Taking a look at Vampyr's gameplay this afternoon, I realized that I should probably not be as fascinated with rat-infested, disease-ridden, nearly abandoned London as I am. This semi-open world leads players through dark alleys and streets while the rain pours, running down exposed shoulders. Vampire hunters are on the prowl, and your thirst gets stronger as the night grows longer.
A dialogue wheel lets you control what you say to your fellow neighbors. Navigating the wheel, it quickly becomes apparent that begging for an invitation into their home is harder than it looks. Vampyr follows popular vampire lore established in classic novels like Dracula, which means that, as a vampire, players have the ability to mesmerize and lure your prey into less conspicuous areas. The more you kill, the more skills unlock in the expansive skill tree. The more people the protagonist feasts on, the more degraded the neighborhood becomes. However, the conditions of the player's neighborhood play a very important role in the quest to cure vampirism, so drinking at will is not advised.
The vampire's fighting style allows you to jump between vampire powers and basic melee using medical saws as your weapon of choice. If your blood count drops too low, you won't be able to use your vampire skills. Using both at the same time proves to be a lethal choice, and adds quite an exciting element into the game that I have never seen before.
Unable to actually get my hands on a controller, I am itching for the release date in 2017. I can't wait to decide whether or not I'll be a benevolent vampire or a merciless bloodsucker.