From Software is bringing the shields from previous "Souls" games to its upcoming PS4-exclusive title "Bloodborne." This time, though, the defensive weapon will not promise protection but will only spell doom.
There was previous word that the imperative defense armor will not make it to the title as the "Bloodborne" gameplay trailers did not show even an inch of the shield. This was even reinforced when the publisher chose to be tight-lipped about the staple weapons.
But in an interview with IGN, Sony Japan producer Masaaki Yamagiwa confirmed the return of the shields and gave hints on what to do and also what not to do with them. Heavily relying on the items may have worked in the title's forerunners but "Bloodborne" is something else. Yamagiwa emphasized that wielding shields as much as players like is not a very wise strategy in "Bloodborne."
"If you're always standing back and guarding, you'll die very quickly. So you have to incorporate it into your strategy of how you play and fight," the producer told IGN of how the shields can affect players in the game. "We wanted to encourage players to not hide and wait, but instead be more aggressive and pro-active in battle."
With this, the shields in "Bloodborne" will be very different from the ones in its predecessors. Although there was assurance that the forthcoming installment traces its roots to hit From Software titles like "Demon's Souls" and "Dark Souls," "Bloodborne" will have its own distinctions, one of which is placing less importance on the shields and more on figuring out ways to throw in an effective line of attack.
Players will be outfitted with firearms so as to minimize their reliance on hiding behind the shields and instead to brave going for the hard line. It remains to be seen how From Software will slash the shields' power. Perhaps the only way to find out is to wait for "Bloodborne" to touch down on PS4 consoles on March 24.
