Elden Ring Mistakes Every New Player Makes

Introduction

Elden Ring has earned a reputation as one of the most intimidating RPGs of the last decade, but after spending dozens of hours in the Lands Between—and watching countless friends start their own journeys—I've become convinced that the game's biggest challenge isn't mechanical difficulty. More often than not, new players struggle because they bring expectations from other games into an experience that plays by very different rules. The funny thing is that many of the mistakes beginners make are completely understandable. Most RPGs teach us to follow the main path, defeat every enemy we encounter, and optimize our characters as quickly as possible. Elden Ring quietly encourages the opposite. It rewards patience over stubbornness, curiosity over efficiency, and adaptability over perfection. If you're just getting started, avoiding these mistakes won't magically transform Elden Ring into a relaxing weekend getaway. It will, however, help you appreciate why so many players who initially bounced off the game eventually became completely obsessed with it.

1. Trying to Fight Every Enemy Immediately

Ask ten Elden Ring players about their earliest memories of the game, and there's a good chance at least half of them will mention the Tree Sentinel. For newcomers, this towering knight patrolling Limgrave often feels like an unofficial entrance exam. He's big, aggressive, heavily armored, and positioned in such a way that many players assume defeating him is the next logical step. Then he promptly introduces them to the "You Died" screen. The important thing to understand is that the Tree Sentinel isn't there to test whether you're worthy of continuing. He's there to teach one of Elden Ring's most valuable lessons: you don't have to fight everything immediately.

1.1 The Game Is Teaching You to Walk Away

Years of traditional RPG design have conditioned players to believe that the correct path is the one directly in front of them. If an enemy appears early in the game, we assume the developers expect us to beat it with whatever tools we currently possess. Elden Ring disrupts that expectation almost immediately. The Tree Sentinel exists as a reminder that retreat can be a strategic decision rather than a sign of failure. The game isn't asking whether you're skilled enough to defeat him at level one. It's asking whether you're willing to consider alternative approaches. Sometimes, progress means recognizing that today's impossible challenge might become tomorrow's warm-up exercise.

1.2 Exploration Is Often the Better Solution

One of the easiest traps new players fall into is believing that boss fights represent the only meaningful form of progression. In reality, some of Elden Ring's biggest power spikes come from simply wandering off in a different direction. Exploring caves can lead to upgrade materials. Investigating ruins may uncover new equipment. Churches often provide useful resources that make future encounters significantly more manageable. Instead of spending two hours repeatedly charging into the same losing battle, the game gently encourages players to ask a different question: "What else is out there?" More often than not, the answer proves worthwhile.

1.3 Pride Can Become Its Own Boss Fight

Let's be honest for a moment. Many of us kept fighting enemies we clearly weren't prepared for because our ego got involved. The logic becomes strangely familiar: "I almost had them." "One more try." "Okay, definitely one more try." Several dozen attempts later, frustration begins replacing enjoyment. There's nothing wrong with perseverance. Some victories become memorable precisely because they demand persistence. The problem arises when pride prevents players from using the flexibility Elden Ring actively provides. The Lands Between are enormous. You are allowed to leave.

1.4 Coming Back Stronger Feels Incredible

Interestingly, walking away often makes eventual success even more satisfying. Returning to an enemy that once seemed impossible and realizing how much you've improved creates a unique kind of accomplishment. Maybe your weapon is upgraded now. Maybe you've gained additional levels. Maybe you've simply become better at reading attacks and managing stamina. Whatever the reason, the victory still belongs to you. It wasn't diminished because you chose a different path first.

Conclusion

Trying to fight every enemy immediately is one of the most common mistakes new Elden Ring players make because other games have taught us that persistence always means pushing forward. Elden Ring occasionally asks for something different. It asks for patience, curiosity, and the humility to admit that perhaps the heavily armored knight on horseback isn't today's problem. And that's perfectly fine.

2. Ignoring Vigor Until It's Too Late

If Elden Ring veterans could form a support group, one of the first topics discussed would probably be Vigor. Specifically, the collective experience of realizing several dozen hours into the game that having the health pool of a particularly fragile houseplant might not have been the optimal strategy. It happens more often than you'd think.

2.1 Everyone Wants More Damage

When building a character, offensive stats naturally attract attention. Strength promises enormous weapons. Dexterity suggests elegance and speed. Intelligence unlocks devastating sorceries capable of deleting enemies from existence. Vigor, meanwhile, quietly offers the exciting opportunity to avoid dying immediately. Guess which option most beginners underestimate? Increasing damage certainly feels rewarding, but additional survivability creates opportunities to actually learn encounters rather than watching them end after a single mistake.

2.2 Learning Requires Time

Boss fights in Elden Ring rarely reward blind aggression. Success usually depends on observation. Players gradually recognize attack patterns, identify openings, and improve their decision-making through repetition. That process becomes considerably more difficult when every minor error leads directly back to the nearest Site of Grace. Investing in Vigor provides breathing room. It allows experimentation without catastrophic consequences and transforms boss fights from brief interruptions into genuine learning experiences. Sometimes, surviving an extra hit teaches more than dealing an extra fifty points of damage ever could.

2.3 The Glass Cannon Fantasy Can Wait

Build videos have done wonderful things for gaming communities. They've also convinced countless newcomers that they should attempt highly specialized endgame setups before understanding the basics of the combat system. The reality is that many of those powerful builds rely on extensive game knowledge, optimized equipment, and refined execution. During a first playthrough, survivability often contributes more to overall enjoyment than maximizing offensive potential. You'll have plenty of opportunities to chase perfection later. Right now, staying alive is surprisingly valuable.

Stage of the Game	Suggested Vigor Range
Early Game	20–25
Mid Game	35–40
Late Game	50–60

Table 1. General Vigor Recommendations for First-Time Players Note: Exact values depend on playstyle, but consistent investment in Vigor often leads to a smoother experience.

2.4 Dead Players Deal No Damage

It isn't the most sophisticated piece of strategic advice. It is, however, remarkably accurate. The strongest weapon in the game becomes significantly less useful while you're staring at a loading screen wondering why that attack removed ninety percent of your health bar. Survivability isn't glamorous. It's practical.

Conclusion

Ignoring Vigor isn't an irreversible mistake, but it does create unnecessary frustration for many beginners. Elden Ring asks players to learn through experimentation, adaptation, and repetition. Having enough health to survive those lessons makes the entire process considerably more enjoyable. Sometimes, the best offense really is not exploding on contact.

3. Treating Elden Ring Like a Traditional RPG

Perhaps the biggest challenge facing newcomers isn't mastering combat. It's adjusting expectations. Elden Ring shares certain characteristics with open-world RPGs, but it approaches exploration, progression, and storytelling in ways that often feel unfamiliar. Players expecting carefully structured quest logs and clearly defined objectives can find themselves surprisingly disoriented. That discomfort is intentional.

3.1 Exploration Is Progression

In many RPGs, side activities exist primarily as optional distractions. Elden Ring blurs that distinction almost completely. Exploring hidden caves might provide upgrade materials that strengthen your favorite weapon. Investigating remote ruins could lead to valuable equipment or entirely new encounters. Following an unusual path simply because it looks interesting often produces meaningful rewards. The game consistently reinforces the idea that wandering isn't wasted time. It's part of the adventure.

3.2 Not Everything Needs a Quest Marker

Modern games frequently prioritize convenience. Objective markers eliminate uncertainty and ensure players always understand where to go next. Elden Ring occasionally chooses ambiguity instead. NPCs reference distant locations without highlighting them on your map. Important discoveries emerge naturally through observation rather than explicit instruction. The world expects players to pay attention. Initially, this approach can feel frustrating. Eventually, many players realize it also makes discovery far more memorable.

3.3 Missing Things Is Normal

Completionists may find this difficult to accept, but your first Elden Ring playthrough probably won't include every questline, secret area, or hidden interaction. That's okay. The game isn't structured around perfect efficiency. Individual experiences differ depending on exploration choices, curiosity, and sometimes pure accident. The NPC one player completely overlooks may become another player's favorite character. No single playthrough captures everything. And perhaps that's part of the point.

3.4 Curiosity Is More Valuable Than Optimization

Gaming culture often emphasizes efficiency. Fastest routes. Strongest builds. Most effective strategies. Elden Ring certainly accommodates those approaches. It also rewards people who occasionally ignore them. Following an interesting landmark simply because it caught your attention can lead to unforgettable discoveries. Investigating suspicious architecture may produce entirely unexpected adventures. Some of the game's best moments happen precisely because players choose wonder over optimization.

Conclusion

Treating Elden Ring like a traditional RPG often creates unnecessary frustration because the game values different things. Exploration matters. Curiosity matters. Paying attention matters. Most importantly, Elden Ring trusts players to find their own path. That trust can feel intimidating at first. Eventually, it becomes one of the reasons people remember the Lands Between so fondly.

4. Neglecting Weapon Upgrades

If new Elden Ring players had to rank the most surprising discoveries they made during their first playthrough, weapon upgrades would probably land somewhere near the top. Many people assume character levels are the primary source of power because that's how most RPGs work. If an area feels difficult, the obvious solution seems to be gaining more experience points and increasing stats. While leveling certainly helps, Elden Ring places enormous emphasis on something else entirely: improving your weapons. Ignoring that system can make the game far harder than it needs to be.

4.1 Levels Matter, But Weapons Matter More

One of the strangest realizations beginners have is noticing that a small weapon upgrade often produces a more dramatic difference than several character levels. A stronger weapon increases damage output immediately, which shortens encounters and creates larger margins for error. Boss fights that once felt like exhausting marathons can suddenly become much more manageable. Unfortunately, many new players spend hours grinding runes while carrying weapons that should have been upgraded long ago.

4.2 Smithing Stones Are Meant to Be Used

The fear of "wasting resources" is understandable. What if you find a better weapon later? What if you regret the investment? These concerns lead many players to stockpile Smithing Stones while struggling unnecessarily through increasingly difficult encounters. In reality, Elden Ring provides upgrade materials more generously than people often expect. Strengthening a weapon you genuinely enjoy using is almost always the right decision. Besides, surviving today is usually more important than preparing for a hypothetical sword you might discover twenty hours from now.

4.3 Your Favorite Weapon Doesn't Need to Be Meta

Spend enough time browsing forums or watching build videos, and you'll eventually encounter discussions about optimal weapon choices. The truth is much simpler. Most weapons in Elden Ring are perfectly viable when upgraded appropriately. While some options are undoubtedly stronger than others, player familiarity and comfort often matter more than tier lists. If a weapon feels enjoyable to use, that's already a compelling reason to invest in it.

4.4 Upgrades Support Learning

Stronger weapons don't remove the need for skill. They simply reduce unnecessary friction. You'll still need to learn boss patterns, recognize openings, and manage resources effectively. The difference is that encounters become opportunities for growth rather than exercises in patience. There's a meaningful distinction between "challenging" and "needlessly drawn out."

Conclusion

One of the most common beginner mistakes is assuming levels alone determine success. Elden Ring quietly encourages a different approach. Upgrading weapons consistently allows players to engage with the game's challenges as intended, rather than creating additional obstacles for themselves. Your future self will thank you.

5. Thinking Summons Are "Cheating"

Few topics generate more debate within the Elden Ring community than Spirit Ashes. Mention summons online, and you'll quickly encounter strong opinions from every direction. Some players consider them essential tools designed by FromSoftware to support a broader audience. Others prefer avoiding them entirely for personal challenge reasons. Somewhere in the middle sits the new player, wondering whether pressing the summon button means they're playing incorrectly. The answer is remarkably straightforward. No.

5.1 The Game Wants You to Use Its Systems

Spirit Ashes weren't accidentally left in Elden Ring. Developers designed encounters with these mechanics in mind, scattered upgrade materials throughout the world, and created an entire progression system dedicated to improving summoned allies. It's difficult to argue that using intended features somehow invalidates the experience. Players remain free to impose additional restrictions if they enjoy doing so. Those restrictions simply aren't mandatory.

5.2 Challenge Looks Different for Everyone

One person's ideal Elden Ring experience involves defeating every boss solo using minimal equipment. Another player's favorite memories might include surviving impossible encounters alongside Mimic Tear or a loyal pack of spectral wolves. Neither approach is objectively superior. Games exist to entertain. If Spirit Ashes help someone appreciate Elden Ring's world, lore, and combat systems without becoming overwhelmed by frustration, they've served their purpose perfectly.

5.3 Community Expectations Can Be Misleading

Souls communities occasionally develop unspoken rules regarding how people "should" play. The problem is that these expectations rarely reflect the intentions of the developers themselves. New players sometimes avoid summons because they're worried about legitimacy rather than personal preference. That anxiety often leads to unnecessary stress. Your first playthrough isn't an exam. No one's grading it.

5.4 Pride Shouldn't Replace Enjoyment

There's absolutely nothing wrong with seeking additional challenge. The issue arises when players deny themselves helpful tools because they're afraid someone on the internet might disapprove. Elden Ring already asks a great deal from newcomers. Artificially increasing that difficulty before understanding the game's systems can transform excitement into exhaustion remarkably quickly. Play in the way that keeps you engaged.

Conclusion

Spirit Ashes aren't shortcuts. They're options. Whether you use them regularly, occasionally, or never at all should depend entirely on what makes Elden Ring enjoyable for you. The goal isn't proving something to strangers. The goal is surviving the Lands Between while having a good time doing it.

6. Hoarding Useful Items Forever

Most RPG players share a peculiar habit. We save powerful consumables for the "perfect moment." Then the credits roll and we discover we're still carrying enough resources to supply a small army. Elden Ring players are no exception.

6.1 The Perfect Moment Rarely Arrives

It's surprisingly common to meet players who refuse to use valuable items because they might need them later. The problem is that later eventually becomes never. Crafting materials accumulate. Consumables gather dust. Powerful resources remain untouched while players struggle through encounters they could have approached differently. Sometimes, the difficult boss standing directly in front of you is exactly the situation you've been saving those items for.

6.2 Experimentation Is Part of the Fun

Elden Ring includes an impressive variety of tools designed to encourage creativity. Throwables. Crafted items. Status effects. Situational consumables. Ignoring these systems means missing opportunities to engage with the game's flexibility. Not every solution requires a sword swing.

6.3 Resources Are More Replaceable Than They Appear

The fear of scarcity often drives hoarding behavior. Yet many useful items can be crafted repeatedly or acquired through exploration. While certain resources deserve thoughtful consideration, treating every consumable as irreplaceable frequently creates more frustration than security. The Lands Between contain plenty of surprises. Additional resources are usually among them.

6.4 Sometimes Using the Item Is the Smart Play

There's an amusing contradiction many players experience. They'll spend hours repeatedly attempting a difficult boss while refusing to use tools specifically designed to support them. Somewhere along the way, efficiency becomes suspicious. Elden Ring doesn't require self-imposed suffering. If an item helps overcome an obstacle, using it demonstrates adaptability rather than weakness.

Conclusion

Consumables exist to be consumed. It sounds obvious, yet countless players reach the end of Elden Ring carrying inventories full of solutions they never allowed themselves to explore. Your first adventure through the Lands Between will provide plenty of memorable stories. Using the cool items you've collected might help create a few more.

7. Following Endgame Builds Too Early

YouTube has done wonderful things for gaming communities. It has also convinced countless beginners that they should be playing Elden Ring exactly like someone recording footage hundreds of hours into New Game Plus. This rarely ends well.

7.1 Endgame Builds Assume Endgame Resources

Many popular build guides rely on equipment, upgrade materials, and attribute allocations that simply aren't available during the opening portions of the game. Trying to replicate those setups too early often leads to awkward compromises and disappointing performance. Players end up chasing someone else's fantasy instead of developing their own understanding of the systems.

7.2 First Playthroughs Are About Discovery

One of Elden Ring's greatest strengths lies in experimentation. Finding an unexpected weapon. Testing unfamiliar spells. Realizing that an entirely different playstyle feels more natural than expected. Strictly following predetermined paths can reduce opportunities for those discoveries to happen organically.

7.3 Strong Doesn't Always Mean Enjoyable

The strongest build on paper isn't necessarily the build you'll enjoy using. Some people love colossal weapons. Others prefer fast dexterity-focused approaches or intricate spell combinations. Personal preference matters. After all, you'll spend dozens of hours interacting with these mechanics. Enjoyment deserves consideration.

7.4 Your Journey Doesn't Need Optimization

The internet loves efficiency. Players constantly search for faster leveling methods, stronger equipment combinations, and increasingly optimized strategies. There's nothing inherently wrong with that. However, optimization becomes significantly more meaningful once you understand what you're optimizing for. During a first playthrough, curiosity often produces richer experiences than perfection.

Conclusion

Following build guides isn't inherently problematic. The mistake occurs when beginners abandon experimentation entirely in pursuit of setups designed for vastly different stages of the game. Elden Ring offers an incredible amount of freedom. Your first character doesn't need to impress anyone else. It just needs to feel like yours.

8. Ignoring NPC Conversations

If Elden Ring had a quest journal filled with objective markers and neatly organized checklists, a lot of players would probably miss fewer side quests. They would also lose some of the magic. FromSoftware has always trusted players to pay attention, and Elden Ring continues that tradition. Unfortunately, many newcomers approach NPC interactions the same way they would in other open-world games: they skim the dialogue, accept whatever reward is offered, and sprint toward the next objective marker that doesn't exist. Then, twenty hours later, they wonder why an entire questline seems to have disappeared.

8.1 NPC Dialogue Often Contains the Actual Directions

Elden Ring rarely tells you exactly where to go. Instead, characters casually mention landmarks, destinations, or personal goals during conversations. Those details may seem insignificant at the time, especially when you're eager to get back to exploring. The problem is that Elden Ring assumes you were listening. That strange merchant who mentioned a hidden location? He wasn't delivering flavor text. The mysterious warrior talking about his next destination wasn't making small talk. In many cases, the dialogue itself functions as the quest log.

8.2 Exhausting Dialogue Matters

Veteran FromSoftware players have developed an almost comical habit. Talk to an NPC. Talk to them again. Then talk to them one more time just to be safe. This ritual exists for a reason. Important information frequently appears only after cycling through multiple dialogue options. Ending conversations prematurely can mean missing hints, quest progression, or valuable rewards. It sounds ridiculous until you realize how many players have accidentally walked away just before the NPC said the one thing they actually needed to hear.

8.3 Missing Content Is Part of the Experience

Here's the uncomfortable truth: you're probably going to miss some quests during your first playthrough. And that's okay. Elden Ring isn't designed around perfect completion. The game's structure encourages personal stories shaped by individual choices, exploration patterns, and occasional accidents. The NPC you never encountered might become someone else's favorite character. Your experience doesn't become invalid because it differs from theirs.

8.4 Slowing Down Changes Everything

Modern games often reward efficiency. Elden Ring rewards attention. Taking an extra moment to listen, revisit familiar locations, or wonder what happened to that odd character you met several hours ago can lead to some of the game's most memorable moments. Not every conversation will dramatically alter your journey. A surprising number of them will.

Conclusion

Ignoring NPC dialogue isn't always catastrophic, but it does mean missing opportunities to engage with one of Elden Ring's strongest qualities: its sense of discovery. These conversations aren't interruptions standing between you and the next boss fight. They're invitations to participate more deeply in the world around you.

9. Becoming Obsessed With Rune Recovery

Every Elden Ring player remembers their first truly devastating rune loss. Maybe it was ten thousand runes. Maybe it was fifty thousand. Maybe it was an amount large enough to inspire a brief period of staring silently at the screen while reconsidering several life choices. Whatever the number, the emotional response is almost always the same. "I have to get those back." Unfortunately, that mindset has a habit of creating even bigger problems.

9.1 Runes Are Replaceable

At first, runes feel incredibly precious because they represent progress. Losing them seems disastrous, especially when levels require increasing amounts to purchase. Over time, however, players discover an important truth. Runes come and go. The amount that feels enormous during Limgrave eventually becomes insignificant later in the game. Farming opportunities expand. Enemy rewards increase. What once seemed irreplaceable becomes surprisingly manageable. The emotional weight often exceeds the practical consequences.

9.2 Panic Leads to Bad Decisions

The most dangerous enemy in Elden Ring isn't always the boss standing in front of you. Sometimes, it's desperation. Players who remain calm generally approach encounters thoughtfully. Players sprinting toward a pile of dropped runes tend to make spectacularly poor decisions. Suddenly, caution disappears. Enemy placements are ignored. Traps become invisible. The result is frequently another death. Usually in an even more embarrassing fashion.

9.3 Knowing When to Walk Away

There comes a point when recovering lost runes simply isn't worth the risk. Accepting that reality can be surprisingly liberating. Not every setback requires immediate correction. Sometimes the healthiest response is to acknowledge the loss, move forward, and continue exploring. The game provides countless opportunities to earn more resources. Protecting your enjoyment matters more than protecting every rune count.

9.4 Loss Is Part of the Experience

Souls games have always incorporated risk into progression systems. Runes aren't just currency. They're tension. Knowing that mistakes carry consequences encourages attentiveness in ways traditional checkpoint systems often cannot replicate. The goal isn't avoiding every loss forever. The goal is learning how to respond when losses inevitably occur.

Conclusion

Obsessing over rune recovery transforms manageable setbacks into sources of unnecessary frustration. While protecting resources remains important, allowing lost runes to dictate your decision-making rarely produces positive outcomes. Sometimes, the smartest thing you can do is accept the loss and keep moving forward.

10. Mistaking Death for Failure

Few phrases in gaming are as iconic as "YOU DIED." Few phrases have frightened newcomers quite as effectively. For players unfamiliar with FromSoftware's design philosophy, repeated deaths can feel like evidence that they simply aren't good enough. Yet interpreting death as failure fundamentally misunderstands what Elden Ring is trying to accomplish.

10.1 Death Is Information

Each unsuccessful attempt provides data. Maybe the boss transitions into a second phase earlier than expected. Maybe that delayed attack isn't delayed quite as long as it seemed. Maybe rolling toward danger proves safer than retreating from it. Progress doesn't always appear as victory screens. Sometimes, it looks like surviving ten seconds longer than before.

10.2 Improvement Rarely Happens All at Once

People often imagine mastery arriving through dramatic breakthroughs. More commonly, improvement occurs gradually. A slightly better understanding of timing. More efficient stamina management. Greater confidence recognizing attack patterns. The cumulative effect becomes visible only after looking back. Suddenly, encounters that once seemed impossible feel entirely manageable.

10.3 Failure Isn't Personal

One of Elden Ring's greatest strengths is its indifference. The game doesn't care whether you're a veteran Souls player or someone experiencing the genre for the first time. Defeat isn't framed as punishment for lacking talent. It's simply part of the process. Everyone struggles. Everyone learns. Everyone dies. Repeatedly.

10.4 Persistence Looks Different Than Stubbornness

There's an important distinction between productive persistence and repeatedly throwing yourself against the same wall without adaptation. The former encourages growth. The latter encourages frustration. Sometimes, progress requires changing strategies, experimenting with new tools, or stepping away temporarily before returning with a clearer perspective.

Conclusion

Death isn't evidence that you're playing Elden Ring incorrectly. It's evidence that you're playing Elden Ring. The sooner players embrace that reality, the sooner they begin appreciating failure as a teacher rather than a verdict.

11. Refusing to Experiment

Perhaps the greatest tragedy in Elden Ring is reaching the end of a playthrough having experienced only a tiny fraction of what the game has to offer. The Lands Between are filled with possibilities. New weapons. Unexpected spells. Strange Ashes of War. Entire playstyles waiting to be discovered. Yet many players hesitate to explore those options because they're afraid of making mistakes.

11.1 Curiosity Is One of Elden Ring's Greatest Strengths

Experimentation lies at the heart of Elden Ring's design. The game constantly introduces unfamiliar tools and encourages players to consider alternative approaches. Some combinations won't work. Others will surprise you. Both outcomes contribute to learning.

11.2 The "Correct" Build Doesn't Exist

Online discussions frequently revolve around optimization. Which weapons are strongest? Which builds dominate the meta? While these conversations have value, they can also create the misleading impression that certain playstyles are objectively wrong. Elden Ring offers considerably more flexibility than that. Viability exists across a broad spectrum.

11.3 Your Preferences Matter

A weapon praised by every content creator on YouTube won't automatically improve your experience if you dislike using it. Enjoyment deserves consideration. The most efficient build isn't always the most memorable. Sometimes, the setup that makes you smile every time you swing a sword is the one worth keeping.

11.4 Mistakes Create Stories

Experimentation occasionally leads to disaster. You'll invest in weapons you abandon. You'll test strategies that fail spectacularly. You'll wonder what possessed you to equip certain combinations. Years later, those moments often become favorite memories. Perfection is overrated. Chaos has character.

Conclusion

Refusing to experiment limits one of Elden Ring's greatest pleasures: discovery. The game's systems reward curiosity, adaptability, and the willingness to occasionally embrace uncertainty. Your first playthrough doesn't need to be optimized. It just needs to be yours.

12. Comparing Your Progress to Other Players

At some point during their first Elden Ring playthrough, many players make the mistake of opening YouTube. It usually starts innocently enough. Maybe they're looking for a boss strategy or trying to understand how a particular mechanic works. Then the algorithm gets involved. Suddenly, they're watching someone defeat Malenia at level one while wearing no armor and using what appears to be an aggressively underqualified stick. Meanwhile, they've spent the last forty minutes trying to survive a boss that the comments section describes as "the easy one." It's not exactly a confidence boost.

12.1 The Internet Distorts Reality

One of the downsides of gaming communities is that they tend to showcase exceptional moments rather than ordinary experiences. Speedruns, challenge runs, and perfectly optimized builds are fascinating to watch precisely because they aren't typical. The problem arises when new players mistake those performances for the standard they're supposed to meet. Most people aren't defeating late-game bosses without taking damage. Most people aren't discovering every secret location without help. The average Elden Ring experience involves getting lost, making questionable decisions, and occasionally dying because you were absolutely convinced that jump looked survivable. And honestly, that's part of the fun.

12.2 Everyone Learns at a Different Pace

Some players adapt quickly to Elden Ring's combat rhythm. Others need additional time to become comfortable with concepts like stamina management, delayed attacks, and positioning. Neither approach is wrong. Comparing your progress to someone else's ignores an important reality: you're bringing different experiences, expectations, and playstyles into the game. A player who has spent years with Souls titles will naturally approach Elden Ring differently than someone whose RPG background consists primarily of Skyrim and The Witcher. Your timeline doesn't need to resemble anyone else's.

12.3 Progress Isn't Always Visible

One of Elden Ring's more frustrating qualities is that improvement doesn't always announce itself. You don't receive notifications celebrating better dodge timing. The game doesn't congratulate you for recognizing attack patterns more quickly than before. Yet those small changes accumulate over time. The boss that once destroyed you within thirty seconds suddenly requires three attempts instead of thirty. Areas that once felt intimidating gradually become familiar. Skills that seemed impossible eventually become instinctive. Progress is happening, even when it doesn't feel dramatic.

12.4 The Only Journey That Matters Is Yours

There's a strange pressure surrounding difficult games that encourages people to treat every achievement as a competition. Who beat this boss faster? Who used fewer resources? Who completed the game under stricter conditions? While those challenges can certainly be entertaining, they shouldn't overshadow the simple reality that Elden Ring is ultimately a personal experience. The moments you'll remember most vividly probably won't align with someone else's highlight reel. They'll belong entirely to you.

Conclusion

Comparing yourself to other players rarely enhances the Elden Ring experience. More often, it creates unnecessary pressure that distracts from the joy of discovery. Your first journey through the Lands Between doesn't need to be efficient, impressive, or internet-approved. It just needs to be yours.

13. Expecting Elden Ring to Explain Everything

Modern games have become remarkably good at making sure players never feel lost. Quest markers point toward objectives. Tutorials explain mechanics in meticulous detail. Maps practically beg you to stop wandering around and return to whatever task the developers intended you to complete next. Elden Ring occasionally looks at those conventions and politely decides to do something else entirely. For newcomers, that adjustment can be difficult.

13.1 Uncertainty Is Part of the Experience

There will be moments when you genuinely don't know where to go next. An NPC might reference a location you've never visited. A hidden pathway could lead somewhere unexpected. A mechanic may reveal its purpose only after several hours of experimentation. At first, this ambiguity can feel frustrating. Eventually, many players begin to appreciate it. The absence of constant guidance creates opportunities for genuine discovery. Finding something because you were curious feels very different from finding something because an icon appeared on your minimap.

13.2 Not Every Question Needs an Immediate Answer

One of the habits modern games encourage is the desire for instant understanding. Who is this character? What does this item do? Why is this area here? Elden Ring doesn't always provide immediate clarification. Sometimes, answers emerge gradually through exploration, environmental details, and repeated interactions with the world. Sometimes, they don't emerge at all. Oddly enough, that's part of the appeal. Mystery gives people reasons to speculate, revisit locations, and discuss their interpretations with others long after the credits roll.

13.3 Curiosity Is a Better Guide Than Checklists

It's easy to approach Elden Ring with a completionist mindset. You want to see everything, collect everything, and avoid missing anything important. The problem is that chasing absolute efficiency can transform exploration into administration. The Lands Between feel most magical when curiosity leads the way. Following an interesting landmark simply because it looks intriguing often produces better stories than mechanically clearing icons from a checklist.

13.4 It's Okay to Be Lost Sometimes

There are moments during Elden Ring when confusion feels inevitable. You may forget where an NPC said they were traveling. You may wander into areas clearly designed to teach humility. You may spend an embarrassing amount of time searching for a location that was, in hindsight, surprisingly obvious. These experiences don't indicate failure. They're part of learning how this particular world operates.

Conclusion

Expecting Elden Ring to explain itself the same way other games do often leads to disappointment. The game values observation, curiosity, and patience in ways that can initially feel uncomfortable. Over time, many players discover that those same qualities are what make exploration so memorable.

14. Forgetting to Enjoy the Journey

For a game that encourages exploration, Elden Ring has an impressive ability to convince players that they're constantly behind schedule. There's always another level to gain. Another weapon to upgrade. Another boss waiting somewhere beyond the horizon. It's surprisingly easy to become so focused on optimization that you forget why you started playing in the first place.

14.1 Your First Playthrough Only Happens Once

No matter how many New Game Plus cycles you complete, you'll never experience Elden Ring for the first time again. You'll never unknowingly wander into a breathtaking area and pause because you genuinely weren't expecting the world to expand in that direction. You'll never meet certain characters without already understanding where their stories lead. First impressions have value. They deserve appreciation.

14.2 Efficiency Isn't Always the Goal

Gaming culture loves optimization. People want the strongest builds, the fastest leveling routes, and the most effective strategies. There's nothing inherently wrong with that approach, but it can become limiting when it replaces experimentation entirely. Sometimes, using an unusual weapon simply because it looks interesting leads to unexpected enjoyment. Sometimes, getting distracted by a suspicious cave produces your favorite memory from the entire game. Not every decision needs to maximize efficiency.

14.3 Some Mistakes Become Great Stories

Ask veteran Elden Ring players about their first playthroughs, and you'll rarely hear polished accounts of flawless execution. Instead, you'll hear stories. The elevator that wasn't there. The enemy they accidentally provoked. The boss attempt that somehow ended with everyone involved making terrible decisions simultaneously. Imperfection creates personality. The mistakes that frustrate you today often become the anecdotes you laugh about later.

14.4 Wonder Matters More Than Mastery

Mastery is rewarding. Wonder is unforgettable. Years after finishing Elden Ring, many players remember locations that surprised them, characters who intrigued them, and moments of unexpected beauty hidden between brutal encounters. Those experiences aren't measured through statistics. They're felt. And they deserve just as much attention as mechanical improvement.

Conclusion

The biggest mistake new players make isn't choosing the wrong class or struggling against difficult bosses. It's forgetting that Elden Ring is supposed to be an adventure. Yes, the game is challenging. Yes, you'll die repeatedly. Yes, there will be moments when you question whether a particular enemy was designed by someone who genuinely disliked happiness. But there will also be moments of discovery, triumph, and wonder that few other games can replicate. Try not to rush through them.

FAQ

What is the biggest mistake new Elden Ring players make?

The most common mistake is treating Elden Ring like a traditional RPG where every enemy should be defeated immediately. Exploration, preparation, and adaptability are often more important than persistence alone.

Should beginners fight every boss they encounter?

No. Elden Ring is designed to encourage exploration. If a boss feels overwhelmingly difficult, leaving to explore elsewhere and returning later is often the intended solution.

Is Vigor important for first-time players?

Absolutely. Increasing Vigor improves survivability and gives players more opportunities to learn boss mechanics without being defeated instantly.

Are Spirit Ashes considered cheating?

No. Spirit Ashes are intended mechanics designed by FromSoftware. Using them is a legitimate way to experience the game.

How important are weapon upgrades?

Weapon upgrades are extremely important and often provide larger power increases than several character levels combined.

Can you miss NPC quests in Elden Ring?

Yes. NPC questlines can be missed, especially if dialogue is skipped or exploration paths differ. However, missing content is part of the intended experience.

Should beginners follow YouTube builds?

Build guides can be helpful, but following endgame setups too early may reduce experimentation and create unrealistic expectations.

What should I do if I lose a large number of runes?

Try to recover them if it's safe to do so, but don't let frustration dictate your decisions. Runes can always be earned again.

Why is Elden Ring so difficult for newcomers?

Many beginners struggle because they approach Elden Ring using assumptions formed by other RPGs. The game rewards curiosity and flexibility more than rigid adherence to traditional conventions.

What's the best advice for first-time Elden Ring players?

Slow down. Explore freely, invest in survivability, upgrade your weapons regularly, and don't be afraid to use the tools the game provides.

Does Elden Ring expect players to know everything?

No. Discovery and uncertainty are core parts of the experience. The game intentionally leaves room for experimentation and interpretation.

How should I approach my first Elden Ring playthrough?

Treat it as an adventure rather than a checklist. Focus less on perfection and more on learning, exploring, and creating memories unique to your experience.

Conclusion

Elden Ring isn't a game about avoiding mistakes. In many ways, it's a game about learning from them. The wrong turn that leads to an unforgettable discovery. The boss fight that teaches patience. The weapon you never expected to love. The runes you lose before realizing they weren't nearly as important as the lessons gained while trying to recover them. Most first-time frustrations don't come from a lack of skill. They come from expectations shaped by other games. Elden Ring asks players to embrace uncertainty, trust their curiosity, and occasionally accept that the enormous knight on horseback might not be today's problem. Your first journey through the Lands Between won't be perfect. That's exactly how it should be. One day, you'll look back on the mistakes that seemed disastrous at the time and realize they were responsible for many of your favorite memories. And when a friend eventually decides to start Elden Ring for the first time, you'll probably find yourself offering the same advice countless veterans have shared before: "Don't worry too much about playing it the right way. Just keep going."