Bilawal Bashir 
Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines 2 is as undead as the name suggests, as it has been resurrected with a new developer.
Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines is a cult classic action RPG circa 2004 based on the popular tabletop RPG. Bloodlines 2 was originally announced by publisher Paradox Interactive in 2019, with a tentative release date in 2020. Hardsuit Labs was developing the game but after several delays and the firing of its creative leads, the studio departed from the project in 2021. The game got shelved indefinitely while Paradox Interactive shopped for another developer.
Paradox Interactive seemingly believes the game is back on track with a new developer. Here is who is developing Bloodlines 2, its new release date, and what platforms the game will be on.
Who is developing Bloodlines 2?
UK-based studio The Chinese Room is developing Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2. The developer is well known for making popular “walking simulators.”
The Chinese Room was founded 16 years ago, originally starting as a mod team for Half-Life 2. The studio is best known for games like Dear Esther, Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture, and Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs. Bloodlines 2 seems to have some similarities with Hardsuit Lab’s original vision for the game but The Chinese Room is bringing some changes.
Included in that is a change of the main protagonist from a young vampire to an elder. The elder has awoken from a long sleep, so the world will still feel new to them. The player character isn’t going to be a completely blank slate, as they are set to be a proper character with some space left for actual role-playing.
When is Bloodlines 2 releasing?
Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 is releasing in fall 2024. There is no set release date announced but Paradox Interactive promises more details in January 2024.
The game takes place in modern-day Seattle and is shrouded in winter. The city is enduring a siege from three fronts, with many seeking to fill a power vacuum left at the top of the vampire court. The trailer is filled with action and teases of new characters.
Creative director Alex Skidmore explains that the game is using brand new code. The developers are gunning for different gameplay mechanics and RPG systems as well. Bloodlines 2 will be mostly a different game than what Hardsuit Labs envisioned back in 2020, but it remains to be seen if it can capture the feel of the 2004 original.
Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines 2 is slated to release on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC. It comes at a fortuitous time with TTRPG adaptations being all the rage with Baldur’s Gate 3 booming and Cyberpunk 2077’s DLC inbound.
