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Publisher Paradox Interactive has announced that it is to delay upcoming vampiric RPG Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 out of 2021, and it’s removing studio Hardsuit Labs from development duties on the title.
The news came as part of the company’s end of year report, in which the company noted the game’s most recent delay from back in August due to “organisational changes” but has now decided “We have now chosen to postpone the release of the game further, and we will not be launching the game in 2021. We have also decided that Hardsuit Labs will no longer be leading the development of Bloodlines 2, and we have started a collaboration with a new studio partner to finish work on the game. This has been a difficult decision, but we are convinced that it is the right way forward to do the game justice.”
On the reasons for this latest turn of events, Paradox noted that the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic had had a “mixed effect on our business” and said “our studio organization in particular has found it difficult to maintain the usual production pace. We have therefore chosen to postpone several planned but not communicated releases to ensure the right quality.”
A statement to players via the game’s official social channels that also mentioned that pre-orders would no longer be taken for the game was complimentary of Hardsuit’s work on the title, saying “We’d like to take this opportunity to honor Hardsuit Labs for their efforts and thank them for their hard work on the project. The studio has done a tremendous job in laying the foundations for the game and we hope that you, the community, will also appreciate their contribution to Bloodlines 2.”
It’s been a rocky year for the development of Bloodlines 2 (development woes also being something that famously befell its 2004 predecessor), and this is the latest roadblock since losing its narrative designer and creative director from the game last summer as well. There’s no new release date for the game yet, but Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 is expected to launch on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4 and PC should it eventually see the light of day.
In case you are unable to access the website, you can read the Bloodlines 2 Development Update right here. pic.twitter.com/kdTp5gpBJe
— Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 (@VtM_Bloodlines) February 23, 2021
