FromSoftware’s newest IP Elden Ring is in the works as a collaboration between Dark Souls director Hidetaka Miyazaki and A Song of Ice & Fire author George R.R. Martin.

Miyazaki tells IGN that the narrative in Elden Ring will be similar to that of Dark Souls, which is known for its vague story and emphasis on environmental storytelling. Most of Miyazaki’s other works, including Demon’s Souls and Bloodborne share the same traits.

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Elden Ring’s Narrative

With a fixed main character and a more concrete narrative, 2019’s Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice was one of Miyazaki’s first games to derive from that formula. The 2018 PS VR adventure Déraciné was an even bigger departure from the storytelling that FromSoftware fans have come to expect from him.

While the collaboration with Martin seems to indicate that Miyazaki is experimenting with the way he wants to tell stories in his games even more, he says that Elden Ring’s story and world will be told in similar fashion as Dark Souls. With a vast open world environment, Miyazaki believes that exploration in Elden Ring will be more extensive than before, which creates opportunity for deeper story development.

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Elden Ring Customization and Influences

Since the main character is customizable by the player, Elden Ring’s story will be more about the world setting rather than depicting the journey of the main character as an individual. Miyazaki does believe that both the world and NPCs in Elden Ring have more appeal than in his previous works. While the main character has no distinct personality, Miyazaki and his team have learned to create more relatable, deep NPC characters after working on Sekiro and Déraciné. Moreover, Miyazaki mentions that the world’s mythology conceived by Martin has naturally allowed for more dramatic characters.

The Elden Ring is an action RPG game with a setting inspired by western fantasy novels. However, according to Miyazaki it was not directly inspired by The Lord of The Rings. Gameplay-wise, Miyazaki describes his new game as a souls-like game in a more open environment.

For much more Elden Ring directly from the creator, check our exclusive, full Elden Ring interview with Hidetaka Miyazaki.

Esra Krabbe is an editor at IGN Japan. Sekiro is his favorite Miyazaki game. Come say hi on Twitter!