What Is Elden Ring? FromSoftware's Open-World Landmark, Explained by Marine

Article

Elden Ring paired FromSoftware's brutal combat with a fantasy world co-built by George R. R. Martin — and it's still expanding.

What Elden Ring Is

Developed by FromSoftware with world-building input from novelist George R. R. Martin, Elden Ring is an open-world action RPG known for demanding, precise combat.

Still Expanding in 2026

Elden Ring: Tarnished Edition releases for Nintendo Switch 2 on August 28, 2026, and a tabletop RPG spin-off, Elden Ring Nightreign TRPG, launched June 19, 2026.

What To Know

Elden Ring bringing together FromSoftware's notoriously demanding action combat with George R. R. Martin's large-scale fantasy world-building was a genuinely unusual creative pairing that helped define a new benchmark for open-world action RPGs.

FromSoftware is a Japanese studio whose "Soulslike" difficulty-focused design philosophy — precise, punishing combat requiring pattern-learning over brute force — has become influential well beyond its own games, inspiring an entire genre now named after them.

What Fans Are Saying

• "George R. R. Martin plus FromSoftware is such a perfect pairing."
• "Excited for Tarnished Edition on Switch 2."
• "A tabletop RPG spin-off is such a fun expansion."

Original Japanese

• 「ジョージ・R・R・マーティンとフロムの組み合わせは本当に最高ですね」
• 「Switch 2版のTarnished Editionが楽しみです」
• 「テーブルトークRPG版というのは面白い展開ですね」

Easy Japanese

エルデンリングは、フロム・ソフトウェアが作ったオープンワールドのアクションゲームです。