The Masquerade is ready to collaborate on one video game

While the dark allure of vampire fiction has attracted gothic horror fans for centuries, Vampire: The Masquerade successfully translated this concept into the tabletop RPG format. With more bloodsucking creatures of the night finding prominent roles in media in recent years, the only other franchise of similar status is currently on the rise Castlevania. Both series are giants in their respective series despite their​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​,,, an overlaps with their themes and lore Vampire: Masquerade only natural.

Being an action-packed video game series versus a narrative-driven TTRPG, these IPs are pitted against each other like two pillars of vampire media of old. Resurgence in recent years via Netflix Castlevania series and several in-game guests have raised the profile of the Konami property VTM supported back-to-back releases that could support a new source material based on a different take on the extended mythos.

The recent series of Castlevania tie-ins with Vampire: The Masquerade is not to be missed

Combining two enduring Gothic legacies

Atmospheric tales of the Belmont clan's struggle against Dracula from the 1980s, Castlevania retained the role of a distinctive feature of the entire genre. After showing the characters Dead by Daylight's Castlevania section and the entire core content package for The surviving vampiresit's safe to say that this franchise has kept its relevance in modern times by adapting to new developments. Between lots of games from different console generations and a Netflix show that's still running, Castlevania continues to keep vampires in the spotlight.

Of all the different approaches to knowledge in all interpretations, VTM has potentially preserved the richest and most comprehensive version of vampire prehistory. With ancient origins from Cain and the many clans that have since descended from that starting point, the franchise has combined elements of everything from Bram Stoker's Dracula to Anne Rice novels. Adding another take on the vampire narrative to World of Darkness could give it a welcome boost to its mass appeal.

The Castlevania-inspired sourcebook for Vampire: The Masquerade has two obvious routes

Netflix's ongoing Castlevania: Nocturne Lore provides insightful inspiration

As a successful sequel to the original series, Castlevania: NocturneSetting 1792 offers many guidelines for VTM to interpret. The political upheavals of 18th-century Europe are filled with the kind of drama that is meant to stimulate masqueradeintrigue, and cast members like Richter, Annette, or Alucard can be reimagined as NPCs in the context of RPG mechanics. Existing VTM supplements like In Memoriam have already explored the depths of historical flashbacks of past mortal eras, so the prospect of a period piece is nothing new for the IP. For example, the centuries-old Alucard's inner struggle is a conflict ripe for the typical drama that Kindred usually face. Depending on how the timeline is used, there's even a chance for a compelling interplay between past and present through an immortal Castlevania characters that fall into the present day.

Castlevania's extensive history is a deep well of source material

The documented eras of the franchise span from the medieval adventures of Simon Belmont to the future of Soma Cruise in Castlevanialeaving plenty of time frames to explore even outside of the Netflix adaptation framework. The different views on Dracula's influence in these different scenarios provide enough angles for several new vampire clans that could explain the crossover, or even new hunter archetypes based on the Belmonts. Alternatively, if a narrative closer to Dracula's backstory is eventually depicted, the Brotherhood of Light could be an option.