History VideoGame / Vampyr2018

* MoralDissonance: The game treats feeding on named [=NPCs=] as different from biting enemies in combat, even though narratively the difference isn't clear. They have different effects ''mechanically'' as far as gameplay is concerned, and feeding on named [=NPCs=] affects the ending. But it also leads to this trope where Jonathan tells Elisabeth [[spoiler:how he's been able to fight his hunger to convince her they can live in peace]] because he's not Embraced any named [=NPCs=] despite the fact that Jonathan will almost certainly (doubly so in a no-Embrace run due to the lack of XP) have fed and drained hundreds of mooks using the in-combat bite.

* RobbingTheDead: Jonathan is appalled by some characters going through dead peoples' pockets. [[MoralDissonance Apparently he's better because the useful objects from his kills just appear on the ground by their corpse.]]

** WalkingTheEarth: [[spoiler:if Jonathan managed to go on without Embracing ''any'' civilians, Jonathan will succeed in talking Elisabeth out of killing herself and vows to find a cure for the Blood of Hate. The two then travel across the world and visit America. Myrddin will be proud of Jonathan and wish him peace. Jonathan's eyes must remain clear and human for this ending.]]

* BrainFood: As in some Anne Rice-inspired works, feeding on someone doesn't just drain their life but transfers memories. You hear the dying thoughts of every citizen ([[spoiler: barring Sean Hampton and Edgar Swansea)]] you chomp on, for example. Anyone you've Embraced will have a full biography in the menu because you now know all their secrets (sometimes this is the only way to get a unique weapon or a key to a locker they own). This is also why learning hints about the citizens boosts the XP gain because you understand the memories you've absorbed better.

** A small subtle one regarding weaknesses to religious items: it's shown that they can paralyse Jonathan. [[spoiler:However, Sean Hampton, even after becoming a Skal, is never hurt by the one he wears which foreshadows William Marshal's immunity as well. In the end, he tells Jonathan he received immortality from Archangel Michael (Myrddin), revealing he remained a [[ReligiousVampire devout Christian even after being turned]].]]
** When talking with [[spoiler:Harriet Jones]] in the Skal sanctuary, she says she can hear voices, which Jonathan believes are just her mind playing tricks. [[spoiler:It's actually the Red Queen talking to her.]]

* GameBreakingBug: The investigation "A cherished souvenir" suffers from a number of bugs which result in forcing you to make the bad choice at the end, which permanently prevents you from getting two hints (one for Cristina Popa, one for the questgiver Clayton Darby). [[spoiler:At the end, you have to complete the quest by bringing Cristina's scarf to either her or Clayton, but you lose the hints if she's the one who received the item. The game suffers from bugs which entirely remove the choice to give the scarf to Clayton if you do one of several seemingly innocuous actions while the investigation quest is active. Skipping the lines during Clayton briefing, sleeping, or quitting then reloading all ''remove'' the option to give the scarf to Clayton and force you to get the bad resolution and the two missed hints.]]

** Jonathan's ability to use his vampiric senses to give a medical diagnosis in a blink of an eye isn't a trick to make the gameplay simpler but an ability which actually exists in-universe, since [[spoiler:a Dr Swansea newly turned to vampirism]] tells in a missable dialog that he has this power.
* GameplayAndStorySegregation: The [[MultipleEndings good ending]] has Johnathan proudly declare that he hasn't taken a single life [[spoiler: aside from Mary]]. Even though you've most likely [[WhatMeasureIsAMook slaughtered hordes of Priwen]] by this point. Also, Johnathan is clearly capable of drinking blood in combat without killing his victim, which would make one question the vampires' stated need to kill in order to feed.

** Especially noteworthy is Louise Teasdale, whose abduction by an [[StalkerWithACrush Ekon With A Crush]] leaves her well aware that vampires exist. Despite this and the above, she manages to reason that since Johnathan managed to kill one, it shouldn't be that hard for her to become a vampire hunter as well.

* GlamourFailure: Ekons are capable of disguising themselves from mortals, including Jonathan if he's gotten red eyes and a pallor from feeding too much. That being said, few humans like the Guard of Priwen (vampire hunters), Dr. Swansea (a human scholar in vampirism) and Charlotte Ashbury (adopted and raised by a vampire) can identify them on the spot. Charlotte implies that Ekons can project some kind of aura that hides their nature and humans can be taught a trick to see past it.
* GodIsGood: Myrddin refers to the Blood of Hate as a wish "to spit upon the eye of God." Given the implication, one could infer that not only does God exist in the game's universe, He is probably a pretty great guy.

** Giving the correct answers during Dorothy Crane's surgery scene. There are no in-game clues that tell you how to perform surgery. The general correct path involves being assertive rather than differential towards Dorothy (because you're the doctor, she's not, and it's an emergency situation), and using some common sense and general knowledge of how surgery is performed.
** [[spoiler:Choosing the wrong dialogue options will permanently lock you out of reforming Dawson before he dies. If you turn him (2000XP), he will go on a rampage, causing ''everyone'' to become ill if they aren't already sick, and potentially destroying entire districts, all in a single day. Of course, you could just kill him, but that will lock you out of the no-kill run.]]

** Collecting all, well, [[GottaCatchThemAll collectibles]] is mostly a simple case of picking up items from the world. A few require you to buy them from merchants and one is permanently missable by not following directions correctly on a minor side-mission. This will also lock you out from getting the InfinityPlusOneSword for that playthrough.

** Jonathan comments on the fact that he, a renowned blood specialist, got turned into a vampire. Subverted when Myrddin reveals that [[TheChosenOne he was chosen]] specifically for his expertise in hope that he can develop an antidote.
* InfinityPlusOneSword: The True Dragonbane sword, optionally unlocked near the end of the game by solving a complex cryptology puzzle in Usher Talltree's lair using hidden documents found throughout the city, used to be this, being easily the most powerful melee weapon in the game. However, it was heavily {{Nerf}}ed in a patch to be only slightly better than the game's other blade weapons, which is rather disappointing considering the amount of effort you go through to get it.
* InterfaceSpoiler: When you encounter Nurse Crane in the first chapter, her character sheet doesn't state she is a standard citizen of Pembroke Hospital but [[spoiler:the pillar character of another district]], which unsubtly announces she's more than she initially seems.

** Ekon, the conventional Dracula-type vampires, the crème de la crème of the species, are near-indistinguishable from humans and mingle with mortal society, though they can be spotted by trained humans. They typically have red eyes, pale skin and pronounced veins, but their glamour hides their presence and humans that can see through this disguise are either vetted as potential progeny or dealt with harshly. The local British Vampire organization is the [[CouncilOfVampires Ascalon Club]], which seeks to protect and serve Britain, but is sexist and elitist, only allowing purebred British Ekon vampires, British high-nobility, and Fiction500 executives to join their ranks, all of whom must be male. They specialize in shadows and blood manipulation.

* GameplayAndStorySegregation: The [[MultipleEndings good ending]] has Johnathan proudly declare that he hasn't taken a single life [[spoiler: aside from Mary]]. Even though you've most likely slaughtered hordes of Priwen by this point. Also, Johnathan is clearly capable of drinking blood in combat without killing his victim, which would make one question the vampires' stated need to kill in order to feed.

* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler:There's a tinge of this to every ending you can get – save for the worst one. Jonathan defeats the Red Queen and saves London from the epidemic, but his sister is still dead, his mother can also be potentially dead, and Elizabeth can commit suicide if he's been over-indulging.]]

** While the Guard of Priwen is guilty of VanHelsingHateCrimes, they do have a point about the majority of vampires in general; some are corrupt beings fueled by the Blood or Hate while others are arrogant and domineering individuals like the Ascalon Club. Jonathan can also be played as a total monster, leaving Elisabeth as the sole good vampire, and even ''she'' has to kill to sate her thirst (though she takes no pleasure in doing this). Even Jonathan's basic capabilities rather externally justify their zealotry - even if he never ''actually'' does it, who would abide an individual that can just MindControl people at will?

** While the Guard of Priwen is guilty of VanHelsingHateCrimes, they do have a point about the majority of vampires in general; some are corrupt beings fueled by the Blood or Hate while others are arrogant and domineering individuals like the Ascalon Club. Jonathan can also be played as a total monster, leaving Elisabeth as the sole good vampire, and even ''she'' has to kill to sate her thirst (though she takes no pleasure in doing this).

* CommonPlaceRare: Reviving the plant in Jonathan's office requires to find water. It can only be found in ''a single place'', which isn't accessible until quite late in the storyline (a shop in West End district).

** Invoked with the Ekon, who naturally project an aura that hides their appearance from others, unless one is properly trained to notice the difference, like the Guard of Priwen. If they spot Jonathan from a distance, they will believe he's a normal citizen and simply tell him to leave as the area is too dangerous. It's only when he gets close to them that they realize he's a vampire.

* LeaningOnTheFourthWall: If you embrace [[spoiler:Dr. Swansea]], he marvels that he can diagnose patients just by looking at them. By the time he says this, the player has already been using the in-game interface to keep track of each NPC's health status without needing to talk to them.

* UnstableEquilibrium: Dying reduces your blood points to a small fraction of the maximum, and any bullets you used in the fight are gone. While blood is easy to recover, either by stabbing mooks or eating rats, you can only purchase a limited number of bullets each night, they're scarce on the streets, and the hideouts store any excess bullets from your limited personal stock. Better hope you didn't use them on a boss, because you're going to have to fight them up close the second time if you did.

* AbsurdlySpaciousSewer: Jonathan will have to navigate one, following [[spoiler: Sean Hampton's]] lead only to find a village of wise and peace-loving Skals. Some late-game sidequests also involve delving into the sewers.

** Subverted with the Skals. Upon first impression, it seems all of them are ravenous and mindless monsters incapable of being reasoned with. But then it turns out that a whole Skal community lives under London and they are outcasts of the 'proper' vampire society and their leader [[WastelandElder Old Bridget]] becomes a valuable friend and ally to Jonathan. [[spoiler:Sean Hampton can ''try'' to be a good Skal, but he will fail due to being infected by the Blood of Hate]]. When you get down to it, Skals are more victims of their condition than true monsters.
** Played straight when you discover the Blood of Hate [[spoiler: which is what happens when a Disaster – the Red Queen's chosen – or a vampire tainted by a Disaster passes their blood on. The descendants of Harriet Jones, Doris Fletcher, and Lady Ashbury are all destined to become beasts.]]

--> Even if based on proven medical knowledge from 1918, ''Vampyr'' sometimes takes liberties when establishing possible links between scientific theories and supernatural creatures, for theatrical purposes. In other words, DontTryThisAtHome.

* BasedOnAGreatBigLie: The Ascalon Club was founded by Lord Redgrave, Progeny of William Marshal (see below), and he only accepts the most blue-blooded male Ekons as members. [[spoiler: In truth, Redgrave's lineage is so weak that he can only sire Skals himself.]]
* BeethovenWasAnAlienSpy:

* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler: There's a tinge of this to every ending you can get – save for the worst one. Jonathan defeats the Red Queen and saves London from the epidemic, but his sister is still dead, his mother can also be potentially dead, and Elizabeth can commit suicide if he's been over-indulging.]]
* BlessedWithSuck: Being a vampire grants one many useful abilities, but the need and thirst for blood compel one to kill and feed on anyone nearby, including innocents. The game explores the dualism of being a vampire; that in order to live forever, you must take the lives of others. This also comes into conflict with Jonathan's Hippocratic Oath of “first, do no harm."

* BritainIsOnlyLondon: Played largely straight as the story takes place in the [=post-WW1=] London, with the exception of the epilogue [[spoiler: which takes you to rural Scotland.]]

* EarnYourHappyEnding: [[spoiler:Managing to beat the game as a vampire who hadn't Embraced anyone will earn you the best ending where Jonathan and Elisabeth migrate to the US and live peacefully for centuries to come]].

** Fr. Tobias Whitaker is an old priest who believes the epidemic to be TheScourgeOfGod, sent to cleanse London, and advocates using fire to eradicate it. [[spoiler:Not only is he correct about the plague's true nature, he is the first character to hint at the BigBad's existence when he mentions “a laughing Queen dressed in blood” during his ramblings]].
* FantasticRacism:

** A small subtle one regarding weaknesses to religious items: it's shown that they can paralyse Jonathan. [[spoiler:However, Sean Hampton, even after becoming a Skal, is never hurt by the one he wears which foreshadows William Marshal's immunity as well. In the end, he tells Jonathan he received immortality from Archangel Michael (Myrddin), revealing he remained a [[ReligiousVampire devout Christian even after being turned]]]].
** When talking with [[spoiler:Harriet Jones]] in the Skal sanctuary, she says she can hear voices, which Jonathan believes are just her mind playing tricks. [[spoiler:It's actually the Red Queen talking to her]].

* FriendInTheBlackMarket: Several traders in the game such as Rakesh Chadana and Milton Hooks are Pembroke staff that sell illegal goods, while Edwina Cox is this trope by default (being a gang member that sells you weapons). Depending on your choices, [[spoiler:Dorothy Crane can become this if Jonathan spares her, offering to buy medical supplies and serums to fund her illegal dispensary]]. There are legitimate traders (like Carolyn Price) in the game, but they are comparatively fewer.
* FriendlyNeighbourhoodVampire:

** [[spoiler:Sean Hampton]] is a tragic subversion. [[spoiler:He is turned into Skal after being infected by Bishop at the start of the game. Initially, he manages to keep control instead of losing his mind like other Skals and takes it upon himself to protect his flock (homeless humans) ''and'' the Sewer Skals. If Jonathan chooses, he can spare Hampton and leave him to his devices, and when he returns to the Docks in the following night, Sean Hampton has turned into a high-level mini-boss, forcing Jonathan to put him down]].
*** [[spoiler:Played straight if Jonathan asks around the Docks about Sean before confronting him. This awards the player all of Sean's hints and unlocks for a third option that allows him to safely continue his work]].
** Sir William Marshal might have been this kind of vampire – if being remembered as a hero by the Ascalon Club is any indication. [[spoiler:When reminiscing on his own past, William mentions he drank from the "throats of the unworthy" which, at least, paints him in a ruthless light]].
* GameBreakingBug: The investigation "A cherished souvenir" suffers from a number of bugs which result in forcing you to make the bad choice at the end, which permanently prevents you from getting two hints (one for Cristina Popa, one for the questgiver Clayton Darby). [[spoiler:At the end, you have to complete the quest by bringing Cristina's scarf to either her or Clayton, but you lose the hints if she's the one who receive the item. The game suffers from bugs which entirely remove the choice to give the scarf to Clayton if you do one of several seemingly innocuous actions while the investigation quest is active. Skipping the lines during Clayton briefing, sleeping, or quitting then reloading all ''remove'' the option to give the scarf to Clayton and force you to get the bad resolution and the two missed hints.]]
* GameplayAndStoryIntegration:
** One-way gates dot the map of London and the West End district is inaccessible to you until Chapter 4. This is justified as the in-universe LLC Board of Health had placed the city under curfew – Jonathan can walk around the three main areas because he’s a doctor – and only those with official passes can gain entry to the quarantined West End. In Chapter 4, Lady Ashbury procures you such a pass.

* HatePlague: [[spoiler:How the epidemic started, as Harriet Jones' mere ''presence'' was able to transform her daughter into a full-blown Ichor and a would-be Disaster]].

** Downplayed with Jonathan. Jonathan pursues his mysterious Maker demanding answers and possibly revenge for causing his sister's death. [[spoiler:Turns out his Maker is no mere vampire, but a godlike EldritchAbomination that chose him to be his champion. Over the course of the story, he becomes something of a TricksterMentor to Jonathan, who grows exasperated with him and his riddles, but by the endgame they part ways on more-or-less civil terms]].
** Played straight with [[spoiler:Mary who loathes her brother for accidentally turning her into a vampire and begins targeting the people all around him as revenge]].
** Subverted and inverted with [[spoiler:[=McCullum=] and Swansea]] if you opt to turn them into vampires. [[spoiler:Jonathan wishes to punish both of them for their crimes. However, despite initially begging to not be turned due to regarding vampirism a FateWorseThanDeath, [=McCullum=] adapts to it quite well, [[HunterOfHisOwnKind continuing his job as before]]. Upon meeting Jonathan again, he is a lot more civil than before. Swansea, on the other hand, is positively [[VampireVannabe overjoyed with becoming a vampire]] despite Jonathan's original intent and soundly thanks him if Jonathan comes to speak to him again]].

** The Guard of Priwen holds Myth/KingArthur in high regard. He was, after all, a defender of Britain and his blood is a sacred relic with [=McCullum=] using a serum made from it to fight against vampires on equal ground. [[spoiler:Jonathan finds out King Arthur was a ''vampire'', and not just any other, but a vampire champion just like him sired by Myrddin to fight against the Red Queen]].

** Pippa Hawkins and Milton Hooks, a white woman and a black man respectively, are secretly dating. Downplayed somewhat in that while Hooks says racism prevents them from openly acknowledging it (he even mistakes Reid for a racist when he inquires about it), they have other reasons to keep it hidden, like [[spoiler:exploiting patients together]].
** Sabrina Cavendish is half Indian and is in love with Tom Watts, but she feels that Tom gets overly upset when people say racist things about her, so she hides her feelings.
* ManOfTheCity: Each district will have an important citizen referred to as "Pillar", who are responsible for keeping their regions healthy and stable. Just like every [=NPC=] death will affect the area in some way, killing the district's Pillar will affect it in a huge way, reducing its health and making all citizens fall more ill. Some Pillars are worth more than others in terms of Health Status.

* MortonsFork: The final choice in the story regarding what should be done with [[spoiler:Dr. Swansea after finding out he caused the epidemic by injecting Harriet Jones with vampire blood. You can either kill him, leave him to die of the injuries he sustained or turn him into a vampire. The first two will lead to Pembroke's district losing its Pillar and almost certainly descending into chaos – with the second option earning you no XP. The third option will allow him to live but he will become a KarmaHoudini who is ''very'' content with his new condition and while the district will remain stable for the game's duration, no good will come with the hospital administrator being a vampire since it's heavily implied he will prey upon the staff and patients]]. While previous choices gave you a [[TakeAThirdOption third option]], there is no good outcome in this one. The sole consolation is in your final conversation with him, Myrddin implies [[spoiler: that Talltree will deal with vampire Swansea if he steps out of line]].

** WalkingTheEarth: [[spoiler:if Jonathan managed to go on without Embracing ''any'' civilians, Jonathan will succeed in talking Elisabeth out of killing herself and vows to find a cure for the Blood of Hate. The two then travel across the world and visit America. Myrddin will be proud of Jonathan and wish him peace. Jonathan's eyes must remain clear and human for this ending]].
** FindTheCure: [[spoiler:If Jonathan Embraced one to four civilians, the ending is the same as the above except they will lock themselves up in Elisabeth's Estate with Old Bridget standing guard for them. Myrddin will be proud of Jonathan and wish him luck on his new quest. Jonathan's eyes must be bloodshot with a circularly-constricted pupil for this ending]].
** DespairEventHorizon: [[spoiler:If Jonathan Embraced anywhere from five to nine civilians, Elisabeth will incinerate herself despite his AnguishedDeclarationOfLove and he will never get over her death. Myrddin will express pity towards Jonathan for having lost his way. Jonathan's eyes must be bloodshot with a slit pupil for this ending]].
** FullyEmbracedFiend: [[spoiler:If Jonathan Embraced more than ten citizens, the ending is nearly the same as the above, except Jonathan will not be too affected by Elisabeth's death. He then becomes a monster with no sympathy for humanity that kills indiscriminately. Myrddin will express disapproval over his fallen champion. Jonathan's eyes must be red with a slit pupil for this ending]].

** This is also utilized by dialogue choices, ranging from something as minor as saying "looks aren't everything" to a disfigured patient in Pembroke – who immediately calls Dr. Reid a hypocritical pretty-boy – to major choices where sparing someone instead of outright killing them will lead to disastrous consequences in the same way like [[spoiler: mind-controlling Nurse Crane or believing Father Hampton will lead to both of them becoming rabid and their districts taking a hit to the Health Status]].

** Lady Ashbury tells you to forget what you know about vampires, calling the pop culture ideas about their nature to be the product of "penny dreadfuls and drunken hacks", but nonetheless the game's Ekon vampires are generally close to their Gothic portrayal: they're undead, repelled by holy symbols and places, have to feed on blood, despise sunlight – though it cannot straight-out destroy them – are immortal and do not age. Feeding on mortals is unavoidably fatal, and in doing so, the vampire uncovers all of their prey's secrets. Turning happens via ingestion of vampire blood or [[spoiler:an intravenous injection,]] but vampires of ancient lineage can also sire someone by Embracing (draining). Turning isn't always successful and the candidate can die in the process. Vampires can feed on other vampires, and lower caste vampires can be transformed into a "higher" caste if they find a willing donor. While not inherently evil creatures, vampires [[spoiler:can fall victim to the Morrigan's Blood of Hate]] and become remorseless monsters unless they vaccinate themselves against it.

** It's normally impossible to get each hints, weapons, and collectibles in a single playthrough. Depending how you complete [[spoiler:Usher Talltree's sidequest]], reading the notebook gets you one of his hints but make impossible to acquire one collectible and the game's best weapon.[[note]]Players have noted a glitch that allows you to get all the rewards by going to him to complete the quest without having read the notebook, answers you didn't read it in dialog, ''then'' open the inventory (while the dialog is still occuring) and reading it[[/note]]
* PlotArmor:

* PoliticallyCorrectHistory: Played with. There is a significant number of non-white characters and while some discrimination is referenced, little is [[ShowDontTell depicted onscreen]]. Jonathan has 21th Century sensibilities towards a gay couple (Newton Blight and Oswald Thatcher) and mixed-race couple (Pippa Hawkins and Milton Hooks). At the same time, it makes it clear that both couples [[{{Gayngst}} are afraid]] of [[MalignedMixedMarriage backlash]], and women are unfairly treated in a male-dominant society, especially among vampires[[note]]This becomes a plot point, as the Red Queen prefers to choose female champions over male champions, likely due to the constant trauma they have to put up with in a misogynist society[[/note]]. Characters with bigoted views are also viewed negatively instead of being a [[DeliberateValuesDissonance product of their time]].

* PyrrhicVillainy: Going on a rampage as an evil vampire will invariably result in [[spoiler:your LoveInterest burning herself to crisp in shame for unwittingly playing her part on the epidemic. Best exemplified in the ending where Jonathan doesn't get over her death and crosses the DespairEventHorizon]].
* RapeAsBackstory: Asking around at the Docks allows Dr. Reid to learn this about [[spoiler: Mr. Hampton, the "Sad Saint" of the East End. He was not only abandoned by his parents at the doorstep of an orphanage, the priest there later went on to [[PedophilePriest molest him]]. Unusually for this trope, this ''strengthened'' his belief in God, rather than diminishing it]].
* RealEventFictionalCause: The 1666 Great Fire of London was caused when vampire knight Sir William Marshall fought against a witch responsible for TheBlackDeath in the city the year before (in reality, [[spoiler:she was a [[ApocalypseMaiden Disaster]], another of the [[BigBad Red Queen's]] minions]]. The battle lasted for hours to a stalemate, so Marshall was forced to trap her under St. Paul's Cathedral and set it on fire to [[ItsTheOnlyWayToBeSure make sure she was dead]].

** Dorothy Crane is revealed to be correct over [[spoiler:Elisabeth killing patients at Pembroke Hospital]]. She is wrong as to the reason ''why'', believing that [[spoiler:Elisabeth kills for sport and pleasure when in fact, she only kills to sustain herself and she takes no joy in doing so]].
** [=McCullum=] suspects that the Skal epidemic was started by [[spoiler:Edgar and Jonathan as they were hoping to emulate William Marshal trying to unleash a Disaster like in 1666. It's revealed he is right about Edgar, at least; Jonathan had no idea that his friend was experimenting with vampire blood on a person that turned out to be a Disaster personified and Marshal actually was attempting to stop the Disaster in 1666]].

*** Lady Ashbury's patient, only named once before his death, is called "Mr. Renfield."
*** [[spoiler:Turning Aloysius Dawson]] and then talking to him will make him mention how he can sense “rats running around in [the Ascalon Club’s] attic.”

----> '''Jonathan:''' ''[referencing vampire blood-related experiments]'' And why not! What did Stoker say about the children of the night? Well, using my blood I could create a whole army of vampires!
** At one point, Jonathan refers to the docks as a [[Franchise/StarWars "a wretched hive of scum and villainy."]]

* TragicMonster: This is the possible fate of some of the citizens depending on Jonathan's actions throughout the game e.g. if you killed the loved ones of [[spoiler: Thomas Elwood and Newton Blight, they will go missing and be found later as rabid vampires requiring you to put them down]]. If you pick the wrong choice regarding [[spoiler:Nurse Crane and Father Hampton, they will become high-level Skals and can be fought as optional mini-bosses]].

* TrialAndErrorGameplay: The game's hint system operates this way. Unlocking hints on various citizens frequently requires specific actions to be executed in a specific sequence, and sometimes it depends on specific dialogue choices that cannot be revisited within a single playthrough. [[GuideDangIt Very often there will be no clues within the game that offer players any insight as to what were the correct choices in these situations,]] though in many choices common sense and observing the attitudes of the people you're talking to helps in making the right guess.

* UnwittingTestSubject: [[spoiler: Regarding Harriet Jones, Doctor Swansea has been doing this for months.]]

** And then there is [[spoiler:the Red Queen, an otherworldly abomination and mother of all vampires. Her Blood of Hate is the basest of instincts that incites all of her children to kill. Fortunately, her “most amusing son” Myrddin is there to stop her from wreaking havoc. To this end, Myrddin is capable of creating highly powerful Ekon that can fight on equal ground to the Red Queen's manifestation.]]

* VideoGameCrueltyPunishment: Eat too many civilians, and you get the worst ending, but gameplay-wise you're severely punished when [[spoiler:the Final Boss levels up from all the human sacrifices you've made, and can go from level 30 all the way to level 51, one level higher than Jonathan's max level. Naturally, since your weapons don't scale with your level, ThisIsGonnaSuck]].

** [[spoiler:Jonathan's mentor is an ultimately benevolent being that wants to protect Britain by any means necessary against his mother's wrath, even if it means siring a vampire that can potentially cause London to fall into chaos]].
* WhamLine: The revelation of [[spoiler:the true start of the Skal epidemic]].

'''Dr. Jonathan Reid:''' [[BrokenPedestal You did]] ''[[WhatTheHellHero what]]?''

** Progressing through the main quest occasionally make spawn "events" on the world map. Those events are unique dialogs which diseappear if your complete the next main quest's objective without visiting the related NPC first. ''Two'' of Dr. Swansea's hints can only be acquired through those missable dialogs.

* RobbingTheDead: Jonathan is appalled by some characters going through dead peoples' pockets.

* VampireBitesSuck: Jonathan can bite his opponents mid-combat if they're stunned. Vampire-type enemies can use a lunge attack to grapple ''Jonathan'' and bite him back. The damage you do is minor (unless you upgrade your bite) but your blood refills which lets you use skills and you also regenerate a bit. Enemies will regenerate a large fraction of their health bar if their grapple bite succeeds. Out of combat, draining a citizen for their XP sucks them so dry you absorb their ''memories''.

* VideoGameCrueltyPotential: You can kill someone in a social circle and leave the other members to go insane with revenge or get infected and turn into Skals.

* VillainOfAnotherStory: The Wet Boot Boys are a gang which indulges in extorsion and graverobbing, among other things. In other settings, the gang would be an antagonist ingame (if not the main enemy), but its impact in ''Vampyr'' is mostly offscreen, limited to a few {{Bit Character}}s and information learnt through quests and hints for various characters (some of those hints being tied to the fate of a PosthumousCharacter). None of the mooks or bosses are members of the gang. [[spoiler:The Wet Boot Boys are also completely unrelated to Jonathan's investigation on the origin of the plague.]]

* BeingGoodSucks: No vampire pun intended. It's possible to complete the game without draining any non-combatant civilians, but your level will be far behind your enemies. You still get some experience for fighting enemies (most of which are infected, curing illnesses, and completing investigations, but it's a fraction compared to what you'd get for chomping on an NPC. You also have to resist the temptation of going full-vigilante on civilians [[spoiler:On the other hand, playing as a good vampire [[EarnYourHappyEnding earns the happy ending]]; to get the best ending you have to avoid killing ''any'' non-hostile characters, even the ones who are AssholeVictims, outright murderers, or generally awful human beings. You can get the next best ending by limiting your killings to only a few select people.]]

* DamnYouMuscleMemory: A rare linguistic example. The game obviously borrows a lot of ideas and concepts from ''TabletopGame/VampireTheMasquerade'', including the term "Embrace". However, in ''Masquerade'', the expression is used for the comparatively less overtly harmful act of creating a new vampire, while in ''Vampyr'', it refers to killing a mortal for sustenance. This is likely to trip up ''[=VtM=]'' veterans a lot.

* DamnYouMuscleMemory: A rare linguistic example. The game obviously borrows a lot of ideas and concepts from ''TabletopGame/VampireTheMasquerade'', including the term "Embrace". However, in ''Masquerade'', the expression is used for the comparatively less overtly harmful act of creating a new vampire, while in ''Vampyr'', it refers to feeding, which is always fatal in the ''Vampyr'' setting. This is likely to trip up ''[=VtM=]'' veterans a lot.

* DamnYouMuscleMemory: A rare linguistic example. The game obviously borrows a lot of ideas and concepts from ''TabletopGame/VampireTheMasquerade'', including the term "Embrace". However, in ''Masquerade'', the term is used for the creation of a new vampire, while in ''Vampyr'', it refers to feeding. This is likely to trip up ''[=VtM=]'' veterans a lot.

* EasyModeMockery: Playing in Story Mode (the easiest difficulty setting) briefly adds a "Story Mode" label on the HUD when loading a game, and permanently adds one in the save slot. Story Mode also prevents to get an achievement when [[spoiler:finishing the game without embracing anyone, though the best ending is still available.]]

* GameBreakingBug: The investigation "A cherished souvenir" suffers from a number of bugs which result in forcing you to make the bad choice at the end, which permanently prevents to get two hints (one for Cristina Popa, one for the questgiver Clayton Darby). [[spoiler:At the end, you have to complete the quest by bringing Cristina's scarf to either her or Clayton, but you lose the hints if she's the one who receive the item. The game suffers from bugs which entirely remove the choice to give the scarf to Clayton if you do one of several seemingly innocuous actions while the investigation quest is active. Skipping the lines during Clayton briefing, sleeping, or quitting then reloading all ''remove'' the option to give the scarf to Clayton and force to get the bad resolution and the two missed hints.]]

** It's normally impossible to get each hints, weapons, and collectibles in a single playthrough. Depending how you complete [[spoiler:Usher Talltree's sidequest]], reading the notebook gets you one of his hints but make impossible to acquire one collectible and the game's best weapon.[[note]]Players have noted a glitch which allows to get all the rewards by going to him to complete the quest without having read the notebook, answers you didn't read it in dialog, ''then'' open the inventory (while the dialog is still occuring) and reading it[[/note]]

* TheCorruption: The Blood of Hate, [[spoiler:which is spread by the Red Queen,]] corrupts the vampires tainted by it into bloodthirsty monsters. [[spoiler:In the past, William Marshal discovered a cure for it and used it on Elisabeth, but it didn't quite work.]]

* DisasterDominoes: [[spoiler:Turning Aloysius Dawson into a vampire]] results in ''every single citizen'' in the game catching a disease once you sleep to the next night. That's not too bad if the districts where previously in good shape and if you have a sufficient stockpile of medicine ingredients, but being unable to catch-up results in the ill citizens' diseases worsening night after night, which in turn worsens the district's health, until the district falls into anarchy. Making this choice while not prepared enough may result in the districts' health spiraling down out-of-control until [=NPCs=] and game content becomes lost forever.

* AlwaysChaoticEvil: Subverted with the Skals. Upon first impression, it seems all of them are ravenous and mindless monsters incapable of being reasoned with. But then it turns out that a whole Skal community lives under London and they are outcasts of the 'proper' vampire society and their leader [[WastelandElder Old Bridget]] becomes a valuable friend and ally to Jonathan. [[spoiler:Sean Hampton can ''try'' to be a good Skal, but he will fail due to being infected by the Blood of Hate]]. When you get down to it, Skals are more victims of their condition than true monsters.

* AncientTradition: The Brotherhood of Saint Paul's Stole and the Guard of Priwen are both these, though the Guard of Priwen is a darker take on it. They are organizations that study the supernatural and fight the supernatural respectively and they also used to be one organization before splitting up in 1801.

** Jonathan asks Lady Ashbury how vampires are made, to make sure to be cautious and avoid accidentally turning people. [[spoiler:It turns out that what happened when he fed on his sister.]]

** Jonathan is allowed to wield improvised weapons such as hacksaws, which can be upgraded through a crafting system. There are also wooden stakes and cudgels you can use in your off-hand which stun enemies rather than do direct damage.

** Investigations that are linked to hints are sometimes counterintuitive e.g. in Whitechapel, do you give the keepsake scarf to Clayton Darby or Christina Popa? [[spoiler:Turns out, returning it to the owner will void two of her hints.]]

* TrailersAlwaysSpoil: The “Devil” trailer outright shows [[spoiler:the Morrigan and the Blood of Hate]] at the very end.