In March, Table-Top Roleplaying Actual Play show, Dimension 20, announced their next series, ‘City Council of Darkness’, would use a modified version of the ‘Vampire: The Masquerade’ system. 

For those unfamiliar, tabletop role-playing is a game of collaborative storytelling. They usually (but not always) have one player who ‘runs’ the game (in Dungeons and Dragons they are known as the ‘Dungeon Master’ and in Vampire the Masquerade (VtM) the ‘Storyteller’). Dice are often, but not always, used to add unpredictability to games, deciding anything from the chances of drinking the blood of a sleeping victim, or noticing your friend waving for help from inside a gelatinous cube. 

Image Credit: Pexels / Nika Benedictova

In the mid-2020s, roleplaying became a spectator sport with the birth of Actual Play broadcasts. Critical Role started in 2015, with ‘LA by Night’, followed by a VtM actual play in 2018. LA by Night immediately set a different tone; the players stayed in character, even when discussing rule mechanics with the Storytellers. The players appeared in costumes and, as might be expected from a game that has at its heart the line between humanity and monstrosity, the themes explored involved less heroics and more soul-searching.

The last few years have seen Critical Role play to a sold-out Wembley Arena and Dimension 20 play Madison Square Garden. As it turns out, Actual Play is big business. 

Dimension 20 started in September 2020, part of the College Humour streaming service. It immediately looked and felt different. Rather than simply broadcasting a four-hour play session, it had shorter, tightly edited episodes, emphasising humour and adventure. The regular table of players opens each episode with the call ‘Hi, Intrepid Heroes!’ Dimension 20 campaigns are generally shorter – a mere 8 or 12 weeks, while campaigns span multiple years. 

Image Credit: Dimension 20 Via Bluesky

There were some mixed feelings when “City Council of Darkness” was announced. VtM markets itself as a game of ‘personal horror’. When crafting characters, vampire players do not only consider their characters’ abilities but also their relationships and philosophies. Some of these mechanics are notably absent from the modified version of the system that Dimension 20 is using. While their short introduction to the system isn’t actually bad, it is clear these vampires will not be fighting for their souls. In the first episode, the tone is set boldly and clearly when ‘Clive Tarker’, the ‘wet’ vampire priest, is introduced in all his drooling glory. 

As someone who has been playing and running games of VtM since the dying days of the (last) Satanic Panic, I admit I might have had a bit of a knee-jerk reaction to the announcement. Flashes of tables full of players dressed in colours other than black playing at being horny vampires flew before my eyes.

As both a goth and a nerd, I am keenly aware of the fragility of our safe spaces and how much that safety relies on those spaces going, to a certain extent, unnoticed. That being said, it is also not for me or anyone else to become the fun police. Other people are entitled to play the game however they please at their own tables. 

Image Credit: Dimension 20 via YouTube

Am I concerned that my tables will be flooded with players who are not familiar with the themes of the game, and that culture clash will spoil it for everyone? No. Every Dungeon Master and Storyteller in 2026 should be able to run a session zero, and in that session, agree on the expectations for the tone of the game. There is no harm in parting ways at that stage, maybe even recommending where a more suitable game can be found. As Critical Role rocketed Dungeons and Dragons into mass popularity, there was discussion about whether the new players were ‘ruining’ the hobby. That influx of players has certainly changed the game, but mostly for the better. Tables are safer and while you can still kill some orcs if you want, there has been an explosion of interesting and morally complex storytelling.

So, while I understand the concern, I think we have more to gain than to lose from Dimension 20’s foray into darkness, bringing us a glut of fresh blood.

Featured Image Credit: Dimension 20 / Dropout TV