Elden Ring producer says network test boss Margit the Fell was maybe a bit "too hard"

gamesradar.com:

The final boss of Elden Ring's network test, Margit the Fell Omen, was rebalanced slightly for the full release of the game.

That's according to producer Yasuhiro Kitao, who addressed some of the changes driven by network test feedback in an interview with GamerBraves. FromSoftware didn't nerf Margit into the dust, but Kitao says Margit felt "a little bit tweaked on the high end," especially for such an early-game boss – you can theoretically run straight to Margit in like 10 minutes if you're out of your damn mind – so he "needed some balancing" before the release of the full game. 

Kitao also noted that some magic abilities were tuned using data from the network test, though it sounds like Elden Ring's many spells will still be indispensable out in the Lands Between. "Melee, magic and other types of projectile weapons have been tuned, hopefully to be more balanced across the board," he says, noting that enemy abilities and reactions were also adjusted. 

As our own Joel Franey learned in an Elden Ring hands-on preview, magic can be exceedingly powerful, but also… unpredictable:

"I respawned up the lane again, hitched up my britches, and went marching right back – boiling with righteous indignation. This time I was ready for the bastard, firing off several magical projectiles the moment he came into view… which he immediately absorbed into his shield and fired back at ten times their strength, reducing me to dust." 

Kitao also confirmed that retrying bosses will be less painful thanks to the new Stakes of Marika, though there's no true boss rush mode.