The folks at From Software dropped a new Elden Ring trailer this afternoon, providing almost three full minutes of gameplay for the previously camera-shy game. And while I’m sure the loremasters and other internet sleuths are deducing clues about the game’s narrative and mechanics as I type, my attention has been focused on something else entirely: that double-jumping horse.
We’ve known for some time that Elden Ring would deviate from the Dark Souls formula by introducing mounted combat, but I don’t think anyone was prepared for the horses to be so freaking acrobatic. In addition to the above snippet, which demonstrates how your equine companions will be able to double jump, there was also a bit where the horse damn near flies up a sheer cliff face. Forget the dragons, this is all I’m thinking about now.
While I don’t really care about silly things like lore-grounded explanations when it comes to something as great as magical, flying horses, it does seem like there might be some sort of gameplay mechanic involved here. See how the horse’s hooves are surrounded by a kind of supernatural mist or energy while they’re performing these airborne feats? I think these maneuvers might be limited to specific areas or even tied to a resource like magic or stamina. This is for sure the first thing I’m going to try once I finally get my hands on the game.
Elden Ring is finally coming to PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and PC on January 21, 2022.