#EGX2014 Preview: Bloodborne
My main gripe with the Dark Souls games has always been that I found the controls a bit slow and methodical. I loved the world design and was repeatedly in awe at the enemy design, at least that is my excuse for being killed so much, but there always seemed to be something missing for me. The setting of Bloodborne is drastically different to Demon and Dark Souls, but the design of it all is still equally beautiful and the controls are so much more satisfying.
Set in a world heavily inspired by Victorian London it is up to you to rid it of demons yet again, but this time your arsenal seems much finer tuned. The game was being demoed in a booth containing The Order and Until Dawn and was operating on a “one life only rule”. For those of you that have ever played a Dark Souls game, then you should know that this means you are unlikely to play very much. As I started the demo I was given the choice of 4 types of play-styles. Although the idea of wielding a huge hammer was tempting I didn’t fancy being a heavy hitter with slow movement, so I went with the most balanced weapon set. This saw me equipped with a blunderbuss and what seemed like some kind of giant cutthroat razor, which was very satisfying to dispatch of enemies with.
You don’t have to wait long to meet your first enemy in the demo. I destroyed the first enemy fairly quickly, hitting the right shoulder buttons to deal a mixture of light and heavy attacks. That was just a taste of what was about to occur though. As I ascended the ladder in front of me and heard the chorus of the world increase around me and I knew I wasn’t going to have just singular enemies to kill for long.
I was not wrong. As I snuck up on another enemy a wall burst open beside me and out jumped an enemy waving something sharp. Luckily with some quick thinking and quick fires of my blunderbuss I was able to get out of the scrape, but it was obvious these enemies were not dumb. I noticed a group of enemies patrolling a street below and doubled back on myself, noticing a ledge I had missed before. Dropping down I snuck up on the two enemies that had their back turned on me and made quick work of them.
The street below me then had another group patrolling so, like the coward I am, I doubled back again, right into a gun-wielding foe.
Luckily running at someone shooting at you normally works and I was able to slash at him and escape the oncoming patrol before they spotted me. When they passed I thought, “This is it” and made my dash forward, turning the corner and being greeted by a giant group of enemies standing around a fire. My heart sunk. I had been struggling to pick off two enemies at this point, so the last thing I wanted to do was fight the 15+ that were there.
Quickly I dove to the sides and tried to flank around before anyone could spot me, making sure to take my time. Only moving when it seemed safe.
I saw an enemy down the side I was going and slowly started to creep towards them and that’s when I saw the blade appear at the bottom of my screen. I had grown so one track minded that I had forgotten to keep checking everywhere around me. Before I could react properly not only was the enemy sneaking up on me, but also the enemy I was sneaking up on had sunk their weapons in to me. I tried to fight and dodge, but I just wasn’t quick enough. That was it. Yet again I was left with the feeling Dark Souls delivers so well.
It is never the fault of the game when you die, but the fault of the player. Bloodborne shows no signs of making you forget that and if what I played is anything to go by it will keep players going back again and again when it is released in February next year, even if they aren’t Dark Souls fans.