Even though Fashion Souls is a huge thing in FromSoftware games, player interaction remains the biggest deterrent to using transportable gear.
It is definitely an unspoken given amongst FromSoftware fans that the real end-game content for that studio's games is how good a person's character looks. The term "Fashion Souls" is suitable, thinking about the lengths some players visit to make their character's armor and weapons complement one another aesthetically. A build born from this type of concept is probably not the best gameplay-wise given games like Dark Souls are extremely difficult, however, it does draw the eyes of other players.
With Fashion Souls being this type of big thing in FromSoftware games, some players arrived at wonder why the expansion studio hasn't added a chance to truly transmog gear. Transmogrification - understood to be the game mechanic that allows players to change their equipment's appearance to that particular of another while still retaining its stats - would fit well in FromSoftware's RPGs. But due to one certain feature, games like Elden Ring Items and Dark Souls 3 might never give players the choice to truly tailor their gear's appearance to their liking.
Armor and Weapons In FromSoftware Games Have Limitless Aesthetic Potential
Whether it's drab Hunter armors such as the Black Church Set and Charred Hunter Set from Bloodborne or even the many fantastical and colorful attires of Elden Ring like the Goldmask's Set and Radahn's Lion Armor, most FromSoftware games give players a lot of options with regards to outfitting their characters. The same goes for weapons. The Moonlight Greatsword is really iconic it has made various appearances in various FromSoftware games. While wearing or wielding these things might not continually be ideal for a particular character (some items require players to achieve certain attribute thresholds to use them effectively), they are able to still look great provided players match them track of other appropriate items.
To give a good example, an Elden Ring mage build that utilizes the blue Moonlight Greatsword would stick out more whether it was combined with the Blue Cloth Vest or even the Raya Lucarian Sorcerer Set. While the light blue color of the Blue Cloth Vest matches the hue of the greatsword, the lore implications from the Raya Lucarian Sorcerer Set turn it into a better fit. Using the latter attire wouldn't only be appreciated by people who love the way it looks, but additionally by players who explore Elden Ring's lore.
Other Players Are Why Transmog Can Never Be A Thing In Typical FromSoftware RPGs
Sadly, it is due to other players that games like Elden Ring and Dark Souls can't ever have true transmog options. Apart from taking photos and videos of mods in the sport in offline mode (modding disables the internet features of most FromSoftware games), changing the looks of weapons and gear isn't allowed. This is because doing this negatively impacts the games. While cooperative PVE is okay since players are combating A.I. opponents, PVP is really a different story.
The appearance of the character tells players a lot about how they play. Players wearing heavy armor such as the Havel's Set from Dark Souls will often have high physical damage resistances and reduced mobility. Likewise, a blood-based weapon in Bloodborne such as the Chikage tells players to become wary of the wielder's Bloodtinge-based attacks. By changing the appearance of the weapon or armor, players can mask their abilities throughout a fight. While this may be acceptable inside the context of normal invasions, lots of FromSoftware games have communities that are built on fair duels between players.
There are certain mechanics in FromSoftware games that dip into aesthetic changes. Sorceries like Hidden Weapon in Dark Souls help players mask their load-outs using their company players to find the drop in it. elden ring items comes with an Alter feature that lets players add or remove certain aspects of their attire to higher suit their look of them. Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice has full transmog features which were added post-launch that permit players to alter the main protagonist Wolf to a different character entirely. But because Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice has no PVP or PVE components, this is definitely an exception as opposed to a rule. Full transmog features may not be implemented in FromSoftware games with PVE and PVP components, but this won't stop players from modding the sport or mixing and matching unique weapon and gear sets to get the very best looks possible.
Elden Ring can be obtained on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.