Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2, the long-awaited horror sequel originally in development at Hardsuit Labs, has been re-revealed by publisher Paradox Interactive via two new videos that hint at a significant game overhaul.
The title is now in development at The Chinese Room (Dear Esther, Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture) and it appears the studio has been hard at work over the last year. While development work on the game continues, it now has a new release date locked in: Autumn 2024 [Northern Hemisphere].
Paradox and The Chinese Room are planning to showcase refreshed gameplay in January 2024, to give a better idea about everything that’s changed since Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 was first revealed to the public.
“Vampire: The Masquerade holds a special place in our hearts,” Ed Daly, studio director at The Chinese Room said of the project. “The story world’s dark setting filled with intricate narratives built on top of modern society perfectly fits our studio’s catalogue.”
Read: Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 gets major update
“Bloodlines 2 is our most ambitious project to date. Fans of the franchise have been eagerly awaiting this game, and we are up to the challenge. We are bringing more than 15 years of award-winning experience to the project, creating a game that honours the legacy of its predecessor while bringing its gameplay to the modern era.”
Alongside the studio announcement, Paradox and The Chinese Room revealed a fresh trailer for the game, which essentially functions as a grand re-reveal.
Not only does this new trailer feature the strongest look at vampire combat yet – hard-hitting, fast, and strong – it also spotlights fresh characters, and hints at the dark, moody plot that will guide the action of the game.
So far, not much is known about how this vision for the adventure differs from its predecessor, but this will likely become clearer as Paradox and The Chinese Room prepare to show off fresh details in 2024.
For now, keen players can look forward to hearing more about the game ahead of its planned launch in Autumn 2024. While questions linger about this overhaul, it’s great to see the game return – particularly given Paradox allegedly considered scrapping the project after it parted ways with the game’s previous developer.