I'm 300 hours into Elden Ring and have only now discovered its version of Dark Souls' worst area

Elden Ring
(Image credit: FromSoftware)

Picture the scene. I'm playing Elden Ring. My two preschool children are sleeping upstairs, and my girlfriend is sitting on the couch opposite reading a book. "Holy shit," I say. I can't believe what I'm seeing. Elden Ring has surprised me on many occasions to date, but right now I'm speechless. My girlfriend asks what's up, and I tell her I've just discovered a new area in the game that I've been playing almost every single night for close to a year now. And not just any area, a big area. One with tunnels and suspended walkways and loads of new baddies that I've never seen before. My girlfriend says that's nice. But it's not. What it is, is Elden Ring's Subterranean Shunning-Grounds. 

Fast forward 15 minutes and I'm swearing like a sailor at my screen, cursing this forsaken level and fuming at everything from its shady enemy placement to its ramshackle layout and needlessly punishing level design. My two preschool children are no longer sleeping, my girlfriend is no longer humoring me, and I'm no longer as enamored by my landmark discovery than I was a quarter of an hour ago. This is not nice at all. In fact, this is Elden Ring's answer to Blighttown – the original Dark Souls' most hated location.

Going underground

Elden Ring

(Image credit: FromSoftware)

Despite my rage (which we'll get to in a second) the beauty of this, of course, is the fact that even though I've spent over 300 hours with Elden Ring, I'm somehow still making such jaw-dropping discoveries. I won't lie and tell you I've avoided Wikis entirely during my time scouring the Lands Between – some bosses during my first playthrough had me totally stumped; as did where to go next on the main questline at times – but I have by and large kept extra help at arm's length. It's a personal thing for me when it comes to FromSoftware games: that sense of hopelessness and helplessness is something that drives my enjoyment, but it also means I'm less familiar with the quirks and secrets these games offer off the beaten track. Elden Ring is bigger and broader than any of FromSoft's back catalog too, meaning despite having unlocked the entire map, I'm still uncovering new spots.  

As such, I totally missed Elden Ring's Subterranean Shunning-Grounds during my first runthrough, and only discovered it by accident during my current New Game+ adventure. Even more baffling is the fact I'm not even convinced I discovered it when I was supposed to. For those unaware, the optional underground area is accessed via the Leyndell Royal Capital, but I didn't stumble upon it until the city was buried in ash right at the tail end of the late game. It's accessed via a well under pre-burning Erdtree conditions, but is simply marked by an open sewer grate thereafter – where you're required to make three precarious, death-defying drops to gain entry. Truth be told: I'm thrilled and absolutely gutted with my discovery, in equal measure.

Elden Ring

(Image credit: FromSoftware)

"Because, simply, the Subterranean Shunning-Grounds is a fucking nightmare."

Because, simply, the Subterranean Shunning-Grounds is a fucking nightmare. Given its placement beneath the opulent sprawl of the Royal Capital, there will be lore tied to this location that I'm yet to read but will now seek out. On the surface, though, it's a wicked spiral of drain pipes and ladders, of enemies that drop down from above or cling to the sides of structures out of sight. It's a labyrinth of tunnels that lead to nowhere, packed with rats, poisonous flowers, banshees and Death Blight-breathing Basilisks. Getting around involves either running the gamut down stamina-sapping thoroughfares with three hulking, dual-sword wielding juggernauts on your tail, or dropping down onto the slimmest of ledges to access new areas, cursing every time you miss the mark and die, and die, and die again. It is, as far as I see it, Elden Ring's answer to Dark Souls' The Depths and Blighttown, two of that game's most derided areas, all rolled into one. 

Blighttown was an evolution of Demon's Souls' Valley of Defilement. Dark Souls 2 had The Gutter, Dark Souls 3 had Farron Keep, and Bloodborne had the Forbidden Woods, each of which was defined by their poisonous swamps and incongruous architecture. Elden Ring's Subterranean Shunning-Grounds plays heavier on the latter, but it is easily one of the game's most frustrating and grueling arenas – so much so that I think it's the first location where I've relied on activating shortcuts, as opposed to just finding them helpful. Especially when your reward for all of this is an equally maze-like tomb that houses fire traps, spike walls, falling cleavers, and poison-spewing zombies; and precedes a pretty fierce boss battle with Mohg, The Omen.

The 300 club

Elden Ring

(Image credit: FromSoftware, Emma Kent)

Look, I realize there's every chance some of you are reading this and saying, how the hell is he only discovering this place now?! And you might be right. But I guess the beauty of Elden Ring's suggestive lore and optional pathways means it's possible for someone pretty familiar with how these games work to still be discovering such intricate locations with so much game time under my belt. And I love that. I think this is my last big location revelation – I've already cleared Miquella's Haligtree and Nokron, the Eternal City, for example – but I'm now starting to doubt myself. 

Does Elden Ring have what it takes to become this generation's Skyrim? I asked that question way back on March 3 last year, less than a week after the game had launched. Almost a year on, over 300 hours in, I'm still uncovering huge underground areas, and I think it's got every chance. Perhaps it's already there. But I guess time will continue to tell.  


Looking for more worlds to explore? Check out the best games like Elden Ring out now 

Joe Donnelly
Contributor

Joe Donnelly is a sports editor from Glasgow and former features editor at GamesRadar+. A mental health advocate, Joe has written about video games and mental health for The Guardian, New Statesman, VICE, PC Gamer and many more, and believes the interactive nature of video games makes them uniquely placed to educate and inform. His book Checkpoint considers the complex intersections of video games and mental health, and was shortlisted for Scotland's National Book of the Year for non-fiction in 2021. As familiar with the streets of Los Santos as he is the west of Scotland, Joe can often be found living his best and worst lives in GTA Online and its PC role-playing scene.

Read more
Bloodborne
10 years on, Bloodborne remains an unmatchable feat of atmosphere thanks to the mind-boggling oppressive scale of Yharnam
Elden Ring Nightreign
Elden Ring Nightreign feels like a modded version of FromSoftware's best game ever – and after 3 hours, I only wanted to play more
Screenshots of battle in Elden Ring Nightreign along with a logo for GamesRadar+'s Big in 2025 features
Elden Ring Nightreign could be the Fortnite of Soulslikes, but probably not for the reason you think
Henry and pal in a stockade in Kingdom Come Deliverance 2
I hated my first few hours with Kingdom Come Deliverance 2, but now you couldn't take it away from me
Elden Ring Nightreign
The random events in Elden Ring Nightreign are the funniest thing FromSoftware's ever cooked up, from a rain of ants to Morgott jump scares
A screenshot of Elden Ring boss Godfrey, the first Elden Lord
Meet Elden Ring's new community hero, the Elder Lord, a 72-year-old gamer with over 700 hours and New Game+7 beaten: "It was impossible, but I did it anyway"
Latest in Action Rpg
Lies of P trailer
Elden Ring Nightreign isn't pushing Lies of P to go multiplayer, but the director is "open" to co-op games in the future
AI Limit
"AI is not as effective as it might appear": Dev of AI-focused Soulslike RPG says they didn't use any AI-generated content and it can't match "genuine creativity"
The First Berserker: Khazan protagonist
The First Berserker: Khazan isn't even out yet, but the new Soulslike RPG already has over 1,300 94% positive reviews on Steam from early buyers
Lies of P art showing P walking in a snowy forest
Lies of P director loves FromSoftware and respects the Soulslike tag, but says "I'm really serious, I'm not lying, I'm very truthful, our focus is to create our own style of game"
Lies of P Overture art of P
Lies of P director says Overture DLC is at least 15 to 20 hours long for "experienced" players, packing tons of bosses and ideas the devs couldn't fit at launch
Monster Hunter Wilds screenshot showing a hunter battling a congalala
If you missed the last one, the new Monster Hunter Wilds event quest is another way to stock up on rare ingredients before the big update drops next week
Latest in News
Assassin's Creed Shadows screenshot showing Yasuke kneeling and praying while wearing a traditional purple robe
Ubisoft reaches deal with Tencent to create $4.3 billion mini-Ubisoft subsidiary to "spearhead development" on new Assassin's Creed, Far Cry, and Rainbow Six games
Skyrim
Ex-Bethesda dev says his new studio isn't making a "little Skyrim," but does channel a key part of the iconic RPG: "Stuff got built because somebody cared about building it"
Wyatt Russell, Sebastian Stan, Hannah John-Kamen and David Harbour in Thunderbolts
The new Thunderbolts teaser namedrops the Avengers twice, less than a day after the cast was confirmed for Doomsday
Marvel Cosmic Invasion promo art showing various heroes teaming up against Annihilus
The spirit of those incredible '90s arcade comic book brawlers lives on in Marvel Cosmic Invasion, a new retro beat-em-up game from the creators of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge
Assassin's Creed Shadows cinematic screenshot
Assassin's Creed Shadows shoots past 3 million players and 40 million hours played with the "second-highest day 1 sales revenue in Assassin's Creed franchise history"
Masc presenting person napping on gaming chair next to Boulies MagVida desk with laptop and controller next to tea cup, lamp, and flip calendar
Chair makers Bouiles just launched a new standing desk that only takes five minutes to put together