Bloodborne is coming early next year exclusively to PlayStation 4 and thanks to the Bloodborne News summary of everything revealed about From Software's up title until and including gamescom, we've put together all that we know about the game right now.
Firstly, the game is owned by Sony and was always planned as a PlayStation 4 game. From Software's deal with the Japanese platform holder is on exactly the same terms as their agreement for Demon's Souls, meaning PC and Xbox owners are going to be left out in the cold.
Development of the game began immediately after the launch of the original Dark Souls' Artorias of the Abyss DLC and the team behind it is more or less unchanged from the one that made Demon's Souls and the first Dark Souls. Originally titled Project Beast, the trailer which leaked in May was a year old at that stage and was pre-alpha while the footage revealed at E3 was alpha.
From Software are aiming for seamless multiplayer with real player rather than ghosts and gamers can hunt down or come to the aid of each other. Hunting down 'beast players' will be an important part of the game's online offerings. The world will be interconnected like Dark Souls and longer than Demon's Souls though it's not clear how long exactly; even so, you can expect the exact same level of difficulty as the Souls' games. From Software has yet to finalise what the penalty for dying in the game will be.
Even so, there will be less of a focus on punishing players and there's a lot of emphasis on rewarding achievements and rewards as was the case in Demon's Souls.
There will be no shields in the game or similar equipment but you can block with your weapon as a last resort. Dashing and rolling makes the game play much faster than the Souls games. Miyazaki wants players to be challenged by every fight and there's a massive focus on dual-wielding weapons.
Interestingly, the enemies wander constantly and not only come after you, but also each other. You'll be able to upgrade your character with souls and modify most weapons. Generally speaking, weapons have two modes and you can switch between them by pressing triangle.
Blood plays an important role in the game and there are two types: tainted blood and pure blood. Tainted blood is used to improve your character while pure blood is only found in humans in the game including NPCs. There will be a blood gauge will track how much tainted blood you've consumed, if you absorb too much you will become a beast which radically changes the game. In order to change back you must hunt down other players and obtain pure blood.
Miyazaki says he doesn't view the 'health' gauge as being about health but rather "it's your power of will to go on. And as that goes down you're plunging into despair." The protagonist is known only as the 'Hunter' and the game takes place in the city of Yharnam and the surrounding area.
The Regain system allows players to recapture a small amount of health after being by immediately striking back at their opponent but how much health is recovered will depend on the weapon used.
At gamescom, Sony said Bloodborne will launch "in the next six months".
