Sony has been a busy bee as of late. Not content to merely make waves in the gaming sphere with their acquisition of the Destiny series developer, Bungie, they’ve also been pushing for video adaptations of their associated titles. Here’s everything we know about the potential for an Elden Ring show becoming a reality and our take on what would be some good ideas for the show.
Will there be an Elden Ring show?
Sony has thus far garnered success with their film adaptation of the action-adventure series Uncharted, with a Last of Us series also on the way.
According to a recent Reuters report, they’ve also purchased a small stake in FromSoftware, a developer (known previously for Dark Souls and Armored Core), which more recently made the news with their open-world souls-like title, Elden Ring. With the recent success of crossover IPs like Cyberpunk 2077’s Edgerunners series on Netflix, other IP owners may consider venturing into different media.
“You should think of collaborations on the game development side first and foremost, but it’s also not unthinkable with our PlayStation Productions efforts that we explore opportunities…”
Hermen Hulst, Head of PlayStation Studios
Thus, it’s fair to ask: Might there be an adaptation of FromSoftware’s pride and joy on the way, perhaps on a streaming service, if not the big screen?
What might an Elden Ring adaptation feature?
At first glance, Elden Ring is an odd choice to make a show or movie from. FromSoftware’s games have a running theme of player agency, both in how they engage the assorted denizens and in how they interact with the rest of the setting. As such, the protagonist lacks an established personality or appearance, unlike Nintendo’s Mario or Microsoft’s Master Chief.
That might not be a problem, however. As part of Elden Ring’s story, the player’s Tarnished is but one of many seeking the throne. Several examples of this exist within the game itself, with some characters perishing in their quest while others ultimately pursue other paths and goals.
The current roster also has plenty of room to tell additional stories about existing characters, such as veteran Tarnished Old Knight Istvan, who many players encounter as their introduction to the summoning system. While this doesn’t rule out an adaptation involving a set protagonist, it does suggest a central character would work better as a vehicle for the more established setting and cast.
An adaptation would not have to risk overexposure of any given character either. Even fan favorites such as Iron Fist Alexander have a small role in the player’s journey, showing they can win audience acclaim with even the briefest appearances. An Elden Ring show could easily take an anthology route that plays to the game’s narrative strengths.
Whatever comes next for Elden Ring and its developers, a dedicated fanbase will be thrilled to partake. Like Elden Ring itself, we hope it’s worth the wait.
What is Elden Ring?
Elden Ring is an action RPG focusing on challenging gameplay in a story-rich fantasy world. The player controls a Tarnished, an undead warrior drawn back to the Lands Between to try and re-assemble the titular ring by besting the demigods holding its component pieces.
The game is the current culmination of a trend FromSoftware started back with Demon’s Souls back in 2009, adding an open-world setting, item crafting, and more to the fun-but-punishing formula that has since become its own subgenre. It’s available on PC via Steam, as well as PS4 and PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S.
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