While a sequel toBloodbornehas yet to be confirmed and is rumored tonot be in development currently, many fans are wondering when a sequel to the beloved PlayStation 4 exclusive will see the light of day. While fans are dying to return to either return Yharnam for a new adventure - or to learn of new monsters somewhere else in the world - predicting a release date for a game that is supposedly not in active development can be a bit tricky.
However, there are several clues in From Software’s past that can give fans an idea as to when the game may finally come out. From Software is notably methodical, which may be the biggest hint as to whenBloodborne 2’s releasewill come around.
RELATED:Elden Ring Could Take a Lesson from Bloodborne
Learning from Past From Software Games
From Software as a development studio has kept a surprisingly uniform development and release pattern. In terms of development speed, the studio averages a game approximately every three years from the start of development. While some games take a tad longer, its games are usually good to go sometime around the third year of development generally speaking. For example,Bloodborne’s development began right asDark Souls: Prepare to DieEditionwas wrapping up in August of 2012.
Bloodbornewas later announced in 2014 and launched a year later in March of 2015. What is interesting about From Software and theSoulsbornegames is that the majority of them released in the first quarter of the year - strongly favoring March.Dark Souls 2released in March 2014,Dark Souls 2: Scholars of the First Sinlaunched February 2015,Bloodbornein March 2015,Dark Souls 3in March 2016, andSekiroin March 2019.
Clearly, From Software favors early year launches for its main games, so it might be a fair assumption that main games likeBloodborne 2may see a Q1 release as well. The tricky part withBloodborne 2is that it is not currently in active development, so it’s unknown how much progress - if any - has been made toward this highly requested sequel. It’s hard to say if the game has been in the works sinceBloodborneinitially released, or if development is on hold for it until afterElden Ringlaunches.
To make matters even more complicated, in the midst of a global pandemic, games are being delayed left and right due to limitations on employees, even with many working from home. While From Software has not made any indication that this is the case for the upcomingElden Ring, it certainly can’t be ruled out since a release date has yet to be confirmed for the title. WithElden Ringrumoredto be releasing this year, odds are that From Software has its work force primarily focused on that title, soBloodborne 2may have to wait until after the launch ofElden Ring.
When Will Bloodborne 2 be Released?
Following From Software’s previous development patterns, there are a couple possibilities forBloodborne 2’s release window. Assuming From Software sticks to its pattern of Q1 releases, then the absolute earliest would be Q1 2021, but that is a pretty fast turn around fromElden Ring, and considering thatBloodborne 2is not known to be in development, it’s fair to assume that Q1 2021 is not likely (though not impossible). It’s possible that From Software may wait and work on developingBloodborne 2for PS5, and considering thestunning PS5 tech demo, From Software could make some truly beautiful and horrifying creations using next-gen tech.
Considering this, ifBloodborneis the next From Software title to go into full development, a Q1 2022 release date may be more likely - perhaps Q1 2023 if it takes From Software the full three years to develop the game. This is, of course, assuming that the title is starting from scratch and hasn’t been worked on by From Software yet.
A possibility to hold fans over could be a next-gen version ofBloodbornethat could add new content to the game. While Sony has stated that most of the popular PS4 titles will be backwards compatible with PS5, a full-fledged next-genBloodbornewould be great for those picking up a PS5 who haven’t played the original title before.Bloodbornewas already a beautiful and haunting game on PS4, but recreating Yharnam on the PS5 could be a thing of beauty (and nightmares). If From Software wanted to re-releaseBloodborne, it could also add new content and perhaps expand thelore of the Great Onessince the base game does little to touch on these terrifying, otherworldly entities.
Narratively speaking, From Software has several avenues to take forBloodborne 2thanks to thedifferent endings ofBloodborne.Whether From Software wants to return to Yharnam and recreate the haunting city using next-gen tech or just move to a new location and continue the narrative thread from there, fans are sure to be happy either way.Bloodbornewas one of the best games when it came to capturing true Lovecraftian horror, and fans are dying for more. Unfortunately for the time being, it seems like a release date forBloodborne 2is still a ways off.
