Bloodborne director Hidetaka Miyazaki has assuranced that the quality of the game’s upcoming expansion will not be impacted by his second project, Dark Souls 3, which he is serving as director on.
Given the lack of information about the Bloodborne DLC, as well as the degree Miyazaki is involved with it, fans voiced worries when it was revealed Miyazaki is directing Dark Souls 3.
Speaking in an interview with GameSpot, however, Miyazaki said he believes he has the capacity to work on both projects concurrently, and reminded fans it wouldn’t be the first time he has done so.
“The bottom line is, I think I can do it. I believe I can do both the Bloodborne DLC and Dark Souls 3,” he said. “This isn’t the first time I’ve had to work on two projects at the same time.”
He continued: “When I was doing Demon’s Souls, I was also working on Armoured Core: For Answer. Even for the original Dark Souls, I acted as producer and director.”
According to Miyazaki, delegating some of the heavy lifting on development of Dark Souls 3 will allow him to focus on designing his projects.
“In the case of Bloodborne, although I was the lead game director, there was another director level person that also contributed,” he explained. “This is the same for Dark Souls 3.
“Actually, [Yui] Tanimura-san, the director of Dark Souls 2, has already joined the [Dark Souls 3] team, which will allow me to work on core gameplay design while other things are taken care of.”
He ended by stating that any product with his name on it would be of high quality.
“As long as I am listed as game director on the end credits, there’s a certain level of quality the game needs to meet. I can guarantee that the game quality will reach that.”
Asked to clarify if that was the case for both Bloodborne DLC and Dark Souls 3, he said “yes.”
For someone so proficient at channelling the macabre, Hidetaka Miyazaki’s vivacious, upbeat demeanour is surprising. The visionary Japanese auteur fathered the Souls series in 2009 with the release of Demon’s Souls, a game which garnered a passionate but niche following.
His next title, Dark Souls, received widespread critical acclaim for its fascinating but esoteric narrative, complex characters, and intricately interwoven game world.
Since then, Miyazaki has directed Bloodborne, a PlayStation 4 exclusive that follows the framework of his Souls titles, but siphons H.P. Lovecraft and the cosmic horror genre instead of classic dark fantasy.
With over eight years spent dedicated to iterations and reinterpretations, you’d think Miyazaki would be weary of taking on another entry in the Souls series. And yet, when discussing Dark Souls 3, he talks with an infectious enthusiasm. It’s not the drilled-in-as-part-of-media-training kind enthusiasm, it’s the I’ve-had-an-epiphany-and-I-want-to-show-you-something-cool kind.
We know because he told us. At Gamescom 2015, we sat down with Miyazaki (and a translator) to discuss the inception of the Dark Souls 3 project, the lessons he learned from Bloodborne, the Souls series’ fandom, and more.
When did the Dark Souls 3 development project begin, and when did you become involved?
Dark Souls 3 began development when From Software was working on Dark Souls 2 DLC. Initially, I wasn’t involved in the project, I joined at the midpoint of the prototyping phase. That was the milestone where I started taking lead.
Honestly speaking, when the team was working on the prototype build overall development wasn’t in a good shape. We were at the very late stage of Bloodborne development and I had settled on a lot of the ideas for what I wanted to bring to Dark Souls 3.
“When the team was working on the prototype build for Dark Souls 3, the overall development wasn’t in a good shape.”
Hidetaka Miyazaki
Can you tell us a little more about the world of Dark Souls 3? It seems to be set during the apocalypse, as opposed to after it like in previous Souls games.
I’m not good at and I’m not a big fan of spontaneously explaining the world to players. I like for people to discover the world themselves. Having said that, I will say that the storyline is based around the Lord of Cinders, and the player acts as the dark hero who hunts them down. There was also a fire succeeded by a legendary lord from the past to the present. It’s like the grand finale of the story around the Lord of Cinders.
The original Dark Souls was about killing gods, that was one of its themes. The third game is about the kings that succeeded the power of those gods. The play is basically trying to kill those kings. That’s the basic plot of the game.
Are you familiar with something fans of Dark Souls in the west call “The Miyazaki Touch”?
Miyazaki Touch?
Pictured: Hidetaka Miyazaki [PlayStation Flickr]
Yes, The Miyazaki Touch!
What? What is this? I’ve never heard of it?
It’s a line of thinking that says a Dark Souls game lacks that something special if you’re not directly involved with it. Dark Souls 2, for example, is a great game, but didn’t have the magic of the first. It lacked the Miyazaki Touch, which elevates the design of a Souls game. How does that make you feel? Knowing that your involvement in the franchise is that important to fans?
I knew that my way of designing a game had unique direction to it, but after hearing there’s an actual term called “The Miyazaki Touch,” it’s a little scary. Dark Souls 3 will be unique, it’ll have unique level design and gameplay design because of the Miyazaki Touch, but now I am a little bit worried about whether that term will still be used positively or become negative after the game’s released.
I’m surprised you haven’t heard of it, it’s a very common shorthand for describing the unique qualities of Miyazaki’s games among fans. It’s definitely used positively at the moment. It’s an imperceptible magic, kind of like Disney’s; anyone can make an animated feature, but only Disney can make a Disney film.
Wow. If that’s the case, I’ll have to work hard to make sure that “Miyazaki Touch” continues to be used in a positive way then. I’m aware that the way I give direction to the team when working on a game is a little bit different from other people. I call it “total direction,” which means I get complete control of how the game is made, not only with regards to the level design, but also the background music, sound effects, and everything else. I think that may give it a unique quality.
What lessons did you take away from Bloodborne for use in Dark Souls 3?
There’s some good things I’ve taken from Bloodborne, but at the same time there were several things that were created because they’re uniquely Dark Souls and only work in this series. From Bloodborne, I’ve taken the limit on resources, which will add additional gameplay strategy. Having certain items give certain effects is another thing that I took over from Bloodborne.
While working on Bloodborne, I realised several unique things that I can only get in Dark Souls. For example, letting players have a variety of character builds, in Bloodborne I tried to embed characteristics into certain characters and weapons, rather than letting players build their own characters.
Bloodborne was also based on gothic, cosmic horror, but I realised I missed working on dark fantasy. That brought me back to Dark Souls. I was always thinking “classic metallic knight armour is awesome,” but couldn’t use that in Bloodborne because it’s a different genre. That’s something you can only get in the Dark Souls series.
Dragons too! And magic! That actually led to me coming up with a new way to evolve the franchise.
“As long as I am listed as game director on the end credits, there’s a certain level of quality the game needs to meet. I can guarantee that [Dark Souls 3 and Bloodborne’s DLC] will reach that.”
Hidetaka Miyazaki
Fans often speculate about whether the Souls framework and style of gameplay will ever extend to genres outside of dark fantasy. Have you thought about that, perhaps sci-fi Souls?
Dark Souls is my life’s work. Everything I came up with for Dark Souls 3 is based on my personal preferences. However, Dark Souls 3 is also actually the turning point for the franchise. This project was launched by the previous From Software management, before I was appointed president. In that sense, Dark Souls 3 is the turning point for the series.
As president of From Software, I am planning to launch several new projects. I can’t quite specify exactly what they are. Those could be something sci-fi, but you’ll have to stay tuned for more about that in the future.
You regularly mention Berserk as a big source of inspiration for Dark Souls, I always think about what you could do if you moved to a grounded sci-fi dystopia like in Akira. Of course. Then there’s mechs, which you’re familiar with thanks to Armored Core.
I definitely want to bring the Miyazaki Touch to those genres [laughs], both sci-fi and Japanese mechs.
With regards to Armored Core, there are several barriers that From Software as a whole needs to overcome in order to give new games to the fans. If the fans out there really want that, I suggest contacting Bandai Namco.
But yes, I do want to work on something new, and I’m please to hear people are interested in seeing that.
One of the big features in Bloodborne was the Chalice Dungeons. Will we be seeing something like that in Dark Souls 3?
In the case of Dark Souls 3, there’s no specific plan to reproduce Chalice Dungeons. The approach is to ask players to complete the game and then create new characters and builds then play the game. As always, there will be additional value and challenge in new game plus. We can’t go into details, but the online multiplayer in Dark Souls 3 will give additional values to players of the game. Those are the basic elements that will provide replay value in Dark Souls 3.
Click image to view in full screen
You’ve said your approach is to give full direction on games. But there is the matter of Bloodborne DLC, which many fans have hoped you’ll be involved with heavily. Can you clarify the level of commitment you’re giving to that?
The bottom line is, I think I can do it. I believe I can do both the Bloodborne DLC and Dark Souls 3. The reason is because this isn’t the first time I’ve had to work on two projects at the same time. When I was doing Demon’s Souls, I was also working on Armored Core: For Answer. Even for the original Dark Souls, I acted as producer and director.
In the case of Bloodborne, although I was the lead game director, there was another director level person that also contributed. This is the same for Dark Souls 3. Actually, [Yui] Tanimura-san, the director of Dark Souls 2, has already joined the [Dark Souls 3] team, which will allow me to work on core gameplay design while other things are taken care of.
As long as I am listed as game director on the end credits, there’s a certain level of quality the game needs to meet. I can guarantee that the game quality will reach that.
Both Dark Souls 3 and the Bloodborne DLC will reach that quality bar?
[In English] Yes!
Even though you’re also president of From Software now too?
Yes. Even though I am super busy. Working as a president and also director of Dark Souls is keeping me busy, I’m getting a lot of stimulation, which motivates me to work hard.
[Laughs] As a last resort, I can always skip my duties as a president to focus on Dark Souls 3.
Lego Worlds, Warner Bros.’ answer to the juggernaut Minecraft franchise, is getting a major new update.
Developer TT Games on Monday announced the first details about Update 2, which the studio says is more focused on “improving and opening up” existing content than adding new stuff.
Update 2 adds underwater gameplay, a zoomable map that can track multiple waypoints and even beam them into the world, and a new camera item that allows you to snap in-game photos.
The update also tweaks the Lego Worlds in-game menus, adds more abilities, and introduces various improvements in the areas of stability, performance, and terrain generation.
You can see a quick rundown of the updates and additions coming to Lego Worlds through the bullet points below, written by TT Games. The full patch notes, meanwhile, will be published later.
As for the update itself, TT Games wasn’t ready to commit to a specific date, but the developer said it is hoping to release it “soon.”
Lego Worlds was released in June with no pre-release announcement or buildup. An in-development version of the game is available today on PC though Steam by way of Early Access for $15.
Lego Worlds Update 2
• Underwater – Explore and build underwater. If you find yourself running out of air, try the sub or one of those characters that can breathe (or doesn’t need to breathe) underwater…
• Discoveries – For the first time, players will have to do a little more work to discover some of the characters and creatures. This is the first step to what we believe will be a more rewarding Discovery system. But what if you already have everything? Well, you’ll still see the same things but there’s also a new option to reset your save game–without affecting your worlds or brick builds, naturally–so you can start discovering again from scratch.
• Map – Never get lost again, unless like us you can’t actually read a map… Anyway, you can’t miss it–it’s got some great features like adding and removing waypoints ( also appear as beams in the world) and different zoom levels. You can tune it up or turn it off too, and just have the beams–let us know how you use it.
• The Camera Item – Snap happy users can take screenshots using the in-game Camera item to capture their favorite builds, creatures, or rocks! Warning: taking a picture of a Lego Jacket Potato doesn’t suddenly make it interesting!
• Virtual Floor – We’ve added a new sub-feature to Brick Building and Tools. This option is an easy way to build in the air, or add detail to a specific layer, or to keep some of your hard work protected while you go crazy creatively. We also slipped in a ‘free’ related feature on the mouse that allows you to place individual bricks in free space at the cross-hair cursor, rather like when using a controller, without altering the way it works normally.
• LXFML Export update – We’ve updated the LXFML export tool to now include props! Any props you place will now be stored within the model data, meaning you’re able to pack up your house and place exactly as it is anywhere you like! We wouldn’t recommend putting your perfect house too close to the Junkyard though, it’ll halve the value!
• Tracking Camera – We’ve added a new Camera Mode. This is a more rigid setup that requires the player to control rotation and distance a lot more, as opposed to the regular Chase Camera.
• GUI – The grids in the various menus have had a little bit of a summer clean and are now neater on screen and easier to see. This is in advance of a more significant set of improvements, coming soon to an awesome Lego game near you.
• Info Box – You can now hold the BACK button (on a wired Xbox 360 controller) to turn it on and off, instead of having to navigate the pointer. As with the GUI grids, this is a small convenience in advance of bigger improvements.
• Abilities – There are quite a few cool / awesome / funny little things going into this update. We might tease some of them, but for now you’ll have to wait.
• Content – Well, we said above there’s less emphasis on new content, but you can still expect a few new discoveries, plus the winning competition builds. And don’t forget ongoing new animations and audio!
• Fixes – An ongoing focus, especially as we get ready to push out an update, including (but not limited to!) improvements to stability, performance, and terrain generation.
The faces of several Mortal Kombat X characters have been unmasked for the first time, thanks to a new PC mod.
While some of the game’s combatants fight with their faces covered, one modder has managed to remove their headgear and take screenshots of the face models underneath.
As highlighted on a Mortal Kombat X fan site, six character faces in total have been exposed: Revenant Sub-Zero, Torr, Erron Black, Jason Voorhees, Rain, and Smoke.
Take a look at their money-makers in the gallery below.
Above: Torr Unmasked — Take a look at the thumbnails below to view the faces of Erron Black, Jason Voorhees, Rain, Revenant Sub-Zero, and Smoke
Rain and Smoke are non-playable characters, for now, although it is possible that the two will be included into the main roster via upcoming DLC.
Some fans expect a robust line-up of new characters to join the roster, specifically because the “Kombat Pack” season pass included five DLC characters (Goro, Jason Voorhees, Predator, Tanya, and Tremor), and NetherRealm has since described it as “Kombat Pack 1,” inferring that there will be at least one more.
Mortal Kombat X is the latest edition of NetherRealm’s long-running series, which launched in 1992. The title, published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, launched in April and enjoyed the “biggest launch” in franchise history.
Looking for a new wallpaper for your PC? You’re in luck, as Electronic Arts has released a handful of high-resolution wallpapers for Star Wars Battlefront to hold you over until the game launches in November.
Xbox One boss Phil Spencer has played more than 300 hours of Bungie’s shooter Destiny. That’s according to a snapshot of his player profile captured by another Xbox executive, Mike Ybarra.
It’s an impressive number for someone who travels a lot (he’s been to China and Germany in the past two weeks) and is presumably incredibly busy almost all the time in his role as Head of Xbox.
Final Fantasy XV Confirmed for 2016: After years and years of development, Square Enix’s role-playing game will finally be here…next year! Director Hajime Tabata announced the news this week at Gamescom.
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Now’s your chance to help make NHL 16 a better game. EA Sports wants your feedback. Take part in this survey to let them know what you think.
Here’s a great video interview in which Destiny creative director Luke Smith answers 104 questions about the game in rapid-fire succession. Watch the interview over at Game Informer.
Professional Call of Duty tournaments used to be played on Xbox platforms, but that’s changing this year, as MLG and other events will be played on PlayStation 4. This news follows the announcement that all DLC for Black Ops III (and maybe future games) will launch first on PlayStation platforms.
Did you know the late Chris Farley was originally eyed to play Shrek in the DreamWorks animated classic? He was, and now a video of him performing the character has emerged. His version is quite different than the Mike Myers version we know today. Listen here.
Doom developer id Software is expanding. Studio owner Bethesda has announced that id has opened a brand in Frankfurt, Germany. They’ll be support id’s main team in working on id Tech for Doom.
You know what Halo was missing? Dinosaurs, of course. That was obvious. Well thankfully, now it has them, thanks to this excellent Ark: Survival Evolved mod. Just wow.
How it Star Citizen‘s controversial FPS mode Star Marine shaping up? Check out this in-depth blog post from Chris Roberts and his team to find out.
More LEGO Minecraft sets are now available! Check ’em out here.
Temple Run 2 and sprinter Usain Bolt have partnered to bring a new jersey to the game based on the uniform Bolt will wear at the upcoming World Championships of Running later this month. It’s an exact copy of what he’ll wear at the event, and you can buy it now for $1.
OK. This Resident Evil cosplay is too good. My goodness, wow.
Now’s your chance to give Nintendo some feedback about its E3 showing this year. This week, the company launched an online survey, asking people for their thoughts about the briefing and more.
The first update for MMO Cabal 2 is now available. Called “Blackwaves,” the update adds a new event that challenges you to fight off waves of mobs, with 24 players across four groups per event (there are 12 in all). As you might have guessed, there is all-new gear to earn if you’re successful.
Tough times for game publisher Majesco, as the company this week replaced its CEO and confirmed that the publicly traded company is down to just five employees. Get the full report here.
A PlayStation 4 mouse-and-keyboard controller with a vibrating wristband? Sure. Why not? Read all about it here.
Ahead of Until Dawn‘s release later this month, Sony has posted some of the game’s haunting music. The tracks were composed by Jason Graves. You might not know his name, but you probably are familiar with his work, as he did the excellent, creepy music for Dead Space. Listen to the tracks here.
The Angry Birds movie will be “unexpectedly smart.” That’s according to actor Josh Gad, who plays a lead role in the movie. Read this interview from IGN, in which Gad also talks about how he was originally going to turn down the role, until he talked with the producers who won him over with the pitch.
Batman: Arkham Knight has been out for a month and a half, and already fans are making some pretty interesting mods for the PC version of the game. One of those fans has decided to let players be able to play as the game’s director, Sefton Hill.
That’s right, there’s now an Arkham Knight mod that replaces Batman with developer Rocksteady’s co-founder. Modder “Tchi6” created the mod, which makes the playable character into a bearded, jeans- and polo shirt-wearing game developer. And in this mod, Sefton Hill has incredible superhero agility and strength. Check out a video of it below, courtesy of YouTube user Heitor Fraga (Warning: some strong language).
It’s a pretty hilarious mod that you can download here (Be cautious, of course, with downloading any mods). You can read how to install the mod in the description of the above YouTube video.
Dark Souls 3 is the “turning point” in the franchise and will pave the way for something new, according to series creator Hidetaka Miyazaki.
Speaking in an interview with GameSpot, Miyazaki was asked if he has given any thought to expanding the Souls series beyond fantasy and into other genres such as sci-fi.
“Dark Souls is my life’s work,” he replied. “Everything I came up with for Dark Souls 3 is based on my personal preferences. However, Dark Souls 3 is also actually the turning point for the franchise.”
Pressed on whether he would explore the sci-fi or mech genres, perhaps by applying the Souls framework to them, Miyazaki said he “definitely wants to bring the Miyazaki Touch” to them.
This year’s Gamescom brought us a tremendous amount of exciting new trailers for some of the biggest upcoming games. From the amazing kinetic display of parkour in the trailer for Mirror’s Edge Catalyst to the tense drama seen in the Mafia III debut, there’s a whole lot of quality to see here. So check out all of our top trailer picks from the show!
