It's been a few hours since I first heard the news, and I've still not yet processed what has happened. Miura's work on Berserk is something of a masterpiece, one that you really can't replicate with another artist or writer. The story of Guts is an experience that I won't forget for as long as I am alive and I would like to thank Miura for making this series become so legendary.
His work inspired many people and properties including the Souls series, Monster Hunter, apparently Final Fantasy VII also, and I know many familiar creators are also devastated by this news also (
Adam Deats [Castlevania Netflix series],
George Morikawa [Hajime no Ippo],
Hideki Tamiya [Devil May Cry],
Hidetaka Suehiro [Deadly Premonition],
Kazutaka Kodaka [Danganronpa],
Kenji Saito [Metal Gear Rising],
Raita Kazama [BRIGANDINE],
Reikon Games [RUINER],
Yasumi Matsuno [Final Fantasy XIV],
Yoko Taro [NieR],
Yoshinori Ono [Street Fighter]).
One thing that has come from all of this is that I wish other big creators, not just in the manga scene but also in anime and games, in the Japanese industry should take their health more seriously. I don't know if Miura's was caused by over-work but we already have witnessed similar situations in the past (one of which was from another of my favourites - Highschool of the Dead from the late Daisuke Satō, though in his case it was down to a heart condition). At this current moment we have titles like Bastard, Hunter x Hunter, Nana, Real, Terraformars, Vagabond and many more that have had long hiatus windows so I hope those authors are keeping their health in check.
Last thing I want to say is that Miura has left a legacy with not only Berserk, but also his studio - GAGA. They were working on a series called
Duranki, which was mostly done by Miura's assistants so I don't know if that will still continue or not, but if it does continue I hope they get the best support possible.
RIP Kentaro Miura, thanks for writing Berserk.