Paradox Interactive has acquired the White Wolf license from CCP Games, who at one time had plans to make an ambitious modern gothic MMO by the name of World of Darkness. Alas, that did not come to pass, with CCP cancelling the game and rededicating itself to the EVE universe. Now, it's sold the White Wolf license—which includes the World of Darkness and Vampire: The Masquerade pen 'n' paper RPGs—to Paradox. The sale includes previously released games such as Redemption and Bloodlines, but also all the assets from CCP's cancelled MMO—it "includes everything", in other words.
Shams Jorjani, Paradox's VP of Acquisition & Portfolio Strategy, announced the news on Twitter, stating that "Paradox Interactive has bought White wolf and all properties from CCP. Very very very exciting." Yes 'tis, as it was a huge shame to see the license lying dormant.
"We've been huge fans of the white wolf IPs for a long time," Shams added in another tweet, "especially World of Darkness/Vampire. Gonna be great to give it some fresh blood."
A press release sent out after the tweets added a bit more information, including that White Wolf Publishing will "operate as an independent entity with a dedicated team".
Paradox Interactive's CEO and president, Fredrik Wester, added that "like Paradox’s games, White Wolf’s properties have dedicated, passionate communities. While there are similarities in spirit, White Wolf’s IPs have very different themes than Paradox’s titles, and deserve their own brand and team".
Whoever that team is, can they make Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 top priority, please? Oh, and have someone finish World of Darkness while you're at it, cheers.
Hilmar Veigar Pétursson, CEO of CCP Games, had this to say. "At CCP, we have great admiration for the White Wolf brands and communities, and it was extremely important to us that the acquiring company share the same respect and understanding. With Paradox, we know we are leaving the brands in good hands."
(Thanks, RPS.)
