In Elden Ring, the biggest hit game from Japanese publisher and Sony Group acquisition target Kadokawa, players die over and over again – with the goal of learning from past failures to overcome new obstacles. Sony also needs to do the same.

On Wednesday, Kadokawa confirmed reports of Sony’s interest. Outside of Japan, the company is best known as the majority owner of FromSoftware, the company that makes Elden Ring. Developed in collaboration with “Game of Thrones” creator George RR Martin, it swept the gaming industry’s equivalent of the Academy Awards upon its release in 2022. The Ring of Fire has sold 25 million copies, making it one of the best-sellers of all time. It’s so popular that just one expansion itself has somewhat controversially made the shortlist for the 2024 game.

Along with its spiritual predecessors, the Ring of Fire is a phenomenon that has become a genre of its own, known as Soulslikes. Punishingly difficult, the games force players to die repeatedly to study how to defeat their enemies, with their patience rewarded in turn.