During Summer Game Fest 2021, one of the biggest gameplay reveals was FromSoftware’sElden Ring. The game has already amassed a large fandom, many of whom have been waiting a long time for more news. Alongside the excitingElden Ringgameplay reveal, it was made known that the game would include open-world elements, which is an interesting direction for FromSoftware. After the news of it having open-world elements, fans began speculating the game’s scope and if it would have a linear story or if the game will provide more freedom.
In an interview, Game Director Hidetaka Miyazaki shed some light on the level of freedom players can expect and whetherElden Ringwill have multiple endings. Miyazaki went ahead and confirmed that players could expect a higher degree of freedom, as well as including various endings. It’s important to note that the interview was translated with Google, so it may not be entirely accurate.
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“Yes. There are multiple endings, and the path to reach them is quite free…” Miyazaki had answered when asked about multiple endings. It’s good to note that he didn’t specify the number of different endings or if those endings will act as significant departures from one another. Regardless, this is just another exciting element that fans can expect fromElden Ring. The gameplay trailer had revealed several details, but it’s likely that the open-world features referenced would be similar to large open areas that lead players towards the main objective. Additionally, similar to previousDark Soulsgames,Elden Ringwill have online co-op. Players will be able to play alone or with others, but exactly how the online aspect will function remains unclear.
Interestingly, fans hadn’t expectedElden Ringtobranch outside video-game media, but Bandai Namco CEO Yasuo Miyakawa confirmed that there’s some interest in expanding the universe. However, this is becoming a more prevalent tendency in the industry, as many other studios grow their franchises. One of the biggest examples of that isArcane, which is a Netflix series expanding theLeague of Legendsuniverse.
Furthermore, Miyazaki did compareElden RingtoDark Soulswhen speaking about the level of freedom. “I think that the degree of freedom in the progress of the game is considerably higher than in theDark Soulsseries.” Overall, this shouldn’t come as much of a surprise.Dark Soulsfocused on tight combat and linear structure of levels, which explored the world within the game. Again, this doesn’t give a fully realized picture ofthe open-world design, but it’s fair to assume that Elden Ring would have a large scope when it comes to exploration.
Elden Ringlaunches July 12, 2025 for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
