As we approach the arrival of Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree, the anticipation for what truly went into creating its essence is something that never escapes the community. Looking back into the past, there have been many instances where Hidetaka Miyazaki himself hinted at how his vision was shaping up to be.
In that light, an interview with Kotaku in 2016 may have served as a foundational source for how Miyazaki planned the future of Dark Souls 3, and how it may have led to the very inception of the upcoming DLC.
Work on Dark Souls 3’s DLC may have inspired Elden Ring’s Universe
In the interview, the creative genius behind the games was asked questions about the future of Souls games, and about his sources of inspiration. He spoke about how he cares little about the way people see him, and more about the future of FromSoftware.
On that note, he revealed the two upcoming DLCs (now known as The Ringed City and Ashes of Ariandel). Mentioning the same, he spoke about how his vision shaped these DLCs:
We’re actually still working on the first one. Content-wise, it builds off of the previous titles and will be featuring a new area, enemies, gear, and story. The game story revolves around a new location which I believe will offer a different feel from Dark Souls 3.
Both expansions take the best bits from the game and bring a bigger focus on parts of the narrative that players hadn’t explored before. Interestingly, this is also extremely similar to how Shadow of the Erdtree is coming up to be.
Shadow of the Erdtree will be a Similar Expansion to How Dark Souls 3’s DLCs Worked
While the base campaign is quite expansive in its default state, both of these games are more similar in nature than they beg to differ. For instance, the open-world aspect of the game takes multiple aspects of the older Souls titles and turns them into a choice-based scenario for players.
Should they struggle with one point of the game, they can choose to explore another area altogether. This will be even more relevant in the DLC, where Land of the Shadow will become an entirely new realm for players to explore.
In the case of The Ringed City and Ashes of Ariandel, players could go beyond the base campaign and uncover new secrets, weapons, bosses, and other characters that paid homage to FromSoftware’s worldbuilding. It’s mighty similar to how the latest DLC will work.
Do you see a connection between the Dark Souls DLCs and Shadow of the Erdtree? Let us know in the comments below.
