When comparing Outlast vs Bloodborne, the Slant community recommends Bloodborne for most people. In the question“What are the best PS4 (PlayStation 4) games?” Bloodborne is ranked 19th while Outlast is ranked 82nd. The most important reason people chose Bloodborne is:
In the world of Bloodborne you're never safe. Each location is filled with fast and ruthless enemies that will constantly try to kill you. It can be infected humans, werewolves, and even demonic beasts. You'll have to constantly attack and dodge at a very fast pace, and losing focus for even a second means you'll die. It's the type of combat where you'll steadily improve with practice, making it feel rewarding when you get the hang of it.
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Really scary
Outlast combines its tense atmosphere, creepy setting, stellar sound design, and a cast of horrifying inpatients to deliver a truly nightmarish experience. The developers even replaced the usual flashlight found in horror games with a camcorder, which has this really creepy nightvision mode.
Pro Unpredictable inpatients make exploration more tense
Outlast proves that people can be much scarier than ghosts. As you explore the dark hallways of the insane asylum, you’ll encounter many inpatients. Some of them good, some of them bad, but all of them crazy. So it’s sometimes really hard to tell which one will attack you. While some of them make it very obvious by holding knives or looking especially atrocious, sometimes they will attack unexpectedly. This uncertainty will creep inside your head, making exploration a lot more tense.
Pro Your character is really agile
Unlike most horror games where your character is clumsy and slow, in Outlast your character can actually move really well. Not only is your character fast enough to be able to outrun most enemies in the game, he also knows how to parkour. You can jump, grab ledges and climb them, and even slide over a table during a chase. This makes it a really refreshing horror experience.
Pro Frantic combat
In the world of Bloodborne you're never safe. Each location is filled with fast and ruthless enemies that will constantly try to kill you. It can be infected humans, werewolves, and even demonic beasts. You'll have to constantly attack and dodge at a very fast pace, and losing focus for even a second means you'll die. It's the type of combat where you'll steadily improve with practice, making it feel rewarding when you get the hang of it.
Pro Excellent world design
This game takes place in a Gothic, Victorian era (1800s Europe) inspired city. The buildings are dark and tall, instilling in you a sense of awe and fear.
The environments are very detailed, reminding you it was a thriving city before all went wrong.
All of these elements fit the Lovecraftian horror theme really well.
Pro Great bosses
Bosses in most games nowadays hardly ever give the player any challenge. Bloodborne is an exception, with bosses being a test of focus and skill.
You'll have to constantly move around, attack openings, read tells to dodge attacks, and choose proper positioning. Beating one of these beasts after a long and exhausting struggle is extremely satisfying.
Cons
Con A little too reliant on jump scares
In some parts of exploring the insane asylum there are too many jump scares one after another. After a while it loses its scare factor and instead becomes somewhat annoying. This feels like a missed opportunity to build on the dark and gritty atmosphere of the insane asylum.
Con No substance, unrealized potential and utterly disappointing
Once you get past the jump scares, gore and shock value you might find that there's very little to keep you invested and going back for more. Boredom may sink in nearing the end, with a sense of longing for the game to just be over. However, the night vision mechanic was fresh and unique at the time and introduced a sense of suspense, which other developers have lent from Outlast since. If you're a fan of traditional western horror games you will not disappointed, but if you're looking for something more to your horror games besides learning paths and jump scares, you might want to steer clear of Outlast.
Con Cliche story
The typical horror story protagonist goes to investigate a location that simply oozes danger. As if the abandoned SWAT trucks, locked doors, and boarded up windows were not telling enough, the protagonist realizes his terrible mistake right when there's no way back already.
Con Incredibly frustrating at times
You'll most likely die a lot, especially while you're still getting used to the game. It can happen on both regular enemies and bosses, with the latter being a lot more frustrating. Dying at a boss means you have to fight your way back to the boss room. If you're too agitated you might even die without reaching that boss again, which adds even more to the frustration. This pattern will repeat many times over the course of the game.
Con Framerate pacing issues
The game engine often produces two unique frames followed by two duplicates instead of one after another. This makes it seem like there are frame-rate drops even though the game runs at a stable 30 fps. The gameplay doesn't feel smooth because of it, which can be quite distracting.