Summary
This article outlines twelve key improvements to elevate Elden Ring's gameplay experience without altering its core identity. The proposed changes cover better weapon and spell balancing, buffing underused holy damage, revamping New Game Plus, fixing the tedious crafting system, and revitalizing underpowered Intelligence-Faith hybrid builds. It also suggests quality tweaks for spell switching, status effects, tutorials, NPC quests and multiplayer. Players can buy Elden Ring Runes to skip repetitive grinding, freely test refined builds, weapons and spells, and fully enjoy these optimized game systems.
Elden Ring stands as one of the most ambitious and rewarding action RPGs ever made. Its vast open world, intricate combat, and deep lore have captivated millions of players. Yet even a masterpiece can benefit from thoughtful refinements. Drawing from community discussions and careful analysis of the game's systems, here are twelve practical improvements that could elevate the experience further without changing its core identity.
Better Weapon and Spell Balancing
FromSoftware crafts some of the most visually striking and conceptually cool weapons and spells in gaming. Unfortunately, a significant portion of them feel deliberately underpowered. Fast spears that move slower than they should, bows and crossbows reduced to pure challenge runs, and certain blacksmith weapons that demand high investment for minimal returns all limit player choice.
Many of the strongest options today started weak and received gradual buffs over time. A more thorough balancing pass would make the full arsenal viable. Players invest time exploring every corner of the Lands Between; they deserve to feel rewarded when they experiment with unusual tools.
Making Holy Damage Relevant Again
Holy damage looks spectacular and fits the game's mythic tone, especially in the expansion content. In the base game, however, it struggles. Major bosses tied to Marika's lineage often carry high holy resistance, sometimes reaching extreme levels that render dedicated builds frustrating.
Characters like Godfrey, Radahn, and others display resistance that feels inconsistent with their lore or presentation. Restricting the highest resistances to a smaller set of truly sacred figures, and removing extreme 80 percent negation values across the board, would restore holy damage as a legitimate option. This change alone would open up new build possibilities and make certain weapons and incantations shine.
Revitalizing New Game Plus
New Game Plus currently adds modest health and damage increases while stripping away some of the most interesting progression rewards. A smarter approach would scale early-game enemies to end-game difficulty levels, forcing players to engage with a fully built character against familiar but tougher foes from the start.
Keeping Great Runes active, increasing drop rates for rare items, and allowing purchase of upgrade materials would encourage experimentation. Incorporating enhanced enemy behaviors similar to those seen in related titles, such as new moves or summoned allies for bosses, would give each subsequent playthrough a distinct identity. The ability to select a preferred New Game Plus difficulty level would also remove the need to restart characters simply for comfort.
Fixing the Crafting System
Crafting in Elden Ring produces excellent consumables, yet scarcity turns the system into a chore. Materials are limited enough that many players craft an item once or twice and then abandon the feature.
A better model would unlock recipes permanently after the first craft, with limited uses that refresh upon resting at Sites of Grace, similar to systems in other successful RPGs. This would encourage players to explore more recipes without constant resource grinding, adding meaningful variety to combat approaches.
Bringing Intelligence and Faith Hybrid Builds Back
Older FromSoftware titles supported hybrid Intelligence and Faith builds that blended sorceries and incantations effectively. Elden Ring's world is rich with Golden Order, lava, and death-related spells that require both stats, yet the investment rarely feels worthwhile compared to pure paths.
Strengthening these hybrid options would reward players who invest in the lore-heavy dual path and expand the range of viable playstyles. The narrative emphasis on faith and order makes this an especially natural fit.
Expanding Weapon Catalysts
Catalysts determine how spells scale and feel in combat. Offering more weapons that double as effective catalysts would give melee-focused characters better access to magic without forcing awkward swaps or pure caster investments. This change supports creative hybrid builds and makes the arsenal more flexible.
Improving Spell Switching
Switching between spells mid-combat can feel clunky, interrupting the flow of intense fights. Streamlining the process or adding more intuitive hotkey options would make magical combat smoother and more responsive, particularly for players who rely on a wide variety of spells.
Giving New Status Effects Real Impact
Newer status effects introduced in the game and its expansions often lack the punch of classic options like bleed or frost. Enhancing their buildup rates, effect potency, or synergy with existing tools would make them competitive choices rather than situational novelties.
Creating a Stronger Tutorial Experience
Elden Ring's learning curve is steep by design, yet the tutorial leaves many systems under-explained. A more comprehensive but optional early guidance section could introduce key mechanics such as status effects, crafting, and advanced combat techniques without diluting the sense of discovery for veterans.
Strengthening NPC Quests
Many side quests feature compelling characters and stories but suffer from unclear triggers, abrupt endings, or limited consequences. Clearer progression signals, more branching outcomes, and stronger integration with the main narrative would make these stories more satisfying and replayable.
Incorporating Ideas from Related Experiences
Certain enemy variations, move sets, and environmental interactions from related projects could be adapted into Elden Ring's New Game Plus or optional challenge modes. These additions would refresh familiar encounters and reward repeated exploration of the Lands Between.
Enhancing Multiplayer Features
Cooperative and competitive multiplayer remain popular, yet summoning, invader balance, and session stability can still improve. Better matchmaking tools, more flexible session options, and refined scaling would make shared adventures more accessible and enjoyable for a wider range of players.
Throughout any journey in the Lands Between, managing resources remains essential. Collecting Elden Ring Runes fuels character progression, weapon upgrades, and experimentation with the very systems discussed above. When farming feels slow or a specific build needs a boost, some players choose to buy Elden Ring Runes to focus more time on exploration and combat rather than repetitive grinding.
These twelve adjustments would not rewrite Elden Ring's identity. They would simply refine the experience, making more of its excellent content feel equally viable and rewarding. The game already stands as a landmark achievement. With careful attention to balance, progression, and player agency, it could become even more enduring.
The Lands Between still hold countless secrets and challenges. Addressing these points would ensure that every weapon, spell, build, and quest path feels like a worthy way to claim the title of Elden Lord.
