What Elden Ring Has Taught Me About Hard Things

It's not about being the best from the start; it's about knowing how to prepare, learn, and adapt

I love playing games. Poker, board games, puzzles, video games. I love them all.

If you think games are for children, you are missing out on an endless source of self-improvement. Playing games is not just entertainment; sometimes, they teach you profound lessons that alter the course of your life.

There is a book’s worth of lessons like these that I could discuss with you (and I will eventually), but for now, I want to share the one I learned this week.

Writing the Mathematics of Machine Learning took five years of hard work, pulling 10-12 hours of work every day in the final weeks. Now that it’s released, it’s time for me to take on the next challenge, one that I have wanted to do for quite some time now:

Beat Elden Ring.

I’ll explain. Elden Ring is a combat-focused fantasy action RPG, the latest in the long line of so-called Soulslike games, famous for their difficulty and punishing mechanics. (The term originates from Demon Souls, the progenitor of Soulslikes.)