Summary
- FromSoftware's games are deeply inspired by Berserk, with clear parallels in themes, storytelling, and design elements.
- Despite previous adaptations falling short, FromSoftware could create the ultimate Berserk game with their expertise and knack for storytelling.
- By directly adapting Berserk, FromSoftware could explore new narrative techniques and fully capture the manga's tone and complexity.
Most gamers familiar with the Berserk franchise are likely aware of its incredible influence on FromSoftware's titles. The studio's biggest releases are rife with Berserk references that range from surface-level Easter eggs and design similarities all the way to core narrative and lore parallels. While games like Dark Souls, Bloodborne, and Elden Ring all manage to feel distinct and original in spite of clear Berserk inspirations, FromSoftware could do something great by tackling the seminal manga with a direct adaptation.
Berserk is a long-running manga series that published its first issue in 1989, and while it has received a number of adaptations, including video games, these adaptations are widely regarded as inferior to the source material, either due to their limited scope or for other creative reasons. Even the 1997 Berserk anime, which is the most revered adaptation, only covers the Golden Age arc, leaving a lot of the manga's story untouched. That said, FromSoftware could set the stage for the best Berserk adaptation yet.
Sadly, Berserk creator Kentaro Miura passed away in 2021. The Berserk manga is still ongoing, however.
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FromSoftware Should Just Make a Berserk Game
Many gaming and manga fans argue that FromSoftware games are basically Berserk adaptations already, and while this statement is rather reductive—FromSoftware's post-Demon's Souls games are all unique in their own way—there's some truth to it. Setting aside the countless tonal and design parallels, it's clear that Hidetaka Miyazaki and his team are interested in the same thematic realms as Berserk: the plight of the undead in Dark Souls, the Lovecraftian horror of Bloodborne, and the power-hungry warriors and royals of Elden Ring all engage with the same ideas as Miura's epic series.
Even the character-driven narrative of Sekiro can be compared to Berserk's tale of betrayal, vengeance, loyalty, and corruption. In fact, Wolf, the protagonist of Sekiro, may be viewed as being directly inspired by Guts, as both characters are loyal to a fault, nigh-unstoppable warriors, and equipped with complex, improbable prosthetic arms. When it comes to narrative presentation, Sekiro proves that a FromSoftware-developed Berserk game could work well.
What FromSoftware Could Do With Berserk's Story
Sekiro may have a more direct and linear narrative than other FromSoftware games, but it is still fairly lore-based and left up to interpretation, with Wolf's character being ultimately determined by a few key decisions the player makes at certain points in the game. By comparison, Berserk's story is much more complex, predetermined, and built around Guts' personal development, which would require FromSoftware to employ decidedly different storytelling techniques, perhaps focusing more on cinematics and setpiece moments rather than the slow and lonely gameplay of the Souls games. However, this new framework would give the studio new opportunities to grow and experiment with different styles of narrative and gameplay design.
Of course, there have been Berserk video game adaptations before, and while they have their strengths, they mostly fail to capture the bleak, meaty, oftentimes upsetting tone of the manga. FromSoftware has a masterful control of tone and setting, conveying so much emotion and complexity through subtleties in gameplay, sound, and visual design, and this unparalleled strength would help the studio do Berserk justice.
FromSoftware has also always been concerned with lofty philosophical concepts like the nature of reality and whether humans have free will, just like Berserk, and the studio's signature, bizarre methods of storytelling could be tweaked to serve the manga's narrative. Whether FromSoftware were to adapt a specific arc of Berserk or attempt to cover the whole story so far, there is undeniable potential in the idea of Miyazaki and company directly adapting their biggest inspiration.
- Date Founded
- November 1, 1986
- Parent Company
- Kadokawa
Based in Japan, FromSoftware is a development company best known for the Souls series and Armored Core franchise. Other popular games from From Software include Elden Ring, Sekiro, Bloodborne, and the King's Field series.
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