Paradox's "very punk way" of sharing Vampire: The Masquerade IP
Malindy Hetfeld
Friday 6th May 2022
Paradox Interactive
World of Darkness, the setting and IP behind games such as Vampire: the Masquerade and Werewolf: The Apocalypse, hasn't been all too active in video games since 2004's Vampire: the Masquerade - Bloodlines.
The title was considered a critical success but a commercial failure, and the brand would pull out of video games almost entirely until 2019, a year that saw the announcement of Bloodlines 2 (since hit with an indefinite delay) and the start of a number of releases in the World of Darkness universe.
This month, IP holder Paradox Interactive announced the Unbound initiative, under which the company freely distributes the WoD licence to independent video game developers for commercial use for an indefinite period of time.
The agreement under Unbound lets developers make games in the World of Darkness universe and distribute them using Itch.io, with Paradox retaining 33% of potential net revenues from a minimum reportable figure of $500. Games have to either be available for free or sell at a starting price of $5.99. Developers keep the rights to any assets Paradox Interactive doesn't provide.
"The game jam was a limited-time event, but developing a long-term relationship with your players isn't possible within 30 days"
The idea for Unbound stems from a month-long game jam Paradox ran in late 2021, itself inspired by a community-organised World of Darkness game jam from 2019. Sean Greaney, vice president for World of Darkness, calls opening the IP a sustainable next step following the success of the jam, which saw 87 game submissions.
"The game jam was a limited-time event with a cash prize as an incentive, but developing a long-term relationship with your players isn't
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