Hunting in the night of London
If you've ever dreamed yourself back to the old good time when Vampire: The Masquerade was the coolest thing you could play on your PC, then you've long been looking for an equally blood-sucking experience again. At the same time, you may have been disappointed with other vampire games? If you recognize yourself, you should keep a little extra eye on Vampyr from the Paris-based Dontnod studio, which not only lets you live your dreams as a blood-seeking night hunter, but you have to decide what fate the people of London are going to meet.
It's a hard life being a Vampire-Doctor
Behind well-closed doors at the E3 fair, Focus Home Entertainment held a informative presentation and demonstration of Vampyr. We get to know the game's protagonist, Doctor Jonathan Reid. He is the quiet type, which may not be strange for some because he is both a vampire and a doctor at the same time. He is a quite polite fellow and he has dedicated his life (and sworn an oath) to help the population of his home. He is, however, a vampire and as we all know, they have special ... needs that must be satisfied. It turns out that the internal conflict will affect the game, both mechanically and in the story.
London, 1918 gives the perfect mood & atmosphere
Vampyr is played in London in 1918, Spanish sickness harvest life's daily and entire families are going to meet the tragic fate of death. Because he is a doctor, Jonathan's job is to help as many people as possible, but it will be up to you to decide how and when you want to help. If you want to put it aside and explore other goals, you can do it. The city hospital is the starting point for Jonathan, but at the same time it is also a neutral place where the vampires can not be hunted. We know very little about the overall story right now but it has been set for some interesting turns and it is clear that you will have to make a few difficult choices as you partake in the role of Doctor Reid.
"You will meet vampires in the game, of course," says lead level designer Florent Guillaume. "You are one of them. Some are friends you will meet by mission, others will be your enemies. It's not just vampires either - there's another supernatural in the game too. Even people are looking for you, vampire hunters want to clear the city from beast."
Enemies, Combat & Features
The combat system is a mix of using ranged attack with your gun, or slicing up foes with your second hand weapon (a knife or a small sword). And then of course you will have an vast array of cool vampire abilities to unleash against your foes. You will be able to customize Doctor Reid to create your ultimate vampire experience in combat, you will do this trough a skill-tree with points gained from sucking blood or completing missions. With that said, it is possible to finish the game without killing a single person, which would unlock one of the 4 endings included in the game but it would be an harsh journey without any upgrades as you progress.
When wanting to quickly escape from a certain situation (or if you just want to move quickly) Jonathan can also teleport in a true dark-fog mystical vampire fashion so his vampire abilities is not only restricted to combat but also navigation.
Except for vampires, humans and vampire hunters there are also enemies called Skals, sewer-dwelling mutated half vampire creatures that attack you at first sight. A part of the story is actually investigating why these Skals are even here and where they came from.
Did you think the diversity of enemies is all gone trough now? Think again. In this game you will face of many different races of foes ranging from the Vulkod, basically a strong breed of vampire/werewolfs, the Nemrods (vampires who hunt other vampires) and also the Guards of Priwen - an ancient secret society focused on slaying vampires.
Pre-Order & Get Bonus DLC
If you are a crazy vampire fan already knowing you want this game there is certain rewards for pre-ordering it according to the Vampyre official site.
■ DRAGONBLADE the sword of Paulinus Aurelianus, mythical founder of the Brotherhood of Saint Paul Stole, known as a dragon hunter.
■ BARKER the pistol of Carl Eldritch, second leader of the Guard of Priwen, who have taken an oath to hunt down every last vampire.
■ PHYSICIAN SUIT perfect for a vampire doctor who must travel discretely through London under pouring rain or in the biting cold of the night.
Vampyr PS4 Gameplay Tour | E3 2017
