Following its not exactly unexpected reveal on Sunday, From Software’s Hidetaka Miyazaki has shared more details on Elden Ring, the studio’s highly anticipated collaboration with A Song of Ice and Fire author George A. A. Martin – a project described as From’s “biggest title yet”.
In an interview with Xbox Wire, published earlier this week, Miyazaki explained that Elden Ring, which started development shortly after the completion of Dark Souls 3’s DLC, was envisaged as a dark fantasy RPG “full of things that we weren’t able to do in the Dark Souls series.”
Its themes include “eccentricity” and “the will, or ambition of mankind”, and Miyazaki’s role has been to direct “the various game design, art and musical aspects of the title”.
Unlike Sekiro, which Miyazaki considers to have a “heavy focus on action”, Elden Ring will focus more on RPG elements. Third-person melee combat will return, however, alongside a wider variety of “weapons, magic, and ways to engage enemies, that make it possible to provide users with a style of gameplay and strategy that suits them” – which is good news for Dark Souls fans that missed the character customisation in From’s samurai game.
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In fact, Miyazaki promises “even more variety in the ways for players to overcome challenges and tweak their tactics when facing enemies”, with Elden Ring continuing From Software’s love of tough but “very satisfying” experiences.
One significant distinction between Dark Souls and Elden Ring, which Miyazaki calls “our biggest title yet in terms of sheer volume”, is the scale of its world and narrative, with the game offering ‘dramatically increased’ depth and freedom.
“There are many definitions to the term ‘open world’,” explained Miyazaki, “but we have simply tried our own approach to a game with a large, open field to play in.” It’s a world “full of danger and threats” – including “unique and horrifying” bosses – and features “many areas ripe for exploration [including] intricately designed, multi-layered castles.”