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The Cave of Knowledge is very useful for newcomers, but was also pretty easy to overlook—until now.
One of the things I have learned to love about Elden Ring is the way it literally refuses to explain itself, about anything: The world is simply there, and you have to deal with it however you see fit. That ethos extends all the way to the tutorial, which exists but is easy to miss. That may not be a problem for veterans of the soulslike genre, but newcomers can really suffer for it.
Fortunately, that’s no longer an issue. One of the changes made in today’s big 1.04 patch is that a big honkin’ message now pops up on the screen when players starting a new game approach the big hole in the ground where the tutorial exists.
The hole is impossible to miss, but the tutorial itself was not because prior to the update, there was no indication that there was anything down there but a hard fall and a quick death. The ledges required to jump down safely aren’t hidden, but they aren’t exactly festooned with neon signs either, and the big stairs leading up to huge double doors on the opposite side of the room only makes the whole thing easier to overlook.
You can still skip the tutorial if you’d like, but at least now it’s virtually impossible to do so by accident—a reasonable concession from a game that is otherwise happy to let you die repeatedly until you either learn or give up. Speaking of which, here’s a little tip from me: When you exit the opening catacomb and step into the Lands Between for the first time, don’t miss the NPC standing just down the path a ways. He’s got some interesting info to share too.
(And yes, I did miss him during my playthrough. Went out the door, hung a hard left, and eventually had to Google how to open the map. Didn’t actually meet the guy until weeks later.)
Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.
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