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[Jedi2016]

Dark Souls, and DS3 in particular (it's soooo good) is more my speed. I prefer the slower, more defensive playstyle in a game like this. I really missed my shield playing Bloodborne.

That said, I prefer the gothic, Lovecraftian art style and story from Bloodborne. Dark Souls' story is great, but it's much closer to traditional fantasy, where BB went an entirely different way.

 

[cm1j]

Mechanically they are vaguely similar. It mainly comes down to lore and setting.

Both are in my top 5 of the last few years. Still have not finished Bloodborne

 

[AXE]

Hmm, noticed that I can't create a thread. Maybe something to do with my junior status there on the left. Just as well, there seems to be a boom of Bloodborne threads apparently.

Oh well

Here there be monsters - my video review

I clearly recall getting the game, but I guess I must've been extremely stressed with work as I don't have any recollection of ever playing it. The gf says I did, as she asked if it was "one of those Dark Souls games" when I began playing. I've sort of overlooked the PS4 for quite some time now until in some bout of dementia I decided to get Dark Souls 3 for it, and not for the PC. Don't friggin' ask. I also got the gorram season pass. Don't get me wrong! PS4 is the best console out there, I think. But, you know... PC.

Regardless, DS3 left me hungry. Its not a bad game, but even with the advances in the graphical department and gameplay, Bloodborne to me had something new and exciting. DS3 is basically just more of the old, though fantastic at that.

About few weeks ago I decided that today, the stars were right. And at some point in playing the game I thought that I might make a video about my adventures. I'm not exactly sure what it ended to be. Is it a Lets Play? A review? A tribute? Whatever the heckfire it might be, I feel that if you've not yet had a go, you most absaluteley and definitiviley might want give Bloodborne a go. I wish I would've gone into this with a clear intention of making the video straight from the start, as I would've disabled the UI far earlier. I did eventually to make the game a bit harder, but also because I don't particularly enjoy watching an UI, even in reviews. Strange as that might sound.

Its not a perfect game, don't get me wrong. I kinda had to cut the video in half as I kinda went full retard on this one. Kinda. I will actually complete the video after I've dove into the DLC properly, and, looked into if you can actually increase the image quality of PS4 video by upscaling it in the encoding phase. Its bloody atrocious! Really, in this day and age.

Anyways, I did go in length into how in the olden times games required effort because as a medium, there weren't that many ways to deliver a story. As a result, the actual gaming aspects of games were in the focus. Might've also claimed that back then games being what they were, it was one of the reasons I never got my mom to play games with me - because they weren't child's play afterall!

Bloodborne offerend me the thing I most fell in love with in Dark Souls. The feeling of accomplishment. I also love it that as a by-product, as you're shooting back and forth in an area, you learn to appreciate the hard work of the game designers. They're the apple in my eye. The concept artists and visionaires who most oftentimes don't get enough attention even if they create entire worlds for us to adventure in.

I do appreciate the fact that not everyone like to really focus on the games they play, or really dive into them, and that people actually play to relax and just pass the time. Heck, I do it too. I'm all over Overwatch and I do it to just to chichat with my friends. Most of the time I don't care who wins and who loses. And that doesn't translate into me not trying, mind you.

However, I've kinda had to listen to a lot of whining about the Souls games and I'm kind of annoyed. I mean, don't you people have enough games as is? Leave something for me why don't you! You selfish lot.

Anyhoo, I've made a video. Put some effort into it, too. Learnin' and all that. So I'd really appreciate any kind of feedback as I've just set up a nook and cranny of my own finally!

 

[F0rneus]

Bloodborne is FROM and Miyazaki's best game. The atmosphere, lore, gameplay are utterly perfect. It's definitely one of the top 5 games of all time. On the other hand, while DS3 is not as good, it's definitely the strongest Souls game. And the sheer variety puts it above Bloodborne in terms of gameplay time.

Both are fantastic. Bloodborne is better. I'll play DS3 a lot more than BB.

 

[ElephantShell]

I'm replaying Bloodborne now after finally buying the DLC and finishing Dark Souls III when it came out and I'm finding that I much prefer Bloodborne for a lot of the same reasons outlined in the OP.

The setting and atmosphere of BB is just so perfect and the uniqueness of each weapon is very cool.

 

[Experimenter]

Bloodborne. Cool and not-boring weapons, most bosses are amazing throughout the whole game, much cooler lore and atmosphere.
DaS3 has a few good bosses and all the others are mediocre. Although there are tons of weapons, most of them are boring, not fun and feel exactly the same like other weapons.

 

[AXE]

This is something I didn't touch on the above video... like, at all, which is weird, since I'm such a game music buff. And audio design nut.

I've played the Bloodborne's soundtrack (available on Spotify, btw) a lot today and I realized that while generally I've sort of given up on the music on Souls games, the soundtrack of Bloodborne has few very strong melodies. I don't remember anything from DaSIII, or DaSII. While I did find the soundtrack of DaS interesting, in a György Ligeti sort of way, I didn't exactly like listening to it outside of the game. I do appreciate what they're doing there, but I find it really hard to enjoy out-of-game.

I suppose I might've been very biased against the music of DaS, since I don't care for Sakuraba's pointless twiddlings at all. Well, there might be few hits in that volley, but I reckon its more about maths than music. The chaotic orchestrations, I think, have grown old as an effect. What I would really like to see happen in the coming releases is that they'd use dark ambient type of music. Artist like Desiderii Marginis, Atrium Carceri, Raison D'etre, and the likes. It would really fit to have them do the audio design as their albums are more dark journeys than really music, per se.

There are some pretty decent neo classical composers who have very oppressive catalogue. I think experienting with that might also be interesting.

But what would really make the games immortal to me would be a proper, composed sountrack. Not to ditch the ambient audio design, but I miss strong melodies. A fair amount of game composers rely on having a real orchestra doing almost anything being enough. Generic fanfare to the average, really. Now, when I think about movies, for instance, and good classical compositions, I've always loved John Barry. Though he's no John Williams, but his classical music is extremely thematic and melodic. I could've taken an album full of variations and representations on the hunter's dream theme. Every boss and musical piece would've been a musical story about the characteristics, personality and history of that particular "dreamer".

Just something that popped to my mind.

 

[Shmuppers]

The only thing that DS3 holds over BB for me is build variety, which is a really big deal for me.

To compare any action-RPG to BB is pretty unfair though.

 

[mindsale]

Love both games, but the class variety in Dark Souls III makes replays so much fresher than Bloodborne.

Oh, maybe I'll do a Bloodtinge run isn't nearly as exciting as "Maybe I'll be a Pyromancer."

And Dark Souls III wasn't as corridor-y as Bloodborne, which I found a little stifling.