If one were to take a peek inside the mind of Hidetaka Miyazaki, that person would more than likely come away confused but very interested in what they witnessed. The President of FromSoftware has been the leading mind behind some genre-defining games that have captured audiences not just by mechanics but also by narrative.
Miyazaki describes his game creation process as an ebb and flow. One game may be difficult to understand, and the next would be more approachable to the masses. Well, Bloodborne’s story ebbs more than it flows, and even people at the studio weren’t exactly sure what it was they were working on.
The Story of Bloodborne Is Rich, Dark, and Also Very Confusing at Times
Miyazaki and Masaaki Yamagiwa, a former producer at FromSoftware, spoke at length about their gothic Lovecraftian creation in the Drained Blood interview with Future Press. It’s a treasure trove of information for Bloodborne fans and gives a rare look at how Hidetaka Miyazaki works his insights and ideas into his narratives.
If there’s one thing all FromSoftware fans can agree on, it’s that, aside from Sekiro, none of the games offer players the story in a traditional linear fashion. There are entire YouTube channels dedicated to breaking down the lore of every item found in these games, as their descriptions are how the players understand much of the world.
Now, one would think that the people designing the game would already be able to fit the puzzle pieces together. But it appears Miyazaki’s thought process is almost transcendental. The interviewer brings up how Vicar Amelia’s post-fight cutscene in Bloodborne can leave a lot to the imagination. While Miyazaki admitted gamers can imagine a lot from the scene, Yamagiwa was quite upfront, saying, “I had no idea what was going on at all.”
It appears Miyazaki is no stranger to such a response because he follows up by saying that much of the studio would have agreed with Yamagiwa at the time. It was only after watching a video that laid out the game’s story in an easy-to-understand fashion that one of the team members said, “I finally understand the story after watching that. It’s actually kind of interesting, isn’t it?”
Hidetaka Miyazaki Trusts Gamers to Understand His Vision
The creative director doesn’t like to spoon-feed his fans and believes they have the necessary capabilities to put the story together. Now that Project Beast is back in the rumor mill, we may have another lore-heavy minimum-exposition title on the way.
Bloodborne fans have been clamoring for a sequel or a remake of the game, but Miyazaki has not commented on either possibility. It could be that he simply does not have the necessary story in mind for a sequel, one that can be a worthy successor to such a beloved game.
However, a remake is now overdue, and the graphical capabilities of the PlayStation 5 will offer a visceral experience that will make Bloodborne an entirely new experience. Maybe the upgraded graphics will also allow more lore to be discovered.
Were you able to understand the Bloodborne story on your first playthrough? Let us know in the comments!
