Did Melania learn her kick from Sekiro’s Senpou Temple monks? The inherited animations of Elden Ring

Written by. Nick Mosier based on the original Japanese article (original article’s publication date: 2022-06-09 20:01 JST)

Elden Ring’s Melania looks to have a kick attack that appeared in Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. A recent video that popped up online comparing the kicks has been gathering attention, but it’s not the only move in Elden Ring that has roots in past titles.

Elden Ring is an action RPG made by FromSoftware and inherits many elements from the Dark Souls series and the company’s other recent titles. On the other hand, the game takes place in a massive open world and incorporates plenty of features all its own. In other words, it’s a new game with familiar elements for those that have experience with FromSoftware games. Making use of the knowhow from their previous games also brings the kind of characters and performances to the game players expect, including familiar animations that are giving some players déjà vu.

A recent video showcasing a move players may find familiar has recently been growing in popularity on Reddit. The thread is titled, “Oh, I’ve seen this move before,” and compares Melania’s kick from Elden Ring with the Lone Shadow Longswordsman from Sekiro.

When comparing the videos, you can certainly see the similarities. The way they hold their swords is different, but both attack with a counterclockwise spin that drops a kick down from above. The arcs of the kicks also look like a perfect match. While Melania’s is a single attack and the Lone Shadow’s is part of a combo, both moves look like they come from the same school of kicking.

Speaking of flashy kicks, Sekiro’s protagonist Wolf can also learn a variety of kicks through the game’s Temple Arts, including ones similar to Melania and Lone Shadow. FromSoftware may have thought the kicks used by the Senpou Temple monks were cool and decided they would be a good fit for Melania as well. The Mimic enemy in the Dark Souls series also has a splendid spinning kick, but its movement is a little more comical.

There are even more examples of animations in Elden Ring matching up with FromSoftware’s past titles like when comparing swords in the game to swords from Dark Souls III. There are also combos with other weapons where some parts match up, and we can see a strong influence from Sekiro when it comes to katanas. Players have been uploading videos comparing the two, and when you watch them, the resemblance is clear. All of the Tarnished out there are swinging their katanas around like Wolf.

In this way, we can see movements from past games being put to practical use in Elden Ring in a number of places. The reason might be to make use of previous knowhow, but we can see tons of adjustments and refinements as well. Plus, refining something that works and is already complete can raise the game’s quality and give longtime fans a sense of familiarity.

Motion capture performers could have also used moves that worked well in past games again. Speaking of which, the motion capture group Katsugekiza was involved in Dark Souls III, Sekiro, and Elden Ring, especially actor Akira Sugihara who worked on all three games. Perhaps when necessary, they performed the same moves from the previous games again.

Is Melania’s kick come from the Senpou monks? Did the Tarnished derive their sword techniques from Wolf? Only the development team knows for sure. However, when looking at Elden Ring we can see it’s likely more than a matter of coincidence or reuse with animations getting adjusted and refined over time. Whether you play Elden Ring looking for older moves or play the older games to see what made it to Elden Ring, there’s bound to be some discoveries waiting for you.