On May 8th, 2021, legendaryBerserkmanga creator Kentaro Miura passed away. In the days since the announcement of his passing, fans around the world have come together to show their love for Miura’s work, namely his long-running dark fantasy mangaBerserk. The impact ofBerserkin dark fantasy media is undeniable, and has inspired countless creators including video game developers such as FromSoftware and Capcom.
Berserkstarted publication in 1989 in Monthly Animal House magazine. Since its debut over 30 years ago, the series has gone on to sell over 50 million copies, while alsoinfluencing a generation of writersand creators with its bleak world and mature storytelling. One may not know it, but some of the most beloved video game franchises of the past two decades have been inspired by Miura’s magnum opus, including some games that have been based directly off the manga. Here is a rundown ofBerserk’s impact on video games.
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Berserk Games
While a little more on the nose than some titles we’ll discuss later, one may not know thatBerserkhas inspired some video games of its own since its inception in 1989. The first of these video games isthe 1999 Dreamcast titleSword of the Berserk: Guts' Rage(known in Japan asBerserk Millennium Falcon Arc: Chapter of the Flower of Oblivion). The game is set during the manga’s titular Millennium Falcon Arc and falls somewhere between the 22nd and 23rd volumes, although its story is considered to be non-canon by fans.
While not much about the game’s story is noteworthy other than its placement in the story,Sword of the Berserkactually featured some art and character designs from Kentaro Miura. The game was also the first piece ofBerserkmedia ever released in North America, predating the 1997 anime’s first U.S. home release, which would not come until 2003, and Dark Horse Comic’s first release of the manga, which did not start until 2003. The game even featured a full English dub, with the localization coming from Eidos Interactive, the publisherbest known for theTomb RaiderandDeus Exseries (now a part of Square Enix). The game was developed by Yuke’s, the developer known recently for its work on theWWE 2Kseries up untilWWE 2K19.
FollowingSword of the Berserk: Guts' Rage, in 2003 Yuke’s released aJapan-only sequel for the PlayStation 2titledBerserk Millennium Empire Arc: Chapter of the Holy Demon War. Unlike its predecessor, this entry did not feature an original story set between chapters of the manga. Instead Yuke’s decided to adapt volumes 22 to 27 of the original manga, even bringing the original voice cast for the 1997 anime adaptation on board, which is noteworthy considering that the anime only covered the events of the Golden Age Arc.Chapter of the Holy Demon Waris noteworthy for building off of its predecessor by featuring larger maps and more fleshed out combat than the 1999 game. As previously mentioned, this title was never released outside of Japan.
The final and most recentBerserkgame to ever be released was Koei Tecmo and Omega Force’sBerserk and the Band of the Hawk, which came to PC, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation Vita in February 2017, with a PlayStation 3 version also releasing in Japan. Known asBerserk Musouin Japan, this game is acrossover between Omega Force’sDynasty Warriorsseries and the Berserk manga, directly adapting the manga all the way up to the Falcon of the Millennium Empire Arc, which at the time was the most recently completed arc in the manga. The game plays similarly to Omega Force and Koei Tecmo’sOne Piece: Pirate WarriorsorAttack on Titangames, cutting chunks of the story up into large-scale hack-and-slash missions. Some of the game’s cutscenes are taken directly from theBerserk: The Golden Age Arcfilm series, however it is one of the only adaptations of the manga to continue past the Golden Age Arc.
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Games Inspired By Berserk
WhileBerserkhas had some noteworthy games of its own, Kentaro Miura’s real legacy in the games industry shines in the works that have been directly inspired byBerserk. Let’s start with the obvious one, FromSoftware’sDark Soulsseries and, more directly, its 2015 PlayStation 4 exclusiveBloodborne. Director Hidetaka Miyazaki has been outspoken about his love of Miura’s work for over a decade, and his love shines inthe manyBerserkreferences that can be foundthroughout FromSoftware’s games.
Another video game director that has been outspoken regarding his love for Kentaro Miura’s work is Hideaki Itsuno, director of multiple games in theDevil May Cryfranchise and the 2012cult classic RPGDragon’s Dogma. Itsuno revealed in a GDC talk in 2019 that much of the inspiration forDevil May Cry 5’s tone and style came fromBerserk, but nowhere is Itsuno’s love for Miura’s manga more clear than inDragon’s Dogma, which even included armor sets based off Guts and Griffith’s as part of a collaboration to promote theGolden Age Arcfilm series.
Finally, another creator that you may or may not know was inspired by Kentaro Miura’s work is none other thanNieRandDrakengardcreator Yoko Taro. Like Miura, Taro is known for exploring dark, mature themes in his work, and he is often eager to point out where he gets his inspirations from. Taro has claimed in the past thatDrakengardprotagonist Caim was inspired by Guts. Fans have also noted that the recurringDrakengardandNieRweapon Broken Iron bears an uncanny resemblance to Guts' Dragon Slayer sword.
The passing of Kentaro Miura was sudden and tragic, with the world losing one of its greatest creators of all time. While it may also be sad thatBerserkwill never truly reach its conclusion that Miura intended, fans can at least have hope thatMiura’s work has definitely left a legacythat will continue to inspire generations of creators in manga, animation, video games, and many other mediums.
