There is a plethora of things we’d like to see in Bloodlines 2, but the five things below must be the sequel’s essential aspects.
Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines is a masterpiece despite its glaring issues. This excellent RPG offers a dark vampire journey set in the World of Darkness. It’s an incredible title that offers all the best elements of a great RPG.
That’s why its sequel has some really big shoes to fill. That’s why fans of the first game haven’t gotten their hopes up since the announcement of the sequel. When we took into its extremely long development process, we weren’t expecting to see an actual gameplay trailer. However, the last gameplay trailer did offer a glimpse into the sequel, although lacking some of the things we’d like to see in Bloodlines 2.
Below, we listed the essential features and aspects that Bloodlines 2 must come with. Without further ado, let’s dive into them.
5. A Better Feeding Mechanic
The concept of feeding Vampire: The Masquerade is a bit different. It’s a way to keep the beast within a vampire at bay. That’s why Kindred, the vampires in the World of Darkness, have to feed from humans and animals.
Naturally, the original game had this feature and did a good job of portraying the Hunger. However, the sequel should expand upon this concept and make the action more immersive. Unlike the ones in Vampyr and other vampire games, an actual compelling gameplay mechanic is what we’d like to see in Bloodlines 2.
4. Focus on Masquerade Violations
The whole concept of the Masquerade is what this fictional universe is about. Most of the vampire clans, primarily Camarilla, function to keep the Kindred away from the light while also allowing them to thrive in the modern world. Although some clans don’t align with this objective, the possibility of violating the Masquerade is always an intriguing concept.
However, the first game couldn’t portray it in a great way, probably due to its technical limitations. For instance, feeding from a mortal in public would violate the Masquerade. But since the game lacked a sprawling city filled with people, violating this eternal code was actually difficult. That’s why the highly anticipated sequel should make being a vampire a lot more difficult. There is no doubt that this will enrich gameplay. So it’s definitely one of the things we’d like to see in Bloodlines 2.
3. Much Better State at Launch
There is no doubt that Bloodlines 2 should follow in the footsteps of its acclaimed predecessor. However, this doesn’t include the abysmal state the original game was in. Although some of the issues of the original game were inherent, we can still vividly remember the technical problems that troubled the game’s launch.
Although it’s a long shot with the current games like Cyberpunk 2077 and other open-world titles, smooth and polished gameplay mechanics are what we’d like to see in Bloodlines 2.
2. Post-Main Story Content
The story of the first game revolved around a sarcophagus coming from Ankara. It surely had one of the best game storylines that can still captivate you today as well.
While it was great to take that all in with all of its twists and characters, Bloodlines didn’t let you continue your playing once you complete the main story. As a solid sequel, Bloodlines 2 should allow us to resume our journey in the modern nights of Seattle. It should also avoid offering a linear experience and be more like the best RPG games.
1. Detailed Character Customisation with More Clans
The first game wasn’t quite rich in terms of character customisation options at the beginning. But it allowed for a really detailed character progression system that encourages replayability. That’s why we still play it today.
The high level of replayability, thanks to detailed character customisation, is what we’d like to see in Bloodlines 2. While this is what we’ve been hoping for, being able to create characters from four clans only is actually disappointing. Still, Bloodlines 2 can save itself by incorporating a detailed, multilayered RPG structure. It should hopefully compensate for the fact that it only allows the creation of characters in one of four clans.
Final Thoughts
There are many things we’d like to see in Bloodlines 2. But we can’t get our hopes up due to the problematic development process of the game. The current studio helming the development, The Chinese Room, is best known for games that are more condensed and narrative-focused. Not only are they on foreign waters with Bloodlines 2, but they are also working on a scrapped project of the Hardsuit Labs, the former studio behind the game.
Solid writing and choices are the first things we’d like to see in Bloodlines 2. That said, the latest gameplay trailers solely focused on action and combat. While it featured a dialogue section alongside the combat sequence, the writing didn’t seem close to the original game as well. Here’s hoping that The Chinese Room can surprise the gaming landscape, especially the fans of 2004’s RPG masterpiece.
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