Hidetaka Miyazaki doesn’t think Elden Ring is the ideal fantasy RPG that he had in mind: in his opinion the game is still far from perfect, although it comes very close to the idea that the Japanese author had in mind.
When talking about classic tabletop role-playing games of the 1980s, such as Dungeons & Dragons, Miyazaki said that “try to capture that same kind of emotion it was certainly an aspect of the creation of Elden Ring”, but is it correct to say that FromSoftware’s soulslike presents itself as an extension of these experiences?
“I think, more than anything, it’s just personal preference when it comes to role-playing games and exploring those fantasy worlds, so you might see some of my idiosyncrasies emerge in Elden Ring“, explained the brilliant game director.
“In my opinion the excitement comes from seeing the world map and putting it togetherso when we were able to do that, starting to connect the pieces during the making of Elden Ring, for me it was a very beautiful moment.”
“During interviews about the game I think I said that I’m still trying to create my ideal fantasy RPG, and while Elden Ring isn’t quite that, it’s pretty close. It’s getting closer.”
An authorial dilemma
With the release of the Shadow of the Erdtree expansion now imminent, Miyazaki explained to PC Gamer’s microphones this particular dilemma of his, linked toinevitable lack of surprises since it is he who decides what will happen in his games.
“It’s hard to say without spoiling my next idea or our next games, but I think one thing that’s not necessarily missing, but that makes it difficult to realize my ideal, is that when I play, I already know everything that will happen.”
“The point is as a player I would like not to know, so I would like maybe someone else to make my ideal fantasy game, please, if possible. So I can just enjoy it as a player.”
