It seems like there’s more to Bloodborne’s Master Willem than meets the eye, as one modder recently discovered that he was originally intended to be a boss.
The FromSoftware games have been treasure troves of lost secrets for dataminers to uncover and Bloodborne is no exception. A new secret has been unearthed in Bloodborne that few people had ever suspected before, as evidence has been discovered regarding Provost Willem’s former status as a boss monster.
Willem is an old blind man who can be found babbling in his rocking chair just before the boss battle against Rom, the Vacuous Spider. Willem was the former head of Byrgenwerth and actively opposed the use of the Old Blood for the research. By the time the player discovers Willem in Bloodborne, he has lost his mind and can do little but prompt the player towards the fight against Rom.
It seems that Willem was going to have an antagonistic role in Bloodborne, as YouTuber Lance McDonald discovered evidence of a cut boss encounter with the old man. McDonald has an entire series dedicated to uncovering the secrets hidden within the files of Bloodborne and his latest find is one of the most impressive yet.
It seems like the developers had originally planned for Willem to battle the player, as he wanted to steal their eyes. There are unused animations for Willem that involve him using his staff to strike the player from afar, possibly with the aid of magic. Willem also has an amusing animation where he crashes his rocking chair into the ground as part of an attack.
McDonald also discovered evidence of floating eyeballs (known as “Bits”) that could have been part of the boss encounter. The term “Bit” has been used in JRPGs in the past to indicate a subservient minion in battle and has appeared in games such as the Final Fantasy series in the past.
It’s possible that the Willem boss battle was cut because it didn’t fit in with the rest of the game. The idea of a boss battle in Bloodborne against an old man on a flying rocking chair who shoots magic missiles seems really out of place compared to the other boss monsters, so his role might have been switched to keep a consistent tone in the game.
Source: Lance McDonald/YouTube
