Elden Ring developer FromSoftware is working on multiple new projects, raising the question of what the studio could have in store for us next.
Following the release of Elden Ring earlier this year, the studio has begun a new recruiting drive. “We have started recruiting staff for a wide range of occupations for multiple new projects,” it tweeted (translated using Google). “We look forward to working with you on making games with FromSoftware.”
The slate of new jobs covers a range of disciplines, including game design, animation, technical design, art, sound, and production. There’s little to glean from the job descriptions as to what projects FromSoftware has in the pipeline, with most of them written in generic industry job speak.
We're mecha-ing an educated guess
There is one interesting tidbit, though. The Character 3D graphic artist lists design creation for “humans, creatures, and mecha”. That corroborates speculation on ResetEra earlier in the year that FromSoftware is reviving its third-person robot-shooting series Armored Core.
An old mecha shooter series, Armored Core is something of a cult favorite among FromSoftware fans. But it's worlds away from the soulsborne games the studio has become known for. Placing you in the cockpit of a giant bipedal robot, it has you blast your way through other gigantic robots in semi-open-world levels.
The last entry in the Armored Core series – Verdict, a standalone spin-off title – released way back in 2013. It featured a competitive multiplayer mode and heaps of mech customization. Official word on the series has been silent since.
Regardless of whether FromSoftware is reviving its mecha shooter, it'll likely be working on an Elden Ring expansion. All three Dark Souls games and Bloodborne received chunky post-launch DLC, and Elden Ring looks ripe for additional content.
One fan appeared to have stumbled across what could be the game’s first DLC earlier this year, finding an unused Colosseum at the edge of the game’s map. Each Dark Souls game received a PvP arena as part of post-launch DLC, making it likely Elden Ring will receive the same.
Dark Souls 3’s first expansion was launched roughly six months after the base game. If Elden Ring follows a similar timeframe, we would expect the first DLC to arrive in late August.
