Black_Hawk
Skilled
I definitely don't want to put extra effort beyond game time. I will recommend a game like AC Origins/Odyssey over Elden Ring to most gamers because of the difficulty & easier to follow story.
You like it, others like it, fine. But I was sorely disappointed with Elden Ring, more so because it could have been much better. The build crafting, types of enemies/bosses, even the open world were great, but let down for me by its difficulty, story & few other mechanics. I used the easy mod to take care of difficulty, 60fps is not great but was ok for me & for story, my friend is a fan of Elden Ring, so he let me know what was happening. Coop could have been a seamless experience as well.
I did replay AC Origins for 2nd time after Elden Ring to see if I indeed found it better & yes, I will prefer Origins over Elden Ring.
Anyways, just my opinion.
I like what you have written here and I respect the fact that you didn't like Elden Ring and you aren't afraid to state that, boldly. Even I'm not into Souls games and Elden Ring isn't my cup of tea. I tried them but could never like the entire repeated boss fight and grind structuring which is why I left them and simple don't spend more time delving into them. Of course I completely understand the folks who love these games and they are great games in their own rights but I just think one should NOT pressurize one's self into playing games one doesn't like or games that don't thrill. At the end of the day it's all about a hobby and the enjoyment of such and games allow that alternate world where we can escape from the daily real world grind.