BLOODBORNE given Feb '15 Euro/NA release date, deemed worthy of own thread by ilxor

It's very easy to get lost, I will say. Knowing where to actually go next, or if the route you're taking is the wisest one is very tricky. I'm following a short intro guide but it only goes up to the first boss.

If you all hadn't told me about the weapon thing I'd be in so much shit

Level design in Bloodborne is as good as it is in the first Dark Souls.

Agree but tbh I do find it more labyrinthine...I have a harder time visualizing the level compared to Dark Sousl, and I can never remember how to navigate Cathedral Ward and the surrounding areas.

Okay I'm ready for the first boss

Yeah so the boss is tricky. The vid I'm following suggests throwing Molotovs at its head, but of course you need a fair few and it's easier said than done. Farming them each time and then dying is pretty tedious, but I have to say I'm enjoying this now. It's true you get into the rhythm of it.

In the tutorial I was watching, the dude was able to summon an NPC to help him using the Beckoning Bell. This didn't work for me, but I'm playing offline?

Also, here's a little Easter egg: if you let the title menu play for a few minutes there's a cool intro featuring (I think) Cleric Beast at the end

But yeah, I love how much this is reminding me of Super Metroid aka one of the GOAT games

I want to say the first boss in Bloodborne is meant to intimidate you, but in the end is pretty standard (that is, stab it in the butt). The next boss is a lot tougher and less predictable, but pretty fun, iirc.

You can summon npcs offline, but only with insight points, which you earn primarily through meeting bosses. You also need to pick up or buy the Beckoning Bell in the dream, I think?

If you had go to the other boss first, then you can summon for the Cleric Beast iirc.

Miyazaki is really into bells.

I have the Beckoning Bell and two insight points. In the vid I'm watching, there's a little glowing spot that gives you a hint about ringing the bell, and they do and the NPC comes and trashes everything. It's great but I'm not even getting the glowy message.

Also, you know when you're fighting enemies and you sometimes hear "AWAY! AWAY!" or "YOU CURSED BEAST!", is that you speaking or is it them? It's a strange thing for literal zombie monsters to say, but maybe that's the idea?

That's them, I think only non-beasts speak? But they are going slowly insane iirc.

Ohhh, apparently you may need to grab a different bell from the dream?
https://bloodborne.wiki.fextralife.com/Old+Hunter+Bell

Well, I've looked it up and it's defo the Beckoning Bell and a bunch of people are having the same problem (note not turning up) but haven't found a solution yet. I'll work it out. Just currently farming Blood Echoes so I can beat Cleric Beast as he's kicking my arse

everything i'm reading says you need the old hunter's bell to summon npcs? you still use the beckoning bell for the actual summoning

if you're having trouble with the cleric beast there are other ways forward, it's not a mandatory boss despite being the first most people encounter

Fair dos. I guess as he's apparently not as hard as the second boss (whom I haven't tried yet but looks NAILS) I may as well try him. I find the hardest bit is not getting the camera too tangled up in the scenery as sometimes I've no idea what's going on. Apparently I have to use a lot of Molotovs on him and try to parry attack while slashing him in the back, but he keeps going utterly berserk and smashing me to pieces whenever I get anywhere close

So I'm just farming Blood Echoes and Molotovs by luring the two werewolves down to the house as I seem to be using a lot on him.

Mashed up the Cleric Beast tonight after a bit of grinding. I did accidentally use my Iosefka Potion though.

Father Gascoigne mauled me to death in return

So I've watched a bunch of videos of people beating Father Gascoigne. It all looks very simple and easy when they do it. When it's me, I barely have a chance to open my eyes before he's right on top of me and mashing me into a corner

Did you get or use the music box? That helps later on. The first stage of the fight I want to say is all about teaching you to be aggressive, because iirc if you give him a breather he'll immediately attack or shoot you or whatever. I think you can use gravestones for cover, too.

Yeah I've got the music box. It will be fine, I hope. I've only given him a couple of goes so far (bit annoying having to run down that bridge every time to get to him). Just impressed out how quick he gets on to me, like it feels as though the screen has barely loaded and he's already murking me

If it makes you feel, I think on my first playthrough I cheesed him by getting him stuck on some trees, and used the spin move with the axe endlessly. Then used the music box and somehow got through the second phase.

Then on the second playthrough, I was able to fight him straight up and it was no big thing.

*feel any better

I was using the saw cleaver but I just ended up buying the axe anyway and wow that spin attack is something!!

I did see a video where someone managed to get him stuck in a flight of steps and just carpet bombed him with Molotovs but it wasn't anywhere close to easy when I tried it

High-level Bloodborne pvp strats:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8eV9WswHm7E

Is it worth me subscribing to PS Plus? I was considering it yesterday cos the game looks quite different online, but £50 in one go feels like a lot to lay down (I know.you can do more frequent payments but they're pricier)

Trying to think of what other games I have that might be enhanced by it. RDR2?

Honestly probably not for BB, since I'm guessing you're not too interested in being invaded by people, and while summoning people for help on the bosses is fun, it's not necessary and also isn't as satisfying as figuring it out yourself imo.

But for Dark Souls 3 it's basically the whole game for me, and I anticipate it being a huge part of Elden Ring too. Not that it works much differently in those games, but I think it's more fun after you finish one of them and are comfortable with the mechanics.

I'm so close to beating Gascoigne but once he transforms into that werewolf thing, it's instant game over. He just manages to corner me every time and smash me to bits before I can even begin to use the music box. Having to grind for bullets is tedious and running down that bridge with the burning ball each time is quite annoying cos if I don't do it exactly right I seem to get caught in a melee.
Had to give up again tonight, but there'll be a next time.

The tricky thing is knowing when to stand there and wait for him to do a long attack so you can parry-riposte and when to get the hell out the way because he's shooting you or doing that quite vicious jump attack which is really hard to parry. All too often even when I do parry him, I accidentally shoot again or I simply don't reach and end up just doing a weak attack.

there's a shortcut allowing you to avoid the bridge IIRC, have you properly explored the sewers? If you do that you can find a way through past a giant angry pig that doesn't involve running over the bridge

Ah yeah I saw there was a ladder down. Is it faster to go that way then?

yeah I think so, and you can avoid the hog or farm it for souls as you wish, I think

dog latin, definitely utilize the gravestones as cheese and attack selectively.

Meanwhile, rumors abound that a Bloodborne remaster and a sequel are in the works for PS5.

Finally beat Father Gascoigne. I was shaking!

Now I'm in Old Yharnam with the cunt with the Gatling gun

Happy Halloween!

Gatling gun guy is a PIA. I would suggest ... running.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbOy8GpuKA4

There's a reason I quit playing games in the PS1 era

Gatling guy was quite a big mental block for me progressing further into the game when it was first out, but apparently the bullets don't actually track you that well if you keep moving

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luGNOcV49PI

(love this channel)

Something disorienting about this game is that you can sometimes hear people speaking, or monsters growling but you're not sure where from. I always assume it's an enemy speaking (like in the house near Central Yharnam you can hear someone saying "This is a bad curse!") but once I've slayed them, I can still hear it. Same as the big troll monsters next to the house who kind of grunt or groan - you can still hear them after the fact.

The gatling gun guy is tricky, because it gives you a few choices. You can avoid him (which is not as bad as it seems; lots of Souls stuff you can run past), confront him at the top of his perch (he's pretty hard to beat early game) or leave him be and come back to him later for something, iirc. This part of the game might be the first time you encounter any aggro human NPCs, right?

There are definitely a few doors you can knock on for responses and/or gifts or advancing side quests or plot. Some of the muttering might be coming from there.

I only learned about it later, but there's one door where you start out the game talking with someone, later on in the game they're in some state of distress, and by the end of the game they've clearly transformed and busted out.

I think I just find it funny when I hear the "This is a bad curse!" guy because it reminds me of Psychoville

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=inB4esNoNTo

Although now I've Googled it there's a Reddit thread where someone mishears it as "This is a bag of herbs"

Now I'm at the bit in Old Yarnham with the pesky wolves. It's so annoying dying and being sent back again if you get so far. I've marked Gatling gun cunt, but there's a Gascoignesque guy with a shotgun who's a real PITA who I have to run past each time I respawn and that guy follows you around a fair bit if you're not careful.

Definitely enjoying this game, although I'd never be able to do it without the youtube guide I'm following, no way

There's no way I could do any of these games without a guide. (Sekiro was the first I gave up on even with a guide, though I think I was done with most of it.)

This might be the first of these Souls games I want to play again.

I was thinking to myself about how I'd approach DS3 now I'm more au fait with Bloodborne. I managed against all odds to slay the first boss and then kind of gave up