Hidden in a valley near the border between France and Switzerland lies a working forge where modern-day smiths create authentic armor for film and television. Dark Souls II publisher Namco Bandai hired that forge, known as Armedia, to manifest the hero’s armor from the upcoming action-adventure game.
Dark Souls II is fantasy role-playing game that puts players in the role of a cursed hero. That character must traverse through an open world to find a cure to his curse. It’s due out March 14 for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC.
To promote the game, Namco Bandai released the following video showing Armedia re-creating the hero’s armor in the real world:
Dark Souls II developer From Software provided Armedia’s master blacksmith, known only as Stephan, with a number of images of the hero. After cutting out the proper shapes for the armor, Stephan plunges the metal pieces into a coal forge that burns at a 1,200 degrees Celsius. It took eight weeks for the armorer to finish the build.
It’s an interesting process, and for those that are hyped for Dark Souls II, the good news is that From Software will hold a closed beta for the game on Oct. 5. Players can start signing up for a chance to get into the beta on Sept. 5 when From Software opens up the registration on its Facebook page.
The beta is exclusive to the PlayStation 3 version.