Miyazaki On How Martin's Mythos Became Elden Ring's Final Form

George R. R. Martin, the author who crafted the foundational mythos for Elden Ring, would likely find the final game world quite surprising. I see that this sentiment comes directly from Hidetaka Miyazaki, the game's director, who recently discussed how FromSoftware’s team built upon the author’s initial concepts to create Elden Ring's world. While Martin laid the groundwork, providing the rich history and character backstories, it was the studio’s narrative team that translated those ideas into the interactive experience players explore. The evolution was so significant in some areas that Miyazaki believes Martin himself might not fully recognize the final result. The core of this creative process stemmed from the different perspectives between the director and the player.

"as a player walks through this world, they have a very fragmented understanding of the lore, the surroundings, and the type of monsters, whereas I don't."— Hidetaka Miyazaki

Speaking to Game Informer, Miyazaki explained that because he held a complete understanding of the world’s entirety, he felt a responsibility to ensure its most crucial moments were not lost on players who piece the story together from fragments. This philosophy, as noted by Games Radar, drove him to merge the map and level design into a cohesive guide. The world itself became the primary storyteller, helping players gather information and construct their own understanding of The Lands Between. This approach required adaptation and sometimes significant deviation from the source mythos. Despite these necessary changes, Miyazaki has no regrets, stating that Elden Ring even now remains "in a league of its own." Martin himself, while admitting back in 2022 that he hadn't played the game, did express before its release that he thought it looked incredible.

This same development principle extended to the game’s major expansion, Shadow of the Erdtree. Martin did not provide any new material for the DLC. Instead, the expansion delves into another part of the original story Martin created for the base game. As Miyazaki told Eurogamer ahead of the DLC's release in 2024, "It's simply another part of the original story that we thought fit to tell as a new expansion." This project stands as FromSoftware's largest expansion to date. I played through the base game and found Limgrave to be a massive area, so hearing that the DLC's new map features a surface area "larger even than Limgrave" sets a clear expectation for its scale. The expansion takes place in a completely new area, the Realm of Shadow, accessed through a withered arm, and focuses on the story of Miquella.

FromSoftware also refined its design philosophy for the expansion. Miyazaki described a more seamless integration between the large open fields and the contained legacy dungeons. The goal was to create a denser and richer level design that blended these distinct area types. Players can expect over ten new boss fights and a wealth of new equipment, with eight new weapon categories added to accommodate the new weapon types. As for the challenge, which I know is a key part of the experience, the difficulty is set to be on par with the endgame of the base game.

Miyazaki referenced the infamous optional boss Malenia, confirming that players seeking a similar level of challenge will find it in the DLC. A new progression system, unique to the expansion, was also implemented to give players more freedom in how they approach its difficulties. When asked if the expansion would include another poison swamp, a recurring feature I have navigated in many of the studio's games, Miyazaki offered a direct confirmation.

"In a word, yes. But this was actually a point of introspection for me after creating the base game. It was only after creating it that I realised I really like to create poisoned swamps."— Hidetaka Miyazaki

Read also, Clair Obscur’s most punishing fight traces its lineage back to Elden Ring. In Expedition 33, the hardest boss, Simon, is an optional enemy defeated by fewer than 16 percent of players. His design and difficulty curve set him apart, echoing the tough, optional challenges found in FromSoftware's titles.