Hidetaka Miyazaki’s influence on FromSoftware is difficult to overstate. As the director behind Demon’s Souls, Dark Souls, Bloodborne, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, and Elden Ring, he helped establish the studio’s distinctive approach to challenging combat, mysterious worlds, and memorable enemies. His career eventually led him beyond game development, becoming president of FromSoftware in 2014.
That executive position gave Miyazaki access to experiences he would not previously have encountered as a game developer. Interestingly, some of those experiences apparently became a source of inspiration for his games, particularly through his meetings with executives from other companies.
Miyazaki Found Other Company Presidents “Fascinating”
Speaking with The Guardian following Bloodborne’s release, Miyazaki explained how becoming FromSoftware’s president exposed him to a different side of the industry. He said,
“I’ve been to places I wouldn’t have visited before,”
adding that seeing different things gave him “new experiences to draw from.”
Among those experiences were meetings with other company presidents. Miyazaki’s description of them was unexpectedly blunt and humorous, as he explained:
“They’re such weird people. I’m fascinated by them. I use some of them as enemy characters in our games.”
The comments, originally reported by The Guardian, offer an amusing look into how Miyazaki’s experiences outside traditional game development could influence his creative thinking.
However, that does not necessarily mean FromSoftware’s enemies are direct caricatures of real executives. Miyazaki’s broader comments about character and creature design suggest that the studio generally aims for something much more meaningful than simple references or industry jokes.
FromSoftware’s Monsters Are Built Around Emotion
Miyazaki has previously discussed the emotional ideas behind FromSoftware’s creatures. One notable example is the Undead Dragon from Dark Souls, where he encouraged the development team to communicate the sadness of a once-magnificent creature trapped in an ongoing decline.
Years later, Miyazaki expanded on that philosophy in an interview with PC Gamer, explaining that his goal is ultimately to depict something beautiful, although beauty does not necessarily have to mean physical attractiveness.
That philosophy helps explain why FromSoftware’s most disturbing creatures can also be strangely sympathetic. Their grotesque appearances often hide stories involving suffering, corruption, tragedy, ambition, or loss.
Miyazaki’s comments about gaming executives therefore appear to be more of a playful admission than evidence that specific bosses were secretly modeled after industry figures. Still, considering the enormous variety of personalities encountered during his time as FromSoftware president, it is easy to imagine some of those unusual encounters finding their way into the studio’s famously strange worlds.
