It goes without saying that Elden Ring is one of the most anticipated titles coming up. Despite a slight delay to February 2022, the hype is seemingly at an all-time high, as From Software and Bandai Namco have essentially salivated the fan base with glorious 15-minute gameplay preview which took place last week. They’re continuing this by commencing the first part of the Network Test, which is a closed beta given out to only a lucky few participants. Bandai Namco has begun to send out those invites, as well as the start times for each region and what to expect when they start playing.
It’s important to note that these invites were only sent out to those who filled out the form in order to be considered for the Network Test. As with other types of alphas and betas, the test is primarily for From Software to take feedback from testers and apply them to the final product. For the most part, From Software’s Soulsborne series has had some form of online compatibility, usually in terms of PVP and PVE which comes in the form of an invasion or a summoning respectively. Elden Ring will appear to be no different.
It appears that there will be two-three hour sessions in the span of three days. Perhaps due to the desire to have all regions try out the game, the start times vary from middle of the night to middle of the day and will commence this week from November 12-14. The Network Test will consist of the beginning moments of the game, and will only be on the home console market. Hopefully, the PC community will get their chance next time.
It’ll be interesting to see what From Software will take away from this Network Test as the anticipation is as high as it’s ever been for Elden Ring. This is further exemplified by the fact that some people are already trying to sell their invite code on eBay, with one selling for roughly $200. Elden Ring will officially launch on February 25, 2022, for the PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.