‘Elden Ring’ release date: Official document hints at launch before April 2022 is unlikely

Fans of FromSoftware’s games looking forward to its new IP might have to be more patient through the next 12 months, or possibly even more. It now appears that “Elden Ring” will not be released anytime before April 2022.

Why ‘Elden Ring’ might not launch this year

Next month marks the second year since “Elden Ring” was officially announced. It is also going to be two years since the wait started for new updates and teasers about the game. While there have been rumors that the game could launch this year, a more solid clue was recently spotted suggesting that is unlikely the case.

Developer FromSoftware’s parent company Kadokawa releases its latest financial report and forecast for its fiscal year 2022 ending on March 31 next year. TweakTown reports the corporation does not expect any large sales happening throughout that period and even eyes a 15.8 percent decrease in net sales in its video game business.

Kadokawa also informed its investor that the operating profit generated by its game IPs could go down between 34.4 percent to 52.6 percent compared to the prior fiscal year. Simply put, these financial predictions suggest that “Elden Ring” -- one of FromSoftware’s biggest IPs yet -- is unlikely to be released within Kadokawa’s FY2022. This has led to speculations that the game might not arrive in stores anytime before April 2022.

To be fair, FromSoftware has never promised any launch window or release date. As some fans argued, technically, this is not a delay. But to those who got swayed by earlier rumors that “Elden Ring” could be launched in 2021, this new information may hit differently.

On the bright side, Kadokawa reiterated in the same earnings report that the game is still in development. One of Kadokawa’s “priority measures” is to release AAA games, and by that, the company means “Elden Ring” is definitely in the pipeline as it is the “biggest title ... in terms of sheer volume” ever developed by FromSoftware.

Is an ‘Elden Ring’ gameplay trailer coming soon?

Without an imminent release date, the best thing fans can hope for now is a new “Elden Ring” trailer. There were previous indications that a gameplay preview has been in the works.

Last March, an official-looking trailer video that runs for almost two minutes appeared online. FromSoftware and Bandai did not address the leak, but several reliable sources agreed that the release of a new “Elden Ring” trailer is in the works.