Elden Ring – Covenant System Datamined

It’s always nice to be proven right. When reviewing Elden Ring, I mentioned that the game feels like it should have a Covenant system, but for some reason, no such system exists. And now, we have this PC Gamer article that brings our attention to some recent datamining efforts pretty much confirming that a number of Covenants (NPC factions you can join) was originally supposed to be in the game but was later cut.

Here’s a quick excerpt:

StrayKurtis’s screenshot shows a selection of messages similar to those displayed on defeat of a boss or invader, with the text:

• Bloody Finger rank advanced
• Hunter rank advanced
• Recusant rank advanced
• Duelist rank advanced
• Furled Finger rank advanced

The conclusion I draw is that these messages were made for a faction system like the one in Dark Souls, abandoned at some point in development. They all tie to items or ideas already in Elden Ring.