A hot potato: Elden Ring, the recently launched action RPG from developer FromSoftware and publisher Bandai Namco, is off to the kind of start that others can only dream of. As of writing, the PC version of the game has a Metacritic score of 95 (and it's even higher for the PS5 version). It's not perfect, however, as a handful of launch-day bugs have proven bothersome for some gamers. Others - perhaps those new to the Souls formula - have discovered that the lack of a true in-game pause function can be equally frustrating.
If you're willing to make a couple of sacrifices to rectify the matter, this mod may be for you.
The "Pause the Game" mod from TechieW adds a simple pause function to Elden Ring on the PC. In order to use the mod, you'll have to disable Easy Anti-Cheat, which in turn means you can't play online.
A game without a proper pause function adds a layer of inconvenience to the overall equation. In discussing Elden Ring's difficulty, director Hidetaka Miyazaki said he does feel apologetic toward anyone that believes there is too much to overcome in his games.
"We are always looking to improve, but, in our games specifically, hardship is what gives meaning to the experience," Miyazaki said. "It's not something we're willing to abandon at the moment. It's our identity," he added.
What are your thoughts? Is it perfectly acceptable for some games to exclude a pause function, or is it something that ultimately drives you away from wanting to play such titles?