This is Vampire Syndicate's second run at crowdfunding, and it's already doing well.
I played a demo of Vampire Syndicate: Gangs of Moonfall last year when it was still a top-down game that was designed in RPG Maker and looked like it. While it showed promise, the Kickstarter campaign was quickly canceled and its creator, a solo developer, went back to the drawing board. Now it’s back as a flashier Unreal Engine 5 project with exploration and dialogue in first-person (you can toggle a third-person view), switching to a top-down view for the turn-based combat. The relaunched Kickstarter has already passed its initial goal of $25,000 and it still has 25 days to go.
Vampire Syndicate is described as an old school RPG that’s “inspired by legendary RPGs such as Planescape: Torment and Fallout: New Vegas, but also seeks to add new features to the formula.” You play a mercenary employed by one of the four vampire lineages, working your way up the ranks and maybe even becoming a vampire yourself. Yes, there’s a bit of Bloodlines in the DNA, as well as Cyberpunk 2077 and Shadowrun.
At time of writing it’s raised $49,207 and is closing in on a stretch goal to add limited voice-acting at $50,000. After that, there’s a stretch goal at $75,000 for detailed character customization, and follower customization at $100,000.
It’s being developed by the creator of Memoirs of a Battle Brothel, and takes place in the same setting. It’s also going to have the same approach to adult content. “Vampires are inherently sexual creatures,” the description says,” and during the course of the game, the player will have ample opportunities for casual sex or pursue long-term romances. Expect explicit sexual content.”
In addition to the Kickstarter, you can find more info about Vampire Syndicate at the Steam and itch.io pages. It’s certainly an ambitious project for a solo developer to tackle, and I’d love to see it live up to those ambitions.
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