Elden Ringhas already surpassed 12 million copies sold; this is an incredible feat for an ostensibly single-player fantasy game with an emphasis on punishing difficulty.Elden Ringis the bestselling game of the year in the USso far, and as such the development heads from both FromSoftware and Bandai Namco wanted to thank the fans for their support.
Elden Ring’s sales figures are the result of a perfect storm in the works for the past decade. FromSoftware achieved cult appeal withDemon’s Soulson the PS3, but it was theDark Soulsseries that truly brought this style of game into the collective gaming consciousness. Only a reputation of high difficulty kept some players away despite constant praise for the series. But nowElden Ringis a fresh IP with aBreath of the Wild-esque open world, and so more new players are deciding that this is the time to try out a FromSoftware game.
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In a press release announcing the sales milestone, Director of FromSoftware Hidetaka Miyazaki says he is “astonished” by how many people are playingElden Ring. He has commented before onnew players running up againstElden Ring’s difficultyfor the first time, but hopes that players enjoy “adventuring through its vast world, exploring its many secrets and facing up to its many threats.” The CEO of Bandai Namco, Yasuo Miyakawa also issued a thank you to fans with some cryptic hints at the future of theElden RingIP.
Mr. Miyakawa stated that he is “very proud to have been involved in bringing such a wonderful and fantastic game to life.” He then hinted that Bandai Namco is currently working on “expanding the brand beyond the game itself and into everyone’s daily life.” What form this expansion will take is unclear, but withElden Ringas popular as it is, right now is the perfect time to capitalize upon the IP.
It is as yet unconfirmed whetherElden Ringwill have DLC content. FromSoftware has precedent in releasing vast DLCs for theDark Soulsseries, to whichElden Ringis a kind of spiritual successor. However, Yasuo Miyakawa’s statement in the press release mentions expansions beyond the game. What form this could take is open to speculation.Bandai Namco recently announced it was developing its own metaverseproject, and anElden Ring-inspired element of this project could be what Miyakawa was referencing.
ExpandingElden Ringinto daily life doesn’t exactly hint at a film or TV show adaptation like withThe Last of UsTV series. Also,Elden Ringcould have too cryptic a story to adapt to screen. A novel or a series of comic books could work for the title, however. After all, the lore was written by George R.R. Martin and, like with most FromSoftware games,parallels to the long-runningBerzerkmanga seriesare evident throughoutElden Ring’s world.
Elden Ringis available now PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S.
