Once known for its wide selection of RPGs, off-the-beaten-path adventure games, and tactical espionage action simulators, Sony’s recent turn to chasing the live-service model has, unfortunately, had an immensely detrimental effect on the PlayStation brand.
Not only have many of these games been abject failures, such as Concord or Foamstars, but they were so widely rejected by fans that Sony has since started pulling the plug on a number of (now formerly) unreleased live-service titles, including ones based on their own IPs, including Marvel’s Spider-Man and Twisted Metal.
Most recently, Sony gave the axe to a live-service God of War entry, as previously set to be developed by Demon’s Souls (2020) remaster studio Bluepoint Games.
At current, little is actually known about either the game’s concept, potential direction, or exact reasons for cancellation.
However, the fact that it is no longer destined to take up the fight against the Gods seems to indicate that Sony is reconsidering its live-service push – and if this is the case, then really, only good can follow.
And it is here that I find myself asking the question: What better ‘good’ is there to try and win back fans’ trust than allowing Bluepoint Games, whose talent was wasted admittedly wasted on live-service production, to take a crack at a Bloodborne remaster?
Yes, longtime BIC readers will likely chuckle at, ‘Oh look, Nikolaj is yet again making the plea for a Bloodborne remaster!’ – but moreso than just my own feelings, I truly believe that with their schedule now freeing up, Bluepoint Games is uniquely qualified to handle the task.
For example, Bluepoint has a proven track record when it comes to bringing classic titles to modern hardware, as seen by their work on such well-received remasters as the God of War and Metal Gear Solid HD collections, as well as Gravity Rush Remastered.
Then, of course, there’s the aforementioned Demon’s Souls remaster, which in addition to its standard graphical and performance upgrades also received a slew of ‘quality of life’ enhancements, such as new items, adjustments to the encumbrance system, and the ability to send items directly to storage instead of trying to deliver it through the undead hordes.
The remaster also saw the addition of the Fractured World mode, which gave returning players a new challenge by reversing level layouts, as well as new cinematic and performance modes, with the former offering consistent 4K output and the latter ensuring that gameplay always holds at 60fps.
And it was thanks to Bluepoint’s dedication and care that upon its release, the Demon’s Souls remake received near-universal acclaim, with players praising their retention of the original’s dark charm while also giving it some much-needed improvements.
Thus, given that they have already expertly handled the bringing of FromSoftware’s most ambitious titles to modern hardware, it seems like a damn good move to give Bluepoint the reigns to Bloodborne.
In doing so, not only could the team bring the grandfather of the Souls-like genre to such platforms as PC and the PlayStation 5 (or even PlayStation 6 as a launch title), but also address the original build’s technical issues and raise its presentation standards to 4K/60 FPS.
And if Bluepoint can do all that and preserve the game’s unique aesthetics, a Bloodborne remaster has less chance of failure than a player trying to kill the Orphan of Kos on their first try.
Unfortunately, while Bluepoint stands poised to tackle the task, its green-lighting still has one major roadblock in the form of Sony themselves, who right now seems more concerned with pumping out slightly-higher-resolution remasters of visually and mechnically modern games like Horizon Zero Dawn or The Last of Us Part II than giving the treatment to less mainstream and fan-favorite titles.
During a recent interview with Kinda Funny’s Greg Miller, former Sony Interactive Entertainment President Shuhei Yoshida revealed to his host that because “single-player games now cost so much,” his former employer has moved to funding them by “doing remasters and porting to PC,” as “remasters and ports are much cheaper to produce, create additional revenue, and create new users for the IP, especially when you port the game to PC.”
If funding is the goal behind Sony’s remaster strategy, then it seems like a no brainer to remaster the still-locked-on-the-PS4 Bloodborne, as the sheer amount of sales it would see from old fans and those who have never experienced it themselves would likely be enough to lay the financial foundation for pretty much whatever the company wants to make next.
All in all, that such a well-regarded game as Bloodborne remains exclusive to an outdated console is, in itself, a genuine tragedy.
But it doesn’t have to be this way – and right now, Sony has a chance to earn back some goodwill.