Summary
Even with a heightened risk of cheaters and hackers, FromSoftware’s Soulslike games still have a large fanbase on personal computers. This can be a general platform preference, but many like to take advantage of the various mods every PC FromSoftware title receives. Fan projects are practically a staple of the FromSoftware community, ranging from the famous DSfix that made computer copies intoDark Souls 1’s best version, to research projects like importingArmored Core 6models intoElden Ringto see how large they really are. TheDark Soulstrilogy,Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice,Elden Ring, andArmored Core 6: Fires of Rubiconare all part of this trend, and it shows no sign of stopping.
Indeed, it seems like the community’s best efforts are still ahead of them. A project calledDark Souls: Archthrones, which intends to bringDemon’s Soulsfeatures intoDark Souls 3, is still ongoing, much like a fansequel toDark Souls 1calledNightfall. Two especially notable mods share the name “The Convergence,” with one forDark Souls 3and the other forElden Ring.Dark Souls 3: The Convergenceis complete, and remains one of that title’s most famous mods thanks to how thoroughly it changes and expands the game and its magic system.Elden Ring’s equivalent isn’t likely to finish development for a long time, but the currentConvergencebuilds already feels like a whole new game.
RELATED:Elden Ring: The 10 Best Starting Classes In The Convergence Mod, Ranked
Elden Ring: The Convergence Is A Truly Open Game
Dark Souls 1fans have been known to fondly reminisce about how it used shortcuts to tie areas together, often in unexpected ways. The resulting 3D metroidvania design hasn’t been as prominent in any FromSoftware games since, soDark Souls 3: The Convergencebecame like an idealizedDark Souls 4by linking areas with warp points.Dark Souls 3: The Convergence’s general design ethos carried over intoElden Ring: The Convergence, and that includes said interconnected approach. That may seem redundant withElden Ring’s open world, but such notions are quickly dispelled upon experiencingThe Convergence’s changes.
Immediately, players will discover that every starting class has its own starting point, and that enemies in regions like Caelid or Altus are weaker than normal. All of this and more makes it quickly apparent that most of the game is accessible right away. On top ofThe Convergence’smany places to go firstand the expected warp shortcuts, Minor Erdtrees have also gained their own fast travel system distinct from Sites of Grace. Most importantly, progression is now tied to defeating one member from five groups of Remembrance bosses, a major change from fighting two Great Rune bearers in vanillaElden Ring.The Convergencemanaged to makeElden Ring’s world feel more open, and that’s all before unpacking its gameplay changes.
RELATED:Elden Ring Convergence Mod: Best New Armor Sets (& Where To Get Them)
The Convergence Massively Expands Elden Ring’s Build Options
As mentioned, every class has their own starting point, and that’s far from all. Like itsDark Souls 3counterpart,The Convergenceintroduces many new classes, each with a distinct theme and build orientation. Not only that, but they also have their own progression quests, with notes hinting at equipment and progressive spell items hidden in appropriate areas. With the enormous spell list increase to matchDS3’s own and a steadily growing equipment list,Elden Ring’s build variety is steadily climbing. The patch 1.3.3 list of 27 starting classes and their specialties are as follows:
Even though it will take some time for modders to develop original content inElden Ring’s engine, whatThe Convergencehas now still feels like a new experience. Plenty ofElden Ring’s equipment has been tweaked or replacedalready, and more additions will come. In the meantime, players can adjust to the rebalanced status effects, a switch from staffs and seals boosting spell families to spell damage types, and more. Special mention goes toElden Ring’s underused crafting system, which has been given new life through tying it to the game’s Talismans and Physick Tears. Players could spend years figuring outThe Convergence’s new meta, and the mod isn’t even done yet.
Old Elden Ring Players Will Be Constantly Surprised By The Convergence
So many other quality-of-life changes can be found inThe Convergence’s alpha builds, including a separate place for the mod’s save files, Remembrance boss re-fights, and some more detailed item descriptions. In general, even with Spirit Ashes being rebalanced to be more like NPC summons,The Convergencecan feel like aneasier take onElden Ring. However,Dark Souls 3’sConvergencewas the same way, and it still changed so much that players never knew for sure how to deal with the mod’s next surprise.
Novel Playthroughs Are The Convergence’s Greatest Strength
In similar ways to a randomizer mod,The Convergencemakes exploration fun again through plenty of clever changes. Enemies and dungeons have been remixed on top of their altered scaling, new bosses replace certain old ones, a couple areas have become Legacy Dungeons, and the new main and class quests mean players can experience different swaths of the game with each playthrough. Despite its incomplete state,The Convergenceadds thereplay value someElden Ringfans felt was missing, and should continue to impress long afterElden Ring’s DLC has come and gone.
