Hiding the truth
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- Опубликовано: 10 сен 2024
- The Victorian horror does an excellent job of selling the idea that Bloodborne is just a werewolf game, so they can hit you a lot harder when it reveals that it was a Cthulhu game the whole time.
Song used: Cleric Beast - Bloodborne OST
“When faced with the Eldritch Truth, some will shield their eyes and become animals, some will understand and become gods, and some will go mad.“
So basically anyone that reads Lovecraft is a god
some become all 3
And where do we draw the line?
@@cloavis7741 wherever you like
@@commanderleo god, beast or madman, they aren't so different in the world of Bloodborne
That was honestly one of the greatest parts of Bloodborne. How well it mixes gothic and cosmic horror.
"You thought this was going to be all werewolves and witches? Have some aliens, bitch!"
Honestly my first time through I was disappointed. I wanted werewolves and witches and when they were thrown out the window it took me out of it. I've since played it through about three times and I think it's genius.
Well, not necessarily *aliens*, as they are from the world, but yes.
@@megatiny63 Maybe play it more times? Just my totally unbiased opinion. But still, 3 times? You should do more than that right? (sorry, I just felt like I needed to post this)
@@megatiny63 honestly it works in a weird way. In the beginnings it has all the elements of Victorian horror. Blood drinking monsters, werewolves, the Moon and much more. You’re hunting monsters but it’s nothing you aren’t familiar with. Then it slowly peels back why these things are happening, how it started and what it’s purpose is and it becomes weird, alien, unrecognizable and completely beyond your imagination. much like Lovecraftian Horror itself it starts with familiar then slowly but persistently rips it away until it’s something disgusting and incomprehensible.
Didn't the Cthulhu Mythos already incorporate a lot of gothic horror tropes like zombies, witches and ghosts alongside the weird alien stuff though? Admittedly I haven't read much of Lovecraft's works, but I could've sworn that was a part of it.
I'm always impressed with how well From Software is able to anticipate and manipulate how the player will react and process information. From small moment to moment encounters, to even the overarching themes of the game, they do incredible sleight of hand to establish and manage your expectations. Bloodborne has a much more linear progression than Dark Souls or Dark Souls II, they keep a very tight grip on where you can go in the early game, but it's all to set up the creeping reveal of the more cosmic side of Yharnam.
Manage expectations... And then dissapoint. Thats sadly what they are about kind of. Its like they start developing very inspired but as deadline gets closer they start rushing stuff.
I understand and appreciate your enthusiasm since i am a fan too but whats the point of gloryfying Fromsoftware like this? I mean yeah the beast looks cool but are they geniuses for making an introduction to the world? Thats bare minimum effort not extraordinary effort (And how is that even lovecraftian?). Then you mention this weird point of them being able to manipulate expectations and feelings in a player like theyre some sort of psychician, and you mention the attack telegraphy as an example... like what? Are they psyche masters for being capable of animating an action that will indicate the player to either roll inside or to the side? If that is not glorification i dont know what it is then.
Im a fan too but overinflating the quality of a product is detrimental to both the people who enjoy it and those who made it since they get placed in such unrealistic standards for something they didnt even do. You want to be hyped so bad you dont ground your expectations to reality then you get disappointed when surpise they dont meet them.
@@schmebulockjizz "ignorant slave, how quickly you forget"
@@schmebulockjizz 🧂
@@schmebulockjizz yikes
@@schmebulockjizz Zullie is evidently making an observation about the character of FromSoftware's games. There is no room for overinflation there... what are you talking about?
Manus really has travelled to all sorts of timeliness and dimensions huh.
That is why he brought Chester with him. Big old Hand likes souvenirs.
Kind of curious that none of the people powered by the first flame had such reach, but it had to be from those who embraced the dark...
@@Dark.Shingo The dark side is a pathway to many abilities some consider to be unnatural.
Constants and variables
@@johnfran3218 are you a bot?
The funniest part about the game hiding it’s Lovecraftian elements to me is that you have to go out of you way to find those early and hidden Lovecraft elements, like the Brain Sucker in Cathedral Ward or the Celestial Emissaries in Forbidden Woods, before Byrgenwerth and the Bloodmoon. If you just go through the game without much exploring, just killing the mandatory bosses and following the path set out before you, it’s all Victorian horror involving Beast Men until Byrgenwerth, where, after killing Rom, the game reveals it’s nightmarish Lovecraftian side. For some it could even feel like it came out of nowhere because the twist feels so sudden. It’s genuinely incredible the work FromSoftware put in to keep those elements obscured from the players
Just like Berserk, it's all medieval until the eclipse & then it's get more bizarre.
Yeah, nevermind that you'll almost certainly find a Madman's Knowledge item, since there are two in Cathedral Ward and eight more in Central Yharnam, all in spots that most players will explore, meaning it's inevitable that every player will very early come across the description:
"Skull of a madman touched by the wisdom of the Great Ones.
Use to gain Insight.
Making contact with eldritch wisdom is a blessing, for even if it drives one mad, it allows one to serve a grander purpose, for posterity."
That literally spells out the fact there will be some Lovecraftian nonsense in this game. The real 'twist' was more in the marketing of the game and initial expectations set of it being gothic horror rather than cosmic. Even then, it's a bit of a stretch to postulate that players would need to explore heavily to come across a brain sucker. Every player that I've watched play blind has stumbled into both the brainsuckers in Ward and the emissaries in the woods. Nevermind getting one-hit killed by the big guys that carry you off to Yaharghul where the masonry is decidedly eldritch. Nevermind the several squidman statues that line the stairs up to Vicar Amelia. None of these things are especially out of the player's way, with the statues in the Cathedral being literally a part of the walk-up to the second mandatory boss of the game.
You might have had a more cogent argument if your point was that the game layers all of these elements just out of sight, leaning into the whole aspect of literal and figurative insight letting players perceive what's truly there. These elements are meant to be found and ever present on the player's periphery, not 'obscured' in the slightest.
@@varsoonhks3211
Alright dude, you’re right, I got the facts wrong, you’re likely to encounter the Lovecraftian elements as early as Central Yharnam I guess. I was just pointing out the fact that a less observant player who doesn’t explore might not encounter the Celestial Emissaries or Brain Suckers, and so they’ll be extra surprised at the Lovecraft elements being cranked up to 11 after Rom. Also, this ain’t a competition on who has the most facts about Bloodborne.
@Varsoon HKS Every party needs a pooper, that's why we invited you. Party pooper. Party pooper.
@@FireTalon24 This childishness is (part of) why we can't have nice things.
My boy just said “no I don’t want that” then just rips his eyes out of his head.
And the scary part is that was the most _logical_ thing to do when confronted with Eldritch truth
"Laurence finding another method to ascend...?! No, I don't want that. I want him to think about MY method and no one else's for the rest of my life. Even after I die...I want him to fear the Old Blood for a while! 10 years, at least!" - Master Willem, probably
His eyes are still there. If you break his face his eye pops out
@@safijivvaboi5081 It's not actually eyes, just open wounds that appear on the part broken version of the head mesh.
"It's longer than you think, Dad! It's longer than you think!"
"And then he turned himself into a squid, funniest shit I've ever seen" - A true emobidment of the pure Lovecraftian horror that is Bloodborne.
Why do people love saying lovecraftian so damn much
@@igee1605 Bloodborne is my favorite non Lovecraftian video-game. Honestly, it's a breakthrough on the new hit genre of "squid game(s)". 2/10 it has a little something for no one.
@@igee1605 To convey the genre
@@igee1605 People describe Bloodborne as "lovecraftian" because it's an accurate description of the lore and setting. If you know of a more appropriate word, feel free to share it.
@@uhoh7545 I'm just saying it's so overused and doesn't really describe anything
"We live on a placid island of ignorance in the midst of black seas of infinity, and it was not meant that we should voyage far." H.P.L
"The surface of the Earth is the shore of the cosmic ocean. From it we have learned most of what we know. Recently, we have waded a little out to sea, enough to dampen our toes or, at most, wet our ankles. The water seems inviting." Carl Sagan)
“If you eat too much ice-cream, you may get a tummy ache.” John Bloodborne
"******" - H.P. Lovecraft
The removing of their eyes thing never caught me as shielding themselves from the truth. They make many, many references to removing your useless outer eyes so that you may grow eyes on your brain and see the eldritch truth
To further that statement it could also be explored as both being wholly factual based on individual perspectives. One person committing the act with a very different intention than another
I thought removing your eyes forced new eyes to grow on the inside and they all learned this accidentally.
@@jimmyelkordy3752 Hm, I was thinking that it was Provost Willam taking something metaphorical as a literal view (not that it didn't seem to work, as it seems that it did in many cases)
As far as I have gathered, the scholars and the clergy covered their eyes seeking deeper truth. While the fearing masses gouged out their own and the mad collected them in attempts to find deeper understanding. Well not entirely clear cut, the learned also seem to have a habit of storing eyes everywhere.
@@insaincaldo this, yes
No one talking about my boy Chester, literally dragged straight out of Bloodborne's universe
Would have loved to find him again in bloodborne. We got a bow so why cant we get a crossbow too?
@@SIGNOR-G chester has a crossbow because bullets and guns don't exist in the time and space of dark souls, so he made do with what he had. I really wish Chester was a possible summon for the manus fight though
@@femthingevelyn Yeah, though he was a prick Invader, him being an unexpected ally in the fight against Manus would've been a nice nod to the upcoming Bloodborne: *a hunter slaying a beast.*
@@SIGNOR-G we have a fucking gatling gun instead
@@virael3801 and a CANNON
Im still in awe of this game, how all the marketing was done so well to sell it as a werewolf hunting romp through the city, only to flip the entire games premise on its head
The texture on the hairs of the Cleric beast's back remind me of the headpiece from The Nameless King in DS3
That's just fromsoft being shit at cloth and conserving your FPS
And big surprise they're nearly the same as the ones on the back of the helmet in Elden Ring's trailers. I love FromSoft but hair is not one of their strong points.
Honestly, I could watch a whole one hour documentary in this style...
Make it 4 hours!!
Right? I love Zullie, just wish her content was longer! Its always so good!
Well, maybe people (all of the people so far in this string), just watching a lot of these types of videos in a row on the channel can compensate for now, but hopefully it won't need to forever...
I'll never forget the first time I played bloodborne, climbing that first ladder and randomly humming snake eater to then be interrupted by the REEEE in the distance not knowing wtf was it and instantly saying "What am I walking into?, to later on discovering it was this gigantic beast which is the first boss of the game, after that moment I knew I had to play the rest of fromsoft games
Concealed eyes are one recurring image, but I wish people would heed another, more potent symbolic image: ears.
I can't be the only one that's noticed that the "One Third of Umbilical Cords" aren't really umbilical cords at all, but eye-laden cochleae-the inner ear. "Cochlea" is derived from the Greek word for "snail's shell;" perhaps more curious, the central depression of a snail's shell is called the "umbilicus." In the caves beneath the Lighthouse Hut, we can even find giant snail shells similar to the Snail Women's embedded in the walls and ceiling, but with an oddly protuberant segment that gives it a shape roughly like the Umbilical Cords.
It doesn't end there, of course-all the talk of "blood echoes" and "formless Great Ones, existing only in voice" pave the way for a trend of auditory "imagery," reflected in subtle details like the ear-shaped brooch about the Hunter's set's cowl, or the similarly curved shell-like weapon wielded by the Orphan of Kos. The Research Hall exists largely to cement this theme with its "cerebral patients" that "imbibed water, and listened for the howl of the sea." Adeline also remarks, "I see your voice clearly as it bends and bleeds." Seeing sound is perhaps one of the most unusual details in Bloodborne.
Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if Moon Presence's face was actually a giant ear. The way it cranes its head, and how it leans in close to the Hunter's chest, makes it appear more like it's listening for something within the Hunter's bosom (their heartbeat?). After all, we do crush three or four of these "umbilicals" to compete with it, each releasing a flurry of sibilant whispers of eldritch knowledge.
I have been told it is a cross section of an umbilical cord, but given the points you just made it makes sense that sound is just as important as sight to such creatures, maybe more so. That maybe the point of connection that the moon presence looks for is a sound and with those the three cords have gained a resonance that protects them.
interesting take on things
"our eyes are yet to open"
By the way, the Orphan’s weapon is actually his placenta. But it can still looked at in that way, I suppose. Also, the umbilical cord is connected to the placenta, right?
This comment is fantastic
@@wigglerrave4020 I think the point of a lot of the anatomical details in Bloodborne is that they're supposed to combine different concepts. For example, Amygdala's head could be seen as both an asteroid OR a fruiting body of basket fungus. This is probably done to get the player to pick up on a pattern relating mycelia and cosmic knowledge. Likewise, when I refer to Moon Presence's face as an "ear," this is only half-true-it's evidently also a mouth, or at least something that would house vocal cords to make those eerie, gurgling sounds and roars.
Orphan of Kos' weapon likely is a placenta, and it is attached by a literal umbilical, though the shape is also quite similar to an ear, or even an ear shell lined with "pearls." It's pretty fun to mull over these visual patterns and try to figure out what they mean, if anything at all.
Fun fact: “Gothic” originally referred to Germanic tribes that sacked Rome, and the term “Gothic Architecture” was coined as an insult, meaning that it looked “barbaric.”
I think it was because the Italians in the Middle Ages disliked the imperial gothic architecture that was, in upper Italy, dominated by the Germans, and thus deemed un-Italian and a symbol of German rule over Italy, which the rich, very self-confident city states hated and tried to combat through their own more rounded, romanesque prerenaissance architecture
Cleric Beast OST is a freaking BANGER. Best song in the franchise
It sounds weird listening to it without the EEEEEEUUUUUUAAAAAAAAGHHHHHHH
Laurence's OST as well
@@madmuffin2842 not just the OST, thinking about the lore, his design, the music and even just the fight itself makes my pee pee start moving around
Cleric Beast is damn good, but honestly after listening to Laurence's it just seems weak by comparison lol
Ludwig
One of the most impressive things so many ignore or simply don’t know due to the most famous part being the C’thulu and Eldrich side of things is that Lovecraft originally started his career writing more Victorian Gothic Existential Horror. It wasn’t until a good ways into his life, towards his last few years of it, that he got into the true thing most know him for. And before that, it was a sort of mix, adding in more and more of this slowly until it took over. And the thing that’s impressive? That’s exactly what FromSoft did here with Bloodborne.
So, in a sense, it really is the ultimate H.P. Lovecraft Experience.
@@KaiHyouookami H. P. Lovecraft 2: FromSoft Boogaloo
I love how well that meme works here
Didn't he cite Poe as his biggest influence or at least favorite author?
Oh my Kos. Or some say Kosm.
@@KaiHyouookami That's what I say. Apart from that black & white movie Call of Cthulhu, that is 1:1 to the book, Bloodborne is the best adaptation of Lovecraft. Miyazaki knows his cosmic bullshit very well
I've always liked how the player embodies the transition. The messengers saved us from beasthood, and so we use the blood to strengthen our body freely. At the same time going through the game increases our insight/understanding but we don't go nuts because our physical shell is powerful enough to contain the knowledge.
It's just impossible for me to not like anything Bloodborne related.
Well, why would it be?
Funny enough, every time I fight Cleric Beast, my mind fills in the eyes (eye holes?) with the red eyes Manus has, even occasionally extending along the horns in my memory. Just goes to show how iconic Manus really is.
The pivot from gothic horror to cosmic horror is masterfully done. It leaves you some small breadcrumbs, then signs before finally showing the madness in full. Cosmic horror reveals aren’t uncommon but definitely varying in effectiveness. Too early and you lose suspense, too late and it’s an ass pull.
Tell me. How did your very first playthrough go?
@@thememeilator2633 It was so spooky he never returned
@@capootiscrepitoos woah... that`s deep. the ancient great ones have taken him into the upside-beyond
I find it funny that Bloodborne, a game made by a rather dreary minded studio like Fromsoft, handled the melding of Victorian and Cosmic horror WITH adding sparks of hope here and there, better than Magic the Gathering. What do I mean? The first visit to Innistrad (sorry if misspell) was full on personal Gothic horror. It was clastrophobic, despair inducing, but also motivated those involved to keep pushing because there was a clear victory possible. The second visit to Innistrad was full Cosmic, though not really the good kind. You had a group of Avengers in the Gatewatch, fighting these eldrich monsters that appeared out of nowhere, with the people who had finally started to reclaim there lives dashed into a position where it was all for naught. Only for it all to end with those same inevitable monsters getting sealed inside the freaking moon, and it's implied that it allowed itself to be sealed specifically cause it wasn't this world's time. It was kinda sloppy in execution.
Bloodborne, though, takes both elements and uses them extremely well. You have the same clawstrophobic (heh) despair due to the Plague of Beasts running around, anyone able to fall to it and the old heros turning into the strongest of them. But there is hope, people can fight back, and some are making progress. The Cosmic horror is melded in well because it was ALWAYS there in the background, and in some ways was causing it. However, the impending doom of the Cosmic isn't just already there, it's also in some ways a victim of those at the top. Ebreitas, trapped within the Altar of Despair, likely guarded by the Emissaries. Kosm, slain on the shoreline before its followers, who were benefitting from her presence. The Orphan, trapped in the form of man and unable to really live. And amongst both, the Hunters. An entire group, working within numerous timelines, making progress against the inevitable end from the stars, and in the end striking a fatal blow, with the possibility of rising above it all. The world is horrible, but that doesn't mean the enormous obstacles are insurmountable.
Simply amazing.
To be fair, H.P. Lovecraft's works were initially victorian existential horror stories (The Rats in the Walls, for example), with the cosmic horror we know him for nowadays coming from the latter parts of his career. It seems Fromsoft was quite committed to giving us the complete Lovecraft experience
@@gasterblaster9817
I wasnt aware of his early Victorian stories. No wonder he managed to step into Cosmic sp well. He got what worked with the latter, and infused it into the former. Or....the other way. I forget how it goes. He put gothic into cosmic, at least in the worldbuilding.
An excellent point to bring up!
My favourite line is still, REEEEEEEE
Wow, the first enemy "with no eyes" that actually doesn't have eyes.
maybe there will be a follow up video from Zullie with ... actually did you know the cleric beast has got hidden eyes... lol
Manus gobbled up all the eyes during the design process, they just didn't have any left for the beast.
Heh.
Zullie you don't have to sell me on Bloodborne, I've been shouting from the mountaintops about its genius for years.
So happy to see bb content from you, keep it up!! :)
I LOVE that you don't limit your content to just technological stuff, but also include theories and world analyses as well. Thank you for your work, for every video you've done, and for answering everyone's questions
I always loved Bloodborne because it starts off with "oh I killed funny beast and funny beast man" and then you fast forward towards the end of the game and it's like "oh i just slayed an eldritch abomination beyond any human comprehension that has likely lived for tens of thousands of years. gee i love going insane!"
Not so much "I love going insane" and more "I love replacing it by becoming an eldritch abomination beyond human comprehension myself".
They did it with Sekiro as well, it starts as a relatively normal, semi-historical game of swords and little magic, and then you fight godlike dragons, walk through heaven and bend lightning to smite warriors that invoke the spirits of the dead.
Finding an ancient entity deep below and using it for power, which was ultimately the downfall off the civilization.
Oolacile? or Yharnam?
Yeet
Are you ready for the gameplay reveal tomorrow?
I am ready for the gameplay reveal tomorrow.
I am ready for the gameplay reveal tomorrow.
I am ready for the gameplay reveal tomorrow.
I am ready for the gameplay reveal tomorrow.
I am ready for the gameplay reveal tomorrow.
I thought covering your eyes was connected to Master Willem's beliefs/revelation that our human eyes are not enough to see the Eldritch Truth (so they're useless) and we need more eyes, eyes on the inside. Willem himself has his eyes covered yet he ended on the "celestial" side of this, and after him the Choir also covered their eyes, yet it was them who created Celestial Emissaries etc.
Gascoigne and other members of Healing Church tried to follow his footsteps, but ended up defeated by their own bloodlust and thus turned into beasts
Bloodborne incrementally adheres less and less to your pre-conceived expectations, and then you jump off of the Byrgenwerth balcony and everything changes.
Our eyes are yet to open.
@@Yora21 completely unrelated but a character i created & write has the last name Yora
@@johnfran3218 someone has way too much insight
@@johnfran3218 ‚If you open your mind too much, your brain might fall out.‘
This boss. Is the reason I immediately knew I was going to love this game even though I was loving every minute before that as my first expierence with FromSoft now I beat everything except waiting to buy a ps5 to play Demon Souls. But this dude, the jump, the orchestral boss turne! I sucked so bad but I persevered and now they're my favorite games/ game developers
Excited for elden ring?!
@@Jormyyy extremely excited!
The cosmic/celestial/Lovecraftian horror of Bloodborne really affected me because I did not see it coming. I played the game blind and based on Central Yharnam I was just envisioning classic Victorian horror. And then I grew eyes on the inside.
i think the slow reveals of the themes, as well as the themes themselves, really cemented this as my all-time favourite fromsoft game, and in fact, probably my favourite game that's out today! (you know on top of everything else this wonderful game offers)
It's a solid choice for favorite game of all time. It's definitely in my top five.
Manus, Laurence and Demon of Hatred. I hope we see something like them in Elden Ring too. Hard beastly boss with a weird left arm
they'll pull a sneaky on us, and make it the right arm next time
video was less than a minute and a half. Yet it still showed me so much i didnt know about a game ive played 600 times. Thanks again zullie vids are awesome.
Please take us to the Nightmare front some day. I want to see the boats in the fog, in the distance.
I like the duality of Zullie's videos. On one hand it's super insightful lore tidbits. on the other it's how long the Four Kings legs actually are.
Its theorized that Darkbeast is the final stage in Beasthood
I'd just like to say thank you for using boss music while showcasing a boss. I enjoy the Zelda OST but the music in Soulsgames is also so excellent I miss it at times.
*FROM Software:* Guys, guess what? We're going to take the last boss from our last game and make him the _first_ boss of our new game! And if you're thinking to yourself, "Man, that's fucked up", wait till you see the rest of our new game!
I hope we see bloodborne on PC
Cant wait to see the mods community modding the hell out of it!
Doesn't need mods, it's perfect as it is. Mods ruin true art like this.
@@SenseiRaichuss Have you seen the boss vs boss mod videos that are already out? Those ones can be really cinematic bc you can do stuff like make Maria fight Gehrman.
Bloodborne is a masterpiece and the best game ever. period
One thing I always loved from a game design perspective is that the first two bosses of the game clearly show what to expect from the majority of total bosses. In other words: all the core boss mechanics are introduced immediately to the player. (spoilers)
Father Gascoigne is a Humanoid boss, which means he can be parried via firearm, or back-attacked into a visceral. He also has an active transform state that changes his moveset. Though his weakness to an item (music box) is unique, it does show the player that certain items can give a big advantage- such as fire paper or blood cocktails (blood-starved beast!). His set then becomes available in the insight shop, hinting to the player that killing other hunters makes their stuff available (or at least give items, such as the key to the Oedon Chapel). Almost all of these traits can be found in other Humanoids, such as the Shadows of Yharnam, Lady Maria, Orphan of Kos, or the Keeper of the Old Lords boss variant.
The Cleric Beast is a Monster boss, which means it cannot be (traditionally) parried or back-attacked, but can be 'broken' by doing large quantities of damage, especially when to specific body parts. This leads to a visceral attack, and when skillfully played, can even be chained. CB has a passive buff that heals damage to his limbs, and echoes the passive buff Vicar Amelia has or the poison buff from the Bloodstarved Beast. Regardless of if you'd like to argue as other phase-shifts as actives (like the Amygdala tearing off its arms for additional range), we can all agree that both bosses showcase the different possibilities for transformation that bosses have. Another interesting tidbit is that Gascoigne is mandatory, but the CB is *optional.* The only way the player would find it is by exploring or listening to dialogue hints near the central lamp (Gilbert). This introduces the concept of secret bosses right away, alluding to the many secret arenas and spots such as the Celestial Emissary and Ebrietas, or the entire Upper and Lower Cathedral Ward as a whole!
As silly as it sounds we don't see a lot of really good, thought-out game design nowadays. It makes me glad to see that there are some truly competent people in the industry today. It's a shame they can only work on so much of the game, so some of the bosses get to be terrible messes instead (Rom, Laurence, Watchdog of the Old Lords, etc.)... Anyways yeah that's my comment
honestly Watchdog of the Old Lords wasnt nearly as bad as Pthumerian Descendant was. split second parry windows (and I do mean split second) you have to know what the boss is about to do before the boss knows what it's about to do at every moment of that fight and I fucking hate it. having to constantly be 5 moves ahead of the boss that can randomly asspull it's half frame start-up backslash almost made me quit Chalice Dungeons. (literally no time to react it just hits you instantly and hitstuns you into a full combo and there's nothing you can do about it except pray you have enough health and you usually dont.)
I knew Garlic Beast didn't have any eyes! Thanks for taking a closer look.
The Cleric Beast is probably my favourite "tutorial" boss in every videogame. Okay, the camera can be annoying sometimes, but tell me: in which game you're just strolling on a bridge, thinking to yourself "Let's see where this way can lead me to", and then get suddenly ambushed by a screaming something that is straight up out of a nightmare, forcing you to fight it, whether you're ready or not?
As for me, I've never felt so in trap at a beginning boss. Fun fact: the Cleric Beast was my 4th boss in my first run. The first was Father Gascoigne, the second was the Blood-Starved Beast, and the third one was... Darkbeast Paarl. Yes. And I was so scared, at the time, that I didn't go up the stairs in Yahar'Gul's prison. So I basically didn't know that there was a lantern up there, and I barely managed to slay Paarl, and I was running so low on Blood Vials that they weren't even being replenished up to 20.
And, last fun fact: I encountered, by chance, the Cleric Beast as the 4th boss just because I went back to Central Yharnam to farm Vials again. Good thing I managed to slay it in my first try, but my weapon was already like +3, if not more, so...
And to this day, the Cleric Beast still hasn't killed me once. I don't why, I really would for it to kill me, but everytime it just gets me to like 1-10 hp, and then gives me time to recover. I think we are at 17-18 victories for me, and 0 for it. Poor Cleric Beast ^^'
Request! Could you give us a looking directly up camera view of things like the chandelier above the Hypogean Gaol lamp, or other designs that probably look rad as heck but can't normally be seen? I know it's not super interesting but Bloodborne architecture makes my heart sing.
The first Lovecraftian thing I can think of is the vortex that appears right after the sanctuary after beating Gascoigne. Most first time players probably have no idea it’s the hand of an amygdala due to a lack of insight.
Thanks for covering this Zullie, I was looking forward to it!!
Zullie you are the reason I check youtube---my favorite videos by far! Thank you.
Development started right after Prepare to Die? That’s interesting considering the aesthetic changes. I’m not even talking about dark fantasy to Victorian gothic, just things like how NPCs became way more wirey. I’m guessing they spent a lot of time planning prior to establishing an art design standard.
Cleric beast and Father Gas. do a good job as tutorial bosses. One establishes more what to expect against npc style bosses, including to expect them to not be straight foreword the entire fight, while Cleric gets you used to the large scale bosses. This combo works as well as Iundex does in Souls 3, where phases 1 and 2 get you used to faster humanoid and slower large bosses at once.
Bloodborne is right up there with the absolute best From games
After watching this video, I have now seen all 233 Zullie the Witch videos in one (!) day. Well done to be able to keep my attention for a binge as big as the snake.
Hi Zullie, could you look at the 3D model of the Ancient Dragon in Dark Souls 1? I always wondered about it's legs. You can't see them, because they are hidden by the nest. The only other ancient dragon we ever see is Seath, who has tentacles instead of legs. I always wondered wether that was specific to Seath or if all the Ancient Dragons had tentacles for legs.
Seath is more like a Wyrm than a Dragon tbh
@@nightlord5102 But as I understand the lore, Seath should be identical to the Ancient Dragons except that he has no scales.
he has legs, crossed like in meditation, there are some boss vs boss videos that show it
@@theomnitorium7476 I believe Seath was the only ancient dragon with tentacles. If I remember correctly, in the game its stated he was born deformed, that's why he doesn't have scales either. That's his main reason for pursuing immortality through the magic of the crystals.
@@nightlord5102 I honestly think Seath started as a human.
Never played the game but I still get chills every time I hear this song
Its one of Froms most bet songs and thats not a opinion. The power and horror they invoke in this song is unlike I've heard. Your first encounter with a true beast, setting the stage for whats to come.
"Prepare yourself for the worst..."
manus traveled to england. and then lit himself on fire. and then he went to japan and did it again.
this, i like this
This is honestly probably the only thing I TRULY love about Bloodborne despite just not liking the gameplay, the themes, story and details are incredible. Well that and the music and visuals are cool too I guess
By the way, self removal of one's eyes is called "oedipism" which happens due to psychosis, paranoid delusions or drugs (wikipedia). There are several places in the game referencing this (Oedon Chappel and tomp of Oedon for instance).
I am so happy you are doing Bloodborne. Your analysis is great. Keep it up!
I always liked the theory that in Bloodborne covering (or apparently removing) eyes causes strengthening of one's insight (symbolized by internal eyes), in a similar manner that works for our senses - being blind improve hearing etc. Master Willem does it and I did not get an impression that this guy want to be shielded from truth...
Anyways, great video as always!
Covering eyes makes sense, imagine seeing something like an amygdala hanging on a wall and no one believes you because they don't have enough insight
This game is already 6 years old, even by today's standards it still rocks even graphically.
He may have rid himself of his eyes, but he will never rid Zullie of my dark souls 2 hitbox comments
Cleric beast does have eyes. It's like with Kalameet though, where they're placed weirdly. It has them on its horns.
Bloodborne is a masterpiece, and my favorite game.
Zullie, thank you for showing me that games design is actually super fascinating. You are one of the few sources of inspo that make me want to start coding video games! Love you!
... I've never noticed just how much the Cleric Beast's head resembles the Blindfold Mask that the Choir wears.
Coincidence?
*I THINK NOT.*
Huh, a cool detail.
Oh what's that cameraman?
*THAT RAILING IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING YOU CAN FOCUS ON HERE?!*
Manus came to Yharnam just to wreck us yet again
As the cosmic horror elements began to pop up, interrupting what I thought would be a us v. them beast hunting game, my excitement level leapt up. My favorite gaming revelation of all time, without peer.
Great work zullie can’t wait to see what other insights you can provide
Those who shun it lose sight, those who embrace it have many eyes to see.
I adore your videos Zullie, especially the bloodborne ones as its my favorite Fromsoft game and since it still hides so many secrets because its a ps4 game. I look forward to everyday's video. Keep up the amazing work
As it has been said Cosmic Horror is not easy to show. But as a videogame adaptation crossed with Period/Victorian Horror with a foundation set forth of Mr. Lovecraft is a feat on its own. This is why Bloodborne is my favorite. Intertwining multiple sources of horror with complete lore is just so interesting. Love your videos on the Soulsborne series. Keep up the amazing attention to detail work.
Bloodborne: where things either have no eyes or too many eyes
“Beastly Regression” is such a perfect description for the enemies and inhabitants of Bloodborne
Your eyes start to open up more and more, as if you have just awoken from a dream. Curious.
Gascoigne's eyes are also hidden, since he's blindfolded.
you forgot to end the video with "in this essay i will....."
because that sounds like an excellent introduction paragraph.
Zullie, I am so happy to see these bloodborne videos. I was just playing some of the test chalice you dug up for all us to see. I had a request if you wanted to look into it: the tiny music box. I've always been curious about its ability to trigger the large Bells in the dungeons as well it's ability to clear out smoke urns. Maybe it can do more than that as well? Thank you for all u do
Thank you so goddamn much for doing this, Zullie.
All the detail....makes me wish I could afford to drop the several hundred it'd cost to get a PS4 and this...just to try enjoy it personally for the first time.
I bought a PS4 and Bloodborne and then sold the console once I had platinumed it.
I got more back than I paid for it (thanks ebay) and then went on to do this another three times just to replay. Worth it for sure.
The main thing that atracted me to bloodborne was the whole beast hunting thing. Imagine my surprise when half way in you fight cosmic gods and traverse dream realms. Bloodborne will always be my favorite game.
I'm impressed by how crisp bloodborne looks in your videos. Wow. I have a ps4 pro and have tried many ways to get this nice .
Sick! Can we get a good view on the blood letting beast and the blood starved beast as well? Honestly any enemies that are very fast and poorly lit, not to mention hard to focus on without just dying, also the sages in the chalice dungeons!
this, all of these would be very interesting to have a closer look at, both variants of bloodletting beast (damn to them and their long ass fast right jab)
Oh it is so weird now to think about them going directly from DS1 right into Bloodborne. Such a big leap there visually and in the systems, just wild.
I though that eye covering/removal was all about gaining more insight, as the eldrich truth is a knowledge that comes from within.
I love this game so, so much. Yesterday I tried explaining to a friend that Orphan of Kos is sort of an alien baby that took on the shape and apparently voice of its mother's killer, wields its placenta in battle, and that my favourite strategy was to stun it with tentacles and fist it to death. It's insane to me how they managed to start out with the Cleric Beast and all the Victorian horror in Central Yharnam and then eventually guide you to the Fishing Hamlet, going through this warped past version of places you've already been acquainted so well.
It always bugged me that I couldn't see its eyes. Never thought that it didn't have any.
Bloodbornes transition from Victorian to Gothic was of my favorite gaming experiences. Noticing the subtle hints, wondering about it, to then actually have g the transition made me grin like a young child, again. 😁
The way Zulie describes small features is quite literally poetic and always gives me a chill when it comes to blood borne
The farther you tread, the madder you get.
manus’ designed also seems to have inspired the demon of hatred from sekiro
I don't know why I never made the connection that the more beastly people tend to cover their eyes. And those who are Kin are those who seek to see.
the cleric beast is great for announcing what the game will be like also from a gameplay point of view.
If you played Dark Souls before, your first experience with this boss will be to stay far enough, be ultra defensive, waiting for its weakness,
and that's when you die, because we're not in dark souls anymore. You need to be as agressive as this boss
Beasts all over the shop.