Playing the Narrative: ‘Bloodborne’
Beasts run rampant all over the city of Yharnam, terrorizing the populace. The Healing Church, the organization running the town, has recruited some hunters to keep the city safe. Unfortunately for the people of Yharnam, this safety is only temporary, as there is a more foreign influence at play within the Healing Church. The cosmos itself seems to toy with them, having seeded distrust and provided a ‘miracle’ of sorts that has torn the city apart. It is too late for the people of Yharnam, for they should have feared the old blood.
True to its name, the central mechanics of Bloodborne revolve around blood. Blood is used for currency, healing, and upgrading weapons, but also plays a critical role in the game’s narrative. Scholars studying at the College of Byrgenwerth, the primary source of knowledge in Yharnam, discovered a place known only as the Labyrinth, a vast underground system containing evidence of the “Truth” – Great Ones exist, beings of vast and strange power. Many who plunged into the Labyrinth went mad, but those who survived discovered what became known as the Old Blood. Master Willem, the head scholar at Byrgenwerth, experimented on the Old Blood and found that infusion of it in humans acted as a miracle cure. He also realized that it could have disastrous consequences, and urged other members of the College not to utilize it. One of his students, Laurence, believed the Old Blood was key to humanity’s ascension and went against Willem, founding the Healing Church and spreading the miracle cure throughout Yharnam. Thus, the gameplay mechanic of blood being tied to healing is formed.
To understand how the narrative evolves throughout Bloodborne, we must first look at what exactly the Great Ones are and how the inhabitants of Yharnam perceive them. In a small corner in the Forbidden Woods, there are a few blue-skinned creatures that seem out of place with the rest of the world. Later in the game, upon gaining access to the Upper Cathedral Ward, the truth is revealed. Willem had spoken with the Great Ones, in actuality extraterrestrial beings with vast knowledge of the cosmos. In the Upper Cathedral Ward is where the Choir, higher-ups in the Church, received word directly from one of the Great Ones themselves, Ebrietas, one such celestial being first discovered in the Labyrinth.
Ebrietas encouraged Willem that he and the people of Yharnam could communicate with more Great Ones and gain ever greater knowledge. Willem spread that teaching among his students, which led to different groups trying ever more desperate measures to attempt this feat. Perhaps the most notable attempt is the Healing Church’s attempts to transform people into Great Ones. In the Hunter’s Nightmare area, a twisted amalgamation of the Cathedral, exists a section known as the Research Hall, complete with a “Living Failures” boss, showcasing some attempts at recreating the Great Ones. In the Upper Cathedral Ward is an orphanage, showing the extent to which the Choir would go to reach their goals.
How does all of this translate into gameplay? This eldritch knowledge is quantified in something known as Insight and determines how well you see the truth in the world. Every time you perform an action that normal beings in this world would not see, you gain some Insight. This includes seeing bosses, finding hidden locations, and talking to certain NPCs, including Master Willem himself. At certain thresholds of Insight, parts of the world become more clear and also more sinister. At even a single point of insight, the doll in the Hunter’s Dream hub area comes to life and talks to you. Higher thresholds introduce more enemies, mysterious voices, and at the maximum level, a baby’s cry. At one particular point, previously invisible forces that hold you in midair before breaking your mind become visible as huge monstrosities grabbing and crushing you. This mind break mechanic is called “Frenzy”. Certain enemies, notably those called Winter Lanterns, can cause frenzy to build up, and upon reaching maximum, deals a large chunk of damage. This is a mechanical implementation of going mad with knowledge. The rate of build up is actually determined by the amount of insight you possess – the more insight you have, the easier it is to go into a frenzy.
As the game progresses, the initial evening setting turns to night. Giants surrounding the church go to sleep, and a mysterious spider finds his way into a home to speak with you. But this is only the beginning; the next phase is directly caused by you, The Hunter. Beyond the College of Byrgenwerth lies one of the Great Ones, Rom, hidden in a lake and using its powers to keep a veil over Yharnam. Upon Rom’s defeat, the veil lifts and the moon turns blood red. More monsters emerge and the world changes to reflect what is really there, as if every character in the game has gained a large amount of Insight. After encountering the final boss, this blood moon even makes its way into the Hunter’s Dream. Nowhere is safe anymore.
And yet, some NPCs are scared, looking to you for guidance during these dark times. Before the blood moon phase, you are given the option of sending them either to a medical clinic or the Cathedral Ward. Those sent to the clinic are experimented on, transforming them into those blue-skinned creatures previously seen as failed attempts at becoming a Great One. If you choose the Cathedral, however, they will be safe for the time being. An old lady starts off mad, but slowly gains her sanity as you progress, attributing her success due to sedatives. In terms of gameplay, sedatives are a consumable that clear you of frenzy. If you keep talking to her, she’ll give more and more sedatives before leaving to find some more, dying in the process. Some of these NPCs don’t play nice, however. A beggar prowls rooftops somewhere, and will kill everyone at the Cathedral if sent there. A nun hiding out near a prison may kill another survivor out of jealousy, eventually going insane enough to turn on you. The interactions are intricate and rely on your actions. Their lives are in your hands.
Your role in the narrative is that of a Hunter, a group dedicated to keeping the peace by slaying the beasts that have come about due to the old blood. The Hunters were founded by Gehrman, a man employed by the Healing Church. As can be inferred from the workshop found below the Church, Gehrman was an inventor, and thus created the first trick weapon, a device that could change its style to adapt to the variety of threats Yharnam faced. Ever more hunters were recruited, both by Gehrman and the Church, to combat the beasts. Some of them were changed for the worse, however. One by the name of Djura defected when he realized the beasts used to be human, deciding to protect them rather than kill them, and takes control of a gatling gun when you try to pass through Old Yharnam. Another, Father Gascoigne, eventually falls to the beast infection himself after fighting it for so long.
Bloodborne’s true ending relies on your actions and the wisdom of the Great Ones. Throughout the game there are a few of “One Third of Umbilical Cord”, a relic that is said to grant great Insight. Every Great One loses a child, then yearns for a surrogate, formed with these Umbilical Cords. There are four throughout the game, and each of them are found in a location relating to this. One is in the hands of a Great One’s child, two are found from women who have been impregnated by a Great One, and the final one is found in Gehrman’s old workshop near the doll, implying that perhaps this doll is in fact a real person. Consuming three of them grants audience with the Moon Presence, who appears as the final boss, most powerful of the Great Ones, and creator of the nightmare taking hold of Yharnam. After defeating the Moon Presence, The Hunter is transformed into a Great One, finally achieving that which the Church had been aspiring towards.
The narrative in Bloodborne is more subtle than is said here and really needs to be dug into to understand the extent to which the gameplay affects it. Everything is connected – the blood, the beasts, the weapons, and even the progression of the story. Your actions are the cause of the nightmare being released, and the cause of Yharnam finally being set free from this curse. Bloodborne crafts its narrative in such a way that you are playing it without even realizing it.
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