Elden Ring dev has "no idea why it's selling so well," but won't let sales change how it makes games

FromSoftware has no idea why Elden Ring was such a huge success, but it isn't going to change the way the studio makes games.

Elden Ring producer Yasuhiro Kitao recently appeared at the PlayStation Partner Awards 2023 in Japan, where he was asked about the RPG's huge success. Kitao reportedly said the massive sales of Elden Ring were a complete surprise to the team at FromSoftware, according to Denifaminicogamer (and translated by Automaton Media).

Elden Ring might be nearly two years old at this point, but FromSoftware apparently still hasn't taken the time to properly analyze the launch. "We still haven’t been able to analyze why so many people play the game, and we have no idea why it’s selling so well," the FromSoftware producer said at the event, adding "our attitude towards development has remained unchanged."

Kitao adds that "making games that we think are fun and have value has been our policy for a long time, and we won’t start aiming for new big hits like Elden Ring. Our stance of creating games we think are fun and worthwhile will not be changing." The FromSoftware producer doubles down there on Elden Ring's success not influencing the developer's thinking going forward.

Elden Ring remains FromSoftware's most successful game to date by a long way. Earlier this year in February, right around the game's one-year anniversary, FromSoftware announced Elden Ring had shipped 20 million copies around the world, selling over half the lifetime sales of the entire Dark Souls series in just one year. Bandai Namco, FromSoftware's publishing partner in Europe and the US, said it expected Elden Ring's success to drive Armored Core 6 sales to new records for the series.

Here's why we desperately want longer boss runs in the Elden Ring DLC, even if that does make us an absolute masochist.

Hirun Cryer is a freelance reporter and writer with Gamesradar+ based out of U.K. After earning a degree in American History specializing in journalism, cinema, literature, and history, he stepped into the games writing world, with a focus on shooters, indie games, and RPGs, and has since been the recipient of the MCV 30 Under 30 award for 2021. In his spare time he freelances with other outlets around the industry, practices Japanese, and enjoys contemporary manga and anime.