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Elden Ring might look quite a bit like Darkish Souls however, so far as we all know proper now, it’s completely its personal factor by way of narrative and lore. That doesn’t imply, nevertheless, there aren’t official hyperlinks between From Software program’s newest motion RPG and former video games like Demon’s Souls, Bloodborne, and even Armored Core.
I actually don’t know what you’re doing right here in the event you’re making an attempt to keep away from spoilers, however that is your final likelihood to shut this tab or click on on a hyperlink to one among Kotaku’s different unbelievable tales in the event you don’t wish to see Elden Ring content material earlier than it launches on February 25.
As a part of a current Pink Bull-branded preview occasion that introduced in a number of notable Twitch personalities to demo Elden Ring forward of its launch, it was revealed {that a} character named Patches seems within the upcoming sport. Spanish streamer ChusoMMontero got here face-to-face with Patches throughout his session, apparently inviting the NPC’s scorn after looting a treasure chest.
Chuso was shortly lower down, however not earlier than offering us with this glorious footage of Patches in motion.
Patches needs to be a well-known face to longtime followers of From Software program’s historical past, particularly in the case of the corporate’s genre-defining Souls and Souls-like video games. Whereas he first debuted in 2008’s Armored Core: For Reply as Patch the Good Luck, a faceless, rival pilot with a keenness for sniping you from the air moderately than dealing with you head-on, most people received their first style of this character’s distinctive model of tomfoolery the next yr courtesy of Demon’s Souls.
Very similar to his Armored Core look, Patches the Hyena (as he’s identified in Demon’s Souls) is a cowardly, conniving NPC who twice leads you into compromising conditions within the hopes that you just’ll die in order that he can loot your corpse. In each cases, he apologizes for his actions when you escape his traps. For those who let Patches dwell, he units up a store within the sport’s hub space.
Whereas most people disapproved of the modifications made to Demon’s Souls aesthetics in its PlayStation 5 remake, I applaud developer Bluepoint Software program for utilizing the upgraded visuals to present Patches one of the crucial punchable faces I’ve ever seen in a online game. I’d be curious to be taught if extra folks killed him on PS5 versus the PlayStation 3 unique.
“Trusty” Patches subsequent confirmed up in 2011’s Darkish Souls, introducing himself to you in numerous areas relying in your progress by way of the sport. Very similar to in Demon’s Souls, he lures you with the promise of treasure, solely to ship you careening over cliffs and into darkish chasms. And if, like in Demon’s Souls, you don’t give into the temptation of chopping him down the place he stands, Patches turns into a service provider, promoting his ill-begotten loot in Firelink Shrine.
My favourite Patches cameo comes courtesy of 2015’s Bloodborne. Deep into that Lovecraftian journey, you meet a personality named Patches the Spider, who’s mainly the Patches we’ve come to know and love with a creepy, arachnid-style physique.
He first seems unseen behind locked doorways early within the story, offering you with a key merchandise for progressing by way of the sport, earlier than his full visage is revealed within the otherworldly Lecture Constructing.
In fact, what sort of jerk would Patches be if he didn’t kick you right into a gap? Approaching a particular cliff within the late-game Nightmare Frontier prompts a brief, point-of-view cutscene during which he knocks you over the sting. That’s the Patches we all know and tolerate!
And at last, 2016’s Darkish Souls 3 marked the newest look of “Unbreakable” Patches. Once more, he places you thru a sequence of trials and even steals the armor and id of a beloved ally often called Siegward of Catarina, however his story involves a becoming conclusion within the totally fulfilling Ringed Metropolis enlargement.
For those who haven’t already, I extremely suggest watching Souls loresmith VaatiVidya’s video essay on Patches’ journey from loathsome parasite to ruthless survivor.
As an apart, Patches may also have analogs in Darkish Souls 2 and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, although not with the identical identify. The previous’s Delicate-Mannered Pate appears pleasant while you first meet him, however in a while turns into a part of a quest line involving a betrayed former companion, whereas the latter’s Anayama the Peddler is taken into account a potential stand-in as a consequence of his historical past as a former thief turned service provider. Whereas these aren’t direct references to the actual Patches, one can simply argue they have been meant to fill the identical position.
Hidetaka Miyazaki, who many credit score for establishing the Souls-like style together with his work on Demon’s Souls, Darkish Souls, Bloodborne, and Sekiro, reportedly claimed throughout a 2011 interview on the Japanese podcast Recreation no Shokutaku that each sport he makes could have Patches in it. Joking or not, it’s good to see Elden Ring maintaining with this continuity. Darkish Souls 3 felt like the proper send-off for the little asshole, however I stay up for seeing what position he performs, if any, within the story of this and future From Software program tasks to come back.
