Paradox makes a drastic move and admits to a series of mistakes that led to Bloodlines 2's failure. „The responsibility lies fully with us”

After the disappointing release of Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2, and the game's sales falling below expectations, Paradox Interactive announced a write-off of the game’s development costs amounting to 355 million Swedish krona (about 37 million dollars).

Sales didn't meet expectations

Although Paradox hasn't disclosed official results, analytical data from GameDiscoverCo suggests that Bloodlines 2 sold only 121.5 thousand copies on Steam, which amounts to approximately 4 million dollars in net revenue—a sum disproportionate to the years of development costs.

The CEO of Paradox, Fredrik Wester, admitted that the company overestimated the potential of the project.

Wester also added that the problem turned out to be the fact that Bloodlines 2 lies outside the main competencies of Paradox, which is primarily known for complex strategy games.

Paradox keeps its promises

Despite losses, the publisher confirmed that it will deliver two planned story expansions that were part of the more expensive editions of the game.

Development marked with problems

Paradox acquired the rights to the brand in 2015 and then commissioned Hardsuit Labs to make Bloodlines 2. However, the game faced successive delays, and in 2020, key creators left the project. Shortly after, the entire Hardsuit Labs followed suit. In the end, the game was taken over by The Chinese Room studio, which delivered a much more linear and narrative-focused version. One of its creative directors, Dan Pinchbeck, recently revealed that the creators were aware of how risky it could be to call the game a sequel to the original Bloodlines.

Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2

October 21, 2025

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• action RPG
• Paradox Interactive
• game sales
• Vampire: The Masquerade (franchise)