Difficult, but never unfair”: this is how Miyazaki understands the challenge in Elden Ring and Souls

The Souls philosophy according to Miyazaki: learning after each defeat.

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For years, games from FromSoftware have been associated almost exclusively with their difficulty. However, behind that fame lies a very specific philosophy that goes far beyond punishing the player without mercy.

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At the center of this idea is Hidetaka Miyazaki, the studio’s top creative executive and key figure behind Elden Ring and the entire Souls family. For Miyazaki, the challenge is not about making games hard just for the sake of it, but about finding a very precise balance between demand, learning, and fairness.

Difficulty as a tool, not a punishment

Miyazaki has insisted on several occasions that death is an essential part of the design, but it should never feel arbitrary. The goal is for the player to understand what went wrong, why it happened, and how they can improve on the next attempt. Only then does the experience make sense.

From his point of view, good difficulty design is one where the player, even after losing, recognizes that the mistake was their own: a misreading of the enemy, a hasty decision, or a lack of preparation. That moment of understanding is what drives the player to try again, not empty frustration.

This philosophy remains intact in Elden Ring, despite its open world and greater freedom compared to previous games. The game allows players to explore, strengthen themselves, and return later to the toughest challenges, but without ever giving up on that core of demand that defines the series.

For FromSoftware, a difficult game should not be unfair, and an accessible game does not have to be simple. This vision has allowed the Souls games to go from being a niche proposal to becoming references for modern design, influencing an entire generation of developers and players.