Cognition Dissemination: Souls Will Beget More Souls

Dark Souls III released in western territories this week, following its Japanese release on March 24th — to the chagrin of anyone who was impatiently awaiting it. It’s the fourth game in a series whose introductory installment, PlayStation 3-exclusive Demon’s Souls, became a surprise worldwide hit for the publisher, leading to its multiplatform successors becoming even bigger hits. Though some believe Dark Souls II ventured in an undesired direction through changes that were made (though most still considered it a fine game in its own right), fans were anticipating this installment with cautious optimism.

That series creator Hidetaka Miyazaki returned to the director’s chair for this installment helped with its early perception. He’s directed so many titles at From Software in such a short time, in addition to being their president, that it makes me concerned about his health; but hopefully he’s taking a long and well-deserved vacation. Surely the company has other staffers capable of directing potentially superlative experiences.

But forget about that for now; here’s some food for thought: Where does From Software go from here?

Speculation regarding DSIII’s status as a possible conclusion began at E3 2015, when Bandai Namco specifically mentioned in their announcement press release that it would be the final title in the series. After contemplating the quizzical and nonchalant way with which the publisher seemingly confirmed the series impending finality, some journalists took to the show floor to confirm this with From Software employees in attendance — Miyazaki among them. They confirmed that this wasn’t the end of the Souls series, but that it would mark a turning point.

Furthermore, Miyazaki confirmed himself that it was a conclusion for the series in an interview with Gamespot in November. Talk about mixed messages, but perhaps he simply wanted to confirm this himself on his own time. DSIII being the final installment could be a good thing, considering some comments I’ve seen from fans saying the game’s earliest hours feel a little too familiar. After all, they’ve made four installments with fantasy themes and similar mechanics within a seven-year timespan — regardless of whether DSII’s setting trending towards high fantasy instead of dark fantasy.

It’s best if the company moves on to a new franchise that visibly inherits, well, Souls’ soul. That means they might apply the same logic they did to Bloodborne, which modified the Souls gameplay to be more action-based, combined with a harrowing Lovecraftian Victorian London setting.

And before you think Miyazaki also confirmed the end of Bloodborne in that interview, as some believe, note his clever wording: “It’d be a lie if I said I have no concerns about that. I don’t think it’d be the right choice to continue indefinitely creating Souls and Bloodborne games. I’m considering Dark Souls 3 to be the big closure on the series.” Since Bloodborne sold well above expectations for Sony, it would be a surprise if they didn’t green light a sequel, regardless of whether Miyazaki will be available to direct it.

And there’s a good chance he may not be. He also mentioned how DSIII was the last From title to begin development before he became president. His new job requires a completely separate set of duties, which insinuates that he may not be too heavily involved with development of the next title. While this will cause panic attacks from anyone who didn’t like DSII, and felt his lack of involvement was a key reason for its divisiveness, hopefully they’ve been grooming a staffer to fill his place. After all, companies can’t rely on the same talent forever.

An interview with DSII co-director Yui Tanimura in the Dark Souls II Design Works (available for purchase from Udon Entertainment) clarified how troubled a development the game had. Also noteworthy is how Tanimura had to salvage the work of Tomohiro Shibuya, the original director who was removed from the team halfway through its development for unstated reasons. Perhaps a game where Tanimura is sole director could do better, especially considering how the level and enemy encounter design in DSII’s downloadable content was much better received than the main content.

Another question to ask is whether this also signifies the end of From’s partnership with Bandai Namco. Keep in mind the latter only handles overseas publishing for the Souls games, as From handles Japan themselves. Since that deal was established, they’ve been acquired by different big corporation: Kadokawa Games. This deal might have only been for the Dark Souls titles, and they might free to work with another company for a new series.

That is, unless Kadokawa is establishing a western office themselves. There’s assuredly a reason why they announced two games for a worldwide release at their event last fall, yet didn’t name a publisher. Kadokawa Corporation is a sizable organization with a lengthy publishing history in Japan, and is easily capable of establishing a publishing business outside their country. It wouldn’t be a surprise if they no longer wanted to split the profits the Souls games are making with Bandai Namco, and wants to handle localization duties themselves. A new Souls-style franchise would make the perfect candidate for them to promote their newfound existence if they establish themselves, beyond the niche audience they’d attract with the other two titles.

That’s, of course, if they’re planning on establishing their own publishing house. If they aren’t, it would make no sense to break things off with Bandai Namco, considering the significant advertising budgets they have access to.

Regardless of what happens, it’ll be entertaining to see which path From Software ventures down from here. Perhaps the company can start making non-Souls games again, as they haven’t released one since Armored Core: For Answer in September 2013. It’s best for companies to rely on more than one reliable hit. In the meantime, enjoy Dark Souls III if you’re playing it at the moment. It might be the last installment, but at least its reviews suggest it will be going out on a high note.