On the Subject of Bloodrayne 3

I’m a fan of niche franchises, as many readers will no doubt be aware. The Bloodrayne franchise is one of my favorite “cult classics” from the 2000s. Rayne is sassy, fun, and who doesn’t like playing a dhampir with mobility and a mix of melee weapons and gunplay?

Of course, we haven’t seen a new Bloodrayne title since Bloodrayne Betrayal in 2011 (or the remake Bloodrayne: Fresh Bites in 2021). However, the last mainline title was Bloodrayne 2 in 2004, remastered in 2021. It is high time for Rayne to return, especially since Bloodrayne 2 left plenty of room for a new entry.

Bloodrayne 2 left things off where humans were now in a pseudo-post-apocalyptic situation after Kagan had blocked out the sun. Rayne killed Kagan, but there was a lot left to do to restore humanity. I think there are a variety of options that could make a solid third main entry.

On the subject of the story, you could take a page from Darksiders’ playbook and have Rayne rescuing humans as she takes on powerful vampires that have set up shop across the city, or even across the world. It would also be a good way to show how humans are attempting to survive in these dark times. Some humans could be nomadic; others could hunker down in bunkers or fortified settlements.

This could be reflected in a sort of hub world as well. Rayne could help build a settlement for survivors or even attempt to connect existing settlements together to restore some semblance of civilization.

In terms of combat, it has been long enough since Bloodrayne 2’s release that I think there have been enough innovations made to really spice things up. Rayne could benefit heavily from a fighting style similar to Bayonetta, at least in terms of her mobility. I saw a post not long ago suggesting that the developers could take a page from the Batman: Arkham franchise, but I feel like that would be a bit too bulky for a mobile femme fatale like Rayne.

The worst thing that could be done to the Bloodrayne IP would be to sanitize it beyond its tongue-in-cheek sexuality. Rayne is a femme fatale, and the cheeky, playful side of her is a part of the character. It would be like taking the flirtiness from Bayonetta, or the sexy swagger from Dante.

Regardless, the Bloodrayne IP has plenty of room to grow and continue. Recent game releases such as Blood of the Dawnwalker and Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 have made it clear to me that the vampire genre is still ripe for game developers to play with. We all would love that power fantasy of being a creature of the night, right?