FromSoftware’s upcoming action-adventure title Elden Ring is reportedly in the “final stages” of development, according to producer Yasuhiro Kitao. In addition to talking about the basic premise of the game, Kitao explained some of Elden Ring’s other key features, such as how horseback riding will work, and title’s massive “legacy dungeons.”
During Tokyo Game Show 2021, Famitsu hosted a brief video interview with Elden Ring producer and former PlayStation employee Yasuhiro Kitao. During the interview, Kitao revealed that FromSoftware was currently working to finish up the game’s development and were “quite busy.” Notably, Kitao mentioned how Elden Ring director Hidetaka Miyazaki and a few other members were coming into the office during the weekends—specifically during Tokyo Game Show, which was held over the weekend.
In addition to the development update, Kitao also explained a few core mechanics that Elden Ring will feature such as horseback riding. Players will be able to call their horse (translated literally as “Spirit Horse”) using a special whistle in order to traverse wider field areas. Though players cannot call their horse inside dungeons, Kitao notes that the horse will be able to double jump and in some situations—such as a fight with a large dragon—combat may be easier on horseback rather than on foot.
Another key addition Elden Ring is bringing to the Soulsborne genre is the “Legacy Dungeon” system. Kitao explains the dungeons as “massive castle-like dungeons that are similar to those from past games,” located at the ends of the world map.
Aside from these Legacy Dungeons, there will also be various types of medium-to-small-sized dungeons scattered across the map such as underground catacombs and monasteries that players can explore. To traverse the world, Elden Ring adds a new system that will allow players to set points of interest as well as expand their map by picking up map pieces along their travels.
Elden Ring releases on January 21, 2022.
[Source: Famitsu]
