Ever since Dark Souls 3's debut at this year's Electronic Entertainment Expo, fans of From Software's daunting action-RPG franchise continue to clamor for any information regarding the third installment in the series. Although details have been scant for the most part, about a month back, developers provided a sneak peak at the title's terrifying collection of enemies and monsters with a gameplay reveal trailer. For gamers seeking even more technical specifics, Dark Souls 3's director Hidetaka Miyazaki recently went in-depth on a variety of game mechanics such as fast-travel, PvP multiplayer, and magic just a few days ago.

For the uninitiated, Miyazaki's last effort was the critically acclaimed PlayStation 4 exclusive Bloodborne, of which many considered to be a spiritual successor to the Dark Souls franchise, as its elements proved to be both thematically and mechanically similar to the series. Now, it appears as if the director is pulling a switcheroo, and utilizing his experience from Bloodborne by applying it to his forthcoming project, Dark Souls 3.

In the most recent issue of GamesMaster, Miyazaki talks about what makes the Dark Souls series so appealing, and cites Bloodborne's combat limitations as a reason for his desire to improve Dark Souls 3's fighting system. Regarding both games, Miyazaki says:

"Because of the character of Bloodborne’s gameplay, its battle style, as well as the role-playing elements, it’s limited compared to the Dark Souls franchise. It doesn’t necessarily mean Bloodborne was bad. However, while working on [it] I realised, I want to [create] something which has a wide range of battle styles, or features magic, or those things which allow players to wear awesome armour. Those elements are what actually made me come [back] to the Dark Souls franchise."

For those worried that the inclusion of a wider range of options in combat for Dark Souls 3 might go against the spirit of the series, after our preview of the game at E3 2015, we can assure fans of the franchise that the changes in the title's action elements are marked improvements, and they still retain Miyazaki's penchant for crafting extremely challenging games. Plus, if all the aspects from previous entries remained exactly the same, it would make for a pretty boring experience for both fans and creators alike.

Since the Souls series is well-established at this point, fans should expect some surprises from Dark Souls 3 once it finally releases, for as game franchises progress, evolutionary measures are necessary in order to keep old and new gamers interested. And if anything, it's almost certain that everyone is looking forward to taking on that giant crowned skeleton seen in the gameplay footage.

Dark Souls 3 has an anticipated release window of early 2016 for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.

Source: GamesMaster (via Games Radar)