One of the Biggest and Best Video Games of 2022 Could Be Coming to Your Phone
The smash hit video game “Elden Ring” (and winner of multiple 2022 game of the year awards) may soon be arriving on your phone.
China‘s massive business titan, Tencent Holdings, is apparently developing a mobile version of the fantasy role-playing console game, Reuters reported on Feb. 5, citing three people familiar with the plan.
According to the sources, the Chinese technology conglomerate has “a team of a few dozen people” who have been working on a mobile “Elden Ring” ever since Tencent bought a 16 percent stake in the game’s developer FromSoftware in 2022.
However, progress on the project has been minimal.
The mobile version will be a free-to-play game with in-app purchases, similar to popular mobile action role-playing game “Genshin Impact.”
The news dropped nearly two years after the game’s release.
Tencent is no stranger to adapting popular titles into mobile games. Some of its most successful include “PUBG Mobile” and “Call of Duty: Mobile,” according to The Verge.
It remains to be seen whether “Elden Ring” on mobile can become a similar success, as Tencent has seen some setbacks in its gaming business.
For example, the company recently canceled development for a mobile game based on the “Nier” franchise over monetization concerns. It also shut down “Apex Legends Mobile” last year due to the game’s drop in quality.
Additionally, Tencent faces competition from Chinese rivals miHoYo and NetEase.
“Gaming is our flagship business… But in the past year, we have faced significant challenges,” Tencent CEO and co-founder Ma Huateng said during the company’s recent annual meeting.
“We have found ourselves at a loss, as our competitors continue to produce new products, leaving us feeling having achieved nothing,” Ma added.
In addition to “Elden Ring,” the tech giant is reportedly working on mobile versions of “Need for Speed” and “Assassin’s Creed.”
Released in late February 2022, “Elden Ring” is a third-person action game in which the player battles mythical monsters in a fantasy world akin to “Dark Souls.”
The world-building and lore of “Elden Ring” was created by Japanese game designer Hidetaka Miyazaki and “A Song of Ice and Fire” author George R.R. Martin.
It sold about 20 million copies in 2022, making it the second best-selling game of the year behind “Pokémon Scarlet and Violet.”
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