Vampire: The Masquerade — Bloodlines 2 delayed again to 2021

Vampire: The Masquerade — Bloodlines 2 has been delayed again. The action role-playing game, a sequel to 2004’s cult hit, will not launch in 2020, developer Hardsuit Labs announced on Tuesday morning.

“Due to the quality bar and ambitions we have set for ourselves, we have made the difficult decision that we need more time,” Hardsuit’s Andy Kipling said in a statement posted to Twitter. “That means our goal to release in 2020 is no longer possible. Moving launch is one of the changes we are making to ensure the best player experience possible.”

This is the game’s second delay. In October 2019, Hardsuit pushed the game off its original first quarter 2020 launch window, again saying it needed more time to complete a stable and polished product. Hardsuit and Paradox Interactive didn’t give the game a new launch date at the time, but said it would still release in 2020. The game is now eying a 2021 launch.

Vampire: The Masquerade — Bloodlines 2 is a direct sequel to 2004’s Vampire: The Masquerade — Bloodlines, by the defunct Troika Games and Activision. That PC game was praised for its narrative and the depth of the role-playing system, but it was undermined by several technical problems that couldn’t be patched out in those days.

Bloodlines 2, which is set in present-day Seattle, is written by Cara Ellison and Brian Mitsoda, who was the writer of the first game. The two games are part of the Vampire: the Masquerade tabletop RPG, now in its fifth edition. Bloodlines 2 is scheduled for launch on PlayStation 4, PS5, Windows PC, Xbox One and Xbox Series X.