From Software Bloodborne. Discuss or die!

[Elwro]

It is the most... tight game of the series. Doesn't have a weak area.

 

[Jaedar]

It is the most... tight game of the series. Doesn't have a weak area.

I don't know. The weapon distribution is bad, especially when taking the dlc in mind.

 

[Jaedar]

I don't know. The weapon distribution is bad, especially when taking the dlc in mind.

How so? I think the game has somewhat of a bias towards skill weapons, but I wouldn't say it's bad.

What I mean is that half the weapon are found in the last 10% (the dlc). At that point you'll likely already have a +10 weapon you are comfortable with. The base game has a few too few weapons as well imo, but it's not a big problem.

 

[Silva]

Yep, weapon distribution is indeed bad. As it is, most show up so late they are more appropriate for veteran playthroughs where you know exactly where they are and how to snipe-pick them.

That said, I agree BB is the tighter in the series. It's level progression is sweet, you always have at least a couple paths to follow (sometimes more), the world interconnects like DS1, trick-weapons are fun, the lore is interesting, etc. No Izalith here.

 

[Ventidius]

Weapon distribution is mostly skewed for Skill builds. Strength and Arcane do okay. Even in the case of Skill, you've still got more than enough fine options from very early on, the problem is that when you consider all of the options that are in the game for that path, the way they are spread out is very inefficient and seems like a wasted opportunity.

Nevertheless, part of the reason why the issue stands out so much in the first place is that by the endgame you still have more nasty weapon options for Skill builds than perhaps you have for any kind of build in these games. And that, at least, is a good thing.

 

[Black Angel]

You Skill nerds need to have a talk with my DickKirkhammer

 

[Silva]

Ventidius , are you sure weapon distribution is skewed towards skill? I don't know, as a Skill fag I always thought Str/Quality have more options.

Regardless, I find Str/quali builds have an easier time in BB, as they can brutalize enemies and bosses easier than Skl builds. They even start with one of the best weapons in the game in the Hunters Axe.

 

[deem]

HOLY SHIT!!!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/232430/Bloodborne/

 

[Multi-headed Cow]

Played a bit more now and I'm starting to see the "Tight" argument. Haven't really run into a clinker area or boss yet, though I'm not very far, but the Souls games often will have a few lame areas or bosses so if Bloodborne keeps a consistently high quality then that's nice. Just whacked father Gascan which I may have fucked up because when the fight started I thought OH FUCK THAT WAS THE NAME IN THE MUSIC BOX but I'm a newbie and didn't have it on my quick use items and I sure as hell wasn't going to pull up inventory in a boss fight so I just bonked him repeatedly with my hammer. Since I assume the mother's always dead there I wonder if the music box would've calmed him down and stopped the boss fight so the kid wouldn't have lost both her parents, but RIP. Also told the old lady the cathedral's safe even though it VERY DISTINCTLY DOES NOT FEEL SAFE and I don't trust that hollow fucker. Arguably should've killed him THEN told the old lady to go to the cathedral. Haven't gone back after telling her about it to see if he ate her or if she's mysteriously gone.

Also noticed an area in the sewer/aqueduct I can't seem to reach, I would kind of assume I'm supposed to access it in that general area but maybe it works around and connects from the cathedral.

You Skill nerds need to have a talk with my DickKirkhammer

Dickhammer SO GOOD. The fast sword is nice for trash enemies and then the hammer's great for maximum bonking. I did notice that the hammer-mode seemed to do absolutely trash damage to some werewolves (That pair up on the walkway by the cleric beast) but I'm not sure if they genuinely have a resistance to blunt or if I was just getting grazing hits, since I switched to the sword on them and was doing basically the same damage as with the hammer.

 

[Black Angel]

Dickhammer SO GOOD. The fast sword is nice for trash enemies and then the hammer's great for maximum bonking. I did notice that the hammer-mode seemed to do absolutely trash damage to some werewolves (That pair up on the walkway by the cleric beast) but I'm not sure if they genuinely have a resistance to blunt or if I was just getting grazing hits, since I switched to the sword on them and was doing basically the same damage as with the hammer.

It's most likely due to not hitting them with the 'sweet spot' of the hammer, aka the head. This is the standard of the Souls games as far as I know, i.e hitting an enemy with the blade of a Halberd vs. the shaft would deal different damage, full with the former, much less with the latter. Or perhaps you were performing a specific move, I remember the running R1 definitely deals something like 0.9x damage or something.

HOLY SHIT!!!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/232430/Bloodborne/

Bandai Namco?

Sus

 

[Lyric Suite]

Lmao holy shit:

https://twitter.com/isbbonpc?ref_src=twsrc^google|twcamp^serp|twgr^author

 

[Lyric Suite]

Don't worry guys, it will definitely come. In some shit remaster that will ruin tone and style.

 

[Verylittlefishes]

Don't worry guys, it will definitely come. In some shit remaster that will ruin tone and style.

Don't give me hope...

 

[Elwro]

Multi-headed Cow , as for telling characters where to go, there'll be at least two nontrivial cases, you'll see

 

[Ventidius]

Ventidius , are you sure weapon distribution is skewed towards skill? I don't know, as a Skill fag I always thought Str/Quality have more options.

I mean, you've got: Burial Blade, Rakuyo, Church Pick, Blade of Mercy, Simon's Bowblade, Chikage, Beasthunter Saif. All of those are among the best weapons in the game IMO. Strength definitely has its options too, and probably comes close, but I'd say the selection is somewhat greater with Skill. Also, I'd say the best starting options are pretty solid as well (Threaded Cane and Saw Spear). They don't seem as immediately OP as the Hunter Axe, but the biggest advantage the axe really offers is a (much) lower skill floor. I don't think there is much of a difference between the Axe and the initial Skill options for the experienced player when you consider their more situational advantages throughout the campaign (the Threaded Cane's thrust attack is quite powerful, for example).

Regardless, I find Str/quali builds have an easier time in BB, as they can brutalize enemies and bosses easier than Skl builds. They even start with one of the best weapons in the game in the Hunters Axe.

Well, I was talking about weaponry options, not sheer power. In terms of power, I'd certainly agree Strength and Strength Quality do better at pretty much every stage of the game, even arguably endgame. The most important variables that are affected by the amount of strong weapon options are player expression and versatility, which are arguably at their best with Skill and Skill Quality, especially considering that Skill weapons are often more distinct from each other than Strength ones. The Bowblade, BoM, and Burial Blade, for example, all work in drastically different ways, and they can all be used with a pure Skill build. A Skill Quality build can also use most Skill weaponry, except for stuff like Chikage (since that requires BT investment), including most of the options I mentioned above.

For the record, I personally prefer Strength and Strength Quality myself.

 

[Multi-headed Cow]

Everything was smooth sailing until bloodstarved beast. Even the jackass with the gatling gun up on the clocktower wasn't too bad, but flapping poisonous roast beef is one horror too far. Will manage it at some point but burned 2 or 3 insight on a sunbro and don't feel like losing even more. Weaknesses appear to be fire and parrying, gotten it down to around a quarter life a couple times so I'll get it eventually but it's a pain while it's spazzing around.

 

[Silva]

Everything was smooth sailing until bloodstarved beast. Even the jackass with the gatling gun up on the clocktower wasn't too bad, but flapping poisonous roast beef is one horror too far. Will manage it at some point but burned 2 or 3 insight on a sunbro and don't feel like losing even more. Weaknesses appear to be fire and parrying, gotten it down to around a quarter life a couple times so I'll get it eventually but it's a pain while it's spazzing around.

Don't kill gatling bro, you can befriend him.

On Starved Beast: yeah, oil + fire is great. Remember serrated weapons (like Threaded Cane) make extra damage against beasts too. Last but not least, it's parriable too so don't neglect that.

BTW, did you go with pistol or shotgun? The difference is subtle but is there: the pistol is quick to fire but has a narrow hitbox while the shotgun has some delay to fire but has larger hitbox. I also think the shotgun has higher damage when you're close enough for all pellets to hit, but it's subtle.

 

[Ventidius]

Everything was smooth sailing until bloodstarved beast. Even the jackass with the gatling gun up on the clocktower wasn't too bad, but flapping poisonous roast beef is one horror too far. Will manage it at some point but burned 2 or 3 insight on a sunbro and don't feel like losing even more. Weaknesses appear to be fire and parrying, gotten it down to around a quarter life a couple times so I'll get it eventually but it's a pain while it's spazzing around.

Just dodge right bro.

To elaborate, dodge towards the BSB, to your right, but into the left side of the beast. That particular area is the boss's blind spot. The fight becomes ridiculously easy once you realize that. In fact, BSB the easiest boss in the game when you know you just gotta stay by its left side.

 

[Multi-headed Cow]

Don't kill gatling bro, you can befriend him.

He was impeding my quest to hunt beasts, he was killed! That other hunter running around there too.
I went pistol, though it sounds like (And seems like) shotgun would've been better for parrying. Pistol doesn't really do enough appreciable damage on my strength dork that I don't really use it for regular damage anyway, and a spray of pellets would probably be better for parrying. I've considered picking it up from the shop to fuck around with it but most of the time I just sword and hammer. This is also the first time I've burned through my stash of bullets since parrying felt like it gave the best results as I've been fucking around with the boss. Fire paper also did great but I've only used it once, nearly got it on that attempt but poison nailed me just before I could take a sippy. Done maybe 5 attempts and each one has been doing things slightly differently to see how they work.

Just dodge right bro.

Damn it Bobby! Wasn't looking for full boss spoilers, was more just dropping a status update since I figured people who had played before would get a kick out of hearing what's making a newbie stumble. Interestingly my first attempt was aggressively dodging at it since that's my go-to for almost all Souls bosses when I don't know what's up. I'll keep my distance to try to bait out an attack or two just to get a feel for them and then it almost always feels best to stick close. I wasn't paying attention to certain directions though, so I'm sure I went left sometimes and right others. That might've also gotten complicated since that would've been with the sunbro since that was the first time I'd even seen a summoning spot, so the boss' attack patterns might've been fucky if it was going after him rather than me.

 

[Ravielsk]

I'll get it eventually but it's a pain while it's spazzing around.

This is actually the my second most hated boss type in the entire sub-genre. Mainly because 90% of the time the game(whether made by From or anyone else) cannot even handle such a form of movement. It gives the camera a seizure and the hitboxes usually seem to desync from the model because half the time I am getting hit when there was not contact. Worse yet apparently having an epileptic seizure makes you invulnerable as most of the time enemies become untouchable when they are throwing a fit. Meaning that the only effective addition this sort of move provides is that it makes the fight longer because you just have to sit it out before you can resume the fight.

Bloodborne at least does not do this with with every single enemy but games like Nioh, oh god sometimes I get the impression that I am playing the sole non-epileptic in the world.

 

[Ventidius]

Having a co-op partner can definitely make BSB trickier. It is IMO easier when fought alone because its movement patterns are already twitchy and erratic enough as it is. And when, on top of that, you have to take into account the way its attacks towards your partner can affect you and the possibility of it changing targets when getting close... well, that just makes the whole thing a bit too chaotic.

 

[Multi-headed Cow]

This is actually the my second most hated boss type in the entire sub-genre.

I can understand how it's lore appropriate for a lot of Bloodborne enemies/bosses to do that since they're savage monstrous beasts and all, but it is a pain in the ass when some of the animations put the critter largely out of reach. And even with that the bosses have been satisfying. Haven't played the Nioh games though, they do that a lot eh?

Having a co-op partner can definitely make BSB trickier. It is IMO easier when fought alone because its movement patterns are already twitchy and erratic enough as it is. And when, on top of that, you have to take into account the way its attacks towards your partner can affect you and the possibility of it changing targets when getting close... well, that just makes the whole thing a bit too chaotic.

That does seem like an interesting way the game differs from the Souls games, but those spastic attack patterns are a big part of it. It's not like they're COMPLETELY unique to Bloodborne but with the majority of Souls bosses it's easier to have a sense of where the attacks are going in a co-op situation, while with this beast I'd see it clearly targeting my pal and then it goes nothin' personnaile and sails halfway across the arena to slap me in the face just because that particular charge attack launches really far. Suppose it's also because Bloodborne's combat is faster and more aggressive, so I assume it could be switching targets back and forth more often. And it sure as hell feels like during one of the phases of the fight it starts trying to dodge attacks a lot more, but I'm not sure if it's intentionally dodging or if it's just getting more aggressive leading to more wild attack animations which FEELS like dodging when it spazzes out and my attacks whiff.

 

[Ventidius]

To be fair, BSB is rather unique among Bloodborne bosses, and there aren't really many (or any at all, OTOH) others that have movements anywhere nearly as erratic. Some of the larger bosses may be the exception to this, but as in the large Souls bosses, the issue in such cases is mostly getting a good look at their patterns, since aligning the camera properly while you trade blows with them can be tricky. I have one particular boss in mind from the DLC that might qualify as 'spastic', but I personally happen to think he stops just short of that.

 

[Jaedar]

Everything was smooth sailing until bloodstarved beast. Even the jackass with the gatling gun up on the clocktower wasn't too bad, but flapping poisonous roast beef is one horror too far. Will manage it at some point but burned 2 or 3 insight on a sunbro and don't feel like losing even more. Weaknesses appear to be fire and parrying, gotten it down to around a quarter life a couple times so I'll get it eventually but it's a pain while it's spazzing around.

Weird. I did BSB first try, found it to be an incredibly easy boss, by far the easiest in the game. Only the super buffed version in chalices gave me any problems.

To be fair, BSB is rather unique among Bloodborne bosses, and there aren't really many (or any at all, OTOH) others that have movements anywhere nearly as erratic. Some of the larger bosses may be the exception to this, but as in the large Souls bosses, the issue in such cases is mostly getting a good look at their patterns, since aligning the camera properly while you trade blows with them can be tricky. I have one particular boss in mind from the DLC that might qualify as 'spastic', but I personally happen to think he stops just short of that.

I disagree. the first dlc boss is just as erratic and much much harder to read due to a stranger physique.

 

[Ventidius]

I disagree. the first dlc boss is just as erratic and much much harder to read due to a stranger physique.

Harder to read? Yes. But not necessarily more erratic than BSB since, as I implied, the main factor in that fight is the model size. The attack animations themselves are mostly easier to make out if only you can get a good look at them (and this is the tricky part). That said, it goes without saying that that fight is much, much more difficult than BSB. If nothing else because instead of a blind spot, that boss in particular some of the most thorough tactical coverage in the game.

But none of that has to do with spazz, even if there is some of that for sure. Though I'd personally say it's more like flailing than spazzing/twitching like BSB, even if that may be a purely academic distinction to some (I personally think it synergizes with the tone of the fight). It's just that, as I said, for me it stops just short of being annoying/frustrating and instead comes off as one of the best examples of giant beast fights done right in the series.