The Chinese Room Confirmed as Developing Rebooted "Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2"

[T0@st]

At PAX West, Paradox Interactive revealed that The Chinese Room (a subsidiary of Sumo Digital) has taken over development of Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2. The publisher's key note announcement stated that the British studio: "brings their award-winning storytelling to Bloodlines 2, creating a high-quality Vampire: The Masquerade action RPG by talented developers with triple-A experience. Fans eager to sink their teeth into Bloodlines 2 can look forward to the gameplay reveal in January 2024 and its launch in Fall 2024." The original team at Hardsuit Labs was relieved of all development duties back in early 2021, following a year of key staff dismissals. Worried fans were offered the chanced to receive pre-order refunds a few months ago, with Paradox uploading a small batch of alpha screenshots, but not yet unveiling the new dev team.

Industry watchers have noticed that The Chinese Room has undertaken a large recruitment drive lately, so the ambition seems to be there to get into AAA game development leagues, despite a track history of producing critically acclaimed indie hits such as Dear Esther and Everybody's Gone to the Rapture. Ed Daly, Studio Director stated: "Vampire: The Masquerade holds a special place in our hearts. The story world's dark setting filled with intricate narratives built on top of modern society perfectly fits our studio's catalog...Bloodlines 2 is our most ambitious project to date. Fans of the franchise have been eagerly awaiting this game, and we are up to the challenge. We are bringing more than 15 years of award-winning (BAFTA & TIGA) experience to the project, creating a game that honors the legacy of its predecessor while bringing its gameplay to the modern era."




Sean Greaney, Vice President of World of Darkness at publisher Paradox Interactive, chipped in with: "We were immediately impressed when we saw The Chinese Room's proposal for Bloodlines 2. They have a true passion for the source material, making them ideal partners to develop a story in the Vampire: The Masquerade setting that resonates with players. We are committed to making Bloodlines 2 a success. Bringing on a studio that shares our vision was critical to helping us achieve these goals. Fans of the franchise can rest assured knowing that Bloodlines 2 is in good hands, and we will have more to share with you in January."

Bloodlines 2 is the successor to the cult-classic Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines. Bloodlines 2 takes players to the dark underbelly of Seattle, where vampires struggle for survival and supremacy. As an Elder vampire, players meet compelling characters, maneuver complex political relationships, stalk the city streets for prey, and engage in intense combat while balancing the need for blood. Throughout the game, players must always be mindful of their surroundings or risk breaking the Masquerade - the absolute law of secrecy that keeps vampire society hidden from humanity.



Embrace your inner Kindred and join us in Seattle for the long-awaited Vampire: the Masquerade - Bloodlines 2. Find your place in the battle to come, and try not to let the city bleed you dry. Coming fall 2024.

Join the Vamily:
Official Site - https://www.paradoxinteractive.com/games/vampire-the-masquerade-bloodlines-2/about
Discord - http://discord.gg/bloodlines2
Paradox Forum - https://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/forums/vampire-the-masquerade-bloodlines-2.1039/
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/VampireBloodlines
Twitter - https://twitter.com/VtM_Bloodlines
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/vtmbloodlines/

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[redeye]

the web site (paradoxinteractive) states/suggests it will be sold on gog.com.

 

[KrazyT]

Funny, i've tried Everybody's Gone to the Rapture last week ... Damn what a boring game ... well, is it really a game ?
Dear Esther was OK, nice looking and short, the narrative experience at it's best.
But EGTTR ... i've gave up about 1 hours or so ... I think i'll watch the end on YT to see how it's end ...

Back to Bloodlines II, I hope the devs' won't forget the difference between a narrative game and an adventure game :/

 

[ZeppMan217]

A quick look through Chinese Room's games portfolio will tell you everything you need to know about the final quality of VTMB 2. Well, "quality".

 

[ChipBoundary]

Well, given what Paradox did to the actual tabletop game (absolutely gutted it into nothing), and how dirty they did the original creator of the first one, they've lost me as a customer permanently. I had pre-ordered the game, but the second they fired the creator and several others with no warning or explanation, and intended to shelve the game permanently, that is where they lost me entirely. I had written off the tabletop game already, now the video game franchise is in the same trash can.

Paradox wouldn't know a good game if it slapped them upside the head.