Is The Duskbloods a Bloodborne sequel?

With The Duskbloods, fans of developer FromSoftware are treated to an all-new gothic fantasy action-RPG slated for Nintendo Switch 2. The exclusivity aside, the game has drawn many comparisons to Sony's PS4-exclusive Bloodborne, another Soulslike game also from FromSoftware, thanks to its similar aesthetics and visual design.

Despite a different name, it has not stopped fans from wondering if this is a Bloodborne sequel or successor of some kind. However, The Duskbloods is a completely new IP and unrelated to Bloodborne. Here's everything to know about the game.

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The Duskbloods is a completely new IP unrelated to Bloodborne

Perhaps disappointingly, despite the numerous mentions to "blood" during the gameplay trailer and a similar gothic or supernatural Victorian setting in many scenes, this is an all-new IP from the Japanese studio. So it has nothing to do with Bloodborne, which is a Sony owned IP and has been since its PS4 conception; the game was also worked on by the now-defunct Sony Japan Studio.

As per director Hidetaka Miyazaki in a recent interview with Nintendo, The Duskbloods concept was pitched for the original Switch before being moved to the Switch 2 platform. Still, just the inclusion of similar aesthetics and setting to Bloodborne is enough to get fans excited who have been waiting for anything new surrounding the IP since 2015.

On the flip side, it is a multiplayer PvPvE game featuring support for up to eight players instead of a single-player experience like Bloodborne. So, fans who hoped for a solo adventure through a challenging new campaign will probably be relieved that it is a side project from the team instead of a true Bloodborne successor, as the game will arrive as an exclusive on the Nintendo Switch 2.

Meanwhile, die-hard studio fans will be eager to get their hands on the title when it launches next year on the upcoming Nintendo hybrid console. This will be the second purely multiplayer-focused project by FromSoftware, after the upcoming Elden Ring: Nightreign spin-off, which is more of a co-op style experience for three players.