Elden Ring is a very large game, and its story spans thousands of years. What’s even better is the fact that fans everywhere keep on digging through this game to find some new story details and sometimes a bunch of hidden stuff that no one was aware of. Then there are data miners who dig even deeper to find stuff that is not even supposed to be in the game. This is where some of the most interesting things are found.
These data miners uncover discarded characters, weapons, locations, dialogues, and even boss fights. And these things are such that all of them reveal something new and interesting about the story and structure of Elden Ring. Now, in 2024, when a new DLC for this game is about to launch, a fan has uncovered yet another mind-blowing thing in Elden Ring.
A data miner has revealed an alternate opening cutscene for Elden Ring
Elden Ring is a game with a large open world for gamers to explore. But the game opens in a secluded place called the Chapel of Anticipation. When players start walking forward, they are met with their first tough enemy, called the Grafted Scion. This is a tough boss for someone who just started the game, and that’s why players naturally end up dying.
When they wake up again, they see a cutscene where Melina approaches them along with Torrent the horse. And they discuss the possibility of the player character being “the one.” When this is done, players find themselves in the Stranded Graveyard or the Cave of Knowledge. This is no doubt an apt name for a cave that serves as the opening tutorial level for the game.
But in this newly recovered alternate version, things go a bit differently. This time, when players fight the Grafted Scion, they do not wake up at the Stranded Graveyard; instead, they wake up at a small beach. This is where Malena and Torrent find the player character.
The dialogue is very different. This time Malina says to Torrent, “You think this is the one Torrent? Don’t worry, it’s not too late; she is sure to seek the Elden Ring.” Then there’s one more alternate version of this scene; this one starts with the dialogue, “Is that her Torrent?” The gender of the character depends on what players choose, and that’s the pronoun Malina would use in the cutscene.
From this beach, players would then climb into a small cave that would lead them to the Stranded Graveyard. Now players would continue their journey as usual, learning the basics of combat and fighting enemies left and right.
The data miner also found out how the player character reaches the Chapel of Anticipation at the start of the Elden Ring. They wanted to find this because the chapel is actually situated in a remote location and is hard for players to reach. But they uncovered the fact that there’s a teleporter in Stormveil Castle that transports players to the abovementioned chapel.
There’s no specific reason for FromSoftware’s decision to change this cutscene in the final game. Maybe they did it for purely artistic reasons. Whatever it was, it would only be revealed if someone asked Hidetaka Miyazaki himself.
Games change a number of times before they are launched
The removal of some characters or changing some dialogue is nothing new in a video game. Over the years, developers have mentioned how they had to cut a bunch of content from their respective titles. Those decisions were taken for several reasons.
FromSoftware’s own game, Bloodborne, had a shortcut that they locked up for some reason. This was that locked door in the Cathedral Ward that opened up to the Cleric Beast boss arena.
