Elden Ring Is Getting a Tabletop Roleplaying Game

A new Elden Ring tabletop roleplaying game is coming to Japan. From Software has announced that Kadokawa is developing a new tabletop roleplaying game based on Elden Ring. The game is being designed by Kato Hironori, the designer of the Dark Souls tabletop RPG that was also released in Japan. Elden Ring: The Roleplaying Game will include game rules for adventuring in The Lands Between, as well as rules for using different tactics of fighting, using magic, and rules for various enemies. No other details were announced about the upcoming tabletop RPG, but it will be released in Japan in early spring 2023. 

The news that Kadokawa is making an Elden Ring tabletop RPG comes with both positive and negatives. Kadokawa’s Dark Souls RPG was a “solo” RPG meant to be played by one player and one game master. While the rules allowed for a very accurate-feeling Dark Souls experience, the game itself wasn’t truly meant for a group, as other players could only act as temporary summons. However, many RPG fans believe that the game’s mechanics were truly unique and innovative. Of course, only fan-made translations of Kadokawa’s Dark Souls RPG exist, as the game was never published in English or other languages. 

It remains to be seen whether Elden Ring will get an English TTRPG of any kind. Recently, Steamforged released its own English language version of Dark Souls: The Roleplaying Game, which used heavily modified 5E rules and were not derived from Kadokawa’s version at all. However, the initial publication of Steamforged’s Dark Souls RPG was heavily criticized for typos and rules inconsistencies, leading to Steamforged immediately issuing errata and reprints to fix the errors. 

We’ll have more news about any Elden Ring RPG developments as they become available. For now, the Elden Ring TTRPG will be released in Japan in early 2023.