Summary
- FromSoftware games like Elden Ring offer complex character customization for players to express creativity and form a personal connection with their avatar.
- Players have recreated iconic characters like Kratos and even silly creations like Thomas the Tank Engine in games like Elden Ring and Armored Core 6.
- Character customization adds depth to the gameplay experience, allowing players to take ownership of their successes and further engage with the game world. FromSoftware should continue to make character creators deeper with each of its games.
FromSoftware games are typically noted for their tough but fair gameplay and expansive worlds. They're not for everyone, especially players who get frustrated if they don't like dying multiple times. However, before the action begins in games like Elden Ring, players have a chance to create their own character.
With each game, the character creator has become more complex. In response, players have exercised their creativity, spending hours crafting the perfect character in Elden Ring and other games from the studio. FromSoftware shouldn't stop innovating in this arena, as it is one of the draws of the games.
The Weird and Wonderful FromSoftware Character Creations
The Gothic game Bloodborne features a character creator that allows players to get pretty intricate when it comes to designing. Things are only taken further in Elden Ring, allowing players to express their imaginations in wonderful and unexpected ways. Many of the creations showed off online reference pop culture and are recreations of video game characters, celebrities, and other pop culture fingers. For example, one player managed to create Kratos from the God of War series:
Others have created Thanos, Sonic the Hedgehog, and even Barack Obama. A lot of these characters serve as free advertising for FromSoftware games, as players are eager to share their creations online. Others have led to memes, including players creating a Will Smith lookalike who invades, slaps, and walks away.
Customization and Armored Core 6
Creative character customization is not limited to Soulsborne games. Armored Core 6 allows players to customize their mechas to an incredible degree, with players making great creations, including the mechas from Neon Genesis Evangelion and even silly characters like Thomas the Tank Engine. Once again, this serves as free advertising, as all these creations can be found on social media.
The Effect of Character Customization in FromSoftware Games
In FromSoftware games, players are challenged to their limit. Almost inevitably, the battles become personal as death after death happens. However, it's not for nothing, as when victory is finally achieved, it provides an incredible feeling of accomplishment. If players can create their characters, they are more likely to form a connection with the character, allowing them to take greater ownership of every success. It's no longer just a random character that's defeated a foe - it's a character hand-crafted by the player right down to the Class.
How Far Can Character Creation Go?
FromSoftware's character creation systems are already pretty complex, but it is nowhere near what others have managed to achieve. If the studio needs inspiration, it can look to games like The Sims 4, Baldur's Gate 3, and Nioh 2 to name a few. There is no such thing as getting too complex so long as players who aren't interested in engaging with the mechanic can speed through it and start playing. It's also always a burden when a character's appearance can be altered after the game's begun.
FromSoftware games will test a gamer's ability to get back up after failing dozens of times. Some might consider this torture, but for many, the learning process is a satisfying one, and finally defeating a tough enemy provides a high that's hard to beat. The studio should continue to make games that test combat skills and evolve the actual gameplay in meaningful ways, but the character creator should not be forgotten, as it's an important piece of the puzzle when it comes to crafting a Soulsborne game.
Elden Ring
- Released
- February 25, 2022
WHERE TO PLAY
ELDEN RING, developed by FromSoftware, Inc. And BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment Inc., is a fantasy action-RPG adventure set within a world created by Hidetaka Miyazaki and George R.R. Martin. Danger and discovery lurk around every corner in FromSoftware’s largest game to date. Hidetaka Miyazaki - President and Game Director of FromSoftware Inc. Known for directing critically-acclaimed games in beloved franchises including Armored Core and Dark Souls.
George R.R. Martin is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of many novels, including the acclaimed series A Song of Ice and Fire - A Game of Thrones, A Clash of Kings, A Storm of Swords, A Feast For Crows, and A Dance with Dragons. As a writer-producer, he has worked on The Twilight Zone, Beauty and the Beast, and various feature films and pilots that were never made. He lives with the lovely Parris in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Language, Suggestive Themes, Violence
- Developer(s)
- From Software
- Publisher(s)
- Bandai Namco Entertainment, From Software
- Engine
- Proprietary
- Multiplayer
- Online Co-Op, Online Multiplayer
- Platform(s)
- PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X
- How Long To Beat
- 58 Hours
- Metascore
- 96
- Platforms That Support Crossplay
- PS4 & PS5 and Xbox One & Xbox Series X|S
- PS Plus Availability
- N/A
