Every once in a while a game comes along that stands above the rest. Some call these "game of the generation" or "game of the decade". I hesitate to call this either as "generation" is losing all meaning among video games and we are still VERY early in this decade. What I would say though is that when 2020 hit, people DID call out various games for "game of the decade" and the take I found myself agreeing with the most regarding this topic was that Dark Souls was the "Game of the Decade" for the decade of 2010-2019. What I take this to mean is that when this game came out, it was in discussions non-stop and it was always compared to other games that released since as sort of the bar of game difficulty. Games released would be the "Dark Souls of [genre]" or described as "Dark Souls hard". Now, Dark Souls isn't the first game of its kind or even the first one of it's developer's games BUT it was the first popular one of its type and it stood out. With all that in mind THIS game, Elden Ring, is the culmination of the Dark Souls decade and its influence. It is a game like Dark Souls that has been refined and forged into its peak form. It's as though developer From Software took all the things that were enjoyable about their previous games, added the Breath of the Wild idea of an open world you choose to explore instead of one that asks you to, and also filled it with an interesting lore throughout. It feels like the current pinnacle of "Soulslike" games. Anyone can really get into it and explore at their leisure which allows players to go do something else if they find something too challenging while also providing a good challenge for people that want it. It's a really brilliant move that allows for choice without making something as blatant as an "easy mode". There's all sorts of secrets to find in this and loads of tough opponents to best. You can play and explore on your own or with a friend. I think the peak experience with this game has been playing it while others were also playing for the first time. It really added to the experience for me to swap stories about what we found as friends and I played at different paces. Really fun time overall and an experience I don't think I would trade for anything.