ELDEN RING Shouldn’t have Quest Logs



#eldenring #darksouls #gaming
Recently, there’s been an ongoing argument about why Elden Ring should or should not have a quest log to track NPC questlines throughout the game. Here, I explain why Fromsoftware intended for the game to NOT have one and why that ultimately makes Elden Ring a better game.
—————
0:00 Intro
1:26 Elden Ring NPC Quests
3:16 Criticism
5:59 Why it Shouldn’t
6:49 Accessibility Argument
7:33 They Don’t Understand
—————
Music:
Sekiro OST
Metroid Prime OST

source

35 thoughts on “ELDEN RING Shouldn’t have Quest Logs”

  1. This IS the greatest game of all Time , lvl 42, build samouraï, Beat 8 bosses already and having a blast for more than 28 hours so far.

    The biggest complain i have are possible missable side quests when you go to far into the story or one the main bosses defeat

    Reply
  2. Personally i have a journal that i have been writing in keeping track of things and have loved every second of it. It's a unique thing to do and having a quest log wouldn't make it feel like elden ring anymore and make it feel just like any other big titles out there and make it feel even a bit generic.

    Reply
  3. I dont want a quest log the game is great without it. It's a adventure playing this. It's fun to explore and figure out things without automation on quest if there was a quest log it would probably take more focus off of just exploring and enjoying the game. It would ruin the experience I'm having and I would probably get bored of it faster. So No to the quest log for me.

    Reply
  4. The only thin Elden ring needs is a god damn patch for pc XD 250ms stutter is no minor issue and i just stopped playing. If the patch won't come this week i will refund and wait fmuntil the game runs.

    Reply
  5. If souls games had quest markers for NPC/Side quests, the side quests themselves wouldn't really work, you'd have the same outcome for the specific quest, due to completing them in the written way every time. No variety, everybody gets the same boxed in, hallway experience

    Reply
  6. I think the problem is just calling them quests to begin with. They're not. A quest is a set of directions to achieve a goal. In a game where you're supposed to do that, being forced to keep track of it all WOULD suck. But that's not what this is. There are "fail states" and branches and the game doesn't even tell you that these moments exist. If anything else their secrets, on par to equipment or a boss that you discover. Games don't give you boss checklist if half of them aren't meant to be discovered on your own on your first playthrough.

    Reply
  7. The beauty with this open world design is that you explore organically. Instead of looking at markers, breadcrumps or whatever you look at the scenery. Your eyes aren´t drawn to some icon or questmarker.
    An ingame notebook (not questlog) would be nice tho, especially if it would get its own animation like your character scribbling in a book for instance. As a comparison, I loved the map in Metro Exodus, quite immersive.
    Instead of a questlog, I ´d rather have more dialog options with certain NPCs. I met someone on some sort of pilgrimage and her story intrigues me. So naturally I´d like to have the option to ask this person where she is heading.

    Reply
  8. At some point in my gaming journey, I realized that people don't really know what they want. I hear people say they want a challenge, but a game offering a true learning experience and demand mastery before you achieve victory frustrates them. People say they want immersion, but a game giving a truly living world independent of the player is too tedious for them.

    Personally, this is everything I want in an open world. Elden Ring is truly massive and with multiple layers (literally), and missing things is fine for me. Open worlds in recent times have made me not want to open the map, because all I do with it is highlighting an objective and hightailing there. Elden Ring actually makes me look at every detail on the map, marking down all the things that stand out myself. I can actually think "Wait, why are there squares in that forest?" and find a ruin on my own.

    Reply
  9. Couldn't have said it better myself! I can totally understand where most of these people are coming from. Most RPGs have a laundry list of quests that make up most of their game's content including how the main storyline is told (look at any Bethesda game). So when people who don't know anything about souls games hear that there's no quest log in a game with "quests" the probably assume that the player is being constantly inundated with quests just like in other RPGs.
    Yeah, if a majority of the game involved receiving and completing dozens of new quests like in other RPGs, of course keeping track of them yourself would suck and a quest log would be almost necessary, but after 22 hours of gameplay, I've written maybe 10 sentences in my notepad? Hardly a commitment, yet it creates a really rewarding level of immersion.
    I hope the inevitable souls fans that try to debate these people understand that a majority of these complaints are likely just caused by a lack of understanding what the game is.

    Reply
  10. The only complain I have about elden ring is… two words… godskin duo f* that boss I'm stuck with it. I don't usually ask for help but if there's anyone outhere who's willing to help me (pc) I would really appreciate it.

    Reply
  11. I don't think the map needs a giant marker of where te sidequests are nor do do you really need a quest log, but I do believe it would be pretty usefull to have some sort of journal of what your character knows.
    Here's an example, there was a point in the game where I needed a second half of a medallion, so I go and find a girl that tells me where it is and the joins me as a spirit because she wanted me to take her somewhere. Cool as fuck, but I don't remember any of that, where the other half is or where did she wanted me to take her, and the dialogue, cannot be repeated cause she's no longer an npc, but an item.
    And sure, you can tell me "just pay more attention" granted, I should have written that down, that was me being dumb. But anything could have happened, I could have skipped the dialogue by accident, I could have have an emergency of some sort so I couldn't pay attention, anything really.
    So it would have been great to have some sort of journal where that stuff is written down, like Morrowind does for example.
    Again I don't want a giant marker or anything like that, but if someone's gives me directions and there is no way to repeat them nor is it written anywhere, then I do think that's a fault om the side of the game

    Reply
  12. I don’t think you what a ‘log’ is. It doesn’t tell you where to go or what to do it simply logs or records what you have done. A diary of the conversations you’ve had harms absolutely nothing it just saves you having to write it down. Of course no one wants automatic map markers or trails of breadcrumbs but those aren’t ‘a log’. You could write it but it would be better if the game recorded it.

    Reply
  13. Quest logs make you autopilot quests just to tick them off. Not having quest logs makes you organically do the ones you care for. Zelda OoT already did this right decades ago. Doesn't mean quest logs are bad, but not having them can be a plus.

    Reply
  14. Hater will hate before playing the game because there favorite games doesn't got a high score as elden ring . I had run through so many absurd comments and I found it so funny. Iam around 37 hours in and omg elden ring became my favorite game of all time

    Reply
  15. I'd like it to have some quest details for side quests, the quests in this game are very obscure and extremely missable without a guide.

    Just like log of what you did and hint about the next phase of the quest. Because goddamn is it hard to finish a side quest without some outside help. Hell, look at all the videos on YouTube that detail side quests. There is clearly some level of guidance needed, not waymarkers mind you, but just little tips on where to go after finishing part of an NPC quest

    Reply

Leave a Comment