Elden Ring is currently FromSoftware’s biggest game; this game is said to be their fastest-selling title too. The evidence for this success comes from the fact that numerous gamers are still playing this game and talking about it two years after its launch. This increased interest can also be credited to this game’s recently revealed DLC, Shadow of the Erdtree.
With this game’s success, people have started wondering if this is where the Dark Souls series becomes obsolete. Given the fact that some see the open world of Elden Ring as the logical next step in the more linear-level design of Dark Souls games. But director Hidetaka Miyazaki seems to have other plans.
It looks like Elden Ring would not spell the end of the Dark Souls franchise after all
The story of Elden Ring ends in a similar manner to the story of Dark Souls. Players fight various gods of the bygone era, and once they become powerful enough, they have to make a decision. They can either be the god themselves or they can do something that completely ends the cycle of people coming and giving themselves to this purpose.
This franchise supposedly ended with Dark Souls 3. In that game, players once again become the common undead, who have to defeat a bunch of lords who have forgotten their duties. Their duties ask them to go and start the cycle of fire once again. But in that game, they realize that even if they chose to end the cycle, it still started all over again, but they are also given one more way, which would allow them to actually end it all for good.
Even after doing this, though, players are shown an ember flying through the darkness. All this can mean only one thing: no matter what anyone does, no matter how many things they try, that fateful cycle goes on and on. But still, many considered Dark Souls 3 to be the end of the series. They saw that ember as the start of a new, different era and not that fateful circle.
And once Elden Ring was revealed, people were sure that the Dark Souls franchise was done for good. Fans have given up hope of seeing a new game in the series and gleefully moved on to the brand-new open-world take on their favorite franchise.
And now that Elden Ring has ended and its expansion is on the horizon, one cannot help but wonder: What’s next for FromSoftware? Are they going to make a sequel to Elden Ring, or are they going to make a sequel to Sekiro? But no one is even thinking if there are chances of a new Dark Souls game launching anytime soon.
But in a recent interview, when asked what happens next, director Hidetaka Miyazaki said, “However, that’s not to say that all of Elden Ring has come to an end. I may have said the same thing with Dark Souls 3, but I don’t want to make any decisive statements to rule out any future possibilities.”
He says this in the context of DLCs for the game, but one must understand that the studio never officially suggested that the series had ended. Hence, fans can take this statement both ways. This just means that Hidetaka Miyazaki has yet to make a final statement on the future of the Dark Souls franchise. This is indeed an exciting prospect, as an open-world game is good and all, but there will always be a need for a franchise such as Dark Souls.
There are a number of directions FromSoftware can go in
Besides making a sequel to Elden Ring or even a new Dark Souls game, the studio can go in a number of directions. The most desirable one for fans would be the direction of Bloodborne 2. That horror soulslike title has yet to see a sequel, even though many consider it to be their best game yet.
On the other hand, there’s always a place for a new Sekiro in this world. And now that Microsoft owns Activision and that IP, greenlighting that title would be very easy too. After all, Microsoft would do anything for an Xbox-exclusive FromSoft title.
