Good evening my fellow Kindred,

We welcome you all with this March update! This month we decided to do a little interview with our core staff - Switchu - our project lead - and Morgoth - our visual lead. We hope that it’ll be interesting to know opinions coming directly from our team.

• Tell us about your experience as a game developer.

Morgoth (M): I have worked in game-dev as a 3D Generalist for around 2 years. My usual job mostly consists of preparing 3D models on demand - either doing them from scratch or adjusting existing ones from packages or already created. I also do some shader work, texture adjustments, and most of the time general mesh optimization for game purposes. I started as a humble modder and it’s the main space where I gained my initial experience. In the Sunset Chronicles nearly all you see is made by me - starting from icons and ending with characters.

Switchu (S): I’ve been a game developer for around 8 years now, though most of that time I worked only on personal projects that I did not intend to publish. I got my first job in the gamedev industry about 3 years ago and learned a lot since then, but it didn’t take me long to realize that I wanted to create something of my own. The aspect of game development I’m most proficient with is programming, but I’ve had to pick on a lot of additional skills along the way - shaders, animation, special effects, design, you name it. Knowing that little bit of everything gives me an edge when working with more specialized team members.

• What games were your biggest inspirations?

M: I would say VtM: Bloodlines, but it would be an exaggeration. Our game is different from Bloodlines starting with the camera we’re using and ending with planned complexity. What links our games is the setting. The other examples would be old-school RPGs like Planescape: Torment, the first two Fallouts, the first two Baldur’s Gates, Shadowrun, and the X-Com series. Maybe a little bit from far less-known productions like Phantom Doctrine or Gamedec.

S: I simply wanted to tell a story, one that will be engaging, mature and complex. In my opinion, RPGs are the best medium for that kind of storytelling, and thus this genre seemed like a natural choice. I think Morgoth basically covered it when it comes to games that inspired me, though I’ll add L.A. Noire to the pile.

• What is your favorite part of Vampire: The Masquerade?

M: Political intrigue and personal horror. Those two got me into the setting. I like how personal and down-to-earth the game can get, but also at the same time, the tiny bits that may seem insignificant are really important in the bigger picture. The game may be tailored to your personal preferences with ease, but also in the case of the political tapestry so much can happen without your involvement. I also like that you can fit the VtM game into any setting - ancient. medieval, modern, and so on and it’ll still fit. This also makes VtM immersive.

S: I also enjoy political intrigue a lot. I love puzzles, and the political scene in VtM is basically a giant puzzle. You’ve got centuries-old grudges & hatreds, you’ve got conflicts between wildly different worldviews, and you’ve got intrigues that can span whole decades. Untangling that kind of web of connections gives me a lot of fun. And when you finally show that hated elder that you’ve not only seen through his games but also got a bite to your bark? That’s extremely satisfying.

• How did you capture that with this game?

M: We’re trying to keep the gameplay personal, but as a game unwinds we want to show a far bigger picture that is spanning far beyond the player's perspective showing the complexity of Kindred business, politics, etiquette… As for making things personal - we try to create an environment, and situations that anyone can get at some time creating a connection between the player’s character and the general plot. Making the main character likable and at the same time plausible is our highest priority.

S: I focus on the big picture. Who are the actors? What do they want? What assets do they have? How are all those decades-long intrigues and plots I mentioned before going? And then comes the Player Character - at the beginning only an insignificant new variable that slowly grows to become a giant wrench thrown into the gears of that political machinery. And my goal as a developer is to ensure that all the game mechanics and systems work as part of the narrative structure, and are not just their own separate things. 

• Why did you choose Las Vegas as the setting?

M: Vegas is a great city to make a chronicle in my opinion. It’s not only bright and seducing at first glance, but there’s a lot more to the city aside from casinos and hotels. Also, Las Vegas is in this sweet spot where it’s not so greatly described in canon lore. There are some bits and pieces, but it’s not as detailed as in the case of London or Los Angeles. So, we have a big and interesting city that we may use without major changes in the canon lore.

S: I used to run a tabletop VtM chronicle set in Las Vegas, so I had both some knowledge about the city and a sentiment toward it. The city has a vibrant and colorful history, with a lot of darker bits to it - and I think it’s a natural choice for the kind of story we want to tell.

• Why did you choose the 1980s?

M: The 80s are a great time. A lot of people often come back to that decade - either via movies, shows, music, or other media. It was also great in the case of design - very bold and pattern-breaking. Also, it was a time of great changes - even in Vegas itself.

S: Honestly, I cannot add much more besides what Morgoth already said. The team decided early on to set our game in the 80s, and we just stuck with it ever since. On top of that, it is also in a sweet spot between what I consider ‘modern’ and ‘historical’ settings.

• What are you most excited about about this project?

M: Since our game is a full-fledged RPG I’m mostly excited to show players our plot. We are working on it very intensely so our players may feel immersed and interested in it.

S: An opportunity - to create a game I would love to play and to share it with the world.

We hope that this short interview made you even more interested in what we have in store. If you have more questions and you want to satiate your curiosity about the project and what the entire crew thinks about it feel free to chime in on our Discord or join our Subreddit. We’ll be more than happy to share our answers with you! We are working hard to deliver the extended game jam version of the game in time and meet the 8th of April release date. See you next month!