Bloodborne
PlayStation 4
(Sony)
Two stars
There’s something masochistic about video gamers. Even in an innocuous game such as Pac-Man, you will be killed dozens of times before you get any good.
Bloodborne doesn’t waste time killing you. Almost as soon it starts, you get eaten by a werewolf. Sure, you get reincarnated, but if you aren’t prepared to die – over and over and over – you won’t get very far.
Bloodborne is the latest torture device from Hidetaka Miyazaki and his Tokyo-based studio, From Software, who have developed a reputation as the cruellest game designers in the world. You find yourself in a sprawling city called Yharnam. A nasty illness has overcome most of the populace, transforming them into bloodthirsty lycanthropes and sledgehammer-wielding behemoths.
Gamers used to cutting a swathe through hapless enemies will lose quickly. Eventually, you get used to the attack-dodge-attack rhythm needed to defeat most creatures – until you stumble upon one of the game’s boss battles. You’ll need trial and error before you figure out their attacks – and even then, they typically transform mid-battle, requiring a whole new strategy.
If you lose, you get sent back to your last game save, at which point you have to slog back through a horde of lesser enemies. It is at this point many players will slam down their controllers in frustration – not at losing a boss battle, but at having to retrace all the tedious steps that led up to that fight.
If you’re the type of person who plays a game to relax and unwind, Bloodborne is not for you.
artslife@thenational.ae
