The Chinese Room
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Inside Tencent's long-term strategy: live service, AI tools, and evergreen titles
Tencent's long-term strategy for its global games division centers on building sustainable communities through live service titles and evergreen IPs, alongside investing in high-quality talent and synergistic partnerships. The company is also embracing AI as a tool to enhance developer efficiency and iteration, rather than replace human roles, while navigating challenges in global integration and outsourcing.
Award-Winning 2024 PS5 Adventure Game 60% Off With DLC on PlayStation Store
The award-winning PlayStation 5 adventure game, Still Wakes the Deep, is available for 60% off on the PlayStation Store until September 10. The Complete Edition, which includes the Siren's Rest DLC, is priced at $15.99, down from its usual $39.99. The base game is also currently available on PS Plus Extra.
Are these the 100 most influential games of all time?
Kitfox Games CEO Tanya Short discusses a list of the 100 most influential video games of all time, compiled by professional game designers. The list, assembled through the Polaris game design retreat, aims to serve as a tool for designers to improve their craft and create influential games.
Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 development comes to an end with a big patch and some huge community-requested features
The Chinese Room has released the final update for Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2, which includes community-requested features like photo mode, dual-wielding pistols, and Noir Mode. This update also addresses numerous bugs and improves ranged combat. While development has concluded, the studio expressed excitement for the community to continue modding and creating content for the game.
Bloodlines 2's final DLC introduces swordfighting, dual pistol wielding, and other stuff that should probably have…
The final DLC for Vampire: The Masquerade—Bloodlines 2, titled The Flower and the Flame, is set to release next week, introducing new combat mechanics like sword fighting and dual-wielding pistols. This DLC concludes the game's development saga, which saw multiple studio changes since its initial announcement in 2019. The previous DLC, Loose Cannon, received mixed reviews on Steam.
Vampire The Masquerade Bloodlines 2's final DLC has a release date, and it's soon
The final DLC for Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2, titled The Flower and The Flame, will be released on June 10th. This expansion focuses on the backstory and political machinations of the Toreador Primogen Ysabella Moore. The Chinese Room has confirmed this is the game's last DLC.
"The difference is not just that you can’t fight back, it’s that you feel like you shouldn’t": Alien Isolation's lead designer wants you to "respect" the dinos in The Lost Wild
The Lost Wild's lead designer Gary Napper emphasizes a design philosophy of respecting dinosaurs as living creatures rather than monsters, drawing parallels to his work on Alien: Isolation. Unlike Alien: Isolation's focus on player power fantasy, The Lost Wild aims to make players feel vulnerable and encourage non-violent interaction with the prehistoric inhabitants of its island setting.
Bloodlines 2 Review – The mother of all wasted opportunities – GTOGG
Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 is a significant disappointment, failing to deliver on the RPG elements promised by its predecessor and instead offering a mediocre, linear action-adventure experience. Despite a visually appealing presentation of Seattle, the world feels sterile and lacks meaningful interaction, with shallow side quests and underdeveloped RPG mechanics. The combat system, while occasionally fun with supernatural abilities, is ultimately repetitive and hampered by awkward controls and enemies that feel like damage sponges.
Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 Gets "Largest Update to Date"
Paradox Interactive and The Chinese Room have released Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2's Spring Update, described as the game's largest to date. This update introduces significant quality-of-life improvements, a revamped melee combat system with usable weapons and a guard feature, tutorial collectibles, a new save checkpoint system, and the ability to fast-travel to informant locations. Additionally, several main quests have been converted into sidequests, offering players more choice.
Bloodlines 2's first DLC arrives next week, and it'll let you wield guns and melee weapons properly, unlike…
The first DLC for Vampire: The Masquerade—Bloodlines 2, titled Loose Cannon, will be released tomorrow and features a new protagonist named Benny who utilizes guns and melee weapons. This DLC addresses criticisms of the base game's combat mechanics, which were perceived as lacking. Despite the original game's sales not meeting expectations, Paradox Interactive is continuing to support it with expansions.
Bloodlines 2 Dev Will at Least Try and Make the Vampire RPG Worth Playing
The Chinese Room is working to improve Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2, with its first DLC, Loose Cannon, releasing on April 27, 2026. This expansion will feature a new protagonist, Benny Muldoon, and introduce first-person gunplay alongside melee combat. Base game owners will receive an update on the same day with improvements to save features and melee combat, with a summer patch planned to add Photo Mode and enhance ranged combat.
Vampire The Masquerade Bloodlines 2's first DLC drops in just a few days
Paradox Interactive has announced that the first DLC for Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2, titled 'The Loose Cannon', will be released on April 27th. This DLC focuses on the character Benny Muldoon and adds new questlines and abilities. The Chinese Room is also continuing to update the base game.
Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2’s Loose Cannon DLC is Coming Out on April 27th
The Chinese Room and Paradox Interactive announced that the Loose Cannon DLC for Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 will release on April 27th. This DLC introduces Benny Muldoon as a playable character with new abilities and quests, and will be followed by another DLC, The Flower and the Flame, in Q2 2026. Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 is available on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S.
"We now have a clear vision for how Sumo fits into the new world" - inside the slimmed-down Sumo Group
Sumo Group, now co-led by Gary Dunn and Andy Stewart, is refocusing exclusively on co-development and work-for-hire services for partners, moving away from self-funded IP. This strategic shift follows staff reductions and the divestment of several studios, with support from parent company Tencent. The company aims to leverage its expertise in working with established IPs and offers flexible funding models, including co-funding, to collaborate on projects across various platforms like PC, consoles, and Roblox.
Still Wakes The Deep dev The Chinese Room signs with Lyrical Publishing for new title
BAFTA-winning studio The Chinese Room has partnered with new publisher Lyrical Games for its first new intellectual property since separating from Sumo Group. Lyrical Games will provide full financing and strategic support while ensuring the studio retains IP ownership. This collaboration marks a significant step for The Chinese Room, known for titles like Still Wakes the Deep and Everybody's Gone to the Rapture.
Lyrical Games announces full-financing publishing deal with The Chinese Room
Independent game publisher Lyrical Games has secured a full-financing publishing deal with developer The Chinese Room. This agreement will provide The Chinese Room with complete funding, strategic production support, and go-to-market planning while preserving their creative autonomy and IP ownership. Lyrical Games CEO Blake Rochkind highlighted the company's focus on filling the 'lost middle' in game financing for double-A titles.
Why Hiro is bullish on UK and EU game dev funding after helping The Chinese Room and Bulkhead go independent
Hiro Capital, through its new advisory division, is bullish on the UK and EU game development funding landscape, seeing a rise in independent studios formed by experienced teams. The firm has already assisted The Chinese Room and Bulkhead Interactive in regaining independence from larger corporations. Factors like regulatory limitations on US investment for Asian companies and the availability of talent exiting larger firms contribute to Europe's attractiveness for game dev investment.
Secret Mode busted out of the Tencent-owned Sumo Group last year. Now what?
Secret Mode, an indie publisher owned by Sumo Group (which is in turn owned by Tencent), has successfully gained independence with the help of investment firm Emona Capital. This move came after Sumo Group announced a shift to exclusively focus on development services. Secret Mode's CEO Ed Blincoe and chief publishing officer James Schall detail the rapid acquisition process and the publisher's subsequent growth, including new hires and ambitious projects like Star Wars: Galactic Racer.
