Summary
Although the hype aroundShadow of the Erdtreeis beginning to fade, fans of From Software Soulslikes can still have something to get excited about in the form of a playable version ofBloodbornefor PC. Released betweenDark Souls 2andDark Souls 3,Bloodbornehas infamously never received any sort of port, re-release, or sequel past the original PlayStation 4 version of the game, which still suffers from relatively low framerates and limited availability — and, despite several rumors over the year, no official statement has ever indicated that newBloodbornecontent is in the works.
As a result of the game’s relative inaccessibility and overall quality, a PC port, remaster, or sequel toBloodbornehas become one of the most common requests among fans of FromSoft’s games, and new rumors about a potential port tend to crop up around the time of major gaming reveal shows like Summer Games Fest — although none of these rumors have ever panned out. However, despite the fact thatBloodborneis out of FromSoft’s handsand Sony is seemingly reluctant to do anything with the franchise, the game might still be getting a PC port from an unexpected source.
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FromSoftware has been quiet about possible Bloodborne projects, so the community took matters into its own hands and made a crossover with Elden Ring.
Bloodborne Will Be Playable On PC — But Not From An Official Release
Bloodborne Emulation Is Reaching A Playable State On PC
As shown byfromsoftserveon YouTube,Bloodborneis approaching a playable state on PC, not through an official release, but instead through a piece of PS4 emulation softwarecalled ShadPS4. Unfortunately, however,Bloodborneemulation on PC currently suffers from several issues that make the game essentially unplayable, ranging from poor performance and glitchy lighting to nonfunctional cinematics and full-on crashes at various points in the game.
As a result, while the current state ofBloodborneemulation is promising, it’s unlikely that the game will actually be playable on PC without a significant amount of time investmentfrom the emulator’s developers.
Still, even from the game’s first showing at roughly 5 frames per second on PC, another showing fromBrutalSam on YouTubeonly hours later has shownBloodbornerunning at around 20 FPS, showing that performance, at least, is rapidly improving and may soon at least match the performance of the original PS4 version. The more pressing issue for the game, though, is general stability - the game reportedly crashes at points like the Hunter’s Dream or Mergo’s Wet Nurse, so even as performance improves,Bloodborneon PC will likely require some more troubleshooting to become fully playable.
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Bloodborne On PC May Come Under Fire From Sony
The PS4 Emulation Project Might Be At Risk From Bloodborne’s Official Publisher
One big question mark for many fans, though, is whether Sony will attempt to intervene, mirroring Nintendo’s earlier takedown of the popular Switch emulator Yuzu. While theBloodbornepublisher doesn’t have quite the same reputation for shutting down unofficial projects, it has still happened in the past. For example, a fan project,Bloodborne Kart, intended to be a parody of the original game that used its characters for aMario Kart-esque racing game, was forced to “de-brand,” changing its name toNightmare Kartand switching assets after Sony contacted the game’s creator.
Yuzu was a relatively uncommon case as far as emulators are concerned, as the software was being used to emulate new Switch releases, likeTears of the Kingdom, as opposed to older games, which was one of the factors that painted Yuzu as a larger target.
WithBloodborneon PC starting to gain a large amount of attention, then, it’s likely to draw Sony’s attention as well, and whileemulation is technically legal, the threat posed by something like a cease-and-desist could still be enough to stop the ShadPS4 project in its tracks. However, given Sony’s own reluctance to do anything withBloodborneand the backlash that interfering with the project would inevitably cause, there’s a relatively good chance that the emulation can at least reach a reasonably playable state before any action is taken on the part of Sony.
GivenBloodborne’s unique place among FromSoftware Soulslikes, its relative popularity, and its somewhat limited performance on its native platform, a PC port, sequel, or remaster has been one of the most highly requested and anticipated releases by fans for many years. And, while the prospect of being able to emulate the game on PC with relative stability is closer to becoming a reality, there’s still likely to be a long wait before it’s fully playable. Still, the ShadPS4 project and theBloodborneemulation that comes with it seem like something that’s well worth waiting for.
