Bloody Hell, Paradox! 'Bloodlines 2's Grubby Paid Clan Plan Just Got 'Adjusted' (Thank Goodness)
AI Gaming News Author · Eurogamer ·
Paradox is "adjusting" its controversial plan to charge extra for two core playable clans (Toreador and Lasombra) in the upcoming *Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2*, following significant community backlash over the paywalling of essential character choices.
Right, so I’ve been tinkering with this *Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2* story all morning, and bloody hell, it’s been wilder than it first appeared. You know that feeling when you cast a spell, and it works a bit too well, but not in the way you intended? Like accidentally summoning a flock of glitter-unicorns when you just wanted a cup of tea? That’s kinda what Paradox seemed to do with their initial pricing announcement for *Bloodlines 2*. But, good news, mate! It looks like they're finally listening to the howls of the community and making some "adjustments."
For those who might’ve been living under a rock (or maybe just avoiding the eternal drama surrounding this game's development), *Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2* is the long-awaited sequel to one of the most beloved cult classic RPGs of all time. We’re talking about a game that’s been passed between developers like a cursed artefact – first Hardsuit Labs, now The Chinese Room. Expectations are, shall we say, a bit high and incredibly fragile. It’s like waiting for a prophecy to come true, but every few years, a different prophet steps up with a new scroll.
So, when Paradox finally slapped a release date (October 21st, mark your calendars, fiends!) and pricing details onto the whole affair, we all leaned in. And then, we collectively recoiled. The plan, as it was originally laid out, involved charging an extra £20 (or €22/$22 for our continental and trans-Atlantic mates) to access two of the game’s six playable clans: the elegant Toreador and the shadowy Lasombra. This wasn’t just a fancy hat or a unique weapon skin, mind you. This was core, fundamental character choice.
Now, I’m a naturally curious sort, always wondering "what happens if..." and eager to dig deeper into gaming stories. And what happens if you paywall what amounts to character classes? Well, you get a whole lot of very unhappy vampires, that's what.
Let's be fair dinkum for a sec: plenty of games sell extra content at launch. Deluxe editions, season passes, cosmetic bundles – we're practically drowning in 'em. And the base price of *Bloodlines 2* itself was even presented as cheaper than some other AAA titles, supposedly to offset these "optional" packs. But here's the rub: clans in *Vampire: The Masquerade* aren't just flavour text. They're your bloodline, your faction, your distinct playstyle, and your narrative hook into the dark, tangled world of the Kindred.
Choosing a clan is essentially choosing your character class, your role-playing archetype. It defines your unique Disciplines (powers), your place in vampire society, and even how certain NPCs react to you. It's like buying *Skyrim* and being told that to play as a stealthy Khajiit or a powerful High Elf mage, you'd need to fork over extra cash. It fundamentally alters the core RPG experience from the get-go.
And it wasn't just *any* clans they chose to lock away either. The Toreador are the seductive, charismatic artists, embodying that classic, enthralling vampire fantasy (yes, they can literally enthrall their prey with a kiss, sounds about right, doesn't it?). The Lasombra, on the other hand, are masters of darkness, manipulating shadows for combat and movement – a seriously cool, edgy choice for those who prefer to lurk. These aren't just niche picks; they're iconic archetypes that many players would naturally gravitate towards. I even had a brief go with both in a preview build, and the Lasombra in particular felt fantastic.
Now, there *is* an important caveat: you *can* technically unlock powers from other clans. But it's a proper faff. It costs more skill points, requires specific blood types (which are essentially an in-game currency), and you need to track down specific NPCs to teach you these forbidden arts. So while not completely impossible, your journey through *Bloodlines 2* will undoubtedly be shaped by your initial, chosen clan. You'll stick with what you chose, or what you *paid* for.
The justification for this rather… *unconventional* approach, as relayed by developer The Chinese Room at Gamescom, was that these two clans represented content developed *beyond* what was originally planned for the game. Remember, The Chinese Room inherited *Bloodlines 2* midway through development. So, their argument was, "Hey, we added these in, they're extra, so we're selling them as extra."
But here's where my gently skeptical wizard hat starts twitching. If content is developed *during* a game's main development cycle and appears alongside everything else on launch day, just with a padlock symbol, is it truly "additional" or just... withheld? It feels more like carving off parts of a completed meal and selling the side dishes separately, rather than offering new courses. Paradox has a track record, bless 'em, of leveraging paid DLC as a significant revenue stream for their titles. We've come to expect it, to a degree. But there's a world of difference between expansions that genuinely add new chapters or mechanics *post-launch* and segmenting core character options from day one.
This decision, frankly, tainted the upcoming arrival of an excruciatingly long-awaited game. It screamed of a cynical monetization attempt rather than genuine value addition. And the community, predictably, erupted faster than a vampire exposed to sunlight.
Luckily, it seems the developers and publisher have been listening. Community developer DebbieElla confirmed on the *Bloodlines 2* Discord that they are "listening to your feedback about the Lasombra and Toreador clan access, and we're making adjustments ahead of launch to reflect this."
"Adjustments." That's the magical word, isn't it? What does this mean? Will the clans be free? Will they be unlockable in-game through sheer bloody effort? Will the game’s pricing model shift entirely? We don't know yet, but the fact that they're acknowledging the problem and promising changes is, dare I say it, a cautiously optimistic sign. It shows that player feedback, when loud and unified enough, can sometimes punch through the corporate PR shield.
It's a reminder that while the gaming industry often tries to push the boundaries of monetization, there's a line. And when that line involves slicing up core gameplay elements, gamers will always call 'em out. Here's hoping these "adjustments" turn this chaotic situation around and we get the *Bloodlines 2* we've been dreaming of, sans the grubby paid clan plans. Because a world of infinite possibilities shouldn't start with a paywall.
Tags: Vampire The Masquerade Bloodlines 2, Paradox Interactive, Gaming Industry, DLC, RPG
Original article: Eurogamer