Bloodborne is From Software’s latest venture into the often maligned “frustration RPG” genre. The game takes place in the fictional city of Yharnam and sees the player battle all manner of fearsome demons and hell-spawn to the death. Literally to the death. Many, many times.
Bloodborne, like its predecessors Demon’s Souls and Dark Souls, incorporates death not as a fail state for the game, but rather as a key mechanic. Playing Bloodborne you will die hard and you will die often as the game is brutally unforgiving, though not quite as much as previous instalments in the series. Enemies will ambush you, bosses can kill you in one or two hits if you’re not careful and if you die you drop all of the experience you have accrued since your last death. However, if you can make it back to the foe that defeated you, you can retrieve your experience points, or “Blood Echoes,” and carry on. If you die on the way though, they are gone forever and that’s your fault because the game hates you.
The game is as unforgiving in its exposition as it is in its gameplay. You are dumped into the world with seemingly no explanation of who you are, how you got here or where you’re supposed to go. That latter aspect rings true throughout a lot of the game and gives it an “open world” feel, though this sometimes transitions into a “what am I supposed to be doing” feel instead. These feelings are quite fleeting though, as it’s never too difficult to get a sense of where you’re supposed be going because it’s usually behind whatever boss just tore you limb from limb for the 14th time.
On the subject of Bloodborne’s bosses, they are probably the highlight of the game. Each has a very unique design and combat style, and they’re all appropriately menacing and difficult. Every single one feels like a gritty, down to the wire battle for survival and the player feels a real sense of accomplishment as the game quietly snickers in the background, knowing there’s another one three times the size just around the corner. The design of the bosses, and of the levels in general, is very intricate and carefully planned, though not always intuitive, and half of the battle is often spent figuring out what you’re supposed to be doing rather than how to execute it.
Bloodborne’s combat system hits the sweet spot of complexity and depth. It’s a fairly common lock on system with dodges and parries, but fighting even the smallest of enemies never ceases to feel exhilarating as the player switches between the long and short forms of their weapons, all while letting off shots from their blunderbuss or pistol to keep the horrors of Yharnam on their toes. Intricate timing lets you execute visually spectacular critical hits on your enemies for a bunch of damage, and the system overall flows smoothly enough that it feels fair but keeps your heart racing.
Bloodborne, as much as I love it, is a tough game to recommend. If you’re the kind of person that’s okay with being kicked in the teeth for a few hours provided you get a treat afterwards, and bearing mind it is a hell of a treat, then this one is definitely for you. If you’re short of patience or faint of heart though, it may be best to give Yharnam and its beasties a wide berth for now.
