Director Hidetaka Miyazaki has pioneered the Soulslike genre through his games and made a significant impact on the horror genre in doing so. It wasn’t long ago when the Japanese director made something unformulaic and a deviation from the projects of FromSoftware, by developing a VR horror game called Déraciné, that Sony Interactive Entertainment published.
The director has cracked the code in perfecting the Soulslike genre through the success of Elden Ring and plans to capitalize on that success with future content coming relatively soon. However, Miyazaki’s previous experience in virtual reality gaming could open more doors to innovative story-telling in the future.
Hidetaka Miyazaki Could Develop An Elden Ring VR Game
The Japanese director had humble beginnings and ascended the corporate ladder accordingly within the ranks of FromSoftware. His hard work paid off which paved the way for him to have more freedom and leeway in developing projects. The idea for Déraciné originated when Miyazaki reflected on the work the devs had done in the past and thought about how the team could bring it back with something new.
Miyazaki also shared that it was the right time for the studio to do something strange, in a good way, which branched out from its critically acclaimed Soulslike games.
I think occasional surprises are enticing to our fans. This is exactly that. It’s unexpected and doesn’t follow on from any of our recent titles – hopefully it appeals to our audience by being something new and fresh. It felt like the right time to do that.
The gamble somewhat paid off despite receiving mixed reviews and utilizing the power of Unreal Engine 4. Miyazaki used the title as a learning experience and perhaps could come back to the avenue of VR gaming.
Déraciné did carry over several key features from Bloodborne and Dark Souls, such as story-telling point of view and aesthetic. Miyazaki wanted players to feel they were walking around a world developed by FromSoftware in a first-person perspective.
The Possibility Of An Elden Ring VR Is Quite High
Miyazaki does not shy away from the difficult nature of his games as he embraces it with open arms and acknowledges it as a core quality.
Perhaps there is a window of opportunity to mix and match certain elements from previous titles that will allow the studio to integrate VR with the lore of Elden Ring. Nothing is impossible at this point, especially now that news is circulating about a mobile version of the game.
There is a wide variety of avenues that have been introduced to modern gaming recently, and developers can either stick to their strategic, formulaic, and safe way to craft new story-telling experiences or be bold enough to try other new things like Miyazaki’s Déraciné.
Would you want an Elden Ring VR game? Let us know what you think in the comments section below!
