Bloodborne: An Exploration of Motherhood and Eldritch Horror

Overview

Bloodborne is known for its action-packed horror, focusing on themes like menstruation, pregnancy, childbirth, and femininity through an eldritch lens.
The game delves into horror elements that are often uncomfortable for the male-dominated gaming community to discuss.

Yharnam: A gothic city known for its blood administration; people seek its healing church.
Gothic Themes: The city is a classic horror setting with desolate and ghostly architecture.
Blood is Life: Special blood from "Great Ones" is used for healing, leading to mutation into beasts.
Hunters: Outsiders who combat the mutated beasts, using the same blood for healing, which has adverse effects over time.
Transformation: The blood causes humans to mutate into beasts, losing their humanity.

Werewolves and the Moon: Night brings out more monstrous creatures, akin to werewolves, highlighting primal instincts and societal taboos around menstruation.
Insight and Transformation: Accumulate insight to see more of the eldritch horrors, transforming the player.
Eileen the Crow: A hunter of hunters, exemplifying the endless cycle of the hunt.

Great Ones: Every Great One loses its child and seeks a surrogate, leading to the beast plague to find suitable vessels.
Hunter's Nightmare: A punishment from the Great Ones for humanity's transgressions, particularly the stealing of a Great One's child.
Queen Yharnam and Murgo: Tragic figures representing the loss and yearning for a child.
Lady Maria: A protector of secrets, bound to the nightmare after her guilt over past actions.

German and the Dream: German is bound to the hunter's dream by the Moon Presence, eventually replaced by the player.
Final Bosses: The Moon Presence and German are the endgame challenges, representing the hunter's ascension or entrapment.
Transcendence: Defeating the Moon Presence leads to the hunter becoming a Great One, transcending humanity.

Blood as a Motif: Central to healing, transformation, and the eldritch themes.
Motherhood: Explored as both a horror and a deep yearning for connection and legacy.
Humanity vs. Eldritch Beings: The struggle between human curiosity and the incomprehensible power of the Great Ones.
Cycles: The endless repetition of the hunt and the transformation of society and individuals.

The game presents a complex narrative intertwining horror with deep themes of motherhood and humanity through an eldritch perspective, challenging traditional gender roles and societal norms.