Summary
The lore ofFromSoftware’s Soulsborne titles is so intricate and engaging that it inspired the creation of player-driven storytelling that is never quite truly replicated in caliber elsewhere in gaming. Hundreds upon thousands of community discussion boards, conspiracy conversation media and videos, and heated debates have been held over the minutia of worldbuilding content packed into the brutal and often harrowing action adventure RPGs. And while each individual title is a verifiable labyrinth of plot, both canon and presupposed, FromSoftware has never shied away from teasing fans with the idea thateach of the Soulsborne titles are interlinked.
HIdetaka Miyazaki and otherFromSoftwaredevelopers are often dropping hints about gameplay designs and often obscure details that reference previous titles, ranging from ominous item descriptions and similar assets to entirely aligned subplots echoing one another. This goes beyond the occasional reuse or homage to lines or deja vu-esque circumstances from critical moments. Though these elements often interplay with each other, there are sometimes few exceptions to propagating popular headcanon as fact. For example, one critical factor that keepsSekiro:Shadows Die Twiceout of the greater Soulsborne picture is the canon tidbit that the story takes place in Japan, so the similarity between the attire worn by Old Hunter Yamamura inBloodborne’sThe Old HuntersDLC has no ties toSekiro, despite the clothes being suspiciously comparable.
A Single Soulsborne Universe Disregards A Lot of Lore, But That Doesn’t Stop Fans
Nevertheless,FromSoftware fans proceed with theories and headcanons, often inspiring a litany of fan-created content. One theory, based on the interconnected continuity of all ofThe Legend of Zeldaseries being a canon event, proposes that FromSoftware might even be so bold as to release an official map of each of the Soulsborne realms joined into one seamless Pangea of sorts. Such an act would be explosive; however, it would come at the cost of retconning a lot of existing information.
Though the writing of FromSoftware titles is top of its class, its tendency to lean more into the obscure side leaves a lot of the weight of its impact to the player base to decide.FromSoftware’s characteristic storytelling style feeds critical informationto the player like an investigation, often leaving plots open-ended or up for grim suggestion in order to further stimulate intrigued players. The question of what Malenia said to Radahn inElden Ring’s release cinematic wasn’t answered until theShadow of the ErdtreeDLC came out over two years later. The conversations surrounding the justice of that conflict and the true nature of it never had a clear answer until now, but that didn’t stop hundreds of differing theories and opinionated threads assigning blame.
Connections Between Soulsborne Games at Core of Shared Universe Theory
Some popular Soulsborne theories include:
If an official map claimed all of the Soulsborne lands were joined – much in the style ofZelda’s official timeline – it would make as much sense as was necessary to complement FromSoftware’s reputation. Ergo, the amount of new continuity questions that would pop up regarding in-game lore would need new guiding boundaries to fit the given narrative. Becoming hollow within the lands of Lothric, for example, would need to explain the simultaneousexistence ofSekiro’s dragonrot andBloodborne’s sickness of the blood. The congregation of gods and god-like entities would overlap in purpose and establish a new a pantheon of sorts.
The concept of aSoulsborne multiverse connecting all of the gamesis a maddeningly fun one. Though the appeal of it is a catalyst for tons of fun lore implications, the likelihood of its validity is objectively low. It’s just as likely that each Soulsborne game suggests a sort of parallel multiverse, existing alongside each other rather than overlapping, similar to theFinal Fantasyseries. Regardless of how oulandish the theory, with a community as involved asFromSoftware’s, anything could be possible, and that’s a great thing.
