Bloodborne’s Gore Isn’t Gratuitous But Rather “Artistic” In Nature

Obviously, the PlayStation 4 exclusive Bloodborne is a very violent game.

But director Hidetaka Miyazaki defends that violence, saying it's not "gratuitous." In a new Kotaku UK interview , Miyazaki claims the gore is done in more of an "artistic" manner:

I feel like nobody will believe me when I say this, but I'm a tasteful man and I like to adjust things accordingly; there was very careful management of the boundaries of what is shown. Things like what color the blood would be–we had to really adjust the tone of the red that we were using.

But also when creatures are attacked and blood is spilling everywhere, it's adjusted so that it's expressed in more of an artistic way than a violent or gruesome way; it's symbolic. It's expressed in the way that a painting would show something, not a photorealistic representation. That maintains a sense of terror without being gratuitous."

And, believe it or not, the team actually worked to remove elements they concluded were "distasteful." The fact that Bloodborne was "toned down" may come as a surprise to some, especially considering the gruesome nature of the final product. But Miyazaki claims he had to embrace a "sinister, gruesome" environment without going too far. Essentially, the developers did indeed discuss where the boundaries should be.

I suppose it's all a matter of perspective. Show just about any video game to someone from a hundred years ago, and it would be deemed disgusting and not fit for human consumption. Things change.

Related Game(s): Bloodborne