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

[La vie sexuelle]

It could and hopefully is content dense, but it does seem quite small.

Do you guys really want to have to spend long amounts of time running here and there?

The hubs areas in Bloodlines were also pretty small, just a few blocks for each zone.

It seems to me that the overall area of Bloodlines was larger...

 

[EvilWolf]

It could and hopefully is content dense, but it does seem quite small.

Do you guys really want to have to spend long amounts of time running here and there?

The hubs areas in Bloodlines were also pretty small, just a few blocks for each zone.

It seems to me that the overall area of Bloodlines was larger...

This map is the equivilent of Downtown, just with apparent verticality.

 

[NecroLord]

It could and hopefully is content dense, but it does seem quite small.

Do you guys really want to have to spend long amounts of time running here and there?

The hubs areas in Bloodlines were also pretty small, just a few blocks for each zone.

It seems to me that the overall area of Bloodlines was larger...

This map is the equivilent of Downtown, just with apparent verticality.

Downtown is the biggest hub in the game, I think?

 

[The President]

Downtown is definitely the biggest. I think Hollywood and Santa Monica were both very small.
Depending on how big the actual in game streets are this map could be larger than all the hubs combined or quite small. We also have to factor in the rooftops and Seattle underground.
I’m very mixed on my opinion of this.

 

[Roguey]

It seems to me that the overall area of Bloodlines was larger...

This map is the equivilent of Downtown, just with apparent verticality.

All four Bloodlines maps fit within the Bloodlines 2 map.

 

[Wesp5]

Somebody already posted this overlay on Reddit, but what's the scale of both maps? Why are the streets in Bloodlines so much closer together compared to the ones in Bloodlines 2? Why is the Atrium club three times the size of the Asylum club? Or the Weaver Tower twice the size of the whole Hollywood Cemetery? Let's wait until the game is out before we make comparisons...

 

[Vulpes]

People are greatly exaggerating the size of the old quest hubs. Some of them, like Santa Monica and Hollywood, are small enough to fit inside Skyrim's towns. Even without the rooftops, the main map in Bloodlines 2 is still easily bigger than all four of them put together. That said, it's still far too small for a proper open world game. Even assuming it's supposed to be a hub world with the missions taking place on separate maps, I don't think you can put 5 different districts inside of it without it feeling like a cramped theme park.

 

[Roguey]

That said, it's still far too small for a proper open world game. Even assuming it's supposed to be a hub world with the missions taking place on separate maps, I don't think you can put 5 different districts inside of it without it feeling like a cramped theme park.

Grand Theft Auto III representing all of New York and a bit of New Jersey, no one was bothered: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=163901399

 

[v1c70r14]

People are greatly exaggerating the size of the old quest hubs. Some of them, like Santa Monica and Hollywood, are small enough to fit inside Skyrim's towns. Even without the rooftops, the main map in Bloodlines 2 is still easily bigger than all four of them put together.

I doubt it, the scaling in the comparison is totally off, it looks to me just glancing at the maps that the old Bloodlines was considerably bigger, even if it wasn't twice the size.

You're right about the first game feeling bigger than it actually was though, considering that the actual gameplay area was perfectly fine in size we shouldn't discount this quality. Why, if you brush things off for solely taking place within the theater of the mind you are committing the most grievous of anti-semitic acts, historical revisionism and illegal thought that might put you into jail if you happen to find yourself in Germany. Games being entertainment achieved through illusory imagery then should celebrate games feeling much larger than what is realized within the game.

It's worth talking about because while posters are busy doing map dick size measuring here there is the counter-intuitive fact that many games can actually feel bigger if the scope of the maps is smaller. There is a sweet spot that was achieved both by Deus Ex and Bloodlines where the maps don't feel cramped and claustrophobic, not simply corridors, but also when the glamour isn't dispelled by putting too much in the game, ruining the sensation that there's a lot going on beyond what the immediacy of what the player sees.

During the globetrotting trip of Deus Ex the player isn't given huge empty cities that act as filler, something to drive by like in an open-world like the GTA games or Mafia, or the forests of Oblivion, the mountains of Skyrim. Instead a small bit of a place is cordoned off as a designated playing area and the rest is left up to the background, writing, skyboxes, and the player's imagination. You don't see all of New York, all of Hong-Kong, or Paris, but that allows for imaginal space and makes the game feel big. Getting dropped off at a Californian gas station during the late game hostage situation has more sense of place than the location of pretty much any open-world game.

Bloodlines achieves something similar with its few hubs, they all feel distinct, the pier by Santa Monica is very different from the almost absurdly high gothic towers of the downtown area attempting to pierce the heavens, in turn a world apart from Hollywood and Chinatown. It works because they're given a fictitious area around them for breathing room. The taxi cab and the travel implied provides distance. In a way it's a lot like how movies handle the spatial, matte paintings giving the implications of some huge bustling city in the background, and to move about getting into a car with rear projection provides minimum idea of travel, all highly curated and select places and moments. Open world games, that still don't achieve any sort of realistic size when it comes to cities, forego this intentional selection and for this reason feel smaller instead of larger. Moving about the few Hollywood streets in Bloodlines and being able to enter many if not most buildings there is a far more engaging and atmospheric experience than something like Cyberpunk (which is even better contrasted with Deus Ex) with the empty pointless buildings that you can't enter most of the time and has no relevance to the plot or gameplay become filler, unlike in the real world where every building is instead very intentional and serves a function, and is at least theoretically something you can enter and explore.

So while the map sizes are being compared here bigger isn't always better. A GTA V sized Bloodlines wouldn't be a more compelling game and it'd lack the immaculate sense of place that a location like even incidental places like the Hollywood gas station did in the first game. With that said the problem with this singular map isn't that it is is too small, even if it is smaller compared to the first game, but as you with the themepark comment, that because of this lack of implied space between locations it will feel even smaller and cramped than it perhaps is. Because it's just the one area cut out from some larger world and made playable space, not three or four hubs.

Ironically I think the verticality, being able to climb up buildings and get onto the roofs will make it feel even smaller still, instead of bigger.

 

[Tyranicon]

It all depends on execution. If the map is dense and there's lots of interactivity + the game is actually good = people will praise TCR for making the right choice in keeping the map relatively small.

If the map is bland, buggy, boring and small + game is bad = everyone already expected this

 

[Storyfag]

It all depends on execution. If the map is dense and there's lots of interactivity + the game is actually good = people will praise TCR for making the right choice in keeping the map relatively small.

If the map is bland, buggy, boring and small + game is bad = everyone already expected this

If the map is dense, its various features will lack breathing room.

 

[Heroic Liberator]

If the map is dense, its various features will lack breathing room.

It's a vampire story after all))

 

[Wesp5]

It all depends on execution. If the map is dense and there's lots of interactivity + the game is actually good = people will praise TCR for making the right choice in keeping the map relatively small.

I agree. Better small with lots of interactivity than big with lots of empty space. So I really hope there are more points of interest than the few red locations! Just compare those to the numbers on the Bloodlines map, each of which basically points to a submap...

 

[normie]

It all depends on execution. If the map is dense and there's lots of interactivity + the game is actually good = people will praise TCR for making the right choice in keeping the map relatively small.

If the map is bland, buggy, boring and small + game is bad = everyone already expected this

If the map is dense, its various features will lack breathing room.

But if the features aren't sprawled out around a lot of breathing room, the distance the various features have to travel to the feature-oxygen exchanger, the gamer-lung, to be converted into gameplay for the various feature engager aka the player, is less.

 

[Fedora Master]

The only thing "dense" in this game is the player

 

[Roguey]

Using the conservatory as a landmark, I checked to see how this map compares to actual Seattle, and well, they compressed five districts to less than a mile. Perhaps they should have gone with separate hubs like Hardsuit.

 

[The President]

The multiple hubs does create something of an illusion of a giant city you are just experiencing small pieces of, rather than it all being one open area.

 

[Semiurge]

It all depends on execution. If the map is dense and there's lots of interactivity + the game is actually good = people will praise TCR for making the right choice in keeping the map relatively small.

I agree. Better small with lots of interactivity than big with lots of empty space.

Yes, no one wants another Skyrim or Witcher 3 style filler in a huge world.

 

[La vie sexuelle]

It seems to me that the overall area of Bloodlines was larger...

This map is the equivilent of Downtown, just with apparent verticality.

All four Bloodlines maps fit within the Bloodlines 2 map.

The proportions of streets to buildings were very specific in Bloodlines, so I don't think that such a map translation proves anything.

 

[Roguey]

"What if we just hired someone who knew what they were doing?" - Paradox

https://career.paradoxplaza.com/jobs/5562404-creative-director-world-of-darkness

The Role

As Creative Director, you will oversee the creative vision and IP development of World of Darkness across tabletop RPGs, linear media, video games, LARPs, and other brand extensions. You will define and maintain the core identity of World of Darkness, ensuring its rich lore, gothic themes, and complex storytelling remain compelling, modern, and adaptable to various media.

This role requires deep narrative expertise, franchise oversight experience, and a passion for horror, dark fantasy, and interactive storytelling. The ideal candidate is both a visionary storyteller and a strategic leader, capable of balancing creative direction with business needs.

 

[Caim]

"What if we just hired someone who knew what they were doing?" - Paradox

https://career.paradoxplaza.com/jobs/5562404-creative-director-world-of-darkness

The Role

As Creative Director, you will oversee the creative vision and IP development of World of Darkness across tabletop RPGs, linear media, video games, LARPs, and other brand extensions. You will define and maintain the core identity of World of Darkness, ensuring its rich lore, gothic themes, and complex storytelling remain compelling, modern, and adaptable to various media.

This role requires deep narrative expertise, franchise oversight experience, and a passion for horror, dark fantasy, and interactive storytelling. The ideal candidate is both a visionary storyteller and a strategic leader, capable of balancing creative direction with business needs.

Some bits from the form:

We believe close collaboration is key to both your growth and our success, which is why our team works fully on-site with flexible working hours. Would this setup work for you?*

So no remote working lmao. Have fun moving to Stockholm or somewhere nearby.

In our dynamic work environment, we embrace the integration of AI tools to enhance efficiency and innovation. Could you share any experiences you have with using AI tool in your workflow?*

Call your game Sloppenheimer the way it is shunned by the customer base for using AI images.

This question is private and will only be seen by the HR team and the Recruiting manager. We're asking this question to get a better understanding of your expectation from start, which makes it easier for us to discuss it during the process. Please present your Monthly salary expectation in Swedish Krona (SEK).

Ask too much and your application immediately goes into the digital shredder.

And from the posting proper:

Key Responsibilities​

IP & Brand Development​

• Establish and uphold the creative vision for World of Darkness.
• Develop and implement long-term IP strategies across multiple platforms.
• Align product development priorities with brand objectives.
• Strengthen brand identity through marketing, sales, and licensing collaboration.
• Maintain lore consistency while fostering new storytelling opportunities.

Creative Leadership & Strategy​

• Provide strategic creative direction to drive project execution.
• Ensure brand cohesion across all media.

Tabletop RPGs & Live Experiences​

• Guide the creative development of World of Darkness TTRPGs.
• Support the growth of LARP and immersive storytelling.

Video Games & Transmedia​

• Partner with game developers to maintain franchise integrity.
• Ensure faithful adaptations in film/TV projects.
• Maintain consistent canon across all mediums.

Qualifications​

• Experience in creative leadership within TTRPGs, video games, film/TV, or transmedia storytelling.
• Strong understanding of World of Darkness lore and themes.
• Proven expertise in franchise/IP development and narrative world-building.
• Ability to translate a brand’s identity across multiple formats.
• Excellent writing and storytelling skills, with a focus on horror themes.
• Experience working with licensing and external creative partners.

Preferred Skills​

• Experience in tabletop RPG design.
• Familiarity with LARP or immersive storytelling.
• Background in video game narrative development.
• Experience working with TV/film production teams.
• Comfortable engaging with fandoms and communities.

They REALLY want some of that Netflix money by turning the World of Darkness into a TV show.

Again.

 

[SayMyName]

The map being small is hugely incline.

That's only the Downtown area. As far as I'm aware, they still haven't showed the other four districts.

Nope. That’s the whole map.

From one of the devs:

It's the whole map. What you can't see from the image is the countless alleys to sneak around in and the rooftops to watch over the city from on high.

I think this world is ridiculously small. I'm sure climbing walls and channels will spice it up a bit... but still.

That's a GOOD thing

 

[Heroic Liberator]

They REALLY want some of that Netflix money by turning the World of Darkness into a TV show.


Again.

I think there's an audience for that tbh. Not necessarily White Wolf fans (but them too), but people that liked shows like True Blood before it jumped the shark. So if it has similar aesthetics to that sort of show, but with a more coherent setting, it could be good. Not *great*, but I wouldn't mind something on the level of Stranger Things or what have you (a current year show with meh to ok writing, but good retro aesthetics).

 

[SayMyName]

"What if we just hired someone who knew what they were doing?" - Paradox

https://career.paradoxplaza.com/jobs/5562404-creative-director-world-of-darkness

The Role

As Creative Director, you will oversee the creative vision and IP development of World of Darkness across tabletop RPGs, linear media, video games, LARPs, and other brand extensions. You will define and maintain the core identity of World of Darkness, ensuring its rich lore, gothic themes, and complex storytelling remain compelling, modern, and adaptable to various media.

This role requires deep narrative expertise, franchise oversight experience, and a passion for horror, dark fantasy, and interactive storytelling. The ideal candidate is both a visionary storyteller and a strategic leader, capable of balancing creative direction with business needs.

Some bits from the form:

We believe close collaboration is key to both your growth and our success, which is why our team works fully on-site with flexible working hours. Would this setup work for you?*

So no remote working lmao. Have fun moving to Stockholm or somewhere nearby.

In our dynamic work environment, we embrace the integration of AI tools to enhance efficiency and innovation. Could you share any experiences you have with using AI tool in your workflow?*

Call your game Sloppenheimer the way it is shunned by the customer base for using AI images.

This question is private and will only be seen by the HR team and the Recruiting manager. We're asking this question to get a better understanding of your expectation from start, which makes it easier for us to discuss it during the process. Please present your Monthly salary expectation in Swedish Krona (SEK).

Ask too much and your application immediately goes into the digital shredder.

And from the posting proper:

Key Responsibilities​

IP & Brand Development​

• Establish and uphold the creative vision for World of Darkness.
• Develop and implement long-term IP strategies across multiple platforms.
• Align product development priorities with brand objectives.
• Strengthen brand identity through marketing, sales, and licensing collaboration.
• Maintain lore consistency while fostering new storytelling opportunities.

Creative Leadership & Strategy​

• Provide strategic creative direction to drive project execution.
• Ensure brand cohesion across all media.

Tabletop RPGs & Live Experiences​

• Guide the creative development of World of Darkness TTRPGs.
• Support the growth of LARP and immersive storytelling.

Video Games & Transmedia​

• Partner with game developers to maintain franchise integrity.
• Ensure faithful adaptations in film/TV projects.
• Maintain consistent canon across all mediums.

Qualifications​

• Experience in creative leadership within TTRPGs, video games, film/TV, or transmedia storytelling.
• Strong understanding of World of Darkness lore and themes.
• Proven expertise in franchise/IP development and narrative world-building.
• Ability to translate a brand’s identity across multiple formats.
• Excellent writing and storytelling skills, with a focus on horror themes.
• Experience working with licensing and external creative partners.

Preferred Skills​

• Experience in tabletop RPG design.
• Familiarity with LARP or immersive storytelling.
• Background in video game narrative development.
• Experience working with TV/film production teams.
• Comfortable engaging with fandoms and communities.

They REALLY want some of that Netflix money by turning the World of Darkness into a TV show.

Again.

WoD has massive untapped potential as IP. That could only be a net positive

 

[ERYFKRAD]

Ok how do we get them to hire Storyfag ?