For whereas now, one of many many fan theories that’ve been buzzing across the Elden Ring neighborhood has involved Malenia. She seems to be a bit like a Sekiro boss and strikes a bit like a Sekiro boss, so there’s an opportunity she may sneakily be a Sekiro boss we by no means received, proper? Effectively, sadly, I’m about to rain in your parade.
Given the quantity of digging of us have completed into ER, it’s arguably shocking that this explicit hearsay, which factors to the waterfowl dancer being one thing akin to a twin of a personality you hear about – however by no means encounter – in Sekiro, has rumbled on so lengthy. Now, although, one of many sport’s loreheads has determined to take their very own look into it, by way of some attention-grabbing animation comparisons between the 2 video games.
“There’s one query I get requested about Malenia virtually each time I embody her in a video, and I’ve by no means actually had a stable reply for it,” FromSoft YouTuber and neighborhood determine ZullieTheWitch wrote in a tweet. “I realised it’d really be doable to get extra context, however the methodology for getting it is likely to be just a little odd.”
That methodology, as you’ll be able to see of their newest video, concerned evaluating a model of Malenia that’d been ported into Sekiro to Genichiro, with a view to see how comparable their animations have been. Why? Effectively, as a result of Genichiro ought to share a mode with Tomoe, the Sekiro character many followers have lengthy theorised Malenia as being based mostly on in some trend.
Now, if you happen to don’t keep in mind getting destroyed by Tomoe throughout a struggle, that’s since you didn’t. She’s solely talked about within the base model of the sport – largely because the sword grasp who taught Genichiro plenty of his methods. Naturally, this led plenty of gamers to imagine that she’d find yourself as a DLC boss struggle, one thing which by no means ended up coming to fruition. So, when of us encountered Malenia in Elden Ring – given her look, moveset and penchant for Sekiro-style swords – many thought that she may effectively be a Tomoe prototype, or no less than make use of some stuff initially supposed for Sekiro’s lacking swordswoman.
Sadly, you’ll be able to add animations to the beautiful convincing listing of proof pointing to that first half seemingly not being the case. “After cautious evaluate,” Zullie concludes after analysing Genichiro and Malenia’s assaults side-by-side, “there doesn’t appear to be any vital overlap, particularly nothing as clear as [Sekiro’s other] grasp/pupil pairs.”
Including that Malenia’s lack of a bow is probably going one other completely different between her and Tomoe as described/alluded to by Genichiro, they wrote: “whereas it’s doable that Malenia was nonetheless influenced by Sekiro, it appears unlikely that she has any substantial a part of Tomoe’s belongings”.
So, there you go. Placing that along with the truth that nothing in Malenia’s in-game information seems to be to level to the idea being correct, and interviews concerning the growth of each sport having steered that the timeline in all probability doesn’t line up in a manner that’d match it, and it’s undoubtedly trying like Malenia’s not some sort of direct Tomoe twin.
No matter whether or not you have ever been a Malenia-Tomoe truther, if you happen to’re after some prime Elden Ring suggestions that can assist you prep for Shadow of the Erdtree’s arrival, make certain to take a look at our array of guides to the bottom sport, which may also help you keep in mind the place to seize stuff just like the Founding Rain of Stars and the Dragoncrest Greatshield Talisman.