Dark Souls' most mysterious in-game item was a prank, says game director Hidetaka Miyazaki

One of the gifts Dark Souls players can choose when building their character, the humble Pendant, is clear about its uselessness. "No effect, but fond memories comfort travelers," reads the trinket's description. But Dark Souls director Hidetaka Miyazaki sparked speculation about its hidden powers when he suggested that players choose it upon starting the game.

A year later, following rampant speculation about the Pendant's powers, Miyazaki says the seemingly useless item was part of a "prank" he wanted to play on Dark Souls players.

Miyazaki, cryptic as ever, tells IGN that "I actually had a little bit of an intention to play a prank" in steering Dark Souls fans toward choosing the item in favor of more useful gifts, advice he originally offered in an interview with Japan's Famitsu magazine.

"I am very sorry, I cannot tell you here how you use the item," Miyazaki said in an interview with Game Informer last year when asked about the Pendant's powers. "I still want people to try investigating the meaning of the item. Please find it out on your own!"

While the Pendant can be traded to an in-game crow for a shriveled ear, which has its own particular usefulness, speculation about the gift's purpose beyond that has been rampant amongst dedicated Dark Souls fans.

Miyazaki offers more details on the recently released Artorias of the Abyss downloadable content in his interview with IGN, in which spoilers abound.