The Masquerade – Books That Deserve Their Own Games

Changes in the development of Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 resulted in Seattle being besieged by a new conflict, this time involving a mysterious cult and the supernatural-hunting Second Inquisition. With new devs from The Chinese Room creating an Elder as the game’s protagonist, Bloodlines 2 players will taste what it’s like to become a powerful vampire akin to Vampire: The Masquerade novels.

RELATED: Bloodlines 2: Ways The Video Game Is Best (& Why The Tabletop Version is Better)

However, newcomers to Vampire: The Masquerade may be interested in how similar Bloodlines 2 could be to stories featured in the TTRPG. With the depth of the story implied in Bloodlines 2, players may be interested to learn what other Vampire: The Masquerade books are worth the exploration in video game format.

10 Winter’s Teeth

Despite being a comic book, Winter’s Teeth released within the timeline of V5 can make for a perfect introduction to the world of Vampire: The Masquerade. In its story, ex-Anarch-turned-Camarilla Hound Cecily Baine is thrust into the middle of a conspiracy when his new charge, the Fledgling Alejandra, ends up being more than what she seems to be.

With much of the comic books detailing Cecily and Alejandra’s struggle for survival amid sieges and political moves, Winter’s Teeth can become a vampiric take on The Last of Us where Cecily becomes the Joel to Alejandra’s Ellie. Set under the backdrop of the massive Twin Cities, a Winter’s Teeth game should have a lot of regions to explore in an open-world RPG.

9 Fall Of London

In the Fall of London sourcebook, players take on the role of a Coterie tasked to obtain five artifacts that will lead to the return of Mithras, the previous Prince of London. Unfortunately for them, this all happens during the canonical Operation Antigen, where the vampire hunters of the Secret Inquisition manage to eradicate most of London’s Kindred in 2012.

With the Second Inquisition already an enemy in VTM: Bloodhunt gameplay, featuring their success in besieging a city can cement their reputation. The hunt for Mithras’s artifacts could be in the guise of a full-blown adventure game, or a cooperative experience that would have players hunt for the artifact while avoiding the Second Inquisition and other vampire parties.

8 The Second Inquisition

Players who want to experience the sheer power of vampires could play a game starring their newest enemies: The Second Inquisition. The book of the same name is a sourcebook detailing the human faction, revealing the Second Inquisition as a secret group of agents across intelligence agencies who were made aware of the existence of Kindred.

In the pursuit of these so-called “Blank Bodies,” the Second Inquisition employed a number of weapons and technologies to pursue their targets. A game based on The Second Inquisition could be a team-based shooter, where players form SI teams deployed in various missions where they face Coteries of powerful vampire opponents.

7 The Victorian Age Trilogy

Originally released as a tie-in to The Victorian Age: Vampire sourcebook, The Victorian Age Trilogy by Philippe Boulle gives a stellar view of a burgeoning vampire society in the aforementioned era through the eyes of Regina Blake, a noblewoman slowly inducted into the World of Darkness. Regina’s reluctance in her newfound immortality and her unintended involvement in Kindred politics make for a compelling story, showing a more politically fueled take on an otherwise drama-slash-action VTM chronicle.

RELATED: Vampire The Masquerade Bloodhunt: Mistakes That Bring You To The Final Death

Regina’s tale across the three books could become a compelling RPG, much in the tone of VTM’s own slate of narrative games such as Swansong set in the modern era. With the non-VTM game Vampyr perhaps being the only vampire video game set before the 21st Century, a Victorian Age Trilogy title could give a fresh take on how the Kindred had affected history with the backdrop of rich lore.

6 Gehenna: The Final Night

Tying in to the Gehenna sourcebook is Gehenna: The Final Night by Ari Marmell, a novel that officially puts an end to the then-metaplot of the Vampire side of the World of Darkness. Majorly told from the perspective of Kindred historian Cuthbert Beckett, The Final Night takes a tour around the world as various notable Vampire characters settle their affairs. Its premise can give players a renewed sense of dread as Caine’s story is put to a close – with perhaps the rest of the world dragged with him.

Set around the same time as Bloodlines 1, a game surrounding The Final Night could make for a compelling direct sequel to the game. Its story can also mesh together with the original Bloodlines title, wherein the mummified king residing in the Ankaran Sarcophagus could become a plot device that contributes to the end of Kindred society.

5 Clan Novel Saga

One of the most surprising works of fiction to come out of the World of Darkness is the Clan Novel Saga, a 13-book story told from the perspective of each of the Vampire: The Masquerade Clans. The novels themselves show the story of the Camarilla and the Sabbat’s hidden war to control the United States East Coast, beginning with the fall of Atlanta to the Sword of Caine, all while a small contingent of vampires try to stop an artifact that can decimate Kindred-kind from falling to the wrong hands.

Similar to how the player is inserted in the bigger narrative in Bloodlines 1, a game based on the Clan Novel Saga could have players do errands for relevant characters such as Ramona, Victoria Ash, Jan Pieterzoon, Lucita de Aragon, and even Sascha Vykos. Considering the impact of the Clan Novel Saga on the rest of V20 lore, a game of such depth could give players a larger-scale view of overarching Kindred politics.

4 Masquerade Of The Red Death

Players of Vampire: The Masquerade who want a more suspenseful take on their Vampire gameplay could benefit from a game based on Masquerade of the Red Death. Written by Robert Weinberg, this trilogy will have detective Dire McCann and socialite Alicia Varney join forces as they unravel the true nature of the mysterious Red Death.

RELATED: Things You Should Know About Vampire: The Masquerade – Sins Of The Sires

When the entity makes simultaneous attacks against the Camarilla and the Sabbat, it’s made evident that this entity is either powerful or insane enough to even lay a finger on these powerful individuals. This potential “whodunit” take on an investigative game can make this trilogy a decent entry-point to the intrigue, suspense, and horrors surrounding the World of Darkness.

3 Trilogy Of The Blood Curse

With immortal physiology practically immune to disease, the Trilogy of the Blood Curse explores the origins of a disease that seemingly drives Kindred mad before inevitably killing them. At the center of it all is Owain Evans, a Ventrue Elder in a moral dilemma as his growing affection towards the Camarilla Sect has begun interfering with his mission as a Sabbat spy.

Events in the Trilogy happen around the same time as the Clan Novel Saga, giving devs an incentive to make a potential sandbox that should go in line with the canon’s ongoing East Coast conflict. Owain is also another example of an Elder with more fluidity to move around both the Ivory Tower and the Sword of Caine, which mirrors Bloodlines 2’s new plot also starring a vampire Elder.

2 Prince Of The City

Fans of Vampire: The Masquerade who watched the L.A. By Night web series might be surprised at the stark difference in how Vannevar Thomas was depicted in Prince of the City. Keith Herber’s take on Vannevar’s rise as the up-and-coming Prince of San Francisco seems something straight out of a crime story. Prince of the City shows an ambitious former aristocrat who has set his sights in the glory of immortality as a Camarilla prince.

Similar to The Godfather which depicted the player’s protagonist’s rise in power, Vannevar’s rise to princedom can have a supernatural twist involving combat and politicking. The book’s plots chronicling the periodic rise and ebb of Vannevar’s power could be depicted in periodic fights against vampires as well as territory management.

1 Grails Covenant Trilogy

With more modern vampire fiction depicting these immortals in recent times, a game inspired by the Grails Covenant Trilogy could be a much-needed change of pace in the supernatural genre. David Wilson’s trilogy explores the Lasombra Elder Montrovant’s quest in acquiring the Holy Grail for the glory of his Clan. This quest led to the creation of the Knights Templar, the ire of the Catholic Church, and activities involving the mysterious figure known only as Kli Kodesh.

The Grails Covenant bringing Montrovant from Europe to the Middle East could be the site of a historical fantasy game akin to Assassin’s Creed. Instead of hiding from enemies through stealth, Montrovant would need to use his vampiric Disciplines with care to avoid suspicion and breaking the Masquerade, or else have his very own organization pitted against him.

Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines

Platform(s)

PC

Released

November 16, 2004

Developer

Troika Games