Everyone loves doing challenge runs of FromSoftware games, and none is more repeatable than an Elden Ring randomizer that switches up the locations of every item and boss in the game.
Streamer Bushy decided to do a deathless, randomized run of Elden Ring where he could only progress to the next region of the map once he’d fully cleared out the one preceding it. That’s 207 bosses with just a single life, and if he dies the randomizer gets reset. This effectively turns Elden Ring into a roguelike – it’s Nightreign before Nightreign has come out.
His five-hour-long YouTube video properly starts with attempt nine, where Bushy gets the dragon katana early. It’s a solid weapon that comes with a lightning buff, and his strategy is to loot graveyards and find merchants, as that’s how he can sort through the most items in as short a time as possible.
The first boss he fights is right outside castle Stormveil, Watchdog the Fell Omen. It’s a nice touch that the randomizer keeps part of the name of the original boss so you can keep track of who you should be fighting.
It’s impressive just how much Bushy knows about Elden Ring. He has beaten the game over 100 times and done some wild challenges, but it’s still impressive to see him dodge, duck, dip, dive, and dodge every boss attack from pure memory.
He’s also very funny. He fights Rennala in Limgrave, and as her minions are attacking him, he shouts, “Stop throwing books at me. I can’t fucking read!”
Unfortunately, Wormface gets him in the Hero’s Grave due to Deathblight, and it’s game over for attempt nine.
I won’t spoil just how many attempts it takes, but it’s far fewer than you might think. The last boss is also somewhat anticlimactic, but that’s the risk you take when you run a randomizer like this. Palworld just got a built-in randomizer and permadeath mode thanks to its new Feybreak update.
If you’re wanting more soulslike action, check out our ranking of the best FromSoftware games.