Player agency is a term that encompasses all the ways players can interact with the game world, from micro-decisions in combat to the narrative paths chosen through dialog options. When games are described as deep, this is what’s being referred to, and the deepest games are the ones with an abundance of viable decisions to make. Action games are usually where depth is a major concern, since the entertainment value rests on how long players can experiment with the possibilities of their moveset. This puts Bloodborne in a weird place though, as it's an action-focused game that doesn't have the same sensibility. Just like a normal action game, the players’ primary source of agency is in the weapon they’re using, but the combat has a notable lack of depth that makes it weak as a core element. It’s tempting to rattle off all the attack animations that are possible after rolls and backsteps, but depth isn’t just a measure of a player’s possibilities, it’s of the viable possibilities not overshadowed by a dominant strategy. Bloodborne’s combat is governed by how quickly enemies attack, how you can’t dodge during a windup, and how you can recover health by immediately returning an enemy’s attack with attacks of your own. These mechanics reward players who charge in and stunlock enemies, especially when you can't block, ensuring that a barrage of light attacks is your best offense and defense at the same time. So, while the trick weapons are beautiful and incredibly cool, ninety percent of the time they’ll be used for identical light attacks and dodging. To be fair, this is a complaint that could be directed at the game’s predecessors as well, but their slower enemies, lack of a rally system, and robust magic provided a strategic breadth that ameliorated the lack of depth. The Souls games also embedded more decision making in the world itself than Bloodborne does, through environmental traps or questionable characters. What makes this overall downgrade in player agency so disappointing is that Bloodborne isn’t just the most imaginative and wonderfully crafted fantasy world within its series, but among the best of games in general. It’s a setting I want to spend time in and learn about, but without interesting decisions to make or complexity to master, summoning the energy to revisit it after the first playthrough was difficult. It’s awe-inspiring to look at and it gives you a lot to think about, but it’s hard to be enthusiastic about an action rpg that isn’t interesting to play.