Hidetaka Miyazaki, the legendary games auteur behind the iconic Dark Souls series and one of the biggest games of this generation, Elden Ring, has had an unprecedented and unmatched success streak. Under his presidency, FromSoftware has become the most decorated studio globally.
With prosperity like this, many wonder what Miyazaki’s creative process is like. We won’t have to wonder for long, as Miyazaki has spoken about his sources of inspiration, and they really deviate from a typical game director’s response.
Hidetaka Miyazaki’s Real Source Of Inspiration
In an interview with Kotaku discussing what’s ahead of him after the release of Dark Souls 3, Miyazaki cited a deep fondness for a rather old-fashioned medium: books. When asked about his sources of inspiration, he said:
My sources of inspiration come from various venues. The media you mentioned are sources of inspiration, but if I was to bring one item up in particular, I would say books, especially text-based books. I’ve brought this up before, but my pastime is to imagine and fantasize from reading text-based books. This is one of my inspirational sources towards game development.
It doesn’t come as much of a surprise that the Elden Ring creator’s primary sources of inspiration are books. In his formative years, his financial limitations prohibited him from being able to own the books and manga he wanted. Therefore, he found himself in the library, reading through complex works of literature.
The textual inspiration also comes through in the storytelling format of his games. Unlike most large-scale AAA games, FromSoftware titles use a fragmented type of storytelling that don’t rely on cutscenes to progress the story. Rather, they employ textual and environmental clues that can be interpreted by players in different ways.
Books And FromSoftware Games Have A Lot In Common
The ability of text to fire up the imagination sets it apart from other media. Unlike a movie or a video game, which presents a pre-visualized world, a book offers a framework within which the reader’s mind paints the picture. This is exactly what FromSoftware games entail; narratives that the player slowly constructs according to their own interpretations.
Miyazaki himself admits that his methods are a bit old-school, saying, “I know it’s a bit old, but of recent, I found myself enjoying [books]. Personally speaking, it’s quite interesting to see how emotionally invested I am, in a good way, reading [books].” These emotionally involving elements then seed his own creative endeavors.
It’s very fascinating to learn about Miyazaki’s passion for reading and the way it fuels his creative process, helping him create some of the most memorable games of all time. Miyazaki’s dedication to the written word promises to continue shaping the breathtaking and thought-provoking experiences he delivers to players.
In an era of flashy graphics and cinematic storytelling in games, Miyazaki’s focus on the power of books is a refreshing reminder of the enduring creativity sparked by the simple act of reading. It really makes you wonder whether the idea of collaborating with George R.R. Martin to write Elden Ring was inspired by this very medium.
