Vampire Syndicate: Gangs of MoonFall News

[p]Hi everyone! Hope your holidays have been going well. Since it has been roughly 1 year of continuous development (the project was funded November 2024), I thought I would give a quick summary of what happened this year for Vampire Syndicate: Gangs of MoonFall. [/p][p]I am very happy to announce that as of December 2025, all major gameplay systems are functionally working and awaiting player feedback. Most minor systems too.[/p][p]That means these systems are ready for an Early Access release and will be adjusted and fixed according to feedback over the Early Access period.

In very basic terms, the framework for the game is finished. There’s a list of the systems further below if you’re interested in reading through them. Development was greatly accelerated by several powerful template assets, but even those required a lot of customization and integration work. I ended up building a lot more from scratch than I initially expected, but this helped me become more familiar with the engine and “think” more like a programmer.  [/p][p]What remains is content and optimization. Much of the content has already been added, but there is still lots to do. Character models needed to be ported, quests scripted, animations set, etc, etc. I am still planning on Early Access for the end of March 2026. Frankly, I’m not too worried about content as that is the part of development I’m very experienced in. Still, my pace is very fast and ambitious, so these plans are not set in stone. [/p][p]As I look back on the past year, I am filled with the confidence that if development goes at the same rate, something quite special will be made. I often repeat the fact that I started this project as a RPGmaker dev with no UE5 experience and an education as a novelist. This is in the hope that it will communicate how much commitment and personal investment I have in this project. It is, unequivocally, my pursuit of a lifelong goal.  [/p][p]Thanks, as always, for being with me on this journey. I wish you and yours a happy new year. [/p][p]
Sneek peek for weapon tooltips in your inventory. You've probably seen it before but I adjusted the size. Also there will be various weapon categories for both ranged and melee weapons, which I'll explain in a later post.[/p][p]
Sneek peek for skill trees. Each character will have several, including trees that impact personal stats, like attributes as well as for weapon handling, and class-specific trees as well. Look forward to a post soon that talks about this. [/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]Big things done for VS in 2025:[/p][p]
[/p]

• [p]RPG systems[/p]
  • [p]Homemade leveling, stats, class and skill tree system[/p]
    • [p]I am pretty proud of this as it is a synthesis of what I personally like from RPG progression systems[/p]
  • [p]Systems that support a party size of up to six characters (including the player)[/p]
  • [p]Party inventory and individual equipment[/p]
  • [p]Attribute check system with dice[/p]
  • [p]Character creation[/p]
  • [p]Visual character customization [/p]
    • [p]I expected this to be one of the most difficult parts to implement, and it kinda was.[/p]
• [p]Combat Systems[/p]
  • [p]A turn-based, initiative-based tactical combat system with homemade rules[/p]
  • [p]Numerous different skills depending on character progression, equipment, etc[/p]
  • [p]30+ combat stats per individual unit, most can be upgraded[/p]
  • [p]Randomized combat map population[/p]
  • [p]Damage types, status effects, a lot of the usual staples[/p]
  • [p]I basically just made my dream combat system[/p]
• [p]Technical highlights[/p]
  • [p]Toggle between first-person, third-person, and an experimental isometric camera [/p]
  • [p]Day/Night cycle for overworld[/p]
  • [p]Custom worldstate, faction and NPC system[/p]
    • [p]This is actually the most difficult system, and it can be expanded further[/p]
  • [p]Repeatable, randomized contract system[/p]
  • [p]Flexible, powerful dialogue system with an appearance toggle[/p]
• [p]NSFW stuff[/p]
  • [p]A completely custom system for 3D, fully animated, multi-camera position, sex scenes[/p]
    • [p]I’m also proud of this and will be putting this on my resume regardless of the eyebrows raised[/p]

[p]Hi everyone![/p][p][/p][p]As promised, here's a video version of last month's devlog:[/p][p][/p][p][/p][previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

[p]Hi everyone![/p][p]November has been a big, very busy month for me. I should probably stop saying that since on my accelerated development timeline, every month is going to be very busy. I wasn’t sure if I was going to squeeze this update into a video, but in the end I decided that a longer text post and shorter, punchier video works best, so expect a short video rundown of this update soon-ish. [/p][p]TL;DR: The game is coming together, I put a day/night cycle in the game, finished a large portion of the overworld map, added a faction standing system, implemented dice rolls and added faction contracts. [/p][p]Here is a short novel explaining the above. [/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]The two options I was considering was a full day/night cycle with a calendar or perpetual darkness, which would have made development easier. I ended up going with the day/night cycle because:[/p]

1. [p]My previous game, Memoirs, had it.[/p]
2. [p]I wanted it personally[/p]

[p]There will be no time-gated content, but it will impact when the player draws their salary (like in Memoirs) and also the mobs that may spawn in the overworld at certain times. I would like to keep time running at a realistic rate inside locations/hubs, so maybe 1:1 with real-world time or only a slight acceleration. Time in the overworld will be greatly accelerated to simulate traveling.[/p][p]I should add that in this setting, vampires don’t burst into flames at the slightest touch of sunlight, but the drawbacks will be significant. And they can be mitigated too. No it’s not sunscreen :D. [/p][p]There will be options for resting, forwarding time. [/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]One of the things I was conflicted about was how to recreate the map from my last game, which was made in a different engine. Then I realized I could just export the map and trace it.[/p][p]I found that I liked making a city, although my lack of urban planning & design knowledge will probably come back to bite me, so I have continued to keep the overworld map a bit of an abstraction. [/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]One of my kickstarter stretch goals was to create living factions, or essentially factions that can react to the player in surprisingly and perhaps unpredictable ways. How this works is that the game would be conducted by a virtual dungeon master (I’m not using LLMs for this but scripting) so every playthrough would be unique. You could call it a lightweight version of what grand strategy games do. [/p][p]Unfortunately, this stretch goal wasn’t reached, but I am still laying the groundwork for it so if early access is successful, and demand for it is high enough, I can add it to the game.[/p][p]A fundamental building block for this is of course, the factions themselves, how they measure their attitude towards the player and each other, their available resources, etc. [/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]I am returning to and expanding the D6-based dice system I used in Memoirs. It’s a system I made myself, inspired by tabletop games, in a way I think is fun (but perhaps may lack some of the mathematical roundness of more balanced systems).[/p][p]It’s also fully physically simulated. The game rolls however many die the check requires and then counts each one. Does Vampire Syndicate need this degree of verisimilitude? Probably not, but it’s already implemented :P.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]In Memoirs, the overworld was a very lightweight and non-primary part of the game. For VS, I would like it to be better, more fun and less tedious (as much as can be achieved). This includes the contracts the various factions can offer you. [/p][p][/p][h3]\[Massive, possibly unneeded text block:][/h3][p][/p][p]My current plan is for Vampire Syndicate to have 18 factions, 8 major and 10 minor. These factions all come into the game with pre-established histories, and a web of alliances, grievances, and deep-seated animosity towards each other. For example, the Slayer Order, which is quite proudly inspired by the Black Templars from 40k, would gleefully purge every vampire from MoonFall if they had the opportunity and means to do so. [/p][p]As the player progresses through the game, the factions will pursue their own motives. For most, this means acquiring more power and resources, which means capturing vital locations on the map.[/p][p]The player will run into factions aggressively protecting their territory, but also just going through the motions of daily life. So expect to see patrols, convoys, couriers, and other activity when in a faction’s space.[/p][p]Almost every action the player takes on the overworld map will have a consequence. If you ambush a patrol or disrupt a courier, you not only antagonize that faction, but you could trigger a cascade of events that lead to a war of assassins, unexpected alliances, or more likely, death squads being sent after you.[/p][p]The clearest example of the player’s impact will be felt through the contract system. Since you start the game as a freelancer, you can take contracts from almost every faction in the game by visiting one of their controlled locations. [/p][p]These missions reward you with money and faction reputation, but can also affect the world in unexpected ways. Factions will always give contracts based on what their priority and status are. [/p][p]Contracts should never be accepted without gauging the cost. While many are benign, low-level gigs that don’t hurt anyone (important), others will earn you the ire of another faction. [/p][p]Taken together, this is a living ecosystem that is designed to make the game more immersive, more strategic, and can generate emergent narrative beats on its own. Coupled with my intention to create a stellar story with memorable characters, I believe it is one of the holy grails of RPG design.  I plan on having a functional, if somewhat basic version of this for the Early Access release.[/p][p]Okay, that’s it! That’s a lot of reading! I’ll have more news in December. Thanks again for checking in on this project.  [/p][p]
[/p]

[p][/p][p][/p][p]Hi everyone![/p][p][/p][p]I'm currently working on the faction system and it's looking like the game will have 18 factions, 8 major ones and 10 minor ones. This of course, is subject to the usual "could change through development" warning that all content is subject to. But I think it's a good round number, there might even be some hidden or spoiler factions. [/p][p][/p][p]Below is the list I'm currently working with:[/p][p][/p]

• [p]CONTROL[/p]
  • [p]Imperial Administration (Stormbreakers, Constabulary are here)[/p]
  • [p]Traveler’s Mandate[/p]
  • [p]Slayer Order[/p]
  • [p]Lupercal [/p]
• [p]Major Lineages[/p]
  • [p]Cthonians[/p]
  • [p]Dragonblooded[/p]
  • [p]Sunseeker Court[/p]
  • [p]The Exiled House[/p]
• [p]Minor Lineages[/p]
  • [p]Corvan[/p]
  • [p]Araneidae[/p]
• [p]Proxy Gangs[/p]
  • [p]Iron Cartel (Cthonians)[/p]
  • [p]Dead Dragons (Dragonblooded)[/p]
  • [p]Kabila (Sunseeker Court)[/p]
  • [p]Dya Skapetr (The Exiled House)[/p]
• [p]The City[/p]
  • [p]Courtesan’s Guild[/p]
  • [p]Old Watch[/p]
  • [p]The Revel Cults (Three Moons are here)[/p]
  • [p]Sovereign Firms (Coalition for Independent Enterprise)[/p]

[p]Here's some iconography that will be used in the game![/p][p][/p][p][/p]

[p]A Sovereign Firms security contractor, generally only deployed to protect the most valuable of corporate assets, or to eliminate threats that can't be ignored. This could include the player. [/p][p]There are three types of corps in MoonFall: those controlled by the vampire syndicates, the independents, and Sovereign Firms. Independent corps are easy targets. Sovereign Firms are... less so.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p]