King Charles III’s first official portrait was revealed to the world on Tuesday, May 14, and the Internet’s response has been enthusiastic. The painting, created by British artist Jonathan Yeo, has taken the web by storm, but few seem to love it more than the gaming community.
To be fair to all parties involved, the King of England was on gamers’ radars well before his new portrait was unveiled. Charles’ May 6 coronation, a lavish ceremony even by royal standards, was ruthlessly memed about by gamers, many of whom compared the regalia-clad monarch to a high-level Elden Ring character. Fortunately for those invested, Yeo’s bold and controversial portrait of the United Kingdom’s new king has breathed new life into what was becoming a stale joke.
King Charles’ portrait fuels a memetic inferno that’s been burning for a while.
Most onlookers agree that the painting, which features a striking backdrop many have likened to a veil of blood-red flames, is at least a little unnerving. Being who we are, gamers quickly compared it to the menacing portraits of villains that pop up in the late-game areas of many FromSoftware titles, which usually give the player a sneak preview of the foes they’ll face before the credits role.
On X (formerly known as Twitter), user Lathrix bluntly stated what was on many gamers’ minds, mentioning in this post that King Charles’s picture looks like something you’d run into in a Dark Souls game. Others felt that the portrait was more at home inside Elden Ring‘s Volcano Manor, while some likened them to the Dishonored series’ collectible Solokov paintings and “Target Assassinated” icons.
FromSoftware titles aren’t the only games that King Charles’ painting has been dropped into. One X user, Senn, edited the portrait over one of the mind-meltingly isometric walls of the first Doom game. The portrait has even been compared to artwork outside of games, like the still-lifes of artist Ivan Albright and the painting of Vigo the Carpathian featured in Ghostbusters 2.
The gaming community’s reception of King Charles’ portrait may seem harsh at first, but it’s tame compared to the response from other onlookers. If anything, the painting’s reception amongst games proves that it has impacted the public, for better or for worse.
