Elden Ring finally gets a proper trailer—and a release date

The highly-anticipated collaboration between developer FromSoftware, creator Hidetaka Miyazaki, and writer George R. R. Martin has finally been shown off to the world. And boy, does it look good.

Watching the trailer, there are definitely elements in Elden Ring that connect back to the Souls series, while also showing off the now trademark design and gameplay styles of both the developer and Miyazaki himself.

What’s interesting, however, is some of those things that decidedly feel un-Soulslike. Riding a horse around (and fighting while riding said horse) is certainly something new, but more than that for me, it’s how the landscape feels different now that it’s bigger and more open world. We’ve all become use to the tight, intricately designed, more compact worlds of the Souls games, so seeing areas that are more open and—dare I say—normal looking feels pretty different.

According to Bandai Namco, Elden Ring will feature “a vast and seamless landscape with natural weather and time-of-day progression,” the choice of playing alone or together with other players, and the ability to experiment with “a wide variety of weapons, magical abilities and skills found throughout the world.”

And, shock of shocks, we actually got a release date for the game! Elden Ring is coming out on January 21st, 2022 for Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC. Also, anyone who purchases the game on PlayStation 4 will get a free upgrade to the PlayStation 5 version, while all Xbox versions will support Smart Delivery to give you the proper version of the game for the console you’re playing it on.

Details on Elden Ring‘s story from the official website:

Rise, Tarnished, and be guided by grace to brandish the power of the Elden Ring and become an Elden Lord in the Lands Between.

In the Lands Between ruled by Queen Marika the Eternal, the Elden Ring, the source of the Erdtree, has been shattered.

Marika’s offspring, demigods all, claimed the shards of the Elden Ring known as the Great Runes, and the mad taint of their newfound strength triggered a war: The Shattering. A war that meant abandonment by the Greater Will.

And now the guidance of grace will be brought to the Tarnished who were spurned by the grace of gold and exiled from the Lands Between. Ye dead who yet live, your grace long lost, follow the path to the Lands Between beyond the foggy sea to stand before the Elden Ring.

And become the Elden Lord.