Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice came out with great commercial and critical success; it even got the Game of the Year award as well. But not everyone loved the game; namely, Dark Souls and BloodBorne fans were unhappy with the drastic change. FromSoftware’s latest title, Elden Ring, is more to the liking of older fans, as it goes back to its “Soulsborne” roots. Elden Ring brought back the stamina meter, did away with the linear storytelling, and removed the deflecting and posture mechanic, among others.
A fan recently decided to make Elden Ring a bit more like its predecessor, adding back the previously mentioned mechanics. The mod was made by AntiSteak and is aptly named Total Combat Overhaul mod.
The Mod’s Changes to Elden Ring
The mod adds new combo attacks and changes how melee weapons work in Elden Ring, and Total Combat Overhaul turns the base systems of the game into Sekiro’s, adding back the deflection mechanic. The mod does not add back the posture mechanic, nor does it bring back deathblows. It does, however, let the player regenerate the stamina bar by parrying moves.
Doing deflections in Elden Ring seems to be easier when compared to Sekiro. According to AntiSteak, the player can see an icon when an attack can be stopped. But this mod doesn’t make the game any easier to play because it does not allow you to block heavy attacks in quick succession.
The new dodge can be used like in Sekiro, using its speed to avoid incoming attacks. It is necessary as enemies now can make perilous attacks like in Sekiro. Perilous attacks are unblockable moves that need to be sidestepped or jumped.
Sekiro also had a feature where the player could clash swords against the enemy; this would happen when the player and enemy attacked at the same time. This clash mechanic is also available in Elden Ring now using the mod.
For anyone who has finished Elden Ring and all other FromSoftware titles, this mod could breathe new life into the lands between.
