Bloodlines 2 was teased in 2019, but the 2020 release was postponed several times, and Hardsuit Labs stepped in as a game developer in February 2021. As publisher Paradox Interactive CEO Fredrik Wester revealed in an interview with Nyhetsbyran Direkt Avanza (translated), the publisher was supposed to cancel Bloodlines 2 and stepped down as Hardsuit developers. In October 2020, Paradox confirmed the news that the lead storyteller Cara Ellison would no longer be working with the development of the game.
In February 2021, Paradox Interactive announced that developer Hardsuit Labs would stop working on the game and they would work with another developer to complete the production. Paradox confirmed Bloodlines 2 would be missing from 2021 as part of the announcement, but there was no word on a new date. They have made the difficult decision that Hard Suit Labs will no longer lead the development of Bloodline 2, delaying the release date once again.
The publisher had a long review period before deciding whether or not to proceed with the development of the game. In an interview with Nyhetsbyray directly via Avanza, the CEO of the company, Fredrik Wester, revealed that when they took over the series from its previous developer, Bloodlines 2 was almost totally scrapped. “When we removed the game from the original developer, we had a very long review and in some cases, we nearly finished the game and ran away with it”.
The company has no idea yet how the game will be shaped by the new developer, so it’s probably too early. Interestingly, the developer of the game has not yet been named. However, they have stated that they are a serious and very talented developer.
Given the difficulties of the Games, it is no surprise that Paradox was a little cautious about how to proceed. The development of Bloodlines 2s was hell, which meant that the game continued to be delayed, a problem that was eventually solved by the fact that it acted as a title release, a release that almost never took place. Paradox has not yet revealed which studio will take over the development of the game.
While Paradox will continue to invest in role-playing games despite the turmoil in the development of Bloodlines 2s, Wester said he is taking a wait-and-see approach. “I would like to see what happens to Paradox and how Bloodline 2 is received”. There is a great desire to have good games in this genre, and I don’t want to close the door.
In June 2020, game publisher Paradox Interactive distanced itself amid allegations of sexual harassment from developer Chris Avellone, who was briefly involved in developing the game. Paradox also ended Bloodlines creative director Kaai Cluney and author Brian Mitsoda, who wrote the original in 2004. Fans were thrilled when the sequel was announced and it was confirmed that Troikas and Mitsoda would help write; however, the first signs of development problems surfaced earlier in the year, when the original developer Hardsuit Labs announced the first of several delays.
Coinciding with the announced delay of the 2020 Games in July, Mitsoda and Cluney were removed from their positions by the leadership of Hardsuit Labs and Paradox Interactive in a joint decision without a statement being made. Paradoxically, the gaming community revealed earlier this year that they decided to remove Hardsuit Lab, the original developer of the games, as the main team of the project. This major change in the development team led to several delays in Bloodlines 2.
Publisher Paradox Interactive came out earlier this month to let fans know that the project’s development had not been aborted, leading to many exhalations and massive sighs of relief from the release. According to Swedish outlet Avanza, Paradox CEO Fredrik Wester confirmed that the company was considering rescheduling the game this year. Wester pointed out that there had been long discussions between the company and the title and that the development would continue, as the company was ready to discontinue the development of Bloodlines 2.
