It’s not a stretch to say that Hidetaka Miyazaki’s tenure at FromSoftware has been nothing short of unprecedentedly successful, especially when you consider that the renowned auteur had no prior experience in gaming before working at the studio.
Miyazaki took over the presumably-failed Demon’s Souls project and basically created an entire sub-genre out of it, a feat which massively propelled his career. In 2014, he was promoted to president of FromSoftware. However, he had one condition before taking on the role.
Miyazaki Won’t Let The Presidency Affect His Directorial Role
In an interview with 4Gamer before the release of Bloodborne, Miyazaki was asked about whether his career advancement would’ve impacted the way he oversees his in-development projects, particularly Bloodborne.
Miyazaki confirmed that he was “100% the director” of the game, and that he hadn’t stepped down in any capacity. However, juggling the duties of game director and company president – two very intensive roles by themselves – certainly sounds like a mountainous task. Miyazaki eases those anxieties by saying:
Yeah, I’m getting by. I learned a lot from developing Dark Souls, so I have another person at the director level supporting me on this project, and I’m finding a way to make things work.
This confirmation was a big sigh of relief for fans who treasure his unique vision, and feared his involvement would be diminished due to his role as president.
Hidetaka Miyazaki’s One Condition To Become President
Miyazaki chose not to speak much about his role as president, but he did reveal a crucial reason for accepting the role:
I’d rather not talk too much about my role as president of From Software, but simply put, one of my conditions for taking on the role of president was that I would be able to remain involved in the day-to-day game development.
This burning desire to stay knee-deep in game development is why Miyazaki-directed titles are all so special, and why he’s so beloved among gamers. It’s also interesting to learn that Miyazaki felt the need to set a condition before taking the presidency.
It’s clear that he loves directing games and wouldn’t give it up for anything, even in the face of a massive promotion. Miyazaki also credits FromSoftware’s previous president, Jin, for being “really understanding” about his desire to be entrenched in his directorial duties.
There’s no question that Miyazaki is a passionate creator determined to stay involved in making the games he loves, even with the weight of company leadership on his shoulders. This bodes well for future FromSoftware titles, as fans can expect Miyazaki’s creative spark to be ever-present.
Even though this interview is nearly a decade-old, Miyazaki has stuck true to his word to date. He’s still the president of FromSoftware, but hasn’t allowed it to dull his engagement with the games he directs. However, he has started to delegate projects to veteran developers, like Masaru Yamamura with Armored Core 6.
