A prolific Japanese game developer has finally addressed all that weird foot imagery in his video games. What? No, I’m not talking about Hideo Kojima (he’s busy hanging out with The Backrooms director right now, anyway). I’m referring to Dark Souls and Elden Ring director Hidetaka Miyazaki, who has finally addressed online speculation that he is a foot guy.
“It’s not necessarily something I’m consistently aware of–maybe it’s something subconscious coming through,” Miyazaki told The Guardian in response to a question about all the hand imagery in his upcoming action-RPG, The Duskbloods. “Take a look online and there’s a rumor that I have a bit of a thing for feet, but I’m not honestly sure where this comes from.”
Though Miyazaki says he’s not sure where the idea that he has a “thing for feet” comes from, it’s something fans of his games have noticed for years. Whether we’re talking The Maiden in Black from Demons’ Souls or Priscilla (or Gwunevere, or Sister Friede, or Maneater Mildred) from Dark Souls, it’s hard to ignore how many barefoot women are roaming Miyazaki’s fictional worlds. Elden Ring’s Malenia is rocking bare feet, too, although hers are metal prosthetics. The game’s beaches even differentiate between barefoot players and those who are wearing footwear.
So what’s with all the shoeless women in Souls games? According to Miyazaki, it’s about depicting the human experience. Or something.
“I feel like I’m trying to depict some side of human nature or the human existence that is difficult to describe,” he elaborated.
But regardless of what fans might think, Miyazaki insists this is not a Tarantino situation. And to be fair, plenty of other games are even more foot-focused than Miyazaki’s work–and far less subtle about it.