Elden Ring's Dodge Roll Deserves Praise

If you've played Elden Ring, or nearly any third-person combat game, chances are you're well-versed in the wonderful feature known as the “rolling dodge.” This evasion technique enables your hero to carry out a forward, sideways, or backward tumble to avoid all incoming damage and create distance from the bad guy. Appears practical, right?

The evasion roll, nevertheless, has received a lot of flak, and not just because of the rolling; it's been called unintelligent, a easy way out, and an unbelievable technique — and sometimes, I concur. Just imagine me tumbling about hostile mobs in The Witcher 3 — untouchable! But the title's dodge roll represents the evasion to surpass every other evasion moves, and I'll tell you why.

Regarding this title, the creators discovered an excellent method to counter all sentiments that the move is overly simple: just grant all foes unreasonable strength, multiply it, and every Tarnished who approaches them will appreciate deeply because of their evasion move, me included. Given the intense difficulty, pulling off a perfect dodge comes across as a triumph, not a cheat.

No alternative avoidance technique in Elden Ring matches this feeling of accomplishment and consistency, as quick dashes don't cover much ground and blocking attempts are readily overcome by tough opponents. Someone once recommended hopping as the main Elden Ring dodging technique, but in addition to lacking perfect repositioning, It wasn't clear to me taking a crushing hit might boost my prospects of overcoming challenges (inexperience, possibly).

Perfecting the Skill

Although this evasion move grants reprieve in an incredibly challenging experience, it demands ability. First of all, Elden Ring's evasion move just activates a window of invulnerability once you release the dodge button, which hinders a hasty, frantic retreat from dire situations. Furthermore, although it may carry you off from enemies, it's significantly more useful to utilize it as a moment to advance, optimally at their back, and strike blows. Lastly, it remains necessary to understand and anticipate enemy attacks, because rolling prematurely of an extended wind-up may end your invincibility before the blow lands… causing significant harm.

A Balanced Mechanic

Although evasion-rolling in fast repetition may look a bit ridiculous (give it up for Geralt again), this isn't truly feasible in this title. Of course, that still doesn't make it a realistic fighting maneuver — the very cause why it would be dreadful to witness it in a title like a historical simulation — yet we're discussing a spectacular magical game under discussion, thus why worry?

Comparable to any well-executed dodge roll, Elden Ring's dodge motion is enhanced with a little somersault-y hop at the start, giving it an energetic feel as opposed to dropping the character downward. According to your loadout, the move can feel super agile or relatively slow, yet it's always faster and more fluid than the evasion moves found in the previous titles. Admittedly, you may embed your oversized sword in the dirt if you're carrying one, but that's your responsibility for avoiding alternative arms (I'm joking — don't play Elden Ring with a crossbow).

Ideal Equilibrium

The game's avoidance feature establishes an ideal equilibrium between difficulty and chance, offering hope of victory while risking the loss of that hope at the tiniest misstep. Learn this skill, and you'll gain more than triumph, but gratification.

Robert Spencer
Robert Spencer

A passionate mobile gaming enthusiast and tech writer, sharing in-depth reviews and guides to enhance your gaming experience.