Video game development can be a long and difficult process, and there are several challenges that can arise. This is even true for industry veterans like Hidetaka Miyazaki. In an interview published in EDGE magazine issue 367, the director was asked about “any particular mechanics or gameplay systems that were particularly difficult to get right” in Elden Ring. Miyazaki shared that one of the biggest issues developer FromSoftware faced was finding ways to make sure that the game’s world remained interesting to players, while also providing a significant amount of freedom.
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“There were a number of challenges that, of course, came with the scopeof this game and of the world. There are a lot of areas in which we’vehad to use trial and error since creating the Dark Souls series,iterating on those mechanics and formulas, expanding on them in this newsense of scale. A lot of it was related to the game tempo – the rhythmand the flow of the game, to keep the player from getting bored, to keepthem interested, exploring and having fun. And, of course, in thisbrand-new huge world that we’ve created, we wanted to prioritise thatfun and level of player freedom more than anything. So with that comes alot of characters, a lot of events that you’re trying to incorporate,and you don’t want anything to tread on the toes of anything else – youwant it all to mingle and to mesh nicely with the player and their ownmotivations as well. But you want it to be there, and you want it toprovide that stimulation for progressing forward and exploring. So thatwas probably one of the biggest challenges.”
At the end of the day, no matter how big or technically impressive a video game might be, there’s nothing more important than whether or not it’s fun. In that regard, it will be interesting to see whether Elden Ring can accomplish all that Miyazaki hopes to achieve. Elden Ring is easily one of the year’s most highly-anticipated titles, and fans of Miyazaki’s previous works are hoping the game can deliver on its promise. Fortunately, with the title set to release on February 25th, fans won’t have much longer to wait to find out! In the meantime, readers can check out all of our previous coverage of the game right here.
Are you excited for Elden Ring? Are you hopeful that the game will have plenty to keep you hooked? Let us know in the comments or share your thoughts directly on Twitter at @Marcdachamp to talk about all things gaming!
[H/T: MP1st]
