The long and fraught journey ofVampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines‘ sequel is adding another entry today. Developer The Chinese Room and Paradox Interactive have confirmedBloodlines 2is pushed to the first half of 2025, out of this year.
The news arrives via a development update from the developer and publisher, showing some more in-development and behind-the-scenes footage of the game. Alex Skidmore, creative director at The Chinese Room, says the team is in the late production phase, “iterating and polishing” what’s there.
But as Paradox’s Deputy CEO Mattias Lilja states, the publisher has “reaffirmed” its commitments to delivering quality games, and that does apply toBloodlines 2.
“We have learned a lot through the past year, and that is why we are putting our words into action,” said Lilja. “Jointly with Chinese Room, we have decided to extend development. This decision gives Chinese Room extra time to spend on the game, to deliver the bestBloodlines 2they can.”
As Lilja states, The Chinese Room is “prioritizing polish over release date,” and it sounds like the delay could result in more than just fine-tuning. While the team is incorporating feedback from playtests and dev diaries, Skidmore says The Chinese Room is working on adding more endings to the game as well.
A long, cold night
Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2has been on a long, long trek to this point. Originally announced atGDC in 2019, under the direction of Hardsuit Labs, the long-awaited sequel to Troika’s classic RPG seemed set for success.
Yet delays soon set in, and the departures of high-profile developers—includingBloodlinesveteranBrian Mitsoda—foreshadowed harsher developments. Paradoxpulled the projectfrom Hardsuit, withlayoffs at the studiofollowing soon after, and the project languished without a confirmed developer for a spell until The Chinese Roominherited it in 2023.
Known for games likeDear Esther,Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs, andEverybody’s Gone to the Rapture, it’s a curious choice. Even some elements of the originalBloodlines 2pitch shifted in the transfer, like changing the player character’s role from a thinblood to an awakened elder.
If time really can heal all wounds, then maybe a little more development time can help The Chinese Room deliver on aBloodlinessequel. After years of fraught development, I’m just curious to see what comes out the other side.Bloodlines 2is now slated for the first half of 2025.
