Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 pre-orders are being refunded

Paradox Interactive has decided to refund all Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 pre-orders in an unexpected move. It may not come as a surprise to many of the players that have been waiting for the release of the game for several years already, but the official reasons behind such an action are indeed unexpected. According to Paradox, the development of Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 continues, but they are updating the content of all the game's editions and bonus content.

"We acknowledge it was a long time ago that many of you pre-ordered Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2.  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. We are thus offering refunds to anyone who has pre-ordered any edition of Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2. As part of this process, we are proactively refunding all pre-orders of physical products, including the Collector’s Edition. The digital versions of the First Blood Edition, Unsanctioned Edition and Blood Moon Edition remain, but can be refunded if you choose."

Bloodlines 2 is not quite dead

You are probably considering getting your money back as soon as possible, given the disaster that the development of Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 has been so far, but the second part of that announcement may make you change your mind. Paradox promises more updates about the game for September and has released several new screenshots.

While the universe of Vampire: The Masquerade has been the inspiration for several games since Bloodlines 2 was first announced, most of these fit into a completely different category. The setting is so complex that representing all the depth of the interactions between the different vampire clans and the use of vampiric disciplines in combat may have been too much for Hardsuit Labs. Unfortunately, the level of communication between the fans and the developers has been almost inexistent since the studio in charge of the game was changed.

Paradox would need to have something really big prepared for September if it wants to regain the trust of the fans. There are plenty of other Vampire: The Masquerade games available right now that deliver very solid narrative-driven experiences, including Swansong, Coteries of New York and Shadows of New York. You can find all of these at the best price on our comparator alongside the first Vampire: Masquerade - Bloodlines, which is still a great game.