Elden Ring players fear a Colosseum meta dominated by Rivers of Blood

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The infamous katana rears its head once again

Elden Ring Rivers of Blood
(Image credit: FromSoftware)

Elden Ring players are fearing a Rivers of Blood meta in the PvP-focused Colosseum update. 

The Colosseum update for Elden Ring only just launched earlier today on December 7, bringing a PvP focus to The Lands Between, including team-based combat. Prior to the update launching however, players were speculating which weapons or abilities would prove dominant in the team-based combat mode, and one common line of thought was the notorious Rivers of Blood, as you can see from the comments in the subreddit post just below. 

This is, if you’re unaware, an absolutely devastating weapon in the form of a katana, one which a Tarnished can potentially dual-wield if they’re powerful enough. Earlier this year in April, just a few short months after Elden Ring launched, players came out to unanimously condemn the Rivers of Blood katana as brutally overpowered.

Despite its infamy - and to the astonishment of the Elden Ring community at large - the weapon dodged a significant nerf in a big balance adjustment patch. Last we heard back in August 2022, the Rivers of Blood katana had actually seen a fairly hefty nerf, but it remained as the core of one of the best Elden Ring PvP builds to this day. 

Now that PvP is back in the spotlight with the free Colosseum update, it’s no wonder some players are fearing the sword's resurgence. We’ll have to keep an eye out to see if FromSoftware plans any further balance changes for the weapon after the Colosseum update. 

Here’s why Elden Ring’s fabled Colosseums open the doors for so much more.  

Hirun Cryer
Hirun Cryer

Hirun Cryer is a freelance reporter and writer with Gamesradar+ based out of U.K. After earning a degree in American History specializing in journalism, cinema, literature, and history, he stepped into the games writing world, with a focus on shooters, indie games, and RPGs, and has since been the recipient of the MCV 30 Under 30 award for 2021. In his spare time he freelances with other outlets around the industry, practices Japanese, and enjoys contemporary manga and anime.