London-based luxury clothing brand ARK/8 has launched a streetwear collection inspired by award-winning computer game Elden Ring.
ARK/8 has teamed up with music collaborations and sonic branding agency Maison Mercury Jones for the launch that's part of a wider holistic marketing strategy based on fashion, electronic music and artist collaborations called Club ARK/8. The result is the 'The Lands Between' [the setting for the Elden Ring game] line launch. The line aims to capture the “substance” of the game and includes game references with a ‘Tarnished' sweatshirt and hoodie, a bomber jacket printed with a map of The Lands Between, and a faux fur Rune coat.
The nine-piece collection retails from £100 to £1,400.
founder and creative director Dimitri van Eetvelde told NME the venture was a “passion project” as he’s been a fan of developer FromSoftware’s games since Demon’s Souls, fascinated by “world-building” and praising the “mystery” of The Lands Between. “There’s a lot of substance to that game, and that’s what we’re trying to do on the clothing side as well,” he explained.
“We really take our time to create collections, and I hope we’re able to convey that there’s a lot of depth and investment in the items we create. It’s not just about releasing a basic sweater with a great graphic – we really tried to go beyond that.” Additionally, the designer said that streetwear has “always been good for graphics”. “The streetwear angle is simple because there will always be T-shirts, and hoodies, and sweaters. Part of that is that sort of urban culture, easy-to-wear vibe. But there’s always a part of the collection we want to be surprising.”
Van Eetvelde added: “We don’t want to cater only to hardcore [gaming] fans. We really want more of the mainstream.” Looking ahead, van Eetvelde believes there’s more room for companies to create an “intermediary between very cheap licensed T-shirts, and something that’s a little bit more interesting and adult”.And the popularity of the clothing line could develop with news a major expansion of the Elden Ring game is planned.
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