After repeated delays, a change in studio, and barely dodging total cancellation, Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 is apparently coming into form over at new developer The Chinese Room, according to CEO Mattias Lilja of publisher Paradox Interactive.
Speaking with GamesIndustry, Lilja affirms that "changing developers is a pretty drastic measure, it is the step before you stop." When The Chinese Room inherited the project, Lilja says Paradox let them choose what ideas to keep, and "generally, it's a continuation of the same vision but they had to make it theirs." Bloodlines 2 is now scheduled for the first half of 2025, and seemingly on track to meet this date under this new vision.
What is that vision? Lilja says the sequel will draw comparisons to the original Bloodlines, but also, "people who have seen it talk about Dishonored." In a similar vein, he reckons "it's a bit more of an action RPG, but very steeped in the lore in the sense that you're a vampire in World of Darkness."
"If you look at the Chinese Room… Crafting a game with this very tight story and a tight setting is very much what they do," he says of the game's new developer, which he describes as "more stable," and which is known for the likes of Everybody's Gone to the Rapture, Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs, and Still Wakes the Deep.
Lilja's assessment also encouragingly suggests that several years of hope and vaporware have finally coalesced into a real, playable video game: "I'm a huge World of Darkness fan myself. So, when I play it, I'm starting to see that actually you're in that world, which is the experience we're going for.
Earlier this year, our first look at Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 seemed to shy away from what makes this a vampire RPG, raising questions about its new approach.
