JohnnyBGamer

Bloodborne: Toolbox

Slowly adding to my Bloodborne toolbox:

The Front Stab – L2, then R1
The Backstab – Hold R2 to charge attack, then hit R1
Leaping Attack – Up on the left analog stick, then hit R2
L1 transforms a weapon, R2 to charge up
L2, with a transformed weapon, swings said weapon in a wide arch. Great for enemy groups.
Pebbles are your friends, use them to draw an enemies attention.
Put down your gun and swing!

Tales from the Borderlands Episode 3 – Shifting Gears

Taking a break from my Yharnam hunt, I fired up Tales from the Borderlands Episode 3 – Catch a Ride. Telltale’s third act of the Borderlands saga begins to reveal a grander story. The introduction of Gortys, a Pixar-like robot, made me smile. I haven’t finished the episode yet but every plot beat has felt solid so far. Take a moment to check out the introduction:

A Delightful Reminder

Woke up feeling anxious this morning, a heaviness on my chest. Not sure if a chain of nights staying up late has anything to do with it, but I’m exhausted.

psalm37

Have been going through a period of bitterness and a lack of hope. Just feeling like I will never move beyond my current job, no matter how hard I try to break free. Reminded that God delights in every detail of our lives, that God holds us in His hand, I needed that this morning. Thought I’d share.

Bloodborne: Caution To The Wind

I played the same run for over an hour. Don’t laugh.

At first I was cautious, taking on one enemy at a time. Many deaths later, I embraced speed. Plunging into mob groups, swinging in true wild style. Yeah…

In the above video, I had a solid nine minute run. I applied the MMO concept of pulling, of drawing away a few enemies from a larger group. My MMO roots served me well until I became reckless. One moment of complete surprise by the enemy at the end, death. Logic dictates that large things should not move quickly, especially troll-like creatures.

Logic: Amended

Mental Database: Upgraded

My friend Zach pointed out that:

The stamina meter is my friend. Not to attack to the point where I lose the ability to dodge.
I need to walk, rather than run. (I’m not sure I 100% agree with this piece of advice. From a mechanical perspective, Bloodborne seems to beg for speed in movement. Wondering if this is like having a gun in Metal Gear Solid V. Just because the gunplay feels amazing doesn’t mean one should go Rambo with it. Stealth and all that.)
Use ranged attacks to pull enemies. (I’m going to have to experiment with this. The gunplay seems built for close range combat. Used to stagger an enemy, open a single moment of weakness, in order to attack.

For those hunting in Yharnam, any other crumbs of advice? I promise to eat them up! As long as advice crumbs taste good.

Bloodborne: Joy In Death

Scuttlebutt on the street is that Dark Souls games are cruel. Punishing difficulty. Death equaling toys being taken away. A regular playground bully of a game series.

Firing up Bloodborne, I expected a steep learning curve. Dying over 30 times on the first nether beast, I thought that my experience was par for the course. Maybe the game doesn’t give you weapons for awhile? My fists of fury will triumph! And they did. After many rolls, dodges, and time, the nether beast died. Joy to the world.

Death is the teacher in Bloodborne. My moment of joy pooled in blood. I can hear Han Solo telling Luke Skywalker in A New Hope, “Great, kid! Don’t get cocky.” Best advice ever.

My friend Scotto noticed that I had taken up the hunt in Yharnam. He sent me a link to a walkthrough he is using. He noted:

“Helped a ton, and the author is pretty funny.”

bloodborne1 — My character looks like Harry Potter. Complete with wire rim glasses. Will take a screenshot of him soon.

Geared up, I restarted the game with a new character. Picked up weapons in Hunter’s Dream. The hunt begins now.

Exploring the city, I take on it’s infected denizens with ease. Silly me to think that the game was sadistic enough to hold back weapons. Rolling, coming up behind an enemy, pure mechanical satisfaction. I found myself smiling. Until I embraced cockiness and died. I laughed.

Bloodborne could be the most fun I’ve had gaming in a long time. The challenge and skill level demanded is perfection.

I walk around screaming, “Bring it, monsters!” Forgetting that the blood shed comes at a price.

I have enjoyed knocking on closed doors in the city. People answering me on the other side. Revealing a small bit of story. Hunkered down until the madness of my hunt comes to an end. Am I damned to slaughter the infected forever? As long as I have my trusty cleaver and blunderbuss, I’m good with whatever the game wants to throw at me. Roll, fire, slash, repeat. Another night, another hunt.