Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 Players Have To Be Careful

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Summary

  • In Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2, players must prevent mortals from discovering vampires to avoid severe consequences.
  • Breaking the Masquerade results in a progression of penalties, with police actively pursuing the player at the highest level.
  • The game features a system where players must either uphold the Masquerade by avoiding detection or eliminate witnesses to avoid penalties.

In a recent disclosure, the creators of Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 have explained the functioning of the Masquerade system within the game. This system requires players to conceal their extraordinary abilities from ordinary citizens.

In the Vampire: The Masquerade tabletop game, there’s a principle called “The Masquerade” that all undead abide by. This principle dictates that vampires must conceal their existence from humans. If this rule is violated, the consequences are fatal, but some leeway may be granted for minor breaches or if a disguise can be maintained to uphold the secret.

In the original Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines, there was a system designed to mimic real-world societal norms. If players chose to exhibit their supernatural abilities in public spaces, they could face consequences such as police aggression, escalating to a game over scenario where they were relentlessly pursued and ultimately faced the sunrise, meeting an untimely demise.

A recent announcement on the Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 official site affirms that the Masquerade mechanism will be reinstated. A clip posted on the World of Darkness YouTube channel showcases the consequence for breaching it, as the main character is pursued and fatally impaled with a stake to the heart.

Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 Forces Players To Uphold The Masquerade

In secluded areas, the character has unlimited access to their vampire abilities. However, when a human is in close proximity, a visible eye icon pops up on the screen, indicating that the main character is under observation.

If a player performs an action that breaches the Masquerade (like employing Blood Magic to cause someone to explode), circles will appear around their character’s eyes, progressively increasing in number as the severity of the Masquerade break increases.

  • Upheld (Green): Minor infractions, such as being seen jumping abnormally high or running too fast.
  • Caution (Orange): Triggered by excessive actions, such as feeding, using violent abilities, or accumulating too many minor infractions. At this point, humans become suspicious. If someone witnesses the crime, they may report it to the police. Players can deal with the witness directly or avoid the police. Using an ability to make witnesses forget what they saw can be an effective strategy.
  • Engaged/Broken (Red): At this stage, the police are actively pursuing the player. They must break their line of sight immediately. If the meter fills completely, the Camarilla will take decisive action to end the player’s activities swiftly and mercilessly.

Fortunately, as a devout fan, I’m thrilled that players can dodge penalties by upholding moral integrity or… discretely silencing any potential witnesses before they have a chance to speak. This element of the Vampire: The Masquerade series is integral to its unique charm, and it’s simply fantastic to witness its return in Bloodlines 2.

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2025-02-12 20:39