E3 2014: Demon’s Souls successor Bloodborne gets new details, story and setting explained

Producer Masaaki Yamagiwa from Japan Studio, the publisher for From Software’s Bloodborne, today published a post on the PlayStation Blog detailing the setting, story and inspiration for the team’s PS4 exclusive action-RPG.

“Bloodborne takes place in an ancient, forgotten city called Yharnam, known for an old medical remedy,” Yamagiwa said. “Over the years, many hopeless and afflicted people have made long pilgrimages to Yharnam in search of help. As the main character, you are one of these travelers.

“However, you find that Yharnam is also cursed with a horrible endemic illness. You must navigate the perilous streets of this city, fighting off nightmarish creatures, malformed beasts and deranged mobs stricken with this horrific illness.”

Bloodborne will retain the tense and strategic combat of Demon’s Souls, but do away with the tactic of allowing enemies to plink away at your shield and then simply countering them as they stagger backward. Instead, combat will be “more offensive and active” and will incorporate close-range weapons as well as guns, a first for Souls-inspired combat.

Yamagiwa also said that the game’s online features will remain under wraps until later this year, but did add that Bloodborne will take advantage of the PS4’s new sharing and network features by expanding its multiplayer options.

Director Hidetaka Miyazaki, who also headed Demon’s Souls and Dark Souls, added the following statement:

“Creating Bloodborne as a completely new game on the new PlayStation 4 hardware has allowed us to really push the envelope in myriad ways. That being said, in more ways than one, it also very much retains our distinct, signature style. As has been at the core of our development philosophy since Demon’s Souls, we make true games for people who love games. Please watch for more to come on Bloodborne, and thank you very much for your support.”

Bloodborne will release exclusively on PlayStation 4 in early 2015. The game was announced just this past Monday, confirming the rumors that had been circulating since From Software released a handful of short teaser clips.