Insight is a stat in Bloodborne that is incredibly important to the game's lore, world-building, and even core gameplay systems. However, Bloodborne never goes out of its way to explain Insight's many uses and why it is an integral part of the game.
Due to Bloodborne's mysterious setting, and FromSoftware's game design in general, it will be hard to put your finger on precisely what Insight's use is or how you obtain it. Insight also plays a vital role in the world of Bloodborne and helps deliver on the game's many twists and overall theme. Insight is one of many unique stats and mechanics in Bloodborne, and the better understanding you have of it, the more the world of Yharnam starts making sense.
What Is Insight?
Insight is one of many stats in Bloodborne and can be tracked easily underneath the Blood Echoes counter in the screen's top right. You can only have 99 Insight at any given time, but it will take some time to get there.
Insight is essentially the key to discovering Yharnam's dark secret. It acts as a currency but is also a significant component of the gameplay and world-building on Bloodborne. In the grand scheme of things, Insight is the knowledge and awareness of the nightmare's effects. Insight is what your character needs to understand what Hunter's Dream is all about and is the driving force behind the game as a whole.
What Does Insight Do?
What makes the Insight mechanic in Bloodborne unique is it opens up many interesting things within the world of Yharnam. It can be used as a currency or can be used to reveal the truth of the nightmare.
Insight essentially allows you to do many things. For instance, if you have no Insight, you cannot interact with the Doll, making it impossible to level up. Acquiring Insight will also increase Frenzy resistance and reduce your Beasthood stat.
How To Obtain Insight
Obtaining Insight will happen naturally as you progress through the game, but it can be confusing to some players, which is understandable. You will also be able to acquire Insight through various items in the game, which can significantly speed up the process.
Many different sources will grant the player Insight. For example, entering a boss arena for the first time will give varying amounts of Insight. The same goes for slaying bosses. You'll also be able to obtain Insight by sending the various NPCs you meet on your adventure to Oedon Chapel or Iosefka's Clinic. Discovering specific locations and NPCs will also provide Insight.
Other methods of obtaining Insight will come from many things including:
- Locations: Abandoned Old Workshop (+2), Iosefka's Clinic (+1), Yahar'gul, Unseen Village (+1), Lecture Building (+2). Nightmare Frontier (+2), Nightmare of Mensis (+3), Forsaken Cainhurst Castle (+3)
- NPCs: Annalise, Queen of the Vilebloods (+2), Patches the Spider (+2), Master Willem (+2), Arianna's Infant (+3)
- Consumables: Madman's Knowledge (+1), Great One's Wisdom (+2), One-Third of Umbilical Cord (+3), Blood Dreg (+1)
- Other: Successfully killing another player (+1), Defeating a boss while summoned (+1), Getting grabbed by an invisible force outside of Oedon Chapel (+1)
Uses Of Insight
Insight, as touched on earlier, can be used as a currency. You will also need to have at least 1 Insight to unlock the ability to level up. Even if you were to drop down to 0 Insight mid-game, you would see the Doll as an inanimate object due to your lack of insight.
As for Insight's uses, there are many things that you will be able to use Insight for, and all of them are beneficial to the player. With just one Insight, you'll be able to access the Messengers' shop, where you can spend your Insight on a plethora of armor and weapons.
Many of the things you can purchase in the shop are boss weapons and gear (as well as most NPCs gear) and materials for the Chalice Dungeons or enhancing your weapon. You'll also be able to purchase most consumables at the Messengers' shop, but not ammo or Blood Vials. Most importantly, you'll be able to buy the Small Resonant Bell, which gives you to option to help out other players who are having a rough time.
Yharnam Without Insight
If you were to play through Bloodborne with no Insight, it would be a neutered experience. It ultimately isn't a good idea but it would make for an interesting experiment.
Playing with zero Insight would disable healing, the Messenger's shop, and thoroughly remove the many twists and environmental storytelling moments Bloodborne has in store for the player. The game would be more challenging as a result, and the world would never evolve beyond what is present at the start of your journey. The lack of Insight in Bloodborne is equivalent to playing with a blindfold on, which isn't a great way to experience the game.
Yharnam With Insight
Playing through Bloodborne with Insight opens up a breadth of choices and story beats. It will also change how you see the world forever.
You must meet a few Insight thresholds before seeing its effect on Yharnam, but once you notice them, you'll be blown away. With each tier of Insight reached, you'll begin hearing and seeing crazy things. It will play with your mind and make you question if things were always that way, and that's the beauty of Insight.
Seeing a towering Lesser Amygdala suddenly appear, hanging on the side of a building you walked past millions of times, is always jarring. Hearing off-key singing or a baby crying adds to the ominous nature of harnessing too much Insight. Insight helps piece together the larger narrative of Bloodborne and is an incredibly fascinating mechanic.
As mentioned before, certain Insight thresholds trigger specific events in Bloodborne. They are as follows:
- 1 Insight - Plain Doll awakens, Messengers' Shop opens, Beckoning Bell and Silencing Blank can get picked up in the Hunter's Dream, Mad Ones will spawn during the Witch of Hemwick fight.
- 15 Insight - Church Doctors shoot projectiles from their lamps, Scythe and Cross weapons have buffs, Gehrman speaks when sleeping in the Hunter's Dream, Mad Ones will spawn in Hemwich Charnel Lane after you learn the password.
- 30 Insight - Winter Lanterns will be heard singing off-key in the distance.
- 40 Insight - Lesser Amygalas can be seen in the Cathedral Ward and other locations, and a new song will play in the Hunter's Dream.
- 50 Insight - Hunter's Dream theme changes.
- 60 Insight - A baby can be heard crying off in the distance in any area except the Hunter's Dream.