Did you enjoy Bloodborne's story?
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Except it doesn't. The game is clear that these events are cyclical and have been happening for a very long time, even before the existence of the Healing Church.
Yes, Yharnam descends into chaos as a result of the beast plague- but this is not the first time that's happened (Old Yharnam was burnt to the ground in a similar event), and not the first time it's happened within the world at large. Cainhurst for instance was overrun by what were basically vampires (that were caused by the same blood nonsense) before the Executioners launched an invasion to massacre everyone.
Is anybody alive and sane in Yharnam by the end? Do you not think that civilization in Yharnam has completely collapsed over the course of the story?
"Story" in From games includes pretty much everything for me - lore, level design, art, environmental details, mood, location & composition of enemies, music, sound, on top of the cutscenes and NPC dialogue.
I think it's a big reason why Outer Wilds clicked so quickly (and intensely) for me. Strip away the combat and that's mainly how I approach Souls games — tons of exploration and piecing together a variety of information from the world to paint a complete narrative picture.
So yes, I enjoyed it. The game is masterpiece just like Dark Souls.
I think it's a big reason why Outer Wilds clicked so quickly (and intensely) for me. Strip away the combat and that's mainly how I approach Souls games — tons of exploration and piecing together a variety of information from the world to paint a complete narrative picture.
So yes, I enjoyed it. The game is masterpiece just like Dark Souls.
The story(lore+plot) is a masterpiece. The way it unravels and what the optional areas like the upper Ward and the DLC does to add context to a lot of things is amazing.
As is the case with all of From's games, really. Even the old ones on PS2 and in the Armored Core series too. Everybody in their plots just lose their damn minds by the end.
It was my favorite story of a game this gen. How it was it told (through lore writing, environmental design, gameplay, item placement, enemy placement, etc) is such a uniquely "gamey" way to tell a story totally befitting the medium, and is way more focused and thematically coherent than the Souls games from the same studio, AND the writing is actually pretty poetic and not too on the nose, makes it fascinating. It's a great example of horror fiction that delivers the creepy tangibles but the stuff that's left to your imagination is even more haunting. It's a great example of restraint as well as generally being a stony horror narrative.
Post-DLC (which, while subtle on the surface, fleshed out a lot of the backstory and character motivations) it's probably the most well-put together of the more abstract souls-like narratives, and manages a great job of contrasting the comprehensible Human narrative with the Cosmic Horror one that eludes any overall comprehension.
It was already collapsing before you arrived there, what you actually do is lifting the veil that Rom was lying on everyone living there. Those beings also all have already been there for a very long time.
1.) Yep. The first ending of the game (where you accept gerhman's offer) ends with the player waking up and seeing the sunrise, implying the events may have just been a dream- or at least are completely over. the SECOND ending of the game where you refuse Gehrman's offer and defeat him, ends with you taking his place as "hunter's helper" alongside the doll as the Hunt begins again.
either way the implication is that Yharnam survives one way or another, and the hunt either ends completely or is repeated indefinitely. Gehrman himself has been a "helper" to what is presumably hundreds of hunters.
2.) Yharnam civilization hasn't collapsed because it's been through this before. There are a lot of infected people and a lot of people that will die, but in the end it will probably end as it did the previous time- with the unsalvageable areas of yharnam bombed out/burned out, walled off, and the city rebuilt overtop of it. This in fact is exactly what Old Yharnam is.
3.) Going back to Cainhurst again, Cainhurst is not in Yharnam but close enough to it- and it has an immortal queen sitting in the middle of it waiting to resurrect the Vilebloods as soon as someone is powerful enough to defeat Logarius and let her out. Cainhurst is very much civilization, the Vilebloods are very much resurrected through the course of the game, and no matter what happens they will likely end up occupying and cleaning out Yharnam if no one stops them.
I honestly couldn't give less of a shit about it. I've had my old room mate explain it about 5x, and it never sinks in or seems like anything special. These games will always be 100% about frolicking around a neat setting with a neat combat system to me.
It was incredible BUT the first time I finished it I was like "aha... what was all about again?" but I was so intrigued in some stuff that started to dig in until I found myself doing a complete playthrough to understand the lore and it was mindblowing.
The lore is amazing, but story telling, nah. Like most of their games, they really focus too much on pure vagueness, and doubt most people would understand the story in a single play through without referencing outside sources. So much of the story is just not actually told and even years later folks assume much about the events of the games in question. I feel the storytelling could use a bit more exposition and less vague notes which requires reading tons of entries and trying to connect dots. Feels like you have to play with constant referencing of the game's wiki
I went into it knowing nothing about Lovecraft....
Now I have practically read most of his works and its all thanks to this masterpiece
Now I have practically read most of his works and its all thanks to this masterpiece
The setting is an interesting riff on the Cthulhu mythos, though it subverts far too many of the central tenents of Lovecraftian horror to be considered a "pure" one. The lore and setting are excellent. The storytelling itself is mediocre at best. Storytelling implies much more conscious structure than a sandbox interaction with obtuse lore provides.
One of the more honest answers in the thread. I always find it amusing that people praise a game for its "great lore and storytelling" after they had to have it explained to them in an hour long youtube video.
One of the more honest answers in the thread. I always find it amusing that people praise a game for its "great lore and storytelling" after they had to have it explained to them in an hour long youtube video.
The lore and story of this game is incredible, really unique. The sad part is that it's mostly shown in notes and small cutscenes or unvoiced conversations.
Pretty much. There isn't much story at all, and even what does transpire is kept vague or up to interpretation. To put a "narrative" together requires reading the lore entries on each and every item in the game you come across, then playing connect the dots on a map to try to figure out how this relates to what you are doing even. And in most cases you are really just experiencing the lore of a world, not an actual storyline you are playing. You kill monsters in a place and learn what happened there, you just killed some shit though.
My approach is always more or less "Ok, I just killed this weird spider, I'm going to search on internet what the hell it was"
I like the lore, but I am unable to remember why my character was killing all those monsters.
What story? The game had a story?
lmao if by story you mean telling shit through the lore then yeah it was alright. I don't remember any of it outside of the old hunters though.
lmao if by story you mean telling shit through the lore then yeah it was alright. I don't remember any of it outside of the old hunters though.
I fucking love the themes and concepts of Bloodborne but I wouldn't say the game even had a story until The Old Hunters. Before that it was difficult to piece together a series of events in its lore and the path the player went down didn't really have a narrative structure to it.
Lore is not story. This game barely has a story.
Thought the lore was super interesting. But, It's incomprehensible outside of a wiki or someone compiling it for you in a YouTube video like I'm sure most people clicking on this thread have seen and probably conflate with having pieced it together themselves
Thought the lore was super interesting. But, It's incomprehensible outside of a wiki or someone compiling it for you in a YouTube video like I'm sure most people clicking on this thread have seen and probably conflate with having pieced it together themselves
I don't think you know what splitting hairs means. Yarnham isn't the entire world, its a playable region/area and plainly stated/obvious. Its not a small distinction, its logic.
Pretty much this.
You can tell a story through visuals or cues other than dialogue or exposition. Like Journey. That game doesn't have any words at all, and it still has a compelling story.
I had, and still have, honestly no idea what the story actually is - same with Dark Souls, no idea whatsoever. Other than some gothic cosmic horror shenanigans with the spider and the alien whale carcass baby which was the last boss of the DLC, I think I forgot all of BB entirely. I believe at the end I beat the old guy and the moon boss and ascended and became another cosmic being while the doll girl held me? I'm not sure why, but I think that's how it went down.
I keep trying FromSoftware games because of peoples' hype but I never really like them. All of the voice actors whisper and sound like old-timey english lads while my ugly ass player model navigates awesome level designs while dodging enemies to enter the same foggy boss door like Mega Man.
I keep trying FromSoftware games because of peoples' hype but I never really like them. All of the voice actors whisper and sound like old-timey english lads while my ugly ass player model navigates awesome level designs while dodging enemies to enter the same foggy boss door like Mega Man.
I platinumed the game, so I witnessed every possible thing within but I couldn't entertain the concept of retelling the tale. I recall collecting umbilical cords, but the purpose is hazy in a lore context.
I recall enjoying what I was able to piece together at the time though. Especially in the back half when the more fantastical otherworldy aspects get pushed to the fore.
I recall enjoying what I was able to piece together at the time though. Especially in the back half when the more fantastical otherworldy aspects get pushed to the fore.
Once you get the parry timing down he's pretty easy, also there's definitely a closer respawn point than one 3 minutes away
It's basically
The video game
lol basically. Something you came across earlier finally making sense later on is amazing.
Sure? It was alright. I appreciate what Soulsborne games do Lore-wise and all, and a lot of it is really cool, but that's not really how I get into Storytelling. I wouldn't want these games to do it any other way, I play them to explore every nook and cranny of the world, but I definitely do not play them for their "Story".
No. Since I'm stupid I barely understand anything in FROM's storytelling. Not just Bloodborne but everything since Demon's.
I'm a huge fan of what they achieved in gameplay, but not in storytelling.
I'm a huge fan of what they achieved in gameplay, but not in storytelling.
I had zero clue what the hell was going on, i enjoyed the game but i can honestly say it was 0% because of the story
The lore of Dark Souls and Bloodborne is great, the storytelling though? I like it, but it's deliberately confusing.
The depth and texture of the world building is what made me decide to platinum the game. Even 2 years after first finishing it there was something about that world that stayed with me and that fascination pushed me to start digging deeper into lore explanations by others online, which in turns spurred my desire to go back to the game and do everything I could in that world. There's really nothing else quite like it.
I know what splitting hairs means because it's exactly what you're doing. Have you never heard of a setting being referred to as a world? Do you automatically assume everytime it means the entire fucking planet? And you're ignoring the fact that I clarified my statement in the very post you just quoted.
How much more specific do I need to make this before your demand for lore accuracy is satisified?
How about "a bunch of bad shit happens in Yharnam"? We there yet?
You're free to have your own interpretation of the story. I viewed Yharnam as beyond fucked by the end of the game. Maybe Bloodborne 2 will prove me wrong.