Anyone who’s played FromSoftware’s challenging action-RPGs knows the importance of the equipment you carry. The Dark Souls games had rings, which gave players stat boosts and special effects.
However, the decorated studio’s 2022 masterpiece, Elden Ring, takes things in a different direction with a new item type: talismans. Why would they move away from a system that everyone was used to for several years? Game director Hidetaka Miyazaki explains the decision in an interview with Edge magazine.
Rings Are Now Essential To Elden Ring‘s Lore, Predictably
Hidetaka Miyazaki acknowledged that rings were used a lot in FromSoftware’s older games, especially Dark Souls:
We explored rings as equippable items a lot in our previous games – Dark Souls, particularly – and so talismans this time allowed us to approach those ideas in a different way, with a greater variety of designs.
Instead of sticking with the same old formula, the team wanted to expand upon the concept of the rings (in typical FromSoftware fashion), and talismans seemed to be their best bet. However, that doesn’t mean rings are completely absent.
“Of course, rings do exist as physical ‘finger rings’ in this game, but more as unique items that are involved in the story and unique character events,” said Miyazaki. The use of rings as unique lore devices almost feels like Miyazaki’s attempt at a pun on the game’s name itself, and if it is, props to him.
Talismans Were Chosen For Greater Design Versatility
Recent games like God of War have also featured the use of talismans, but Elden Ring utilizes them differently. Unlike God of War, Elden Ring‘s talismans can’t be upgraded, but stronger versions of the same talisman can be found, which have a (+1) at the end of their name. The number scales with the talisman’s power.
Other than that, their core functionality is near-identical to rings. Miyazaki’s “more variety in design” statement holds true, though, because talismans don’t have to be confined to a circular shape, which allows for some very pretty looking specimens, like the Primal Glintstone Blade.
If you find yourself wondering if this change was made due to the heightened importance of rings, you wouldn’t be wrong, as Miyazaki says, “We wanted them to have a special positioning within the world of Elden Ring and also to be something different from a design standpoint in relation to the talismans.“
While some diehard Souls fans may protest this change, it doesn’t really matter much at the end of the day. Talismans do exactly the same job as rings, with the added perk of looking much better. You’d really have to be a purist to nitpick a minor change like this, but some unfortunately still do.
Do you prefer the diverse aesthetics of talismans, or are you more of a ring person? Let us know in the comments!
