Press Start (Jun 2017)
"Grant us eyes, grant us eyes! Plant eyes on our brains, to cleanse our beastly idiocy!": FromSoftware's Bloodborne, and the New Frontier of the Gothic
Abstract
This article will consider the ways that Bloodborne (FromSoftware, 2015) plays on a broad range of Gothic themes and conventions, utilising unusual narrative techniques and gameplay mechanics which offer the player a means by which they might experience a Gothic narrative in ways that the traditional novel format does not allow for. It will argue that Bloodborne showcases the genre's potential new frontier: converting conventions into interesting new gameplay mechanics, and letting the player experience the genre through player-led narrative and agency.
