Patches (character)

Patches is a recurring character designed by Hidetaka Miyazaki and video game development studio FromSoftware. He is voiced by British actor William Vanderpuye, and, in Japanese, Naomi Kusumi. Appearing in most of their games starting from the 2008 Armored Core: For Answer, he has predominantly featured in games in the Soulsborne series, up to and including the 2022 open-world fantasy game Elden Ring. Bald and wearing trademark leather armor, he is usually a merchant who obtains his wares from looting corpses, including those of unsuspecting people he has fooled. His outlandishly cowardly personality and transparent ploys to kill the protagonist function as comic relief in the otherwise dark games. At times, Patches also becomes the player's ally, making him akin to a trickster. Patches has been described as a self-insert character for Miyazaki himself, who shares the tendency to spring traps on unsuspecting players, and only appears in games Miyazaki designed or directed. His similarity in design across games has led to theories that he can cross between dimensions. He has become widely popular amongst fans despite his constant attempts to misle the player.