Image: FromSoftware
The Elden Ring developer’s next game is right around the corner.
FromSoftware just put out Elden Ring a few months ago, to the joy and misery of many, but the developer already has an unannounced game in the works that is nearing completion. However, this new game probably won’t share any similarities with the Souls franchise.
Elden Ring’s game director Hidetaka Miyazaki confirmed during an interview with 4Gamer that the studio’s next game is now in the final stages of development and according to a leak from January, we might already know what this title is: a new entry in the studio’s Armored Core franchise. The leak contained early images from the next Armored Core game, which will supposedly follow the search for a strange substance that could advance human society.
Armored Core is a third-person shooter sci-fi franchise that has players control mechs in the far-flung future. It used to be the only franchise the studio was known for before Dark Souls 2 was released in 2014, after which the Armored Core series took a bit of a backseat. The last game in the series, Armored Core: Verdict Day launched back in 2013 for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 to mixed reviews.
Nine years later however, it looks like FromSoftware is ready to give its mech franchise another go. Souls fans have no need to fear, however - Miyazaki also confirmed that more updates to Elden Ring are planned in the future. He didn’t clarify if these updates will consist of the usual balance updates and bug fixes, or if we’ll see more significant content get added in the form of expansions or smaller updates. The studio's last game, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice received a pretty chunky post-release update with a boss rush mode while Bloodborne got an expansion.
Miyazaki is already starting development on his next game after Elden Ring, which aims for a more ‘abstract’ approach to fantasy. Multiple games in the studio are in the works with different game directors and teams, and the company is expanding to staff these new titles. The chances of any of these projects being a Bloodborne remaster (or dare I say it - a sequel) are low, but we can dream, right?