Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 News

Welcome, Kindred, to this Bloodlines 2 Dev Diary from the team at The Chinese Room. Tonight’s diary is about hunting and feeding, both in combat scenarios and the more social setting of Seattle. Feeding is at the heart of the game loop and fantasy of being a vampire so if you faint at the sight of blood, read no further.
- Project Creative Director, Alex Skidmore

Feeding is a really important part of the vampire fantasy, and so from a gameplay perspective, we were set on making it a fundamental part of the player’s actions and strategies. You’ll be doing a lot of it - Phyre’s a little-and-often kinda drinker; that helps keep the beast in check- plus it’s your main source of healing, and critical to using your powerful discipline abilities. A lot of incentive for us to make it feel good!

Your main concern will be your surroundings - getting spotted feeding on the streets is a blatant Masquerade violation, and more violent types won’t be content to let you feed on their friends unscathed, so you’ll want to isolate your targets. Feeding in the swing of combat is risky, but not impossible - if you’re mindful of which direction you start a feed from, for example, your victim can help soak up a lot of gunfire for you!

One aspect that was really challenging was presentation, from a first-person perspective. Feeding in first person doesn’t really show you much at best, and looks silly at worst, but a simple cut in and out of third-person can also be disorienting and feels a bit disconnected. What we settled on uses a bit of both, with some basic cinematic action cutting techniques to maintain continuity of motion, and enough first-person action at the end to get you settled into your next move. It’s subtle, but I think it goes a long way in helping the flow of the game in hectic situations!
- Senior Game Designer, Max Bottomley

As a vampire, Phyre has access to senses that are much more powerful than that of a human. Whilst exploring Seattle, Phyre will be able to tap into these Heightened Senses, enhancing her ability to smell, see and hear her enemies. By concentrating on these senses, Phyre will detect the beating hearts of nearby prey even through walls, allowing her to choose just the right strategy to pounce on them.

When it came to visualising this, we wanted our concepts to reflect the vampiric nature of homing in on your next meal, sensing and smelling blood through the air. We wanted Phyre to feel like a predator stalking her enemies using all her vampiric gifts. To do this we wanted to tap into a striking art style for this part of the gameplay, something that highlighted Phyre’s vampiric lust for blood while also being very clear for the player experience.

Art by Jordan Grimmer. A concept of heightened senses exploring how to differentiate between humans.

Art by Michele Nucera. Explorations of how feeding could look.

Once we get up close and personal, that’s when we can feed. We wanted the feeding to feel like an intimate experience between you and the victim - biting someone's throat will always give you a sudden rush of power. Drinking blood is a way to restore your powers and by doing so will become an addictive experience for the player.

We wanted the action of feeding to reflect the visceral nature of stealing life from a beating heart, taking life from a host, and transferring it to the player. Above we explored a few ways we could show this through the reaction to Phyre’s vision as the blood enters her system. This level of exploration, creating many different ideas and iterations, is key when we’re trying to find something that could work for a feature like this.
- Senior Concept Artist, Jordan Grimmer and Lead Concept Artist, Michele Nucera

Art by Michele Nucera. Get up close and personal with your victim.

[h2]Blood Resonance Events [/h2]
Not only is Seattle brought to life with people going about their own business, including NPCs reacting to the player (perhaps even running away in terror!) it’s also a place where the player can hunt!

As you move around the city, you’ll be able to track and hunt NPCs that have the potential to become fully resonated with a specific type of blood to feed on. Track these NPCs down using Heightened Senses and knowledge of the city, then use charm, fear, or anger to convince and bend them to your will.

Very early on we wanted these events to feel like something players would want to go and investigate as they pop up around the city, I like to refer to these events as vampire candy for players to track, follow, and feed on! Social Feeding is a key part of the players' time in our Seattle, and revolves around influencing the NPCs in certain ways - maybe you’ll stumble upon someone angry that the ATM has stolen their card and you can take that anger and feed on it. Maybe someone’s scared after missing the last bus home, and chasing them down a dark alley will tip them into terror and give you the Social Feed you’re craving.

It’s been great working on a system where the NPCs display very raw emotion letting the player really lean into the vampire fantasy allowing them to interact with the denizens of Seattle in a number of different ways. You can use abilities, conversations, or just plain terrify them then reap the rewards with a careful feed.

We wanted to give players the freedom to hunt the way they want but it was also important that players need to be mindful of how and where they feed to avoid breaking the Masquerade! Social Feeding is a slower process so it's best to lure victims to secluded areas.
Explaining to animators that I want an animation of someone cowering like a shocked actor from a 1950s horror movie then watching those animations come to life… Chef’s Kiss!

It's been really great to just sit and think, wouldn’t it be great if Phyre is approached by a mugger and threatened… only to have them turn and flee in fear once they realise what Phyre is! I’m really looking forward to seeing how players choose to tackle the hunt and feed within the city area itself.
- Project Lead Game Designer, Gavin Hood

Don’t miss the next DD where we sink our teeth deeper into the intricacies of Blood Resonance!

Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 won't be an "open sim" like the 2004 original game, according to Paradox Interactive. Now in development at The Chinese Room, it'll be an action-RPG with a relatively linear story set in the World Of Darkness universe. This obviously plays to The Chinese Room's strengths - they're better known for melancholy or horrifying strolls through broken spaces than the Dishonorable massaging of intricate systems. But it also reflects Paradox's view that the original Bloodlines has been "mythologised" a bit: people love the memory of it more than the reality, and there are aspects of the 2004 game, according to Paradox's deputy chief executive officer Mattias Lilja, that simply "wouldn't fly today".

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Welcome Kindred to another Bloodlines 2 Dev Diary from the team at The Chinese Room. In this diary, we want to give you some further insight into the choices we’ve made when building our version of Seattle (see Dev Diary 8 for my previous statements on building Seattle for The World of Darkness). Seattle is at the heart of the game, which you will return to again and again between quests or sometimes during them. It is the most human location in the game where you are vulnerable to being exposed as a vampire (aka breaching The Masquerade) resulting in swift and violent justice from the vampires of the Camarilla that rule the city. It is also a kind of vampire playground where you can feed on humans in order to restore your vampiric powers or just for the thrill of the hunt. We hope this diary gives you a taste of what you will experience when stalking the streets and rooftops of the Emerald City.
- Project Creative Director Alex Skidmore

(Visit the Weaver Tower, a seat of power for the Camarilla Court.)

Building the player’s movement through Seattle, we really wanted to create traversal that interacted with The Masquerade and reinforced the vampiric experience. Phyre has some absurd movement from the get-go, being able to immensely fast, dash and glide through the air, and can move faster while still using discipline abilities later- but of course, do any of this on the streets without obfuscation and you’ll quickly find yourself breaching the masquerade.

(The Atrium club, where you will meet the enthralling Ysabella.)

Dark alleyways don’t just give you a quieter place to feed on prey, they also provide routes up to Seattle’s rooftops- up here there’s fewer prying eyes, so you can really let your capabilities loose, moving fast and leaping between buildings. The local Anarchs won’t be thrilled about you moving through their rooftop turf though, so it’s a dangerous place for the weak or uninitiated.

This means, there’s a choice to be made at any point between danger to the masquerade and danger to yourself! Finding yourself drawn to the kinds of places vampires would lurk is the goal of this arrangement. As you regain your powers as an elder, you’ll also be more capable of moving as you please- I’m really looking forward to seeing people master it!
- Senior Game Designer Max Bottomley

Since joining the Bloodlines 2 team, a key responsibility I’ve undertaken is bringing life to a key area of the game – our Seattle. 

(The Glacier Hotel is where you will find Lou Graham.)

Working closely with the Environment team, I wanted to make sure that as players explore the world it feels both alive and reactive to what they are doing. Players will discover a wide variety of people going about their daily (or nightly!) lives. We’ve crafted a personality for the city that compliments its unique setting, mood and layout. Time has been taken to map out city districts that favour different types of NPCs – you’ll be able to sit back and watch the world move on around you. 

When you walk round a corner you never know what you’ll find; maybe it’s a businessman arguing on his phone, or a graffiti artist improving the local artwork, it could be a car thief struggling to break into a car, or even a sex worker making good on their promise with a client.  

(You might meet all sorts of people in the seedy underbelly of Seattle.)

We’ve been filling the world with characters that actually do things; taking breaks on seats, telling the police about crimes they’ve seen, or seeing the police chasing down a criminal. The world turns without you, it should feel like you’re just passing through – and as the player, you can interact or just sit back and watch! 

Working on this stuff and building out a believable world where bikers drink outside bars or start fights with you has been a hell of a lot of work, but I hope people will find it a fun place to explore.  

The city isn’t all combat, it’s also home to exploration and interactions with the inhabitants of Seattle.

(Join Mrs. Thorn or perhaps run into Safia at Wake the Dead café.)

As with many other areas of the game a large part of what we wanted to give players was choice; some of that choice comes down to what conversations you’ll have with some of the NPCs and characters you’ll meet in the city. Use your Vampiric charms to seduce someone, proposition a sex worker, or flip off some angry bikers with a Brujah-approved hand gesture. 

The first time you try to flirt with a Sex Worker in the game and get turned down because your choice of clothing didn’t impress them will be an eye-opener! 
- Lead Game Designer Gavin Hood

Seattle plays a big part in our game, in both setting the tone of the game and providing an exciting and alluring space for players to explore and discover. Whether it’s the vibrant, ethereal world of  Nick Miller’s photography or the majesty of a real world American Metropolis like Seattle, it’s been really important for us to capture these moments and inject it uniquely into our take on a city inside the World of Darkness.

(A view from the ground in our Seattle.)

One of the ways we’ve done this is to focus on making Seattle “feel” exaggerated, seen through the heightened reality of a 300 year old elder. Exaggerating building heights to make most untraversable, our phrase “Tree trunking”, has helped to do this both visually and viscerally. Unlike a superhero gliding over a City, we’re creating a world that forces you to be part of it. Running through alleyways or gliding across rooftops, you’re never above it or beneath but really part of it. You can’t beat the feeling of stalking on a victim along a ledge or a building precipice with a whole towering City above you. 
- Associate Art Director Ben Matthews

Heya fellow Kindred, I'm super stoked to give you a sneak peek of the Seattle you'll be sinking your fangs into in Bloodlines 2!

We’re bringing that gritty, atmospheric, and immersive vibe that made the original Bloodlines such a cult classic into our version of Seattle, making sure every alleyway, rooftop, and hidden corner feels like it belongs in the World of Darkness. You’ll be stalking through Pioneer Square, lurking around Downtown, and exploring our take on Chinatown, all wrapped in a snowy, seedy, nighttime setting that bleeds neo-noir. Shaping parts of Seattle to fit our setting has been one of the coolest parts of making this, while working with the latest tech. Our favorite bits have definitely been creating those hidden details—cryptic setups, narrative clues with deeper meanings—just waiting for you to uncover.

(Visit the Dutchman to meet all manners of punks and bikers, and possibly meet Silky.)

Each district has its own distinct vibe, whether it’s the cold, corporate chill of the Financial sector or the vibrant pulse of Chinatown. We’re using lighting and color to set the mood and make each area feel unique and immersive.


We’ve been using a hybrid workflow to bring this city to life, combining Houdini for our building structures with modular kits for shopfronts, alley walls, and rooftop dressing. But what really gets us excited is the storytelling dioramas we’ve crafted into each block. Whether it’s a hint of a backstory, a touch of conflict, or just a nod to something darker beneath the surface, we’ve worked hard to make every corner feel like it has a story to tell. This lets us give each block its own flavor while weaving them all together into a larger narrative tapestry that not only looks great but feels alive and full of stories, all while being optimized for performance.

I can’t wait for you to sink your teeth into this fresh take on Seattle, Kindred. Get ready to embrace the night!
- Lead Environment Artist Genesis Asis

In today’s dev diary we’ll introduce you to a few non-Camarilla Kindred you’ll meet in the game. As you might already know Seattle is primarily a Camarilla controlled city, but that doesn’t mean that there aren’t non-Camarilla Kindred vying for power — or fighting to be left alone. Once again we’ve got Writer Cherish Goldstraw and Narrative Director Ian Thomas describing the profiles to you as they appear at the beginning of our story.

[h2]The Anarchs and Unbound[/h2]
The unbound are all those vampires who fall outside the Camarilla. The Anarch Movement in its various forms is a subset of the unbound and their most visible manifestation. Many seek to escape from Camarilla control by hiding. But those loyal to the Movement have decided to fight back, attempting to conquer and control domains originally held by those who would claim themselves their masters.

The Anarch Movement is different in each city. Sometimes an Anarch city has a ruler called a Baron. More commonly, it’s led by gangs who each have their own territories. Some cities are currently divided between Anarch and Camarilla vampires — both sides itching to take over.

Where Camarilla vampires usually influence mortal society from the outside, Anarchs burrow deep inside. Many maintain mortal identities, perhaps even families and jobs. This makes them simultaneously more vulnerable and more secure. Vulnerable because they are in contact with their surroundings every night and are sure to make mistakes. Secure because the Anarch is never the vampire lord in a mansion on the hill. They’re the DJ in the nightclub, the terrifying cop from internal affairs, the junkie creeping outside your window.
- From 5th edition book

[h2]History of Thin-bloods in Seattle[/h2]
The strength of each vampire Embraced is more dilute than that of their Sire. Thin-bloods have earned their name because their blood is seen as too distantly removed from the original progenitor, Caine. Most Kindred consider them a weakness and an embarrassment to their kind - or even a threat. Thin-bloods are not considered part of any clan, but rather the dregs of Kindred society.

Many view thin-bloods as a risk to the Masquerade due to their close ties with the mortal world, often leading to their being hunted and destroyed without a second thought. Overlooked and downtrodden, they band together in a form of resistance. Seattle acts as a haven of a sort. In this city, the weak-blooded are not destroyed out of hand. Instead, by order of Prince Campbell, they must be branded to set them apart from true vampires; only then will he allow them to remain.

Many have found shelter amongst those of Seattle's Anarchs; particularly under the watchful eye of the Brujah Katsumi, who leads one of the major Anarch groups, and has, because of her involvement with the Thin-bloods, been branded as one herself.

As newly-minted Sheriff Phyre must negotiate the delicate balance between Katsumi's people and the Camarilla - and deal with the fact that many Anarchs and thin-bloods don't respect anyone as leader. Seattle is a powderkeg and each faction waits for its opportunity. Some are more impatient than others. If Phyre is seeking Katsumi, she may find her at a bar called the Hole in the Wall with the other misfits of her cause.

[h2]Katsumi Ishizaki[/h2]
Brujah Anarch Leader
[h3]Quote[/h3]
“Tell the Prince I'm busy. The only blood around here is Anarch – always the way, right? I’m going to deal with it.”
[h3]Description[/h3]
Katsumi is a reluctant leader, forced by circumstance to speak for one of the larger groups of Kindred that consists of anarchs, thin-bloods, and the other dregs of the city. She maintains an uneasy peace with the Court, keeping a lid on the demands and fears of her followers as best she can. You’ll find her out on the streets among those who need her most, or at one of the spaces she maintains to keep her charges out of trouble. In her mortal life, she used to be a surgeon, and while still trying to fix things, nowadays, she is now mostly doing triage.


[hr][/hr]
[h2]Max Webber[/h2]
Brujah Unbound
[h3]Quote[/h3]
“I was a piece of shit when I was a mortal, but the Embrace changed me. It took all my fear away, and I started to figure most assholes are just scared. I saw something in Benny, I thought he might be like me…”
[h3]Description[/h3]
Unusually placid for a Brujah and unusually submissive for a sire, Max is something of an anomaly. Preferring to steer clear of both the Camarilla and the Anarchs, the only Kindred Max seems to want any relationship with is his intimidating childe, Benny - the Camarilla Sheriff. While many sires would forbid their childe joining the Court without them, Max seems content to live in Benny’s formidable shadow. The strange dynamic between the two has raised many a Kindred eyebrow, but few dare raise their voices for fear of rousing the Sheriff’s ire.


[hr][/hr]
[h2]Nicola “Nix” Lee[/h2]
Gangrel Unbound
[h3]Quote[/h3]
“These city bloodsuckers live in a whole different world. Everyone’s playing these high stakes mind games, and I can’t even beat the peg game over at the Wagon Wheel. I need to find ways to be useful if I want to survive here.”
[h3]Description[/h3]
Confident, brash and not to be trifled with, Nix loves the thrill of the hunt and fights like the beast unleashed. However, her kind are not usually city-dwellers, and Nix has little patience or aptitude for navigating the intricacies of vampire politics. Nobody knows why she has suddenly appeared in Seattle, and the Camarilla are naturally suspicious, but the possibility of enticing a leashed Gangrel into their ranks is a tempting prospect.


[hr][/hr]
[h2]Anarch, Thin-blood, and Ghoul Enemies[/h2]
The anarchs are the first, and most numerous faction you'll be butting heads with in Bloodlines 2. While Katsumi has the respect of a large portion of the Anarchs and Thin-bloods, not all of them follow her orders. Many have taken up residence in places you’ll need to investigate or are actively working against you. That means that among the many enemies you’ll face, Anarchs will use their powers against you. And so their members are a good baseline for the kind of threats you'll face throughout the game - roving gangs of fidgeting ghouls, armed with whatever they can get their hands on, and young, opportunistic kindred too naive to see the danger in taking on an elder face-to-face.

Ghouls are a tough bunch; they can take significantly more of a beating than your run-of-the-mill human, but they aren’t much of a threat alone. It’s when they work together, some bludgeoning you about, others carving you up, that you’ll want to take them seriously, so keeping things quiet is a sensible approach. Their Kindred masters are a much more potent threat- while they’re not as skilled in their disciplines as others, they more than make up for it with hardware.

As the situation in Seattle heats up, the Anarchs become more militaristic and heavily armed—but at their core, they’ve got more humanity than most. They’ll be hesitant to shoot with their friends in the way, more receptive to manipulation, and slower to catch who’s been turned against them—all weaknesses that can be exploited.