How long does it take to beat Elden Ring?

Elden Ring is a tough game, even for Soulsborne veterans, so it can be a rather substantial time investment.

Compared to Dark Souls, Elden Ring is a rather large open-world that has a lot to see, do and overcome. Despite this, it should take at least 40 hours to complete Elden Ring‘s main story.

Since Elden Ring has a wide variety of secrets to uncover, that forty hours of playtime could double or triple up. In addition to simply playing through the story, there are other things that you can do to go above the forty-hour story mark.

1. Expect to go through a lot of mini-dungeons, as they have worthwhile rewards.
2. It is expected that you visit every dungeon that you see. The Lands Between is huge, beautifully crafted, and if you don’t explore it all, you are missing out on the lore, its exemplary environmental designs and some of the coolest quests in the game.
3. Every optional dungeon eventually leads to a boss, which can be easy or hard, depending on a wide variety of factors.
4. Aside from going through the main story, PVP and co-op offer a bunch of additional things to do.
5. Merchants have documents that allow you to find hidden treasure
6. Overworld bosses are rampant. Expect to see them as you explore Lands Between. Taking down them yield greater rewards and items that can be beneficial later on.
7. At about every merchant you go to, there are some sort of notes that you can get that turns into scavenger hunt. Most of them will lead you to treasure or hidden areas that can take quite some time to clear.
8. Some of the NPCs in the game will give you quests. Doing them will give you a more expansive knowledge on the lore and what is going on in Lands Between.