From Software is best known for their dark and gothic Soulslike titles like Elden Ring and Demon Souls, so it was a complete surprise that they would be teaming up with the family-friendly Nintendo brand for a Switch 2 exclusive: The Duskbloods.
Not much is known about The Duskbloods yet, but director Hidetaka Miyazaki talked a bit about the playable characters and their role in the world of the game.
The Bloodsworn
In a recent interview with Nintendo, Miyazaki was asked about the world of Duskbloods and the playable characters in the game who are called “Bloodsworn”. Miyazaki explains:
The game’s protagonists, or characters controlled by the player, are known as ‘Bloodsworn’. The Bloodsworn are a group whose members have achieved super-human abilities through the power of special blood. As a general concept, they’re similar to vampires, but they are not portrayed as the horrifying monsters you might associate with traditional vampirism.
Though the game doesn’t focus specifically on vampires, the devs did take a look at vampires throughout several mediums and kept the ‘romantic aspects’ that they found interesting and turned them into Bloodsworn.
First Blood
In the game, the Bloodsworn are said to be competing for something called ‘First Blood’ which flows during an event where human society reaches its end called ‘The Twilight of Humanity.’ As it turns out, these Bloodsworn don’t even exist in the same time period and are plucked out of time to participate in the contest in the fight to obtain First Blood.
Miyazaki explains that the Blood in this game isn’t literal, but more conceptual. He continues, “Blood symbolizes one of the game’s key themes—the history it holds, the power it passes on, the fates it weaves and the marker of those who have surpassed the limitations of their own humanity.”
It's all about the Vibes
When it comes to FromSoft games, the story usually comes second to the gameplay and overall aesthetic, so it would make sense that some people would be scratching their heads over terms like Twilight of Humanity and First Blood.
Even if that was the case, it’s very signature FromSoft, and a lot of fans are sure to love the lore just as much as they’re going to love the game. Until they can reveal more, fans will just have to wait for the next info drop.
The Duskbloods is expected to come out for the Nintendo Switch 2 sometime next year.