All Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 physical pre-orders will be refunded to customers. After years of silence, publisher Paradox Interactive came forward in a blog post, claiming that its unnamed studio has been hard at work on the RPG horror sequel, while acknowledging that it had been a long time since fans received a proper update. Bloodlines 2 was originally announced with a 2020 release window, only to get delayed several times until 2021, when Paradox removed studio Hardsuit Labs from the project. Since then, the game hasn’t had a definite launch window, with no word on who replaced the team.
Fans can now rejoice as Paradox Interactive has teased a ‘big announcement’ for Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 in September. No specifics were given as to whether it will be a live event or a trailer, but we received some new environmental screenshots to hint at ongoing development. In the meantime, the publisher is offering refunds to those who pre-ordered the game, in light of the content changes. “We acknowledge it was a long time ago that many of you pre-ordered Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2,” the post reads. “As development continues, we will be updating the game’s editions and bonus content, and we want to provide the best value to those of you who supported us via digital pre-order after all this time.”
All editions, including the physical Collector’s Edition, will be ‘proactively’ refunded as the bonus content has now been updated. The previously advertised items in the physical editions are no longer representative of the current game’s build. This excludes digital versions of the First Blood Edition, Unsanctioned Edition, and Blood Moon Edition, though Paradox is willing to offer refunds if the player desires. Valid customers will be contacted by DPI Merchandising GmbH via email, while digital refunds can be acquired by visiting the store’s support page. An FAQ page for the same also mentions that it cannot guarantee any refunds to customers residing in Russia, due to ‘current sanctions.’ Information about the newly included content will be revealed in time.
In September, Paradox will also reveal who the new developer on Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 is. The game is notorious for its troubled production, starting with the firing of two of its top employees in late 2020. Months before that, we got a cinematic trailer for the game, set in Seattle and highlighting various vampiric abilities such as charm, cunning, and terror, as they prowled the streets at night. There were brief instances of gameplay as well, including the ability to summon bat swarms, teleportation across the map, and heightened agility that’d allow you to scale walls with ease.