Elden Ring invader being surrounded by a naked crew of macho men becomes a hot topic

Written by. Nick Mosier based on the original Japanese article (original article’s publication date: 2022-03-09 12:48 JST)

There are a lot of ways to enjoy Elden Ring. Some are having fun playing alone, while others are taking on bosses with the help of other players. And there also seems to be no shortage of players immersing in PvP, which has brought about more unique ways of enjoying the game. One that has become a hot topic on the /r/Eldenring subreddit is a video featuring three players face to face with an invader.

Elden Ring supports cooperative play of up to three players (with a fourth player when including a potential invader), PvP duels, and password protection for your multiplayer experience. But when playing co-op, there comes the risk of an invader joining your game and attempting to kill you and your partners. In the above Reddit video, the poster Dr-True tries invading another player’s game for the first time. However, Dr-True found themselves face to face with an unusual looking crew.

This post contains images of gear and potential spoilers for Elden Ring.

What the Reddit user saw was a group of three nearly naked buff guys. Each of these burly fellows was wearing the Bloodhound Knight Helm, with its distinctive beak design and the mark of knights known to never lose track of their prey. They were also a diverse bunch with each character having different skin colors. In the video we see the buff trio slowly and silently approach the invader. A much more intimidating move than rushing to attack. They surrounded the invader, blocking any escape routes. When the invader cowered on the ground, the trio used the “Inner Order” gesture to form a triangle around the player.

While it sounds like the stuff of nightmares, it’s actually rather amusing and made a big splash with the community amassing over 49,000 upvotes as of this writing. Elden Ring’s unique ways to play seem to really draw attention from fans.

The following day, a player behind one of these buff bruisers posted a video from the perspective of the trio. In the video we can see the three players running and using fist weapons to beat up on enemies in a somewhat coordinated fashion. Their sense of unity clearly demonstrates the fun that can be had with co-op play.

Also note that the invader in the video, who presumably joined for a fight, even appears to be supporting these naked lads. It does look to be a different player than Dr-True, though. The player must have seen this odd bunch working together in battle and had a change of heart. The freedom players have to create their own fun in Elden Ring can do that to a person.

FromSoftware games have long had a multiplayer culture where players dress eccentrically when participating, from the Dark Souls series to Bloodborne. While running around naked is popular, some also dress up like NPCs or characters from other properties. And the tradition seems to be alive and well in Elden Ring with its character creation features and variety of gear. On social media, we’ve also seen players having their characters cosplay as popular anime and manga characters.

We tend to focus on the fun of Elden Ring being its stiff challenge, the sense of accomplishment, and its exploration. But that’s not all the game has to offer. If you get tired on your journey through the Lands Between, maybe you can try running around naked with your friends or challenging your fashion sense.