History VideoGame / Vampyr2018

** Right after attending [[spoiler:Mary Reid's funeral]], the main quest's new objective consists in going to Whitechapel's church, while the worldmap mentions a special "event" in Pembroke Hospital. Said event is a unique dialogue with Dr. Swansea, which provides one of his clues. Going straight to the church instead of backtracking to Dr. Swansea results in the clue becoming unobtainable.

* DontTryThisAtHome: One of the screens when launching the game is a disclaimer stating the writers made their research about early 20th century-era medicine but its depiction has been simplified for narrative reasons and link diseases with supernatural elements, so this game shouldn't be used as a model to perform medical acts in real life.

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

* SawedOffShotgun: Each available shotgun is one, which allows Reid to fire them off-hand while wielding a melee weapon in his preferred hand. The first one available, the "Luparra", can be found as early as in the prologue.

* NoPronunciationGuide: The title. Is it "''vamp-IRE''" or "''vamp-EER''"? No one is certain, though DONTNOD themselves pronounce it as the latter, probably because that's how "vampire" is pronounced in French. No one says it like that in the game.

** Possibly invoked, as one can complete the game without killing a single non-hostile NPC. However, this makes the game a bit more difficult, because you can't get new abilities without consuming blood.

* DontTryThisAtHome: One of the screens when launching the game for the first time is a disclaimer stating the writers made their research about early 20th century-era medicine but its depiction has been simplified for narrative reasons, so this game shouldn't be used as a model to perform medical acts in real life.

* LowLevelRun: The "Not Even Once" achievement involves doing this by never Embracing any citizens.

* ArtisticLicenseHistory: According to [[spoiler:William Marshal]], the Great Fire of London began in St. Paul's Cathedral first, and he had been the one to set it. According to historical accounts, the fire started in a bakery in Pudding Lane and did not spread to the Cathedral until two days afterwards. Said bakery ''is'' mentioned in the conversation as the hideout of the 1666 Disaster, however, so this is likely a literal case of Artistic License.

* MoralDissonance: The game treats feeding on named [=NPCs=] as different from biting enemies in combat, even though narratively said 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.

* OurVampiresAreDifferent: 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 vampires are generally close to their Gothic portrayal: they're undead, repelled by holy symbols and places, have to feed on blood (or, in the case of Skals, flesh), 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.
** Some differences from the classic portrayal include vampires apparently being repelled by living plants (though this never comes up in-game), only being mildly annoyed by garlic, and seeming to still have a reflection. Also, Ekons insist that "vampire" is folklore-ish nonsense and that "Ekon" is the proper term for their race.
*** It also seems to follow a similar route as ''ComicBook/AmericanVampire'' where AllMythsAreTrue, but they are ''all'' some form of subspecies of vampire, specifically shown with Velkods, who are apparently the inspiration for Werewolves.

** Essential [=NPCs=] that cannot be Embraced through conventional methods have the Mesmerize Resistance of higher than 5 while Jonathan's Mesmerize power peaks with said 5. Some characters have a resistance of ''20''.

* PoliticallyCorrectHistory: Played with. There is a significant number of non-white characters and while some discrimination is referenced, few is [[ShowDontTell depicted onscreen and mostly referenced]]. 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]] (especially the former, since during that time homosexuality was illegal, and Blight is worried about the stigma), 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]].

** Vulkod are tall, animalistic vampires capable of shapeshifting into werewolf-like monsters. They are highly territorial and will attack anyone entering their space. Much like the Skal, they are incapable of fitting in due to their pitch-black skin, hulking figures and uneven limbs, though they're sometimes hired by the Ekon as personal bodyguards. Some Vulkod prefer to fight in their human forms while others enjoy the thrill of mauling as an 800-pound fuzzy murder-machine.

* MustBeInvited: One of Jonathan's vampiric weaknesses is that he can only enter others' homes if he's invited (although the only thing stopping you from mind-controlling them into inviting Jonathan in is his memorisation level, which [[BrokenBridge is increased by doing story missions]]). Note that this only applies to ''occupied'' homes; he can freely enter unoccupied homes, houses with Skal residents, or buildings with multiple occupants or "public" places without invitation. Probably also useful from a developer standpoint since this gives them an excuse for him to not be able to go through ''every'' house in London. During one [[{{Sidequest}} citizen investigation]], Jonathan lampshades this.

* AntiFrustrationFeatures: You're immune to attacks while feeding on someone in combat. While you're mostly ignored when you are, you can see this if you begin feeding as an attack is coming your way.

** The game gives no indication that the player should conserve their Experience Points before [[spoiler:confronting Sean Hampton (500XP) or saving Dr. Swansea (3000XP) if they want to prevent the Docks and Pembroke districts from possibly collapsing]]. But the game [[AntiFrustrationFeatures is lenient]] in this regard: if you don't have enough XP, you can still chose this option; your XP total will go into the negative, but the characters involved will still [[spoiler:be turned.]]
** [[spoiler:And then there's Dawson. 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 might lock you out of the no-kill run.]]
*** [[spoiler:While killing him via Embrace would lock you out of the pacifist ending, unlocking his third option and Charming him to be at peace with his own demise doesn't. Despite Reid being the cause of it, Dawson technically died of illness/natural causes.]]
** Investigations that are linked to hints are similarly 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.]]

* 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 no better than the game's other blade weapons, which is rather disappointing considering the amount of effort you go through to get it.

* KillItWithFire: Fire is the biggest weakness of the undead. Vampire hunters who shoot you with regular bullets reduce your health, but it is easily regenerated, while the ones who shoot you with ''incendiary'' rounds cause damage to your maximum health. Torch-wielders are the same deal. The player can get in on the fun too, with white phosphorus upgrades for the firearms which deal bonus damage to vampires.

** In the final chapter, [[spoiler:Elisabeth's mentor William Marshal asks her to end his life which she does.]]

* MalignedMixedMarriage: 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]].

* NoPronunciationGuide: The title. Is it "''vamp-IRE''" or "''vamp-EER''"? No one is certain, though DONTNOD themselves pronounce it as the latter. [[labelnote:Note]]Only because the word itself is pronounced as "vamp-EER" in French.[[/labelnote]]

* RealityEnsues: A number of surprising incidents of this happen in the game.
** Pembroke Hospital is shown as a place of mismanagement, HarmfulHealing, and deplorable conditions. In the end, should [[spoiler: Swansea be turned into a vampire]] or Jonathan purposefully collapse it, the hospital has an article written about it which exposes its glaring issues.
** Going against the Ascalon Club results in them sending very powerful assassins after you. They promise to banish you from England with the full extent of their resources.
** Jonathan can support the experimentation of Dr. Strickland and his devotion to cutting edge technology for treating sickness. He'll then be forced to eat his words when he discovers Dr. Strickland is a prideful nigh- charlatan and his experiments would ''kill'' his patients.

** A signed copy of ''Literature/{{Dracula}}'' can be found in Elisabeth Ashbury's mansion. Apparently [[BeenThereShapedHistory she's the actual source of the ideas therein]].

** The Beast, aggravated damage, and multiple kinds of vampires are possible inspirations from ''TabletopGame/VampireTheMasquerade'', as well as [[TabletopGame/HunterTheVigil the presence of an organization bent on exterminating vampires at all cost]]. The Vulkod and Sewer Beasts were seemingly inspired by [[BeastMan Gangrel]], while the Skals are a combination of Nosferatu and thin-bloods.

* GangUpOnTheHuman: Thoroughly averted. If something more obviously threatening appears, human enemies will turn their attention to that. Nonhuman enemies generally don't at first, but they'll quickly switch targets if they get hit.

** Possibly justified since Hampton is revealed in dialog with another character [[spoiler: to have been molested by a Catholic priest as a very young man. While it did not dissuade him from religion, it may have soured his feelings about the Catholic church]]

Jonathan's thirst for blood compels him to kill. To do this successfully, the player must gather information about his targets, study and change their habits, collect clues, and maintain certain relationships by communicating with the inhabitants of London. If one so chooses, anyone in the game could be a target, which will have consequences that affect the story. Feeding on human blood will unlock new vampiric powers in addition to providing nourishment. On the other hand, one can also choose to not to kill anyone, as they're under no obligation to do so in order to progress within the game. At the same time, Jonathan has his hands rather full in his professional life, as UsefulNotes/TheSpanishFlu epidemic ravages Europe and his skills as a doctor are in high demand.

** Charlotte Ashbury mentions that some folk are sarcastically talking about building a wall around the West End to corral the voices of the Suffrage Movement. She then says if they ever did that she would blow it up. This seems like a pithy quip meant to show that the Sufferage Movement won't be silenced, but in reality, the first wave of feminism (especially in Britain) did commit several acts of terrorism, such as breaking windows and firebombing mailboxes.

* 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 which study the supernatural and fight the supernatural respectively and they also used to be one organization before splitting up in 1801.

* CityNoir: 1918 London is a dark and devastated place. Most of the people are hiding because of the rampant influenza, the hospitals are full and telling people that are sick to go back home, and there is a vampire infestation going on at the same time. And depending on Jonathan's actions, he can send the entire city into complete anarchy and chaos.

** Giving the correct answers during Dorothy Crane's surgery scene. There's 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.

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

** [[spoiler:Mary Reid]] uses a makeshift wooden cross that marked her grave as melee weapon for her boss fight.

* 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 no better than the game's other blade weapons, which is rather disappointing consider the amount of effort you go through to get it.

* MoralDissonance: The game treats feeding on named [=NPCs=] as different from biting enemies in combat, even though narratively said 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.

** Playing as a FriendlyNeighborhoodVampire means you will leave everyone alive, no matter how loathsome and despicable they are. In fact quite a few characters can only improve their lives if the people in their social circle having a detrimental effect on them are killed by you. That said, [[spoiler:it's possible to get the second-best ending by only targeting a select few victims, meaning you can still get away with killing the worst of the worst if you want a good but not perfect ending.]]

* OurVampiresAreDifferent: 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 vampires are generally close to their Gothic portrayal: they're undead, repelled by holy symbols and places, have to feed on blood (or, in the case of Skals, flesh), 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 an 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.

* PoliticallyCorrectHistory: Played with. There is a significant number of non-white characters and while some discrimination is referenced, few is [[ShowDontTell depicted onscreen and mostly referenced]]. 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]] (especially the former, since during that time homosexuality was illegal, and Blight is worried about the stigma), and women are unfairly treated in 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]].

** The achievement for watering a plant (with water which can only be found by [[CommonplaceRare carefully searching the West End]]) is an extended one to ''VideoGame/LifeIsStrange'''s infamous GuideDangIt; the achievement itself is called "Unlife Is Strange"; the plant takes 3 in-game days to revive (a plant in Max's room in [=LiS=] Season 1 will die or be thriving in Episode 3, also three days later in game); and when it revives, Jonathan decides to name it Lisa, (the same name Max gave her plant).

* SuicideIsShameful: One of the hints for Mortimer Goswick reveals that he's in hospital because of attempted suicide. While Jonathan doesn't judge him too harshly, it's noted that it's still a crime in Britain during the years the game's set in, and seeking help for his depression could, ironically, doom him.

* TheUnmasquedWorld: Zigzagged. Some are very much aware that the supernatural exists among the civilian population, but are either ignored or made fun of. On the other hand, community leaders are occasionally WelcomedToTheMasquerade and some organizations like the Guard of Priwen and the Brotherhood of St. Paul Stole deal with these creatures on a nigh-daily basis and keep track of their whereabouts. One attempt at exterminating all British vampires was made in 1850s, but it is unclear if the battle had or hadn't caused a national uproar.

* WarmBloodbagsAreEverywhere: Your AuraVision not only lets you see blood, but blood vessels pumping in nearby civilians. And the game helpfully puts a placard over everyone saying exactly how much EXP you'd get for killing them, so the game manages to cleverly tempt both the player as well as the player character at the same time. Jonathan may be able to stave off the hunger with a few rats but he'll never get strong enough to face powerful enemies without chomping on someone.

*** It also seems to follow a similar route as [[ComicBook/AmericanVampire American Vampire]] where AllMythsAreTrue, but they are ''all'' some form of subspecies of vampire, specifically shown with Velkods, who are apprently the inspiration for Werewolves.

* AndYourRewardIsClothes: The preorder DLC, ''Hunter's Heirlooms'', includes an alternate outfit for Jonathan to change to in his office at Pembroke. Although all it does is switches his default grey overcoat for a black one with a detachable cape, adds black leather gloves and a black bowler hat.

** Hampton is revealed in a dialog with another character [[spoiler: to have been molested by a Catholic priest as a very young man. While it did not dissuade him from religion, it may have soured his feelings about the Catholic church]]
* AssholeVictim: Quite a few of the supporting cast are pretty flawed, but a few stand out:

* BodyHorror: Skals are afflicted with hideous deformities, as seen in this [[https://twitter.com/VampyrGame/status/896015528355143681 concept art]]. That said, they are nothing compared to Ichors, the living embodiments of disease mixed with vampire blood, since they are even more mutated than the average Skals.

* ClassicalMovieVampire: Played straight for probably the first time in decades albeit Dr. Reid is a DownplayedTrope example. He is a dark, sinister-looking European aristocratic gentleman with a coat that strongly resembles a cape with a HighCollarOfDoom. He is cursed with a HorrorHunger and lives in a time just after the Victorian Era. He possesses mesmerism, is affected by crosses, and is chased by vampire hunters. Indeed, the other vampires in the setting also possess many classic trope examples. Indeed, the primarily influences appear to be Dracula (for the Ekons), Nosferatu (for the Skals), and Carmilla (for Lady Ashbury).

** Most of the upstanding Citizen [=NPCs=] don't have a clue about the horrendous ghouls and thuggish vampire hunters roaming the streets at night, assuming the former to be just crazies and the latter to be some kind of militia. A particularly egregious example are the lost citizens threatened by Skals trying to eat them and then they are saved by a stranger that moves like a shadow and bites their attackers, and they never question what he is.

* MoralDissonance: The game treats feeding on named [=NPCs=] as different from biting enemies in combat, even though narratively said difference isn't clear. They have different effect ''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.

* MustBeInvited: One of Jonathan's vampiric weaknesses is that he can only enter others' homes if he's invited (although the only thing stopping you from mind controlling them into inviting Jonathan in is his memorisation level, which [[BrokenBridge is increased by doing story missions]]). Note that this only applies to ''occupied'' homes; he can freely enter unoccupied homes, houses with Skal residents, or buildings with multiple occupants or "public" places without invitation. Probably also useful from a developer standpoint since this gives them an excuse for him to not be able to go through ''every'' house in London. During one [[{{Sidequest}} citizen investigation]], Jonathan lampshades this.

* WhatMeasureIsAMook: While civilian deaths will have consequences no matter how unimportant they appear to be, generic enemies such as Guard of Priwen are not held to the same standard and can be killed freely. For example, if Jonathan feeds on Nurse Hawkins, the Pembroke Hospital district will be affected with one of their staff members dying and patients growing more sick. However, even if Jonathan starts killing the Guard by the hundreds, it doesn't affect any of the districts.

* VampireDoctor: The main character is a vampire and a doctor, so he can see people's health conditions using his VeinOVision. The best way to level yourself up quickly is by feasting on any of the unique civilian [=NPC=]s. They all have placards over their heads showing how much experience they're worth, so it temps the player as much as the thirst tempts Jonathan.

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