was Alex Garland's spec script for the Elden Ring film?

A24's Noah Sacco flew him to Japan to sign a deal with FromSoftware.

Which of these actors is in the cast of the Elden Ring film?

The cast also includes Cailee Spaeny, Ben Whishaw and Nick Offerman.

In Shadow of the Erdtree, what strengthens summoned allies and Torrent within the new realm?

Scadutree Fragments boost the player's own attack and defence there.

In the expansion, Miquella was seemingly abducted by whom?

It turns out Miquella orchestrated his own abduction to reach the Land of Shadow.

Which follower of Miquella in the expansion worships his female alter-ego, St. Trina?

Sir Ansbach was formerly a follower of Mohg.

Which armoured merchant among Miquella's followers is infected with rot?

Freyja is a soldier of Radahn and Dane a silent monk.

Miquella's trail leads the Tarnished to what locked portal sealed by thorns?

Killing Messmer lets you burn away the magical thorns sealing it.

Whose corpse did Miquella use to revive Radahn as his consort?

The final fight is against Promised Consort Radahn.

On what date did Bandai Namco first announce Shadow of the Erdtree?

The gameplay trailer and release date followed a year later.

Miyazaki compared the size of the expansion's world to which base-game region?

He said it was denser in content than that comparison suggested.

Before release, what did Miyazaki say Shadow of the Erdtree would be?

He described it as the end of Elden Ring's story.

What Metacritic score did the PS5 version of Shadow of the Erdtree receive?

GameSpot and IGN both gave it 10 out of 10.

Which expansion boss fight drew early player criticism and was later adjusted in an update?

The Scadutree Fragment system was also tweaked.

How many copies did Shadow of the Erdtree sell in its first three days?

It reached ten million by July 2025.

Which award did Shadow of the Erdtree win at the 2024 Golden Joystick Awards?

Its Game of the Year nomination at The Game Awards 2024 caused controversy.

Why was Shadow of the Erdtree's GOTY nomination at TGA 2024 controversial?

Organisers had clarified that DLC and remakes were eligible for all categories.

What genre best describes Elden Ring Nightreign?

It reuses Elden Ring's features but focuses on co-op runs.

At which event was Elden Ring Nightreign revealed?

It released on May 30, 2025.

What feature does Nightreign borrow from battle royale games?

The area resets after players beat the minor boss at the end of each day.

What is the name of the event that drastically changes Nightreign's map with a massive dungeon?

It brings more bosses and more valuable rewards.

What are the harder versions of Nightreign's Nightlord bosses called?

They start in their second phase and add a new third phase.

What is the name of Nightreign's DLC released on December 4, 2025?

It added two new Nightfarers, the Undertaker and the Scholar.

Which Dark Souls boss appears as a night boss in Nightreign's DLC?

The Demon Prince from Dark Souls III also appears.

What cataclysm plunged Nightreign's version of the Lands Between into eternal darkness?

Eight Nightlords rule over Limveld as a result.

How many Nightlords rule Nightreign's Limveld?

Their leader is Heolstor the Night Aspect.

Which Nightreign character is a greatsword-wielding Nightfarer whose sister is the Priestess?

His 'New Night' ending has him reborn as Heolstor for her sake.

Which Nightfarer is a former Crucible Knight who specialises in the katana?

Ironeye is a bow-wielding assassin and Recluse an isolated witch.

Which Nightfarer takes the form of a possessed doll and summons spirits with a lyre?

The Duchess is the dagger-wielding Priestess in disguise.

Who is the first and leading Nightlord in Nightreign?

He is the Primordial Night made manifest.

What was George R. R. Martin's role on Nightreign?

Director Junya Ishizaki had been a designer on Dark Souls and Bloodborne.

How many copies did Nightreign sell in its first 24 hours?

It reached 3.5 million within five days.

Which disease was Malenia cursed with from birth?

Miquella used Unalloyed Gold to ward off the Outer God behind it.

Which nomadic character taught Malenia her combat style?

Mastering it gave her 'wings of unparalleled strength'.

Malenia's duel with Radahn during the Shattering ended how?

She unleashed the Scarlet Rot at the end of the battle.

The player fights Malenia at the base of which holy tree created by Miquella?

She caused it to rot from the inside during her slumber.

What is left in Malenia's place after she is defeated?

Returning a needle to it can avert the Frenzied Flame ending.

Below what health must the patched Malenia be before she uses Waterfowl Dance?

The day-one patch made her first phase less aggressive.

Which incantation, a popular anti-Malenia tactic, was nerfed by a patch?

The same patch briefly let her heal 'almost at will' by mistake.

What did Bandai Namco and PureArts release for the expansion in 2024?

The 95-centimetre polyresin piece weighed 3 kilograms.

According to March 2023 data, how many players had Malenia killed every second since launch?

She had been fought 329 million times.

What was the fastest recorded Malenia kill as of April 2023?

It was set by community manager RS_Lionheart.

Which streamer beat Malenia at level one using a dance pad after 553 attempts?

Perri Karyal beat her using an EEG brain-reading device instead.

What creature beat Malenia's first phase via a camera tracking its position in a tank?

YouTuber PointCrow's fish Tortellini had a little help.

A mod added Malenia to which other FromSoftware game as 'Blade of Ashina'?

Another mod replaced every enemy in Elden Ring with Malenia.

Who voices Ranni the Witch?

Ranni specialises in frost-based sorcery.

What is the name of the ending in which the player leaves as Ranni's royal consort?

In it, the Elden Ring is removed from the universe.

At which church does Ranni first appear to the player under an alias?

She hands over the Spirit-Calling Bell and Lone Wolf Ashes.

Which royal knight guards Ranni's Rise in Caria Manor?

Inside, Ranni introduces War Counselor Iji and Preceptor Seluvis.

What weapon from Nokron, the Eternal City, must the player retrieve for Ranni?

It is found in Nokron, the Eternal City, reachable after beating Radahn.

What weapon does Ranni bestow when the player gives her a ring as her consort?

An infographic showed 11.7 million players obtained it.

What happens if you try to turn Ranni into a puppet with Seluvis's Amber Draught?

The player must absolve their sins to earn forgiveness.

Which Berserk character did Kotaku suggest inspired Ranni?

Berserk has commonly influenced Miyazaki's work.

A Famitsu survey named which character as leaving the strongest impression on players?

Blaidd ranked third, behind Iron Fist Alexander.

How many players had earned the reward sword for finishing Ranni's quest, per Bandai Namco?

More players got the Age of Stars ending than the default Elden Lord ending.

Rock Paper Shotgun compared Ranni's design to which fantasy wizard because of her large hat?

Her doll body has light-blue skin and a spectral second face.

What is the name of Radahn's personal army?

His soldiers created the Radahn Festival to kill him with honour.

Which Elden Lord did the young Radahn admire and model himself on, adopting a lion motif?

Radahn saw his red hair as a sign of heroism, unlike his father Radagon.

Under whom did Radahn study gravitational magic?

The being originated from a meteor.

Which capital did Radahn fail to capture during the Shattering?

Malenia later marched on him from the Mountaintops of the Giants.

Which fight did Miyazaki name as his favourite boss battle in the game?

His soldiers' festival lures warriors to end his rot-maddened rampage.

Torrent has traits of which animal despite being called a horse?

He can double-jump and stand on narrow ledges.

What item lets the player summon and dismiss Torrent instantly?

Melina hands it over when the player agrees to her bargain.

What lets Torrent leap far higher than normal at fixed points in the overworld?

They let players reach otherwise inaccessible places safely.

Torrent is described as the first what in the Soulsborne series?

He chooses the player character as his new owner.

Dataminers found the game originally opened with the player meeting Melina and Torrent where?

The final game instead has the player wake up in a cave.

Which unused Torrent animation was reused for certain mounted enemy bosses?

It would have launched enemies into the air.

Hidetaka Miyazaki joined FromSoftware in 2004 to work on which series?

His first project was Armored Core: Last Raven.

In what year was Miyazaki promoted to president of FromSoftware?

It followed the success of Dark Souls, released in 2011.

For which US company did Miyazaki work as an account manager before joining FromSoftware?

He took the job to pay for his sister's college tuition.

What everyday experience inspired the Souls games' silent multiplayer systems?

Miyazaki never got to thank the strangers who helped.

In 2023, Miyazaki became only the second game developer named to which list?

Shigeru Miyamoto had been the first, in 2007.

Who presented Miyazaki with his 2018 Golden Joystick Lifetime Achievement Award?

Both were among his inspirations from gamebooks and tabletop gaming.

Which 2018 virtual reality game did Miyazaki direct before Sekiro?

He had announced he would personally stop working on Dark Souls after the third game.

Who founded FromSoftware in 1986, originally as a business software developer?

He remains an adviser after Miyazaki became president.

FromSoftware's first mecha shooter series debuted in which year?

By then the studio had made three King's Field games.

Which A24 film chief did Alex Garland impress by privately describing his Elden Ring playthrough?

Garland then wrote a 160-page spec script with forty pages of imagery, and Sacco flew him to Japan to sign with FromSoftware.

Besides Scotland, filming for the Elden Ring movie in 2026 used castles and a slate quarry in which region?

Dinorwic quarry, Dolbadarn Castle and Conwy Castle featured, with further scenes planned in Iceland.

Which actor from Paddington and Q in the Bond films was confirmed for the Elden Ring film cast in 2026?

He joined Kit Connor and Cailee Spaeny, with filming wrapping on July 30, 2026 ahead of a March 2028 release.

Hidetaka Miyazaki took his job at Oracle partly to pay for what?

A friend's recommendation to play Ico in 2001 then prompted the Keio social-science graduate to switch careers.

Why did Miyazaki feel free to take full control of the project that became Demon's Souls?

Further failed ideas could not hurt a project already written off, which let him reshape it into the first Souls game.

What childhood habit did Miyazaki cite as a major influence on his design philosophy?

Borrowing library books beyond his reading level, he used the illustrations and his imagination to fill in the blanks.

Which console maker approached FromSoftware in 2012, leading to the creation of Bloodborne?

Miyazaki asked about developing for eighth-generation consoles, and the PS4 exclusive grew from that conversation.

How many copies had Shadow of the Erdtree sold by July 2025?

Five million of those came in the first three days of release in June 2024.

What Metacritic scores did the Windows and Xbox Series X versions of Shadow of the Erdtree receive?

The PS5 version landed at 94; GameSpot's Tamoor Hussain gave it a perfect 10.

On what date did Bandai Namco register the 'Nightreign' trademark, weeks before its reveal?

The co-op spin-off was revealed at The Game Awards 2024 and released on May 30, 2025.

What are the individual storylines for each of Nightreign's eight Nightfarers called?

Completing certain Remembrances unlocks different endings, such as Ironeye's Endless Night or Wylder's New Night.

Which Dark Souls III boss joined Nightreign's night-boss roster in The Forsaken Hollows DLC?

The December 2025 update also added Artorias from Dark Souls and the Divine Beast Dancing Lion from Shadow of the Erdtree.

What share of critics recommended Nightreign according to OpenCritic?

IGN liked it but missed an in-game journal; the game still topped the May 2025 sales charts on all platforms.

Where did Elden Ring rank among 2022's best-selling games at Japanese retail?

It was second in the US behind Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II and third in Europe, and is Bandai Namco's fastest seller ever.