World of Darkness Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 - VTMB sequel from The Chinese Room - coming early 2025

[RagingNomad]

Dev Diary #2 - Narrative Atmosphere and Themes

Nothing interesting like a past dev diary.

 

[Roguey]

That answers the question about your starting power level, you start off suppressed and enslaved to someone else.

 

[Vincente]

Paging Storyfag , are there such powers/disciplines in VtM that can suppress an Elder's power?

 

[ChildInTime]

Paging Storyfag , are there such powers/disciplines in VtM that can suppress an Elder's power?

You can invent any kind of arcane ritual for the purpose of storytelling and manipulating blood is most common.
But if we are talking about something more lore related - Baali cursed Assamites with hunger for vampire blood, it's where the assassins got their diablerie rep, then Tremere cursed them so that the blood of other vampires was poisonous to Assamites, then Ur-Shulgi woke up and broke that curse by influencing the powers of the blood of all the other clan members and strengthening himself (also killed or exiled all muslim vampires, lol).
So, yeah, it's possible.

 

[Storyfag]

Paging Storyfag , are there such powers/disciplines in VtM that can suppress an Elder's power?

I am not a grand expert, but largely what ChildInTime said. Also blood bonds, dementation and domination can be used to mess with even an Elder's mind, so while his powers might technically be intact, he won't think of using them.

 

[Togukawa]

I hate the writing in the dev diary already, sure bodes well for the game.

 

[santino27]

I hate the writing in the dev diary already, sure bodes well for the game.

That much, darling, is down to you.

 

[Roguey]

A game written by a woman will likely have the feminine writing style.

I think it is appropriate for a vampire game, a very feminine genre.

 

[Iluvcheezcake]

2 dev diaries with absolutely fuckin nothing

 

[Herumor]

(also killed or exiled all muslim vampires, lol).

That part was absolutely hilarious. The fact that there were muslim vampires, when Haqim predates the whole fucking thing was just retarded.

 

[notpl]

A game written by a woman will likely have the feminine writing style.

I think it is appropriate for a vampire game, a very feminine genre.

The only red flag with a female author writing vampire fiction is if she isn't obese. Ideally they'd draft the author of A Dance With Rogues for NWN as creative director.

 

[Herumor]

The only red flag with a female author writing vampire fiction is if she isn't obese. Ideally they'd draft the author of A Dance With Rogues for NWN as creative director.

The only woman in the gaming industry I'd trust with a vampire-themed IP is Amy Hennig.

 

[Häyhä]

The correct and only answer is Jane Jensen creator of Gabriel Knight series.

 

[negator2vc]

The correct and only answer is Jane Jensen creator of Gabriel Knight series.

Nope. Jane Jensen like many older designers has lost her magic touch which she had when she made those games.

 

[Häyhä]

The correct and only answer is Jane Jensen creator of Gabriel Knight series.

Nope. Jane Jensen like many older designers has lost her magic touch which she had when she made those games.

That might very well be true, I'm not familiar with her later games at all. People almost never can accomplish in their later life what they accomplished in their early-mid adulthood which is usually peak creative time for creative people, be that in film, literature, music or video games.

 

[Jaesun]

You wake trapped in Seattle, the full extent of your power artificially suppressed—diminished to a mere pawn, to be used and exploited. After all, what are others if not our most disposable assets?
One of our early design decisions was to make the player character into an Elder Kindred. This was interesting to us because it means that we can play with how this established vampire knows things about being a Kindred already and how we can create gaps to let the player learn this type of information firsthand. Balancing the opportunity and the history it entails with the desire to allow players to still roleplay and make the character their own.
https://www.paradoxinteractive.com/...dlines-2/news/narrative-atmosphere-and-themes

This premise seems ok so far...

 

[Storyfag]

This premise seems ok so far...

Even interesting*. We'll see about the execution.



*unlike HSLs stale offering.

 

[Häyhä]

It's a good and natural way from gameplay point to explain fast player character progression and leveling up in a short time span the game will probably take place in.

 

[hajro]

Meh, this is basically pre cope excuse for the games weird tonal shifts that are incoming cause of hack writers.

 

[The President]

I know nothing of Sarah Longthorne, so hopefully she’ll do okay.

What comes to mind immediately in hearing you’re a trapped pawn to start is this is the way to railroad you and force you to follow the script. I would imagine it’s the excuse for an elder to wake up and not be able to say fuck it and leave.

 

[Häyhä]

I know nothing of Sarah Longthorne, so hopefully she’ll do okay.

What comes to mind immediately in hearing you’re a trapped pawn to start is this is the way to railroad you and force you to follow the script. I would imagine it’s the excuse for an elder to wake up and not be able to say fuck it and leave.

Well, that is every videogame ever made for you. Unless you count those few games that have a funny "ending" where you can basically "finish" the game right in the beginning by refusing to play and it will end your game.

 

[StrongBelwas]

I know nothing of Sarah Longthorne, so hopefully she’ll do okay.

What comes to mind immediately in hearing you’re a trapped pawn to start is this is the way to railroad you and force you to follow the script. I would imagine it’s the excuse for an elder to wake up and not be able to say fuck it and leave.

It doesn't sound too dissimilar from the bits where LaCroix would simply dominate you in Bloodlines when you get uppity, some form of structure is needed. Depends on how they execute it and ideally the shackle comes off long enough for some real C&C.

 

[santino27]

This premise seems ok so far...

Even interesting*. We'll see about the execution.



*unlike HSLs stale offering.

I have zero problem with the premise, agreed, but I also have no faith in anything good coming of modern-day game writers. As we get to see more, we'll get to judge for ourselves.

 

[Jaesun]

I have zero problem with the premise, agreed, but I also have no faith in anything good coming of modern-day game writers. As we get to see more, we'll get to judge for ourselves.

Have you played VtM: Redemption? Just curious.

 

[negator2vc]

That might very well be true, I'm not familiar with her later games at all. People almost never can accomplish in their later life what they accomplished in their early-mid adulthood which is usually peak creative time for creative people, be that in film, literature, music or video games.

In many cases we aren talking about FULL decline, especially in current year.
Thankfully Jensen retired from game dev around 2014-2015 I believe.
These days I think she write gay romance novels under a pen name.