Within the first couple of months of Elden Ring's release, the Age of Stars ending has emerged as the most popular. Considering that this is one of the few endings where the player doesn't become Elden Lord, this is something of a surprise. When one looks a bit deeper into the ending though, it is easy to see why players would be drawn to this ending in particular.

 [Warning: The following article contains spoilers for Elden Ring.] 

In most of Elden Ring's endings, the player reforges the titular Elden Ring and becomes the Elden Lord. Many of the ending variations involve various runes that are received from certain NPCs that change the results of reforging the ring. For example, Dung Eater's Elden Ring ending involves using his personal rune to curse the whole of the Lands Between. Despite all of these endings involving becoming the Elden Lord, Steam achievement data shows that more players have chosen the Age of Stars.

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One of the strengths of Age of Stars is that it prominently features two of Elden Ring's best characters. Ranni the witch is one of the game's most mysterious and instantly intriguing NPCs. As the main character of the Age of Stars ending, the player will become plenty familiar with her along that route. This ending also prominently features Ranni's loyal companion Blaidd. Blaidd is not only one of Elden Ring's Berserk references, but also one of the game's coolest-looking characters, being a massive warrior with an equally large sword who wears a wolf pelt. It is little wonder why fans flocked to their route.

Age Of Stars Is All About Ranni, Elden Ring's Best Character

As one of Elden Ring's most engaging characters, Ranni's ending is naturally intriguing.

The Age of Stars is also unique among the game's routes. It is the only one aside from the Lord of Frenzied Flame route that doesn't involve the Elden Ring, and the Frenzied Flame is an obvious bad ending. The Age of Stars gives the player a chance to change the Lands Between in a major way. In big adventure games, it's always great when a game lets the player feel as if they're having a bigger impact. Although serving Ranni in Elden Ring is a long and sometimes arduous process, the Age of Stars is the most obvious way for the player to leave an impact on the Lands Between.

The final argument for the Age of Stars is that it is simply the most interesting ending. The Ages of Fracture, Duskborn, and Order all feel rather similar, being triumphant endings with the protagonist on top as the new lord. Blessing of Despair and Lord of the Frenzied Flame, on the other hand, are rather terrifying, with the protagonist having quite possibly doomed the world. However, the Age of Stars has a very different, more open-ended mood. While the player is still triumphant, only scant details are known about the future of the Lands Between. Although Ranni's Elden Ring ending has some mistranslations in the text, the mystery of the Age of Stars poses exciting implications for the game's lore.

The Age of the Stars ending is the most interesting outcome for Elden Ring, and many players seem to agree. Spearheaded by the game's most intriguing character, the Age of Stars seems almost destined to have become the fan-preferred ending. It seems that the best version of Elden Ring ends with the Lands Between bathed underneath the stars.

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