Elden Ring Players Are Refusing To Level Up

There are a lot of things that help to make a Souls-like game a Souls-like game. A dingy atmosphere, a bleak attitude, NPCs that make you wish you were anywhere else and the relief of finding a bonfire - but there's one thing that really makes them what they are. Pain.

The greatest draw for these games for many players is just how gruelling and brutal the game can be, with a punishing difficulty and no remorse when sending you straight back to where you came from.

Elden Ring has been suggested to be a little easier than its Souls predecessors, but it still doesn't hold back. Yet, some fans don't think it's enough. Some players are going out of their way to make the game as horrible as possible - and some fans are playing through the game with no in-game assistance whatsoever.

Elden Ring Players Are Choosing Not To Level Up

Because the core audience of Elden Ring must be deeply sadistic, some players are making it even harder for themselves by refusing to level up. The opportunity to out another point in their stats seems to be too forgiving, and seemingly for sport, they're ducking the chance entirely.

Two "challenge runners" Ongbal and LobosJr have taken the plunge into Elden Ring without the buffs of levelling up, somehow managing to contend with the game's brutal bosses without the opportunity to grow stronger, taking them on as though they'd just jumped into the game there and then.

Ongbal Takes Down Starscourge Radahn At Level 1

Ongbal has flexed their prowess in Elden Ring already by taking down the incredibly tough boss Starscourge Radahn after having never levelled up, in only his underwear and all while taking no damage whatsoever.

In the video shared to their YouTube channel, they take the big fella on and topple them seemingly with ease, never taking a hit and perfectly managing their stamina between avoiding attacks and dishing out damage. The video is massively impressive, and telling of the incredible talent it takes to pull the feat off.

It's no surprise that Elden Ring fans are making the game harder for themselves, to be honest - the game's punishing difficulty is its trademark, so it's about time that players made it even worse to prove their prowess. But we could do that, easy. Promise.