Elden Ring Can Be Paused on One Specific Menu

ign.com:

It turns out that Elden Ring can be paused after all, but only on one specific menu.

The Souls-like game by FromSoftware follows in the footsteps of its predecessors, forcing gamers to find a quiet corner of the map to get out of harm's way whenever they need a bit of downtime.

But now, YouTuber IronPineapple has found a way to pause the game for real. The best part? You don’t need a mod to do it – the hidden pause functionality is actually part of one specific menu in the game.

Essentially, this means that PC gamers no longer have to disable online play in order to pause their game… and console players can do it, too.

The feature is activated by heading into your inventory, then the ‘Help’ screen, then selecting “Menu Explanation”. While viewing this explanation of the Inventory Menu, the game is paused – allowing you to make a cup of tea or answer the door in peace.

IGN has confirmed that this pause actually works in-game.

A quick look at Elden Ring's unofficial 'pause' menu. Credit: FromSoftware.

It’s quite a long-winded way to get the game to pause – much more complicated than simply pressing ‘Start’ like in games of old. But while this method might not help out so much if you’re in the middle of one of Elden Ring’s incredibly tough boss fights, it might help you take a breather as you’re traversing the Lands Between.

Unfortunately, this appears to be an unintended benefit… and so it’s likely that Elden Ring devs FromSoftware will patch out this functionality in the future. Until then, feel free to use it whenever you need a break from the relentless onslaught.

IGN’s review of Elden Ring called it “a massive iteration on what FromSoftware began with the Souls series, bringing its relentlessly challenging combat to an