Bloodborne walkthrough and guide: How to survive Yharnam in the PS4 exclusive adventure

In 2015 Bloodborne saw the return of Hidetaka Miyazaki with another grim adventure, this time one that's set in a ruined city plagued with a sickness that's turned the residents decidedly grumpy.

It's not just the fantasy setting that's different for the Souls successor either. While combat still demands a deliberate and strategic amount of foresight, things are a good deal zippier in this bleak fairytale, and the enemies often prefer to strike in groups rather than stalk you through the dark alleyways alone.

Our Bloodborne walkthrough and guide explains how to survive every stage of the game, from the shambling ravaged rat-packs of the streets, to the kind of sinister boss fights you've come to expect from the game's creator. We'll be updating this article regularly in the coming days, so check back often for regular updates.

We made a Pungent Blood Cocktail from Bloodborne

Bloodborne walkthrough

On this page: - Getting started with the game: We begin with a quick look at the game's opening scenes, as you make your way towards Hunter's Dream.

Other pages:

Bloodborne: kill the Henchmen, discover Hunter's Dream and choose the right weapons
Our walkthrough continues with a quick tour of Hunter's Dream, and a guide to choosing the most suitable weapons for your first playthrough.

Bloodborne: survive Central Yharnam, kill the Crazed Crows and prepare for the fight with the Cleric Beast
The next part of our walkthrough covers our crawl through Central Yharnam, and should get you in fighting shape for your first major fight in the game.

Bloodborne: kill the Cleric Beast and survive the creature's enrage mode
Ready to get stuck into a slightly meatier fight? Here's everything you need to know in order to walk away from the Cleric Beast fight in one piece.

Bloodborne: explore Yharnam and find the Tiny Music Box, Hunter Badge Key and Bold Hunter's Marks
Time to track down the Tiny Music Box.

Bloodborne: kill Father Gascoigne, use the Tiny Music Box and survive Gascoigne's beast form
The second boss fight is tougher than the first, but we've got some tips to take some of the sting out of this encounter.

Bloodborne: discover Cathedral Ward, unlock the Triumph gesture and find the Hunter Attire set
Follow our guide to making it safely through the Cathedral Ward section of the game.

Bloodborne: explore Old Yharnam, survive the Hunter's gunfire and deal with the region's beasts
The Old Yharnam section of the game is massive, so use our walkthrough if you want to grab every last bit of loot.

Bloodborne: how to kill the Blood-Starved Beast, with strategies for dealing with poison
Essential tips and strategies for defeating the hardest opponent in the game so far.

Bloodborne: tips and tricks for killing the Werebeast, Death Dealer and Leech Warlock
Three tricky new opponents await you in the Healing Church Workshop. Here's how to beat each one of them.

Bloodborne: return to Cathedral Ward, fight the Axe Reaper and kill Vicar Amelia
How to survive your second time in Cathedral Ward, and kill both the Axe Reaper and Vicar Amelia, the region's bothersome boss.

Bloodborne: escape the Death Dealer prison in Yahar'gul, Unseen Village
If you came unstuck while fighting the Death Dealer, here's how to escape from your prison in Yahar'gul, Unseen Village.

Bloodborne: explore Hemwich Charnel Lane, kill the Soot Monsters and find the Witch of Hemwich
How to survive the Hemwich Charnel Lane section of the game, and track down the Witch of Hemwich.

Bloodborne: how to kill the Witch of Hemwick and avoid the Soot Monsters in the Witch's Abode
Our essential guide to making light work of the Witch of Hemwick, and keeping clear of those irritating Soot Monsters.

Bloodborne: find the Forbidden Woods, unlock the Curtsy gesture and get the Blood of Arianna
How to make it to the Forbidden Woods region, and grab some essential items along the way.

Bloodborne: explore the Forbidden Woods (Pt 1), find the White Church Garb and survive the poisonous caves
Part 1 of our guide to making it safely through the Forbidden Woods region, and getting some essential new armour pieces while you're doing so.

Bloodborne: survive the Forbidden Woods (Pt 2), find the Cainhurst Summons and unlock more runes
The second part of our Forbidden Woods walkthrough leads you safely to your next boss fight.

Bloodborne: Shadow of Yharnam - tactics and strategies for destroying the boss
Essential tips and tricks for dealing with all three of the dark clerics in the Shadow of Yharnam boss fight.

Bloodborne: Byrgenwerth - killing Tree Mutants, fighting Giant Insect Mutants and beating the Hunter
Our walkthrough for the Byrgenwerth region of the game, leading up to the fight with Rom, the Vacuous Spider.

Bloodborne: how to kill Rom, the Vacuous Spider
Everything you need to know about taking down this tricky boss.

Bloodborne: return to Cathedral Ward, kill the Shock Hunter and avoid the Death Dealer
Before heading into the next section of the game, we'll walk you through the process of grabbing a few extra handy items.

Bloodborne: Yahar'gul, Unseen Village - find the Bell Callers, kill the Hunters, and find the Tiny Tonitrus
Our walkthrough continues with a guide to surviving the massive Yahar'gul region of the game.

Bloodborne: how to kill The One Reborn and gain the Yellow Backbones
Essential hints and tips for making light work of the fight with The One Reborn.

Bloodborne: how to kill the Darkbeast Paarl and light the Graveyard of the Darkbeast lamp
Everything you need to know about surviving the optional boss fight with the Darkbeast Paarl.

Bloodborne: explore the Lecture Building and unlock more runes and armour
Our guide to making it safely through Bloodborne's Lecture Building zone.

Bloodborne: survive Nightmare Frontier and kill the Octosquids and Fur Giants
Our Bloodborne walkthrough continues with a guide to surviving the Nightmare Frontier region of the game.

Bloodborne: how to kill Amygdala and light the Amygdala's Chamber lamp
Everything you need to know to take down Amygdala, the next boss fight in Bloodborne.

Bloodborne: survive the Nightmare of Mensis, kill the spiders and clear out the Crow Hounds
The next part of our walkthrough explains how to clear out the Nightmare of Mensis section.

Bloodborne: how to kill Micolash, Host of the Nightmare, then find Iosefka's Blood Vial
Ready for another boss fight? Here's what you need to know about killing Micolash, Host of the Nightmare.

Bloodborne: how to kill Mergo's Wet Nurse, then find the Blood Rock and Choir Bell
Our walkthrough continues with a guide to finishing off Mergo's Wet Nurse, then tracking down some essential items.

Bloodborne: explore Forsaken Cainhurst Castle and unlock some new armour sets
How to gain access to the Forsaken Cainhurst Castle, and get your hands on some very useful new armour pieces while you explore.

Bloodborne: kill Martyr Logarius, receive the Crown of Illusions and learn the Respect gesture
Everything you need to know about killing the optional boss Martyr Logarius

Bloodborne: final boss
Everything you need to know about killing the final boss.

Other Bloodborne guides

Bloodborne: Farming Blood Echoes, Blood Vials, Sedatives and Quicksilver Bullets
How to farm all of these useful items nice and quickly.

Bloodborne: Umbilical Cord locations, how to kill the Moon Presence and unlock all three endings
Where to find the items you need to kill the Moon Presence boss and complete Bloodborne's secret ending.

Bloodborne: The Old Hunters walkthrough and guide
Our comprehensive guide to Bloodborne's first and only gigantic drop of DLC.

Start of the Bloodborne walkthrough

When the opening cut-scene has finished, you'll need to sort out your character's stats. Things like your gender, age and appearance have no effects on how the game plays out, but your origin will determine the attributes you begin with.

As soon as you awaken, take a look at the chair on your right to get a note that instructs you to seek out paleblood in order to transcend the hunt. Go left and then walk through the door before heading downstairs.

Kill the Nether Beast

In the room up ahead, search the floor to get a couple of notes that will walk you through the basics of controlling your character. Go into the next room, but be prepared to face a Nether Beast on the far side. This creature's actually pretty tough until you've got the basics of combat down, but the good news is that you can leg it past it nice and quickly, and race upstairs into the next room. Get through the doors fast enough, and you'll never have to deal with it at all.

If you'd prefer to dabble in a little early-doors combat, however, get just close enough to the creature to trigger its attention, then back up the opposite side of the room. When the creature rears up to prepare its lunging attack, dodge out of the way of danger, then get to a position at the creture's rear and use your Charge Attack by holding down R2. This should stun the beast, leaving you free to follow up with a normal R1 attack. Should you mess up at any point, simply back up to get a little more space and start all over again.

- Read on for our guide to choosing the best weapons in Bloodborne.

Check out the hints on the floor of the next room, then have a rummage around in the corpse nearby to get two Blood Vials. Now go upstairs and walk through the door ahead of you. Search the next body on your left to get a collection of Quicksilver Bullets. Now go through the gate on your left to start exploring Central Yharnam.