The director of Elden Ring Nightreign has been thinking about this game since Dark Souls 3, and “seeing the scope of Elden Ring” finally made it click in his mind

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The compact RPG spin-off, Elden Ring Nightreign, was developed more swiftly compared to Elden Ring, utilizing many existing assets. However, the concepts behind it, which have been percolating in director Junya Ishizaki’s mind for years, date back to when he was working on Dark Souls 3. He has been mulling over this game idea since then.

In an interview with GamesRadar+, Ishizaki explains through an interpreter that it was quite some time ago when this idea originated. During his tenure at the company, he had a somewhat fuzzy vision for a game he wanted to develop. It’s possible that even during the development of Dark Souls 3, he had these scattered thoughts and concepts swirling around in his mind.

Ishizaki joined FromSoftware back when the original Dark Souls was first released, taking on roles as both combat and level designer. Since then, approximately ten years have passed, with Dark Souls 3 being launched in April 2016 worldwide; thus, Nightreign has been in development for roughly a decade now.

Ishizaki notes that it was only when Elden Ring moved into full development that his concepts became solidified. As he witnessed the vastness of Elden Ring’s world, the diversity of its enemies, weapons, and player builds, he felt it was an ideal setting to grow and refine these ideas. Essentially, this is a summary of how and when the game came into being for him.

Initially, FromSoftware president and Elden Ring’s director, Hidetaka Miyazaki, encouraged Ishizaki to take on the role of director. However, when he initially conceived the idea, Ishizaki admitted that he hadn’t considered himself as a potential director yet. Instead, he saw it as an intriguing opportunity for them both to explore together.

Following his first directorial venture, he expressed a strong desire to take charge of another project – possibly one that doesn’t have such deep roots in a pre-established universe or intellectual property.

He expresses his eagerness to explore directing another project in the future, saying, “Perhaps I could take on a new challenge someday. For Nightreign, Elden Ring served as a significant foundation. So, ideally, I’d like to experiment with a different approach moving forward.

Is it possible that, given his enthusiasm for multiplayer games, Ishizaki might advocate for a project with a setup like Nightreign, or another unconventional departure from FromSoft’s typical RPG approach, that doesn’t fall under the category of a spin-off?

He explains, “I’ve been pondering over that aspect, and as I work on developing Nightreign, I often go with the flow and see how the game evolves. So, I’ll definitely examine this further, but whatever my next director role may be – I’m not certain about the timing or specifics yet – it will likely take a very different shape.

Of course, significant shifts are bound to occur once concepts are put into action and shared among colleagues. So, the question becomes: How did Ishizaki discover the game that Nightreign is interested in?

He states, “There are numerous challenges ahead, and it requires effort to embrace them. Therefore, approach these situations with the mindset of clearly presenting your thoughts to the team and overcoming the obstacles. However, as you navigate through this process, there will be instances where you stumble upon something that brings pure joy, and it’s crucial to seize those moments.

This continuous journey happens daily. Each day, you strive to discover something fresh and exciting, something captivating and inspiring that fuels your persistence. In essence, this is my perception of the development process with Nightreign, and we’ll observe how it shapes up for our next endeavor.

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2025-05-27 21:10