“Elden Ring Belongs to the Same Genre” as Dark Souls, Says Miyazaki

A few more details have surfaced regarding FromSoftware’s recently announced open world title, Elden Ring. The game was collaborated on with the help of George RR Martin who provided the mythology and lore of the world while Dark Souls and Bloodborne director Hidetaka Miyazaki wrote the actual story.

In an interview with IGN, Miyazaki noted a few more details regarding what fans can expect from the game’s open world, gameplay and exploration. Miyazaki states that while the gameplay between Elden Ring and Dark Souls may not be “identical”, the two titles are considered part of the same genre.

Miyazaki also points out the open world environment in Elden Ring provides a new style of dungeon exploration in the game, stating “the narrow and complex dungeons of our previous games were indeed interconnected, Elden Ring’s environments will be much more open and vast. The more extensive world will form the base of Elden Ring’s gameplay, and its mechanics are designed with that type of environment in mind.”

Miyazaki also details how players will be able to explore the vast open world was decided to allow players to obtain a sense of freedom in the game, as well as create more variation in battles. He also explains that players will be able to ride on horseback as well as engage in combat scenarios while riding on a horse.

Within the wide open world players will come across numerous villages in the form of dungeons. However, they won’t be full of life and vibrant like in other open world titles, stating “Villages will be the dark dungeon-like ruins that you have come to expect from us. Creating a more open game is a big challenge for us. If we were to add towns on top of that, it would become a bit too much, so we decided to create an open-world-style game focused on what we are best at.”

Players familiar with Miyazaki’s previous work over the last decade will find the same type of DNA found within Elden Ring. While there was indeed some influence taken from other open-world titles, there’s still that FromSoftware “feel” to the new title.

Elden Ring is expected to release sometime in 2020 for the PS4, Xbox One and PC.

Source: IGN