In August, Hardsuit Labs, developer of Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2, announced that it had parted ways with lead writer Brian Mitsoda and creative director Ka'ai Cluney. The reason for the split was not disclosed, but Mitsoda suggested it was not a happy parting, saying he was not aware of any problems and that the termination came as a complete surprise.

Today, publisher Paradox Interactive confirmed that senior scenario designer Cara Ellison has also left the project and is no longer with developer Hardsuit Labs; Armello developer League of Geeks also recently announced that Ellison has joined as Senior Narrative Designer.

"Cara Ellison is leaving Hardsuit Labs and will not be working on Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2," a spokesperson for Paradox Cara brings fresh ideas to the project and many of her contributions will be reflected in next year's game," said a spokesperson for Paradox. We appreciate her work on 'Bloodlines 2' and wish her all the best in her future endeavors."

This move may reflect the natural evolution of "Bloodlines 2" development - Ellison's work was effectively finished as the scenario design was completed. However, the postponement of "Bloodlines" to 2021 in August suggests that the work is definitely not nearing completion, and it is not hard to see Mitsuda and Clooney's dismissal a week later as a sign of more serious problems. The statement that "many of her contributions will appear in the game" is also interesting: as Senior Narrative Designer, the game's story is expected to be primarily her responsibility.

Paradox declined to comment on when Ellison left the project and how that would affect the development of Bloodlines 2. We have emailed Ellison for more information and will update if we hear back.