Elden Ring, like all of FromSoftware's famously challenging action RPGs, has been trivialized in about a million different ways. Two Malenias at once, no-hit randomizer runs, literal mind games – the list goes on. Arguably the most popular way to absolutely flex on the denizens of the Lands Between is clearing the whole game without leveling up a single time, with Elden Ring now a major part of the OneBros Reddit community where unleveled FromSoft diehards gather.
Compared to more niche speedruns and challenges, a lot of people have beaten Elden Ring at level one. So I wasn't immediately over the moon when I saw Reddit user Educational-Umpire42 celebrate their first level one clear. "Good job, gamer," I thought, fully intending to scroll on by. But something caught my eye, and as I sifted through their record of this familiar feat, including a hand-drawn journal tracking their boss clears, Educational-Umpire gradually became my favorite OneBro ever. Because in their words, they are not the kind of Capital-G Gamer who you'd expect to take on a task like this. In fact, they're "terrible at these games" but did the level one challenge anyway, and I think that's wonderful.
