FromSoftware's acclaimed Dark Souls series is known for its deep, cryptic lore, so Elden Ring's core concept is a promising one. A Song of Ice and Fire author George R. R. Martin collaborated on the lore and world of Elden Ring with Souls creator Hidetaka Miyazaki. Both are known for the depth of world-building they bring to their respective franchises, and fans have finally gotten a first look at what that means for Elden Ring's story.

Elden Ring debuted at E3 2019 with a two-minute trailer. From that, audiences learned the game centered around an item called the Elden Ring, which has been shattered by a nefarious force and left behind a world that needs healing. A Summer Game Fest 2021 Elden Ring trailer finally showed more about the game, and accompanying information revealed many new story details.

Related: Elden Ring's Biggest Enemy At Launch Is Hype

The trailer itself hints at aspects of Elden Ring's lore, with a narrator discussing an "unending curse," a "Golden Order," and other Dark Souls-sounding terms. Rather than writing the script itself, Martin wrote Elden Ring's world history - "legends" FromSoftware then built the game world on, Miyazaki explained in a press release.

"We've crafted a rich world with a staggering sense of scale, [...] a world full of mystery and peril, ready to be explored and discovered; a drama in which various character flaunt their own mystique and ulterior motives."

Elden Ring Story Details From Summer Game Fest 2021

Elden Ring Tarnished warrior fights arm king

According to further details on the Elden Ring website, the game's story takes place in the Lands Between, ruled by Queen Marika the Eternal (who is perhaps the formidable red-headed warrior featured in both trailers). She is mother to a horde of demigods, each of whom has taken a shard of the Elden Ring. Known as the Great Runes, these shards grant the demigods immense strength - apparently at the cost of sanity. This triggered a war that caused the abandonment of an entity called the Greater Will.

The protagonist of Elden Ring is the Tarnished, someone tasked with reassembling the shattered Elden Ring and wielding its power to become the Elden Lord. Though every part of them is covered in armor or chainmail, they appear to be one of the few human characters in the story. The website describes them as "ye dead who yet live, your grace long lost," which could be an indication the Tarnished is undead. The site also says the Tarnished "were spurned by the grace of gold and exiled," seemingly a reference to the "broken" Golden Order from the trailer. While the Golden Order is a mystery, it's possible they served as guardians of the Elden Ring.

Related: Elden Ring: What Is The Golden Order?

The Elden Ring itself is the source of the Erdtree, a massive, white spirit-tree growing around a building and into the sky. It's unclear what specific power the Elden Ring and the Erdtree hold and what their connection to the Greater Will is, but from the fractured and gruesome nature of the Lands Between in their absence, it stands to reason they work in cohesion to maintain peace.

The main plot of Elden Ring, as surmised from the trailer, is a tried and true high-fantasy story: The protagonist fights their way through the evils of a ruined land in an effort to restore a magical object and bring peace to the realm. The setting of Elden Ring, however, could elevate the story to something new, judging by the lore teased so far.

Next: Elden Ring's Open World Has Day/Night Cycle & Dynamic Weather

Elden Ring will be available for PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, and PC on January 21, 2021

Source: Bandai Namco