Hidetaka Miyazaki clears up Elden Ring easy mode speculation

For anyone who's ever played a Soulsborne game, you'll know they're pretty hard - after all, that's the way they're designed. There's something satisfying about facing palm-sweatingly tough bosses, the neverending loop of dying, and going back to a checkpoint to try the whole thing again that's a hit with gamers.

FromSoftware has mastered the Soulsborne with early entries like Dark Souls and Demon's Souls, but it's since expanded its library to include Bloodborne, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, and Elden Ring. While Elden Ring isn't quite up there with Sekiro in terms of difficulty, there are still complaints it's too hard. 

Hidetaka Miyazaki clears up Elden Ring easy mode rumours

Click to enlarge

Speaking to The Guardian, Elden Ring boss Hidetaka Miyazaki explained the difficulty levels of the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC and cleared up speculation that we could one day see an 'easy mode.' Responding to the idea that it sometimes feels like we're having our faces constantly shoved in the dirty, Miyazaki rebuffed complaints that his games are too hard. 

"If we really wanted the whole world to play the game, we could just crank the difficulty down more and more. But that wasn’t the right approach," says Miyazaki. "Had we taken that approach, I don’t think the game would have done what it did, because the sense of achievement that players gain from overcoming these hurdles is such a fundamental part of the experience."

It's clear that Miyazaki didn't design Elden Ring or Shadow of the Erdtree simply just to be difficult, but instead, suggests it was a natural evolution of the story. As for those still begging for an easy mode, Miyazaki added, "Turning down difficulty would strip the game of that joy – which, in my eyes, would break the game itself."

These latest musings follow a similar interview with The New Yorker when Elden Ring was released. Saying he sees death as a feature rather than a bug, the FromSoft overlord explained, "We are always looking to improve, but, in our games specifically, hardship is what gives meaning to the experience.

"So it's not something we’re willing to abandon at the moment. It’s our identity." He specifically conjures up imaginative deaths, concluding, "Death and rebirth, trying and overcoming—we want that cycle to be enjoyable. In life, death is a horrible thing. In play, it can be something else."

Shadow of the Erdtree recently caught headlines when Eurogamer's Alexis Ong awarded it a controversial three out of five stars, noting that it "feels like difficulty for difficulty's sake, turned up to eleven." Ong was unfairly slammed for her review, and at the end of the day, Soulsborne games aren't for everyone.

There are plenty of Soulslike titles out there that have difficulty options, but when it comes to the acclaimed work of FromSoftware, don't expect Hidetaka Miyazaki to go easy on you.