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The Duskbloods Gameplay and Story

updated_at: April 28, 2025 04:20

published_at: April 02, 2025 10:10

The Duskbloods
Release Date	Gameplay & Story	Pre-Order & DLC	Review

The Duskbloods is a PvPvE action game by FromSoftware. Read on to learn how it plays, what it's about, and everything else we know so far.

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The Duskbloods Gameplay

Gameplay Overview

According to an official press release, The Duskbloods will blend both PvP (player versus player) and PvE (player versus environment) gameplay into a seamless online experience. In an interview with Nintendo, game director Hidetaka Miyazaki emphasized that at its core, the title is an online multiplayer-focused project, designed to support a wide range of playstyles. Players will step into the role of “Bloodsworn,” individuals who have acquired supernatural abilities through a rare and potent blood source reminiscent of vampiric lore.

Players will be able to choose from a diverse cast of characters—each fully customizable in appearance, abilities, and combat loadouts. Movement itself is crafted to feel smooth and empowering, with features such as sprinting, super jumps, and double jumps available by default. These core mechanics are further enhanced by each character’s signature weapons and unique skills, offering a sandbox of experimentation and expressive gameplay.

Hub Area and Online Matches

Central to the multiplayer experience is a hub area where players can select and modify their Bloodsworn, queue up for matches, and explore elements of the game’s lore. Online matches support up to eight players and always return participants to the hub after a round—regardless of victory or defeat. There, players receive various rewards that can be used to further personalize their characters, ensuring a satisfying loop of progression.

Match objectives vary. While many encounters follow a “last player standing” format, others require cooperative strategies, such as taking down towering boss enemies or completing time-sensitive challenges. Core to determining the outcome of a match is the accumulation of Victory Points. These points can be earned through direct combat, strategic maneuvering, or opportunistic play—encouraging players to approach encounters with creativity and flexibility.

Combat Key Features

Combat is further enriched by each Bloodsworn’s ability to summon a companion entity to aid in battle. These summons open up new tactical possibilities and add layers of depth to each engagement. Additionally, dynamic “event systems” during matches can alter the course of play—triggering environmental changes, spawning elite enemies, or introducing bonus objectives. One striking example includes a massive stone face appearing in the sky, shifting both the environment and reward conditions mid-match.

Character customization goes far beyond appearance. Players can explore and rewrite a character’s bloodline, shaping not only their abilities but also their narrative role in the world. This “blood history” system allows players to unlock deeper lore, alter relationships, and redefine their character’s purpose within the overarching story.

Roles

Multiplayer matches also feature assignable “Roles,” which introduce unique personal objectives and inter-player dynamics. For instance, players assigned the “Destined Rivals” role will be linked to a specific opponent they must track and defeat, earning bonus rewards for achieving this personal victory. These roles add a layer of role-playing drama and storytelling within matches, making each encounter feel like part of a larger, evolving narrative.

Finally, a cryptic figure—a rat featured at the end of the game’s announcement trailer—appears to serve a guiding role similar to the Fire Keepers of Dark Souls. This mysterious companion is said to reside in the hub area, offering advice, lore, and cryptic commentary as players journey deeper into the world of The Duskbloods.

The Duskbloods Story Plot

In The Duskbloods, players assume the role of the Bloodsworn—supernaturally empowered beings drawn into a cataclysmic event known as the Twilight of Humanity. As the final embers of human civilization flicker out, these entities battle for a mysterious and coveted force called First Blood. This singular objective fuels the conflict at the heart of the game, as each Bloodsworn fights not just for survival, but for supremacy.

What makes The Duskbloods especially intriguing is its fragmented sense of time and place. Rather than unfolding in a single, unified setting, the game’s world spans multiple timelines and locations. The Bloodsworn are summoned across eras and landscapes, each warped by the onset of the Twilight. From bleak, Victorian-inspired cityscapes to haunting glimpses of early modernity—such as the train-swept battlefield shown in the game’s trailer—each map reflects a distinct moment in humanity’s decline.

The Bloodsworn themselves possess powers far beyond human limits, granted by a mysterious blood source that elevates their every action to theatrical, almost mythic proportions. According to the developers, these characters are designed to surpass anything seen in previous titles, both in terms of gameplay and narrative weight.

This lack of a fixed setting lends the game an otherworldly tone, allowing it to merge Gothic horror with decaying modernity. The result is a surreal battleground where history, myth, and apocalypse collide—and where every clash for First Blood feels like a battle written in fate.