FromSoftware has earned a reputation for blending tragic storytelling with challenging and innovative gameplay, leading to some of the most influential action RPG releases in recent years. One recurring featureacross the Soulsborne gameshas been the presence of a “level-up” NPC, typically a woman, who aids the player by improving their stats. This archetype has been a relatively standard staple of most of the studio’s significant releases, but one project adopted an experimental take on the concept by blurring the lines between ally and formidable boss battle in a way that the title that followsElden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtreecould benefit from emulating.
InSekiro: Shadows Die Twice, the characters Emma and the Sculptor break away from the more passive roles that other helpful NPCs in FromSoft titles occupy. They still offer support through upgrades and lore context, but they can also eventually end up as enemies to be faced in encounters with built-in emotional weight. The confrontation with Emma in particular, necessary for the game’s darker Shura ending, shows the potential for similar high-stakes moments in titles that will succeedElden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree’s success.
The Level-Up NPC of Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is an Effective Subversion of a FromSoftware Trope
The Influence of Characters like the Maiden in Black
Demon’s Souls' Maiden in Blackis essentially the earliest iteration of FromSoft’s “level-up lady” trope, as her role established the precedent for a game’s stat progression being linked to a mysterious woman in a hub zone. Other characters like the Emerald Herald would follow suit with their own variations on the style, but all of these characters share the trait of rarely ever stepping beyond the role of simple support, regardless of the player’s actions.
Facing Sekiro’s Emma as a Boss Punctuates a Tragic Arc
While she typically serves as a loyal ally the path toSekiro: Shadows Die Twice’s Shura endingwill shift the narrative toward an unexpected fight with Emma. The Sculptor might lose himself when he’s implied to become the monstrous Demon of Hatred, but her presence as an enemy is marked by her complete agency in a clash based on the principles of well-written characters.
FromSoftware’s Next Release Can Take Advantage of a Similar Dynamic to Emma and the Sculptor
Elevating a Character Beyond Their Basic Utility
Elden Ring’s mysterious Melina plays a key rolein guiding the player as the latest iteration of the FromSoft level-up NPC trope, but her subdued narrative presence in the game can make her arc somewhat disappointing in the face of the world’s epic scale. If the studio’s next project features a more explicitly important character in the vein of Emma instead, then elevating them to the status of a boss could evolve expectations around what has become a predictable archetype. Even if the follow-up toElden Ringis once again set in a cryptic and ethereal world, having a character like this react more strongly to the choices of the player could only serve to enhance immersion.
Selling the Loss of Betrayal and Complex Morality
Nuanced philosophical perspectives have become a trusted aspect of FromSoft games, and few experiences have appealed to them more than times when the player has had to turn their weapon on an ally. This kind of treachery might be nothing new to Soulsborne games, but the degree of emotionalcomplexity ofSekiro: Shadows Die Twice’s Emmaand Sculptor has allowed that title’s storytelling to remain lauded among fans for years. If FromSoftware continues to act on its preference for harsh and grey worlds, leaning into the ambiguity between NPC and boss could be one of the most powerful paths forward for its narrative design.
Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree
WHERE TO PLAY
Shadow of the Erdtree is the first and only DLC expansion for FromSoftware’s groundbreaking Elden Ring. It takes players to a whole new region, the Land of Shadow, where a new story awaits the Tarnished.
