I have a very conflicting opinion of this game that may require me to go back for another playthrough.
This game is by no means a bad game, but to me it just is my least favorite of FromSoftware. Every new area I discover I often hoped it would be the area that would spark joy and motivation for me like I've had with DS1 and DS2, but each time I explored Bloodborne I often found myself annoyed at the enemies and combat, underwhelmed by the world, and impatient to get it over with and beat the game. The art style of the game is definitely the biggest reason why I struggle to fall in love with the game. It's neat and I get why and how people love it, but lovecraftian/victorian aesthetics never did much for me unfortunately. I find it to be a very boring and dull style. That being said I kept wanting to see if my mind would be changed as I played the game, but each session left me more and more disappointed.
Oddly enough, a lot of the complaints DS2 had felt more applicable to Bloodborne than DS2. For example, the annoying enemy placements, nonsensical hitboxes, and just an overall frustrating gaming experience people had is exactly the experience I felt with Bloodborne. I suppose Bloodborne is my DS2.
The hype this game had when I first heard about it did not help at all either. I went in expecting a transcendental experience that everyone else seemed to have experienced, but instead I was just glad that I had finally finished the game and can move on from it.
Criticism aside though; I still enjoyed the end game boss fight. It was probably the most hype boss fight I've played in all of FromSoftware so far. The weapon transformation mechanics is a really cool introduction that I hope is further explored if a sequel were to ever happen. I also like hearing silly British accents as well.
If there had to be a silver lining to my feelings about this game it's that for it being my least favorite FromSoftware game it could've been a lot worse. I'm glad I got to experience it and I do hope I can find more joy in it in my next playthrough.
Until then, onwards and upwards to Dark Souls 3!
This game is by no means a bad game, but to me it just is my least favorite of FromSoftware. Every new area I discover I often hoped it would be the area that would spark joy and motivation for me like I've had with DS1 and DS2, but each time I explored Bloodborne I often found myself annoyed at the enemies and combat, underwhelmed by the world, and impatient to get it over with and beat the game. The art style of the game is definitely the biggest reason why I struggle to fall in love with the game. It's neat and I get why and how people love it, but lovecraftian/victorian aesthetics never did much for me unfortunately. I find it to be a very boring and dull style. That being said I kept wanting to see if my mind would be changed as I played the game, but each session left me more and more disappointed.
Oddly enough, a lot of the complaints DS2 had felt more applicable to Bloodborne than DS2. For example, the annoying enemy placements, nonsensical hitboxes, and just an overall frustrating gaming experience people had is exactly the experience I felt with Bloodborne. I suppose Bloodborne is my DS2.
The hype this game had when I first heard about it did not help at all either. I went in expecting a transcendental experience that everyone else seemed to have experienced, but instead I was just glad that I had finally finished the game and can move on from it.
Criticism aside though; I still enjoyed the end game boss fight. It was probably the most hype boss fight I've played in all of FromSoftware so far. The weapon transformation mechanics is a really cool introduction that I hope is further explored if a sequel were to ever happen. I also like hearing silly British accents as well.
If there had to be a silver lining to my feelings about this game it's that for it being my least favorite FromSoftware game it could've been a lot worse. I'm glad I got to experience it and I do hope I can find more joy in it in my next playthrough.
Until then, onwards and upwards to Dark Souls 3!
Reviewed on Mar 22, 2023