Summary
FromSoftwarehas spent the better part of the last 15 years in the soulslike trenches after bringing the genre to life withDemon’s Souls. But before 2009, it had a far more varied library that’s only now trickling back into fashion.
Last year, it took a break from the Soulsborne formula withthe critically acclaimed mech shooter sequel Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon, but it swiftly returned withElden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree. It’s a perfect celebration of the legacy From has cultivated, so what better time to dig even deeper into its varied catalogue and tap into its experimental side that led us to this incredibly popular genre to begin with.
A Brief History Of FromSoftware
FromSoftware was founded back in 1986, the middle-aged ages. Its very first game King’s Field launched eight years later, a first-person dungeon crawler for the original PlayStation. It’s far closer to something like Daggerfall or Ark Fatalis than From’s later work.
Just three years later, the first Armored Core was released, jumping from medieval hovels to the far-flung reaches of space with mech suits for good measure. FromSoftware branched out even further withmore traditional RPGs like Eternal Ring, the stealth action fan-favourite Tenchu, the survival horror cult classic Kuon, and the more traditionalDevil May Cry-esque action game Ninja Blade.
FromSoftware had an unbelievably diverse collection of games under its belt by the early ‘00s, but everything changed in 2004. Hidetaka Miyazaki joined the studio as a planner for Armored Core: Last Raven and was then promoted to director for the sequel Armored Core 4. After proving himself more than capable, he took an interest in a unique little PS3 exclusive called Demon’s Souls.
FromSoftware had no faith in the game and it waseven considered “a failure”by that point, but Miyazaki offered to help and eventually took full control as it was deemed that he couldn’t possibly make it any worse. It wasn’t well-received on launch in 2009, but a few months later, people finally started to get it.
The difficulty curve was enormous, this was our first taste of the soulslike genre, and it was a far cry from the power fantasy of action RPGs that we were used to. Like a sour sweet, your initial impressions of a soulslike will probably be disgust and horror, but after a while, you’ll start to love the taste. Gamers were collectively taking that bite for the first time - it was always going to be a rocky start.
The spiritual successorDark Soulslaunched two years later and firmly put FromSoftware on the map, enjoying so much success that Miyazaki was even made president of the company. The rest is soulslike history.
After Over A Decade, It’s Time To Branch Out
It’s understandable why FromSoftware has put all of its chips in the soulslike corner. These games are what have cemented the studio as an icon among icons, and it very quickly bolstered Miyazaki’s career. FromSoft hasn’t dabbled in many other genres since striking gold, with the only major exception being the years between Demon’s Souls and Dark Souls 2 when this fledgling genre was still in its teething phase.
After Dark Souls 2, FromSoftware went full throttle into Soulsborne games withBloodborne, Dark Souls 3,Sekiro, andElden Ring. But its return to Armored Core after ten years was the biggest breath of fresh air, proving that the studio is not only capable ofmorethan soulslikes, but that there’s an audience eagerly waiting. Fires of Rubicon didn’t light the world on fire like Elden Ring, but it has sold over three million copies. There’s clearly a community excited to see what else FromSoft can do.
Miyazaki even said that“part of him wants to make a traditional” JRPG.
Kuon captured the same unease as classics likeSilent HillandResident Evil, and we’ve seen that FromSoftcandabble in more traditional hack-and-slash action games that are sorely missing in today’s world. To see the studio branch out beyond what it’s so well known for and to experiment in new ways again, especially asthe soulslike genrebecomes so oversaturated with copycats, would be invigorating.
There’s definitely room for both approaches, as Armored Core 6 proved, and digging just below the surface into From’s rich past shows that the studio is so much more than one genre. And who knows, maybe a return to the more experimental old days will even pave the way for something as iconic as Dark Souls again. If From doesn’t tap into that old variety, we’ll never find out.
Elden Ring
WHERE TO PLAY
With worldbuilding from Game of Thrones scribe George R.R. Martin and developed by FromSoftware, Elden Ring is a masterpiece in what has become known as the ‘Soulslike’ genre of action role-playing games.
