In case there was any doubt about this.
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Hey imagine that, a FromSoftware game that's difficult. Wow, never saw that one coming. It seems as though Elden Ring will continue the idea that FromSoftware only makes challenging game for only the manliest Gamers with the biggest muscles and largest epeens. If you are one of those Gamers who like a challenge and don't want it watered down by playing with a friend, don't you worry one little bit about that! FromSoftware says that the summon mechanic has been balanced to not make Elden Ring any easier.

This news came from a recent hands-off preview of the game alongside a Q&A session that was passed along by IGN.

“What we’ve tried to do is design the spirit summons where they’re placed throughout the game and how you will level them up throughout the game in a way that doesn’t make the game just drastically easier whenever you bring them out."
Summons in Elden Ring will work a bit differently than in previous FromSoftware titles. You can still summon online players to help you. However, the NPCs that you can summon in Elden Ring will be "offline AI with their own progression elements." Players will have to decide between allocating stat points into their own character or into their summons.

The characters you can summon are also determined by how you explore Elden Ring's open world areas. As always, summons will be optional. So you can still brag on the Internet that you soloed all of the bosses while blindfolded and someone is opening up cans of surströmming next to you.