More than five years after its initial release, fans are patiently waiting for any news on a second installment ofBloodborne, FromSoftware’s firstnotable departure from theDark Soulsfranchise. Despite its differences from that series, its common developer led to it being grouped together anyway in a term frequently referred to as Soulsborne. However, since FromSoftware has released other titles such asSekiro: Shadows Die Twiceand the upcomingElden Ring, the term SoulsBorne seems outdated and inconsequential now. The only way for FromSoftware to really cement this as a genre would be to release a sequel in the form ofBloodborne 2.
Of course, there has been absolutely no official word that the developer is even considering making aBloodborne 2. Similarly, the idea hasn’t been shot down either, so it’s really anyone’s guess as to whether or not it will happen. Given FromSoftware’s relatively small size, in order forBloodborne 2to be created, it would have to rank higher priority thanElden Ring,aSekiro: Shadows Die Twicesequel, and any potentialDark Soulsremakes. This doesn’t mean that it is impossible by any measure of the word, just that it will probably be some time before a sequel releases.
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Soulsborne or Soulslike
When referring to FromSoftware games, the two common terms one will hear are Soulsborne and Soulslike, but the difference between them isn’t very well documented. In its most basic form, Soulsborne refers to theDark Soulstrilogy,Demon’s Souls, andBloodborne, whereas Soulslike seems to encompass all of those games in addition toSekiro: Shadows Die Twiceand the upcomingElden Ring. Even with this loose definition, it is plain to see that the two terms are hardly different from one another, and there are some major problems with referring to games as Soulslike.
The biggest issue which comes up is when other games are similar in genre or style toDark Soulsthat aren’t made by FromSoftware. The most obvious examples of this would be games like Team Ninja’sNiohor CI Games' heavilySoulsinspiredLords of the Fallen, but some players evenrefer toGhost of Tsushimaas a soulslike game, despite that being faulty at best. It would be difficult to argue thatDark Soulsdidn’t start a pseudo genre of its own, so having a term to denote games that are similar to theDark Soulsfranchise but not part of it makes sense, but this clashes with the previously explained use of Soulslike.
Cementing the Soulsborne Genre
Between the two games of FromSoftware,Bloodborneis easily moreDark SoulsthanSekiro: Shadows Die Twice, and so these two games will be tied together. But if FromSoftware really wants to make a point to drive home that distinction, the best thing it can do would be toreleaseBloodborne 2on PS5and double down on some of the similarities between the two games. That isn’t to say thatBloodborne 2should be aDark Soulsclone, but rather that the two’s similarities should be a major focus of the game.
This would effectively cement the Soulsborne genre and give it meaning. Currently, the onlydifference between Soulsborne and Soulslikeis that one includesSekiro: Shadows Die Twiceand the other doesn’t. WithBloodborne 2, Soulsborne would refer to that game as well, and the term Soulslike could be used for titles similar to theDark Soulsfranchise like those mentioned above but not quite the same. On top of all of this, fans would love nothing more than to get a sequel toBloodborne, so it seems like a win win for all parties involved.
Bloodborneis available now exclusively on PS4.
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