‘I love seeing him challenging himself’
I don’t think anyone is as excited for Elden Ring as me. I’ve been there day one (or before) for nearly every From Software game since…Armored Core 2, which is about when I learned that they existed in earnest, and King’s Field games weren’t magically grown on an RPG tree somewhere. They’re a special studio, in part due to president Hidetaka Miyazaki’s leadership and beautiful mind style approach to game design. As it turns out, Xbox boss Phil Spencer thinks so too.
Speaking to GameSpot, Spencer reveals out of nowhere that he’s “played quite a bit” of Elden Ring, From Software’s new project that was mysteriously revealed ages ago and went radio silent. Spencer calls this “the most ambitious game [Miyazaki] has done,” which is high praise given that his games are full of subtle lore hints from top to bottom: all of which require a ton of groundwork. Not to mention the strong action-RPG framework on top of all of that.
Spencer says that Miyazaki is a “good friend,” and notes that he “loves seeing him challenging himself.” When Spencer tests Elden Ring, Miyazaki allegedly leaves the room, then comes back and discusses the game as a team. It’s an adorable concept and now I need a buddy comedy with them in it.
Either way, Spencer is being vague here regarding cold hard details on Elden Ring, but he’s told us enough. It’s absolutely his job to hype up a game that’s appearing on Xbox from a Japanese studio, but it also means two things. Spencer is cozy with From Software, which could impact a potential decision to acquire a Japanese studio.
Also, Elden Ring is not a myth. It exists, and it is playable. Which means it can stay as the number one game on my “most anticipated” list.
Phil Spencer On Xbox And Japan, Halo’s Future, Playing Elden Ring, And More [GameSpot]
