Bloodbornefans are more rabid than Gascoigne after a night out in Yharnam, clubbing to the sound of his daughter’s music box. “Where’s the remaster!?”, “Where’s the sequel!?”, they scream, with their pitchforks raised by the bonfire that is Sony HQ. But let’s be real, it’s not happening.And it doesn’t really need to, especially not when there’s a wealth of other games to try that you’re missing out on by begging for more of the same.
I’m just as desperate to fight werewolves on the cobbled streets of Victorian London with a sword again, all while firing off a single-action pistol at angry, zombie pensioners who mumble ‘corr blimey’ under their breath. But Bloodborne isn’t the only game out there that scratches that itch.
Cue Nightmare Creatures, a PS1 cult classic survival horror developed by Kalisto Entertainment. On a superficial level, the two couldn’t be more alike. It takes place in Victorian London, the main inspiration behind Yharnam, and features hunters, monsters, and antique guns. But it goes beyond aesthetics. Soulslikes obviously didn’t exist yet (the game was released over a decade beforeDemon’s Souls), but combat is similarly fast-paced, emphasising dodging and aggression just like in Bloodborne.
Both stories are also strikingly similar. In Nightmare Creatures, a devil-worshipping cult called the Brotherhood of Hecate experimented on the denizens of London with an elixir that they hoped would bestow upon them superhuman powers, but instead birthed twisted, unsightly monsters. Bloodborne meanwhile tells the story of the The Healing Church who used the Old Blood in an attempt to heal and strengthen people, only to unleash grotesque monsters.
Bloodborne draws more explicitly from the Eldritch horrors of HP Lovecraft than Nightmare Creatures, but the broad strokes are the same. You’re a hunter ina gothic, Victorian setting, killing monsters set upon the world by power-hungry fanatics. If you want more Bloodborne, it doesn’t get much closer than that.
Bloody Disgustingsimply titled their Bloodborne review “Nightmare Creatures” ten years ago.
Since Nightmare Creatures is a PS1 game, you’re able to’t control the camera, movement is a little stiff, and it’s stuck in a 4:3 ratio — that’s par for the course with these older games. But the combat is still slick and satisfying, with frenetic combos and power-ups that makes the actual monster hunting part of this monster hunting game feel just as solid over two decades later. It’s unbelievably satisfying to slice a zombie in half or shoot the head off a werewolf.
The atmosphere is also pitch-perfect. Using the limitations of the hardware, Kalisto suffocates the city in an oppressive darkness, heightened by the loneliness of its empty streets, save for the handful of monsters. It’s not unlikeSilent Hillin that regard.
It all sounds great in theory for a Bloodborne fan as desperate for more as a malnourished Brainsucker, but old games can be a pain to find, let alone play. Luckily, if you have a PS1 lying around, Nightmare Creatures is listed on sites like eBay at prices that range from ‘somewhat reasonable’ to ‘how much?!’ (anywhere from £30 to £120).
Internet Archive also hasa PC copy handy.
Getting stuck in is more than doable, so long as you’re okay with some retro jank. But if you’re really that hungry for more Bloodborne, a few blemishes on an old gem like this shouldn’t put you off.
Bloodborne
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Bloodborne is a PlayStation 4-exclusive title developed by Dark Souls and Elden Ring creator FromSoftware, and launched in 2015. A critically acclaimed action role-playing game, you must traverse the city of Yharnam seeking a cure for a mysterious illness.
