Elden Ring gets huge quality-of-life features patch right before Shadow of the Erdtree, including an inventory change I've wanted for years

Elden Ring
(Image credit: FromSoftware)

The day before Shadow of the Erdtree launches next week, Elden Ring will receive a new patch with some significant quality-of-life features, including an inventory change that denotes all new items.

FromSoftware just announced that Elden Ring will get a new update next week on June 20, the day before Shadow of the Erdtree's launch (don't forget you need to defeat Mohg in Elden Ring if you're planning on jumping in). As seen below, one of the big features of the new patch is that "newly obtained items will be marked with a '!'" and a brand new inventory tab called 'Recent Items' will also be added for players to see all the recent spoils they've acquired.

This is a huge feature for a FromSoftware game, and it's somewhat surprising that it's taken Elden Ring so long to receive a Recent Items inventory tab. You've always had to memorize the name of a new item you've received if you want to inspect it in your inventory later on, and if you acquire an item in the heat of battle, it can be oddly hard to remember its name.

Additionally, the new update will enable active Summoning Pools to carry over to successive playthroughs - a nice little feature for veterans out there. Finally, there are five new hairstyles for Tarnished in the new Elden Ring update, one of which you can see in the new screenshot just below. You can use these whenever you like - either during character creation or when you're remaking your Tarnished later on.

Elden Ring

(Image credit: Bandai Namco)

This is all great news, but there's also bad news elsewhere: Elden Ring's most annoying enemy is returning in Shadow of the Erdtree, and it might be even worse this time around.

Check out our guide on how to start the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC in Elden Ring so you know how to begin the expansion on June 21. 

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.