Fantasy author Brandon Sanderson, best known for creating the Mistborn novels and writing the latest books in The Wheel of Time series, has been approached by Elden Ring publisher Bandai Namco to collaborate on a future project.
During a live broadcast on his personal YouTube channel, the author received an Elden Ring promotional goodie bag containing a sword, a cloak, a map of the Middle Lands, and a woodcut image of the Elden Ring chief Malenia. . It also contained a letter suggesting that Bandai Namco would be interested in working with Sanderson in the future (thanks, PC Gamer).
Sanderson did not read the letter in its entirety, but said, "Maybe they're interested in doing something together, that's what it says, and so am I."
"This is how I roll," he continued. "Actually, I have a message for them in the back of my head... so maybe I should send them my message and see what they think."
Sanderson compared this preliminary idea to the pitch he sent to Wizards of the Coast that eventually became his 2018 Magic: The Gathering novel, Children of the Nameless.
“If you ever had to make a Soulsborne game, what would you do? You know what happened when I thought, "I wonder what I would do if I ever wrote a Magic: The Gathering story?"
"I spent four years developing a story for Magic: The Gathering, so when Magic approached me and said, 'Hey, you want to write a story,' I said, 'Yeah, I already have one and I'm going to write it.
"Similarly, I thought, 'What would I do if I made some kind of Soulborne game? Obviously, it's not me who decides, but I've got it right in the back of my mind. So maybe you'll hear something from me. I have some ideas; I always have ideas. »
Sanderson has previously said he wanted to work with Elden Ring developer FromSoftware, and even expressed dismay that the studio chose to collaborate with George RR Martin on the game, rather than him.
Speaking at a Q&A panel earlier this year, he said: 'Let me be salty. "FromSoftware decides to make a fantasy game and partner with a fantasy novelist, and they choose someone who spends their days blogging about the NFL instead of the person who played their games at King's Field and regularly ranked their games in their top 10 hours." extra".
“What are you thinking, people? »
“They went to George and made a game with George, and I'm like George doesn't play video games. George has no idea.
During this latest video, a co-host asked Sanderson if Bandai Namco's goodie bag also contained a note apologizing for hiring Martin to work on Elden Ring. Sanderson responded that the publisher "should have hired George", suggesting that there was no bad blood between them.
Of course, a collaboration between Sanderson and Bandai Namco isn't certain, and mutual interest doesn't guarantee that the two will find the opportunity to work together. If they did, it's unclear if Bandai Namco would want Sanderson to contribute to a video game. Instead, you could ask Sanderson to write an Elden Ring book, comic, or other extended material, following in the footsteps of the Bloodborne graphic novels and Dark Souls lore books.