Cut Content Progression Map Bloodborne Wiki » World » Story » Cut Content Progression Map

Source ❘ Edit ❘ Sitemap ❘ License page revision: 01, last edited: 31 Mar 2020

Basic Information [by Centimeterworm]

The core ideas behind this progression map were inspired by cut content datamined from the game by Lance McDonald, Sophie Pilbeam, SanaDSK, ZullieTheWitch, XTrinX_Xara, and RickGibbed, as well as additional early design drafts and concepts documented by AstralLace and Vodkafolie at the Bloodborne Exhibition at Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Huge thanks to all of those amazing folks, to Richie (AKA JerksSansFrontiers) for extrapolating and expanding upon their work, and to Meph for her wonderful wiki where much of this is being documented. Please note that this “map” is inspired by their work. My primary interest is in keeping to the details and content uncovered by the datamining and imagining how it might all fit together in a compelling way, and in that pursuit I’ve taken many liberties and artistic licenses. Not everything has “made the cut” so to speak. I’ve tried to incorporate things judiciously and intelligently within the assumption that enough time/resources were available to polish all content to From Software’s general standard. In all other areas where existing assets did not quite fit my vision for this imaginary version of Bloodborne, I have filled those spaces with composite ideas based on already-existing assets and mechanics. A few notes on the map’s structure of progression: Much of what is here is still in keeping with the narrative of the game as it currently exists. The broad strokes more or less remain the same. Most of the changes and additions are to elaborate on tone, atmosphere, or grant further insights into character motivations (including our own) and strengthen the core narrative of the experience. Several areas and characters feel genuinely underdeveloped, or at the very least lacking in screen-time. I also wanted to try and make the worldbuilding feel a bit more internally consistent and create further unity between elements of the core game and elements conjured up for the DLC. Instead of the Hunter’s Nightmare being a single big chunk, it’s been broken up into multiple parts each associated with certain places and people. In addition, original plans for certain scrapped locations—such as the Waking World Research Hall, the Secret Prison under Cathedral Ward, and the full extent of the Byrgenwerth Campus—I have attempted to realize while sacrificing or reducing areas that made little sense or felt tacked-on (e.g. Altar of Despair). There are a few things that I’ve completely made up wholesale that I wanted to elaborate on briefly: 1. Temperaments and Mementos The character customization in Bloodborne is sadly lacking. These concepts are meant to make up for that somewhat. Mementos are sort of like gifts from Dark Souls. They’re treated as Key Items and have various small hidden effects. Bosses in the game also drop Mementos for the player to collect, though these function differently. Temperaments completely alter fundamental aspects of the play experience to increase replay value; they’re only available once the player has completed a single playthrough. 2. Fresh Syringes A Key Item picked up in Iosefka’s clinic at the beginning of the game, having the appearance of a small surgical box with some sterilized syringes inside it. The player cannot use Blood Vials or create Blood Bullets until they pick this up (at which point the vial and bullet count appear on the HUD).

3. Bosses While moving things around, there were some crucial spaces in the world that I’d left empty and in need of narrative weight. Mergo’s Wet Nurse (renamed Dream Demon) had been moved (back) to the Woods, and the Cleric Beast was (also back) in the Grand Cathedral. The Great Bridge and Mergo’s Loft were in dire need of new, appropriate encounters. a. For the Bridge, I came up for the idea of the Bridge Beast while watching Lance’s video on cut enemies: the model identified as “Avatar A” served as the inspiration for a unique beast design somewhat similar to the Beast-possessed Soul, with twisted branching antlers like Cleric Beast’s and a tattered Healing Church shawl on its back. It guards the bridge to Cathedral Ward, and initially it will attack the player with a silver sword but at about 75% HP it will go down on all fours and attack wildly and chaotically, a bit like a larger Scourge Beast with a correspondingly larger moveset. It drops the Hunter Chief Emblem, which can be traded to Simon for the Cathedral Ward Bridge Key and allow the player to get to Cathedral Ward without going through Tomb of Oedon. b. For Mergo’s Loft, instead of the exposed and open arena, the building is whole and undamaged, a great tapering spire terminating in a huge bell tower. While climbing up the loft, the bell can be heard all the way down at the bottom, tolling out a reverb-heavy, pitched-down version of the Sinister Bell sound. For as long as this bell exists, the player can get invaded in Nightmare of Mensis. Instead of being empty, the loft rotunda is filled with chairs in which are slumped dead cage-head bodies, with a large pile of chairs and bodies across the hall from the entrance. In the middle of the room is Mergo’s Pram. When the player enters the loft (called the Nightmare Communion Hall), the boss fight begins with an entity called the Voice of Mensis. This entity is a gestalt coagulation of the collective minds, wills, and voices of the dead School of Mensis that manifests as a toxic, yellowish, smokey light that surrounds Mergo and causes the player to take damage if they get too close to it. The Voice has several attacks: it can create spears of blood that it shoots at the player (causing Frenzy buildup), it can conjure a Brain-of-Mensis-esque Frenzy-inflicting light which forces the player to take cover, it can raise up and puppeteer the corpses of the Mensis Scholars to attack the player, and it can create area-denial zones of toxic mist that causes anything inside it to take steady damage (including its own puppets). Lastly, the Voice can also summon invading players into the boss arena, though those invaders can also be harmed by the Frenzy gaze and the toxic mist. The player’s objective is to take a spiraling staircase path with obstacles and pillars, strategically running between sources of cover, to get to the top of the Hall and cut the chain holding up the bell at the top. Destroying the chain causes the bell to crash down to the ground, silencing the ringing, dispelling the Voice, and killing Mergo. The player can then climb down and collect Mergo’s Umbilical Cord.

Cut Content Progression Map [updated on March 31st, 2020]

download the original size 2982x1939px (archived)