Vampire: the Masquerade Bloodlines 2 Reveals Main Character Phyre and Her Voice
Nov. 1, 2023Vampire: the Masquerade Bloodlines 2 Reveals Main Character Phyre and Her Voice
Vampire: the Masquerade Bloodlines 2 suddenly revealed that it will feature a voiced protagonist named Phyre.
Fans of the Vampire: the Masquerade Bloodlines franchise finally have some more information from new developers The Chinese Room. The World of Darkness YouTube channel featured a lengthy showcase with the sequel’s narrative director. Here, alongside executive vice president of the World of Darkness Sean Greaney, the pair show off a first look at our game’s protagonist.
It is revealed that Vampire: the Masquerade Bloodlines 2 will feature a fully voiced protagonist this time around. This is a far cry from the first game that had an unvoiced character which made it much easier to roleplay. Phyre here is different, as she will have a backstory attached to her. Aside from that, she is an Elder Kindred, a grizzled veteran of the vampire world if you will. Phyre has been running through the darkness since the 17th century when she was originally turned.
Phyre can be fully customized from top to bottom. That is, you can freely change her looks, gender, class, and clan – the most important part of the Bloodlines franchise. But since Phyre is already an established character in the vampire world, this comes with some caveats. Some entities will have already heard of you, what with being hundreds of years old. They may respect you, or think that you’re old news.
This brings us to Fabien, another main character in Vampire: the Masquerade Bloodlines 2. Since we are unfamiliar with all the modernities (like smartphones, hopefully), we need someone to guide us. Introducing an enigmatic character called Fabien, a thinblood vampire, who is trapped in an even more mysterious mark on Phyre’s hand.
Fabien acts as an inner voice to Phyre, explaining things to her about this alien world. He understands the current political landscape and offers insights on how to navigate it, which makes him a great asset. Phyre is the only entity that can hear and interact with the voice, which will also serve as a good guide to players who are unfamiliar with the Vampire series.
The inclusion of Fabien in Vampire: the Masquerade Bloodlines 2 is supposed to help “anchor” the player. According to the developers, he will act as a stark contrast to our main character. Phyre is an elder, ancient, and powerful. She has grown farther and farther away from humanity, eventually treating people as mere prey. Fabien is much younger but is much more human as a result.
Of course, the player can choose to ignore everything that the fledgling has to say, and just give in to the power. As is consistent with the franchise,choice is a big thingin Vampire: the Masquerade Bloodlines 2.
Phyre has made quite the legend of herself already, as seen in some of the teaser footage in the showcase. She has attained the moniker of “Slayer”, for presumably slaying a lot of fellow creatures of the night. Players can choose to lean into that persona and become a wave of destruction that will tear at anything that moves. Of course, this will result in different consequences as compared to a more subtle approach to encounters.
Players can also choose which clan Phyre will eventually end up in. The original game had 7 joinable clans, but Vampire: the Masquerade Bloodlines 2 will only have 5 joinable ones. Selecting which family to join should have a profound impact on how the world sees you, as these clans are not at all friendly with each other, to say the least. Aside from story beats, Phyre’s choice of clan can also dictate the types of powers she will have available.
Another big choice is how Phyre will decide to feed in Bloodlines 2. You can bully or terrorize potential prey, or kill them outright. It is hinted that Resonance, the emotional state of Phyre’s meal, will have different effects on how satisfied she is afterward. Many things will affect a target’s resonance, including the way you dress.
Auberon
Writer at Fextralife. I really like vanilla ice cream.
