Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2: Everything We Know

The resurrection of Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 continues. Originally announced and even demoed in 2019, that version was later cancelled and the project handed off to developer The Chinese Room. Known for Dear Esther and first-person horror games like Still Wakes the Deep, this will be The Chinese Room's first crack at a full-fledged RPG—and it's shaping up to be quite a bit different from the 2004 original. Perhaps quite a bit different than anything we've played before, really.

So far, The Chinese Room has shown off a vertical slice of gameplay and put out a Gothic library's worth of dev diaries. We've trawled through these to bring you everything we know about Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2.

The good news? Bloodlines 2 is starting to take shape, as an idea at least. Perhaps a nightmare, if I may be so dramatic—and in this case, that could be a good thing.

 

The premise of Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 

Bloodlines 2 is still set in Seattle, which has been the plan since the original incarnation. The backdrop is Vampire: the Masquerade's 5th Edition, which takes place in a world where The Camarilla, the longstanding vampire government, is at one of its weakest points ever thanks to the disappearance of many of its key Elders. Other sects, like the libertine Anarchs, have gained importance in The Camarilla's stead.

You will play as Phyre, a recently-awakened 400-year-old Elder who has been in the coma-like sleep that vampires call torpor for quite some time. You'll be awaking into the modern world, a world unfamiliar to you. Phyre's gender, clan, appearance, and some elements of their backstory can be chosen at character creation.

 

The Clans of Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 

At launch, Bloodlines 2 will feature only four clans—the vampiric lineages that dictate what kinds of powers you get access to. Each of these fits roughly into one of the classic RPG archetypes.

The Tremere are masters of blood sorcery and serve as your mage option. The Brujah are rebellious brawlers, and specialize in face-to-face melee combat. The Banu Haqim are sneaky and mysterious, lending themselves to a stealth playthrough. And the Ventrue are the ostentatious lords of the night, representing a control-focused and social playstyle.

From what we've seen so far, the gameplay reminds me most of something like Dishonored. It's first-person, action-based, and very movement-heavy, with climbing, mid-air dashes, and other feats of superhuman acrobatics. It also seems like there's quite a bit more focus on combat than the first Bloodlines, and you'll frequently execute brutal takedowns to replenish your blood supply from enemies mid-battle. Each clan also gets access to a basic melee attack, a dash, a kick that knocks enemies back, and a telekinesis ability that lets you either yank objects toward you or throw them.

There are also branching dialogue scenes that let you handle situations in different ways, from intimidating someone using Phyre's age and status to trying to suck up to someone you want to manipulate. NPCs will remember how you've treated them in the past and develop opinions about you.

 

The Masquerade itself

The catch here is you can't just run around using your powers wherever and however you want. That's the "Masquerade" part of Vampire: The Masquerade. It's a cardinal sin in vampire society to reveal what you are to regular humans. That tends to cause panic and, on occasion, an inquisition or two. On the open streets of Seattle, you'll have to be a bit more careful.

If you get caught doing something like jumping an inhuman height onto a fire escape—something strange but somewhat explainable—you'll get a green symbol indicating that you are being watched, but there will be no immediate effects as long as you lay low.

Continuing to have these minor infractions witnessed, or taking a more extreme action like feeding in front of a witness, bumps you up to the Caution stage, which may lead NPCs to report you to the moral authorities. If they're successful, you may become Engaged, which will require you to lose your human pursuers immediately. Failure to do so might even result in you being executed by The Camarilla. Think of it like if Grand Theft Auto had a sixth wanted star, and when triggered, some vampire cops came after you and lit you on fire for exposing their existence to the world.

 

The blood is more than red

Of course, vampires need to feed on human blood. It's the main way you'll heal and also serves as a fuel tank for all your flashy powers. It's possible to feed in-combat by grappling a target, and also outside of combat by sneaking up on or luring in a victim. Like using your powers, chomping down on someone's neck is a Masquerade violation. The bitten person won't remember it, but anyone who saw it happen will. So you'll need to find ways to use stealth, fear, or persuasion to get them isolated.

It's a bit more complicated than that, though. Bloodlines 2 takes another mechanic from the 5th Edition of the tabletop game in the form of Blood Resonance. Certain victims who are either afraid, aroused, or angry can be manipulated to further indulge in that emotion, which makes their blood "resonant." Feeding on resonant blood is one of the main ways you will unlock your latent vampire abilities, many of which Phyre has lost access to during her long sleep. In short, feeding is also part of leveling up.

With five free-roaming districts to explore, this is certainly the most different and ambitious project The Chinese Room has ever taken on. We'll be able to stalk its streets ourselves later this year.

If you want to learn more, you can check out all of the dev diaries posted so far—and don’t forget to wishlist Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 on the Epic Games Store.