Elden Ring: The Ultimate Guide To Summoning And Co-Op Play

Like all of its FromSoftware stablemates, Elden Ring doesn't hold your hand. The game is designed to challenge players from the get-go, leaving many to navigate its complexities on their own. This is evident in the limited tutorials and the hidden nature of essential plot information, which is often buried in item descriptions. For fans of the Soulsborne genre, this sense of mystery is what makes the experience rewarding. However, it can also lead to frustration, especially when players grapple with fundamental gameplay mechanics, such as inviting friends for cooperative play. Fortunately, this guide will elucidate everything you need to know about summoning co-op partners to tackle the game's daunting bosses together.

To dive into the online multiplayer features of Elden Ring, first, you must ensure that you're connected to the internet. The game's main menu provides a clear indication of your network status, labeled as either "Online" or "Offline." If you find yourself playing without a connection due to personal preference or technical issues, you can easily navigate to the settings page and adjust your network options. Just remember, any changes you make will require a game restart to take effect. This step is crucial, as it sets the stage for your co-op adventures!

Once you are online, the next step is understanding how co-op works in Elden Ring. The game implements a unique system where players can summon others for short durations. These allies will stay by your side until you either perish or defeat the nearest boss. After that, you'll need to repeat the summoning process, which adds an exciting layer of strategy as you plan your multiplayer sessions. In the following sections, we will discuss how you can effectively summon other players and what you need to do to invite friends for a seamless co-op experience.

How to Play 'Elden Ring' Online

First thing's first, you will obviously need to be connected to the internet if you want to play Elden Ring with friends. You can check your network status on the game’s main menu, where a bit of text in the bottom right-hand corner of the screen reveals if you are "Online" or if you are "Offline."

If for some reason, you started the game without connecting to the Bandai Namco servers (either because you wanted to ease yourself into things before playing online, were experiencing network issues, or still had to download the update) then you can always manually change this by heading into the relevant settings page. This can be accessed on the main menu, by clicking on the "System" button. From there, navigate to the fourth tab (represented by a globe symbol), where all of the network settings can be found. As a quick side note, you will need to restart the game for any changes to take effect.

How Co-Op Works in 'Elden Ring'

Even the most standard gameplay features are quite convoluted in Elden Ring. This is amply demonstrated by its bizarre approach to multiplayer, which requires you to find various in-game items before you can join others on a quest.

In a nutshell, you can summon other players into your game for a temporary period only. They will remain by your side until you either die or beat the nearest boss together. If you want to reunite after that, you will need to repeat the steps for summoning them all over again.

How to Summon Another Player in 'Elden Ring'

If you want to just summon a random helper from the internet, then you must first consume an elixir known as the "Furlcalling Finger Remedy."

These are one-use items that you will need to stockpile if you plan on doing a lot of co-op sessions. You can find them by looting random dead bodies, trading with merchants, or crafting them yourself. The latter is probably the easiest method, as the only requisite ingredients are two erdleaf flowers, which are themselves dotted all over the world in hedges.

Once you have consumed a Furlcalling Finger Remedy, previously invisible summoning signs will be revealed to you. These look like a series of glyphs that have been etched into the floor.

How to Invite a Friend to Co-Op in 'Elden Ring'

In most games, like Dying Light 2 for example, playing with a buddy is relatively straightforward. All you have to do is find them in your friends list and then send over an invite.

As you might have guessed, the process is not so streamlined in Elden Ring. If you want to be more selective about who you are summoning, then you will need to create a private password.

To do this, open up the pause menu (which incidentally does not pause the game like you might assume) and navigate down to the "Multiplayer" option.

How to Leave a Summon Sign in 'Elden Ring'

If you fancy being a good Samaritan and lending assistance to other players, then you must leave behind your own summoning sign.

To do this, you will need to use the "Tarnished Furled Finger" totem, which can be found by looting the corpse at the Stranded Graveyard staircase. Bundled together with this item, you will also get the "Finger Severer," which allows you to disconnect from the host's server if you want to end co-op.

It's important to consider where you place your summon sign, as you will be called to help players in that immediate vicinity. With that in mind, if you want to team up against a specific boss, it's best to use the Tarnished Furled Finger right outside the nearest arena.

Elden Ring is available now on Xbox One, Xbox Series X, PS4, PS5, and PC.