GAMES
From Software’s Hidetaka Miyazaki on the Secrets of Elden Ring’s Development
When From Software’s Elden Ring launched in February, it took the gaming world by storm. Bringing fans of From’s earlier games together with new players, Elden Ring provided one of the most streamlined, accessible experiences the team had ever created. What’s more, for the first time in a From game, it was all wrapped in a beautiful, expansive open world that begged to be explored. The game was a massive hit right out of the gate, with millions of players striving to sit atop the Elden Throne.
We recently had a chance to speak with Hidetaka Miyazaki, the longtime From Software Director who has been instrumental in bringing games like Dark Souls, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, and Elden Ring to fans all over the world. He gave us some insight into how Elden Ring was designed, which bosses were his favorite, and how to cope with the nightmarish Fingercreepers.
Xbox Wire: How did designing for an open world change your creative process from your previous games?
Hidetaka Miyazaki: In terms of overall game design, the sense of accomplishment is a theme that has maintained since Dark Souls and the like. As well as that, we placed major focus on a “sense of adventure” that allows the player to engage with this huge world, with its many unknowns and threats, at their liberty.
From an actual production perspective, the game became far bigger than anything we’d made before, so you could also say the responsibilities handed to staff other than myself were much greater this time.
To put it another way, there are many staff here now who’ve grown and gained experience over the years, and the fact that so much could be entrusted to them was one of the reasons we decided to make Elden Ring when we did.
Xbox Wire: What was the thinking behind the Ashes of War system? Was it designed with flexibility in mind?
Hidetaka Miyazaki: Flexibility was definitely part of it. We wanted to put emphasis on giving the player more freedom in various ways, and the Ashes of War represent a link in a series of such efforts.
The goal was to increase the degree of freedom in the context of strengthening your weapons and customising them in your own way, and I think this feeling of weapon customisation ended up being something quite expansive and fun.
Also, the Skill system itself was created with Dark Souls 3, as a means of improving the distinct characteristics of each weapon category. It entrenched the nuance of power necessary for battling in a high fantasy world of myth and legend, which resulted in a greater range of ostentatious or idiosyncratic Skills in Elden Ring.
Xbox Wire: How did you design the different type of Ashes you could summon?
Hidetaka Miyazaki: The Spirit Ashes were essentially picked from enemies, but it came down to how they worked in gameplay. Where possible during their selection and design process, we tried to remain conscious of each summon’s unique qualities and what they brought to the game.
Then on top of that a layer of personality was added from a role-playing perspective. While this wasn’t true of every single one, I personally have a bit of a thing for the role-playing aspect, so it’s something I hope players can enjoy in that sense as well.
Xbox Wire: there any design decisions that helped determine which boss was in a particular area in the open world?
Hidetaka Miyazaki: When we start designing an area, the setting establishes from an early stage which boss will appear in that area, particularly for the major ones.
In this way, the boss character’s gameplay forms a premise for the area design, and the boss gameplay, too, can be adjusted based on the map in which it appears.
Xbox Wire: Who is your personal favorite boss in Elden Ring?
Hidetaka Miyazaki: It’s very difficult to make my mind up, but I’d have to say Radahn. I find him fascinating as an individual character, and I’m fond of the Radahn Festival as a situation. As well as capturing that literal festive atmosphere and sense of exaltation, I suppose it has that lonely and oppressive feeling that you could associate with our games.
It feels like only yesterday we were talking about the “Radahn Festival” idea… No one on the team took me seriously at the time! (Laughs)
If there’s a runner-up prize, it would go to Godrick and Rykard.
Xbox Wire: Did any particular open-world games serve as inspiration for your design choices in Elden Ring?
Hidetaka Miyazaki: There wasn’t one specific game that served as inspiration, but we’ve enjoyed many classic open-world games from a player’s perspective and each one has given us a unique and wonderful incentive.
There’s no end to this list of titles, but “The Elder Scrolls” series and “The Witcher 3” are on there, plus “The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild” as a more recent example.
Xbox Wire: Is there a way to unsee the Spider Hand enemies? I see them every time I close my eyes…
Hidetaka Miyazaki: What can I say to make up for this… I’m really very sorry… The Fingercreeper is actually one of my favourite designs…
I think making a conscious effort to unsee them is going to have an adverse effect. If you want to topple your trauma, you have to fix your gaze directly on them, never looking away as you strike them down. Maybe that’ll work…?
Xbox Wire: Has Elden Ring’s hit status had any effect on your mental state?
Hidetaka Miyazaki: As a member of the production team, the fact that such a huge number of people are playing Elden Ring brings me enormous joy, and has come as a great surprise.
Speaking both for myself and on behalf of everyone at FromSoftware, as game developers we’ve always felt exceedingly fortunate, and this time has really driven that feeling home.
I’m not sure if you’d call it a mental state, but our stance towards game production hasn’t really been affected.
Up until now, we’ve made the games that we ourselves find fun, and I don’t imagine that’ll change going forward.
We’ll continue to make new, fun games in this way. I believe that’s the best method of conveying our delight and appreciation to the players.
ELDEN RING
BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment America Inc.
$59.99
THE NEW FANTASY ACTION RPG.
Rise, Tarnished, and be guided by grace to brandish the power of the Elden Ring and become an Elden Lord in the Lands Between.
• A Vast World Full of Excitement
A vast world where open fields with a variety of situations and huge dungeons with complex and three-dimensional designs are seamlessly connected. As you explore, the joy of discovering unknown and overwhelming threats await you, leading to a high sense of accomplishment.
• Create your Own Character
In addition to customizing the appearance of your character, you can freely combine the weapons, armor, and magic that you equip. You can develop your character according to your play style, such as increasing your muscle strength to become a strong warrior, or mastering magic.
• An Epic Drama Born from a Myth
A multilayered story told in fragments. An epic drama in which the various thoughts of the characters intersect in the Lands Between.
• Unique Online Play that Loosely Connects You to Others
In addition to multiplayer, where you can directly connect with other players and travel together, the game supports a unique asynchronous online element that allows you to feel the presence of others.
ELDEN RING Deluxe Edition
BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment America Inc.
$79.99
The Deluxe Edition includes:
• ELDEN RING (full game)
• Digital Artbook & Original Soundtrack
Allows players to enjoy viewing concept art and listening to in-game music of ELDEN RING exclusive to the Deluxe Edition.
THE NEW FANTASY ACTION RPG.
Rise, Tarnished, and be guided by grace to brandish the power of the Elden Ring and become an Elden Lord in the Lands Between.
• A Vast World Full of Excitement
A vast world where open fields with a variety of situations and huge dungeons with complex and three-dimensional designs are seamlessly connected. As you explore, the joy of discovering unknown and overwhelming threats await you, leading to a high sense of accomplishment.
• Create your Own Character
In addition to customizing the appearance of your character, you can freely combine the weapons, armor, and magic that you equip. You can develop your character according to your play style, such as increasing your muscle strength to become a strong warrior, or mastering magic.
• An Epic Drama Born from a Myth
A multilayered story told in fragments. An epic drama in which the various thoughts of the characters intersect in the Lands Between.
• Unique Online Play that Loosely Connects You to Others
In addition to multiplayer, where you can directly connect with other players and travel together, the game supports a unique asynchronous online element that allows you to feel the presence of others.
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GAMES
This Week’s Deals with Gold and Spotlight Sale
GAMES
The German Empire Marches to Italy in a Free Expansion Today
We have a new expansion for our WW1 Italian Front FPS game Isonzo releasing today! It’s the first part of our Caporetto season of free expansions, and features a whole new faction with the arrival of the German Empire on the Italian Front, and brings a new map for the Offensive game mode. There will be two more releases in the Caporetto season, each one with a new map to ultimately link together into a three map Caporetto Offensive.
The German faction comes with more than ten new weapons, as well as historically accurate uniforms and equipment. This first Caporetto map sees you taking part in the early stages of the Twelfth Battle of the Isonzo, with German troops assaulting Italian positions on the road to Caporetto. Historically it was a military disaster for Italy which brought down the government – but maybe things can go differently with you on the battlefield?
The update sees new uniforms and equipment from the German Empire for Isonzo’s six classes: Rifleman, Assault, Engineer, Officer, Marksman and Mountaineer. For those who aren’t familiar with the game, each class has different weapon, gear and perk options that allow you to specialize your play style within the overall focus of the class. For instance, Marksmen are always sharpshooters, but a lot depends on your loadout. You could be a long-range sniper and observer identifying and eliminating high value targets with a scoped rifle, or you could equip body armor to take and hold a front line position with deadly accurate mid-range fire. Every class has choices to make in this regard.
In Isonzo’s signature Offensive game mode, one side must attack and break through multiple defensive lines. Thick layers of barbed wire, trenches, and whatever extra defenses the enemy engineers put together will stand in the way of a successful attack. Objectives can be taking and holding key points, or planting dynamite to sabotage enemy supply stashes or heavy artillery guns.
The new Caporetto map – the first of three in the season – is a huge battlefield based on the strategically important Monte Kolovrat. There are five defensive lines, where each line has two objectives for the attackers before they can advance further. While in the historical Battle of Caporetto both German and Austro-Hungarian forces were involved, in Isonzo we’ve chosen to focus on the German contribution, so the map recreates the stunning German advance from the town of Tolmein all the way to Kolovrat Ridge. It’s a damp, overcast day when the attack begins, and the attackers must first cut their way through lines of wire to break into a devastated town – including capturing a church defended by multiple heavy machine gun positions. Fortunately, in Isonzo there are many tactical options available to deal with such strong points: artillery barrages, smokescreens, snipers, rifle grenades, even poison gas. From there, it becomes a literal uphill battle for the German attackers as they begin to climb towards the peak of Kolovrat Ridge. They’ll need to sabotage bunkers and capture command posts while navigating rocky trenches and steep forested slopes. At the penultimate fourth defensive line there is a huge siege mortar to sabotage and a cluster of houses providing cover to the Italian defenders – then it’s one last climb to reach the final objective: Hill 1114. If the Germans can take it, the Italians will finally be the ones fighting uphill as their reinforcements stream in to try and counterattack.
Of course, things are no walk in the park for the defenders either – although it’s easier to maneuver when going downhill, and it’s much simpler for officers to deploy flares to call in support, the extensive trench lines can become a liability once the Germans get a foothold, providing cover as they advance. Some of the Italian defensive positions can be exposed against the sky, making it easy for German marksmen to pick off targets. Italian engineers should make good use of their construction abilities to put down additional sandbags and lay out extra wire to prevent German assault troops sneaking through the trees to flank trenches with their grenades or light machine guns.
As we mentioned before, historically the Battle of Caporetto was a disaster for the Italians. Appalling leadership led to poorly motivated and unprepared troops falling apart in the face of the combined Austro-Hungarian and German armies using cutting edge infiltration tactics. The Italian soldiers were not allowed to retreat until too late, and in the end hundreds of thousands would surrender. After Caporetto the top Italian general was fired and replaced by someone far more competent, who managed to turn the war around for the Italians. In Isonzo, it’s a more fair fight where both sides have an equal chance of winning, if they can use all the tactical options available better than their opponents.
The release will also bring other improvements to the game, including a prestige mode and higher level cap. Additionally, for those who want more options for visual customization of their character, the Royal Units DLC is releasing alongside the free expansion and contains uniforms from the German Kingdoms of Bavaria and Württemberg. Though part of the German Empire, these states had their own distinctive uniforms which we’ve carefully recreated with the same accuracy and attention to detail as with the other uniforms in the game.
The Battle for Caporetto Begins…
Isonzo is available right now on the Microsoft Store for Xbox, and the free Caporetto expansion is out today! Plenty of time to master the art of mountain warfare before the German Empire joins the action on the Italian Front. Follow us to get the latest development news as we add the finishing touches!
We’ll see you in the trenches!
Isonzo
BlackMill Games
$29.99
World War One expands to the mountains of the Italian Front – beautiful but deadly in equal measure. Inspired by the two year struggle for control of the Isonzo river valley and the Alps during World War One, Isonzo elevates the WW1 Games Series, figuratively and literally.
From the makers of Verdun and Tannenberg…
Take part in historical offensives from the Sixth Battle of the Isonzo to the Strafexpedition. Reflecting the course of the actual battles, as the attackers advance the fighting will shift through vastly different landscapes within a single offensive: from hillside fortresses to mountain trenches and fierce urban combat on city streets. Everything is recreated based on research and field trips, from sound effects and uniforms down to the houses, vineyards and trenches you’ll be fighting over.
The new Offensive game mode puts you right in the middle of key historical offensives on the Italian Front. Lead the charge across stunning Italian landscapes as you choose your path to victory – cut paths through barbed wire, flank your enemies by following mountain trails, or man a mortar to blast a way through. Shape a dynamic battlefield by laying sandbags and wire, placing ammo crates, deploying trench periscopes or sniper shields, and more.
Call in support with a unique historically accurate flare system: flare guns can mark targets for artillery or biplane flybys, or different colored flares can be used to guide your team. Once the big guns have softened up the enemy, finish the job at close quarters with an Arditi dagger or mountaineer’s pickaxe. Man heavy machine guns, mortars and even mountain guns for more direct fire support.
Choose from six classes based on historical combat roles and build your loadout from a selection of weapons, equipment and perks linked to that class, giving flexibility and variety while staying grounded in what real soldiers might have carried. You’ll be operating wire cutters, bandaging yourself and wounded teammates, and blowing the whistle to start an assault. One shot can kill and even lighter injuries can lead to quickly bleeding out.
Being an effective soldier in Isonzo is not just about being a good marksman. Mastering the terrain is also key – the mountain can be a friend or foe. Learn how to navigate well to maintain cover and surprise your enemies or support your allies.
Finally… watch out for the dreaded poison gas. You’ve never experienced WW1 action quite like this!
Isonzo key features include:
• MOUNTAIN WARFARE: Assaulting mountain fortifications, battling through ruined towns, and fording rivers are just a few of the challenges you’ll face as you fight your way through numerous enemy positions
• TACTICAL MULTIPLAYER FPS: Choose your role and loadout carefully to survive this high altitude combat – play a sniper to pick off the enemy engineers before they can cut your wire, use rifle grenades to clear enemy machine guns, and much more
• WORLD WAR ONE GAMEPLAY: Historical Offensive game mode based on real battles and focused on the unique challenges of Alpine warfare. Fight with 30+ WW1 weapons, poisonous gas attacks, and intense artillery barrages
• BUILD FOR VICTORY: Place your own wire, sandbags, trench periscopes, and more! Whether you’re digging in or on the attack, shaping the battlefield to your advantage will be key to victory
• FACES OF WAR: Make every class your own by picking from a variety of historically class-appropriate uniforms, accessories and headgear. As a finishing touch, you can even pick your mustache from several famous period-accurate styles!
• AUTHENTIC WW1 ATMOSPHERE: Accuracy in everything from maps and weaponry to music and the uniforms – fight for the Kingdom of Italy, the German Empire or the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy
MORE GAMES IN THE AUTHENTIC WW1 GAME SERIES
Immerse yourself in more WW1 action with our other standalone titles Tannenberg and Verdun. Experience trench warfare on the Western Front in Verdun, or maneuver for control of key sectors in Tannenberg on the Eastern Front. These authentic WW1 shooters let players choose from a range of squads from across the war, as they fight for control of the ever-changing frontlines.
GAMES
Transport Fever 2: Console Edition is Bringing the Full Transport Tycoon Experience to Xbox
Today, we proudly share a sneak peek into the development of Transport Fever 2: Console Edition, and how we managed to bring the full transport tycoon experience to Xbox.
Transport Fever is a very popular and highly rated transportation tycoon franchise on PC. Its latest entry, Transport Fever 2, delivers a level of size and detail never before seen in the genre. The goal of the game is to build a successful transportation company by constructing railroads, streets, water and air lines. Starting in the 19th century, the player connects towns and industries to transport both passengers and cargo. In addition to a customizable free game mode, there is also a fully-fledged campaign mode with challenging missions set in real-world transportation history.
After the huge success of Transport Fever 2 on PC, it was only logical to bring the experience to consoles as well. Not only that, but no efforts were spared to give the console community the full experience that made the game great on PC. In order to achieve this, the engineers at Urban Games had to pull some rabbits out of their engineers’ hats.
Always providing the freshest layer of paint
One of the most cherished features of Transport Fever 2 are its highly detailed vehicles. The game comes with more than 200 lovingly hand-modeled trains, ships, and airplanes, each sporting multiple 4k textures and normal maps.
On PC, it is easily affordable to have all the models and textures in memory whenever needed, as a typical rig has 16 GB of RAM and a GPU with a dedicated extra memory. Consoles, however, are built differently. They have a unified architecture with an overall smaller amount but ultra-fast memory. The key to make it work on consoles is texture streaming, which allows to clear textures of models that are not in view anymore. Moreover, this technology is used in Transport Fever 2 to constantly load textures at the highest affordable resolution to present the stars of the show, like the classic Class A 3/5 steam locomotive, in their best coat of paint at all times.
Keeping the ground like a console pro
A trademark of Transport Fever 2 are its huge maps. During development of the game, it was always paramount to provide a real sense of scale. The engine should allow for maps where a high-speed train, such as the famous Japanese Shinkansen, can really make use of its superior speed. So, a lot of effort was put into designing a highly effective terrain rendering pipeline that can handle maps of more than 120 sq miles of size with a detail resolution of almost 1 yard. Central to this is a dynamic terrain tessellation algorithm on the CPU that, while costing a bit of extra memory, makes sure the engine can render these maps on a wide variety of PCs.
Now, enter the world of consoles with their incredibly well-designed GPUs and graphic APIs. Here, the hardware can be leveraged very well for terrain rendering by making use of the GPU tessellation feature. This feature generates the render mesh for the terrain fully on the graphics card, saving valuable processing time for the complex economy and city growth simulations. While generating more triangles, the hardware approach still costs less memory overall due to its efficiency. So vast maps can be viewed from a bird’s view high up in the sky and seamlessly zoomed in down to individual rocks on a riverbank.
Inspiring the inner architect
Finally, let’s talk about constructions, a central and defining part of the Transport Fever 2 experience. Constructions are large assemblies that consist of dozens of assets, street segments, ground decals and terrain modifications. Think of structures like airports, train stations, docks, highway crossings, and many more. Anything that is needed to build a vast transportation empire.
For a smooth construction experience, it is key that the player really feels that he has precise control over the building placement. On PC, constructions are typically built using the mouse. As the average PC user is very well adjusted to this method of input, it is sufficiently performant to calculate the entire construction each frame and place it under the cursor. However, on consoles, the best way of building constructions is to have them always kept in the center of the screen and move the camera along the map for placement. And moving the camera needs to be as smooth as silk.
So, for the console release of Transport Fever 2, the construction preview pipeline was overhauled. All dynamic calculations are now performed in the background while a static preview of the structure and its underlying ground plan are shown. Not only are constructions now completely stable in terms of FPS, but they also give feedback to the player on what environment features the construction would tear down when built.
Let’s get tycooning on console
We are very excited to bring the Transport Fever franchise to consoles for the first time ever with the release of Transport Fever 2: Console Edition on Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One in February 2023, and we hope you will enjoy it as much as we did developing it.
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