NY by Night
{{Short description|American web series}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2025}}
{{Use American English|date=November 2021}}
{{Infobox television
| image =
| alt =
| genre = {{ubl
| Horror
}}
| creator = Jason Carl
| based_on = Vampire: The Masquerade 5th edition
| starring = {{ubl
| Jason Carl
| Alexander Ward
| Mayanna Beren
| Joey Rassool
| Noura Abrahim
| Michelle Nguyen Bradley
| Xander Jeanneret
| Cynthia Marie
}}
| country = United States
| language = English
| num_seasons = 2
| num_episodes = 16
| producer =
| location = Los Angeles, California
| runtime =
| company = Paradox Interactive
| network = {{ubl
| Twitch
| YouTube}}
| first_aired = {{Start date|2022|07|1}}
| last_aired = {{End date|2022|11|18}}
| related = L.A. by Night
Coteries of New York
Shadows of New York
Club Auspex (2022)
}}
NY by Night is an American actual play web series where the cast plays as vampires using the fifth edition Vampire: The Masquerade ruleset. It is set canonically in the World of Darkness series after the events of L.A. by Night; the show is also set between the events of the visual novel video games Vampire: The Masquerade – Coteries of New York and Vampire: The Masquerade – Shadows of New York. The show focuses on different Kindred groups within New York City. Three seasons have been announced – the first season premiered on July 1, 2022; the second season premiered on September 30, 2022.
Cast
- Jason Carl as the storyteller
=Anarch coterie=
- Alexander Ward as Isaac Brooke
- Mayanna Beren as Serif
- Aabria Iyengar as Margot "Fuego" Walker
- Joey Rassool as Reyes Malcolm
= Camarilla coterie =
- Noura Abrahim as Khalida{{Cite web |last=Hoffer |first=Christian |date=September 30, 2022 |title=New York by Night Brings Vampires to the Big Apple |url=https://comicbook.com/gaming/news/new-york-by-night-brings-vampires-to-the-big-apple/ |access-date=September 30, 2022 |website=ComicBook.com |language=en |archive-date=September 30, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220930182849/https://comicbook.com/gaming/news/new-york-by-night-brings-vampires-to-the-big-apple/ |url-status=live }}
- Michelle Nguyen Bradley as Kiếm
- Xander Jeanneret as Brawn
- Cynthia Marie as CoCo
Premise
NY by Night is a sequel to the actual play web series L.A. by Night; the actual play web series uses the fifth edition of the Vampire: The Masquerade tabletop role-playing game.{{Cite web |last=Friedman |first=Em |date=July 1, 2022 |title=New York by Night brings Vampire-themed actual play to the City That Never Sleeps |url=https://www.polygon.com/tabletop-games/23189660/new-york-by-night-preview-vampire-the-masquerade-actual-play-aabria-iyengar |access-date=July 1, 2022 |website=Polygon |language=en-US |archive-date=July 1, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220701170006/https://www.polygon.com/tabletop-games/23189660/new-york-by-night-preview-vampire-the-masquerade-actual-play-aabria-iyengar |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |date=June 27, 2022 |title=Vampire: The Masquerade's New York By Night Season 1 Debuts On July 1 |url=https://screenrant.com/vampire-the-masquerade-new-york-by-night-debut/ |access-date=July 1, 2022 |website=Screen Rant |language=en-US |archive-date=July 1, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220701214049/https://screenrant.com/vampire-the-masquerade-new-york-by-night-debut/ |url-status=live }} The show is also set between the events of the visual novel video games Vampire: The Masquerade – Coteries of New York and Vampire: The Masquerade – Shadows of New York. Carl stated that players of those video games "might recognize some familiar names and faces".
Before the premiere, World of Darkness announced the planned structure of the first three seasons. The web series follows various vampires, also known as Kindred, who live in New York City. The first season focuses on four Anarch members who chafe under the Camarilla's rules. Season two focuses on a cast of Camarilla Kindred maintaining their power in the city. Season three will bring these parallel storylines together as the two coteries collide.{{Cite web |last=Sheehan |first=Gavin |date=2022-06-27 |title=Vampire: The Masquerade Show LA By Night Announces Sequel |url=https://bleedingcool.com/games/vampire-the-masquerade-show-la-by-night-announces-sequel/ |access-date=2022-06-27 |website=Bleeding Cool News And Rumors |language=en |archive-date=2022-06-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220627161032/https://bleedingcool.com/games/vampire-the-masquerade-show-la-by-night-announces-sequel/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |date=June 27, 2022 |title=Night falls on New York City - New York By Night premiere date & cast |url=https://www.worldofdarkness.com/news/night-falls-on-new-york-city |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220627130706/https://www.worldofdarkness.com/news/night-falls-on-new-york-city |archive-date=June 27, 2022 |access-date=June 27, 2022 |website=World of Darkness |language=en |type=Press release}}
Production
NY by Night debuted as a production of Paradox Interactive – owner of World of Darkness intellectual property such as Vampire: The Masquerade – in July 2022. Three seasons were announced before the premiere of the first season. The show uses a simultaneous display where the audience can view everyone at the game table at the same time. Em Friedman, for Polygon, wrote that this style of display "is one of the appeals of actual play. Jason Carl (LA by Night, New York by Night) notes livestreamed or unedited live-to-tape 'draws on the improvisational skills and the role-playing skills of the players and makes it all real and immediate and genuine.' Unlike other cinematic or televisual forms, this kind of visual layout doesn't direct the viewer's eye, and different audience members may pay attention to different parts of the screen".{{Cite web |last=Friedman |first=Em |date=2022-09-14 |title=How the first decade of actual play has defined the template |url=https://www.polygon.com/23334732/how-the-first-decade-of-actual-play-has-defined-the-template |access-date=2022-09-15 |website=Polygon |language=en-US |archive-date=2022-09-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220914234447/https://www.polygon.com/23334732/how-the-first-decade-of-actual-play-has-defined-the-template |url-status=live }}
The show aired each Friday at 19:00 PT on the World of Darkness Twitch channel. The VOD was made available for subscribers of the World of Darkness Twitch channel immediately after airing and before being uploaded to the World of Darkness YouTube channel the following Monday, where it can be watched for free.{{Cite tweet |number=1569324220349546497 |user=vampiresnvino |title=18 days until NY by Night Season 2. But who's counting? 😉🦇🖤 [IMAGE] |first=Jason |last=Carl |author-link=Jason Carl |date=September 12, 2022 |access-date=September 15, 2022}} The aftershow Club Auspex airs directly after NY by Night.
Episodes
= Series overview =
{{Series overview
|color1 = #FCD959
|link1 =
|linkT1 = 1
|episodes1 = 8
|start1 = {{Start date|2022|7|1}}
|end1 = {{End date|2022|8|26}}
|color2 = #A80F11
|link2 =
|linkT2 = 2
|episodes2 = 8
|start2 = {{Start date|2022|9|30}}
|end2 = {{End date|2022|11|18}}
}}
= Season 1 =
{{Episode table |background= FCD959 |season=5 |title=25 |airdate=15 |aux4=55 |seasonT = Episode |aux4T=Notes
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 1
|Title = Dear New York
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2022|7|1}}
|Aux4 = –
|ShortSummary =
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 2
|Title = Rumor of War
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2022|6|15}}
|Aux4 = –
|ShortSummary =
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 3
|Title = Avoided and Exploited
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2022|7|22}}
|Aux4 = Guest stars Erika Ishii
|ShortSummary =
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 4
|Title = Like a Graveyard
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2022|7|29}}
|Aux4 = Guest stars Shayne Eastin
|ShortSummary =
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 5
|Title = Darkness Clings
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2022|8|5}}
|Aux4 = Guest stars Gina DeVivo
|ShortSummary =
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 6
|Title = When I Am Hungry
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2022|8|12}}
|Aux4 = Guest stars Persephone Valentine
|ShortSummary =
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 7
|Title = A Thing With Fangs
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2022|8|19}}
|Aux4 = –
|ShortSummary =
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 8
|Title = Virtue Overthrow
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2022|8|26}}
|Aux4 = –
|ShortSummary =
}}
}}
= Season 2 =
{{Episode table |background= A80F11 |season=5 |title=25 |airdate=15 |aux4=55 |seasonT = Episode |aux4T=Notes
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 1
|Title = A City That Never Sleeps
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2022|9|30}}
|Aux4 = –
|ShortSummary =
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 2
|Title = A Beautiful Catastrophe
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2022|10|7}}
|Aux4 = –
|ShortSummary =
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 3
|Title = Festivals of Babylon
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2022|10|14}}
|Aux4 = –
|ShortSummary =
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 4
|Title = All The Mystery
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2022|10|21}}
|Aux4 = Guest stars Becca Scott
|ShortSummary =
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 5
|Title = Through the Twilight
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2022|10|28}}
|Aux4 = –
|ShortSummary =
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 6
|Title = Someone Else Before
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2022|11|4}}
|Aux4 = Guest stars Persephone Valentine
|ShortSummary =
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 7
|Title = Linked With Passion
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2022|11|11}}
|Aux4 = Guest stars Josephine McAdam
|ShortSummary =
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 8
|Title = Made of Strife
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2022|11|18}}
|Aux4 = –
|ShortSummary =
}}
}}
Reception
Em Friedman, for Polygon in 2022, suggested that even people who've never played Vampire: The Masquerade should watch NY by Night. Friedman commented that "the show features some familiar faces and promises to be a leap forward for non-Dungeons & Dragons actual play. [...] While set in the same modern-day world as LA by Night, New York by Night will introduce a city playing by much older rules. [...] The World of Darkness is always an adult, bloody setting, but expect more struggle for survival compared to the glamour of Hollywood and the Valley". Friedman also highlighted the announced three season structure – "it's an ambitious experiment in narrative structure rarely seen in studio actual play shows, but it tracks with the company's past efforts". New York by Night was included on Polygon
Christian Hoffer, for ComicBook.com, commented that "actual play shows are a popular form of web entertainment, although they are dominated by Dungeons & Dragons shows. But while Dungeons & Dragons is focused mostly on external conflict between an adventuring party and enemy creatures, much of the drama in a Vampire: The Masquerade series is focused on the coterie dynamics". Hoffer highlighted that "New York by Night also benefits from being set within one of the largest cities of the world, a place filled with recognizable sites and its own personality. But the geography of the city itself also comes into play" – with the various coteries in charge of different boroughs, it can ramp up tension "when characters sneak into another faction's territory". Christopher Cruz of the Rolling Stone, in an overview of actual plays, highlighted that the "World of Darkness series show a different aspect of the TTRPG experience, with modern stories revolving clandestine factions or 'Coteries' of conflicting machinations within the dark underbelly of real-world cities. Spread across multiple independent series, beginning with 2018's L.A. By Night, which ran for five seasons, and now including off-shoots NY By Night and Seattle By Night, the scope of the world is diverse and ever growing".{{Cite magazine |last=Cruz |first=Christopher |date=2024-01-22 |title=Streaming Is Introducing a New Generation to Dungeons & Dragons |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/dungeons-and-dragons-tabletop-games-online-1234945297/ |access-date=2024-01-23 |magazine=Rolling Stone |language=en-US |archive-date=2024-01-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240123021501/https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/dungeons-and-dragons-tabletop-games-online-1234945297/ |url-status=live }} Cruz commented that these unscripted series are supported by Paradox Interactive so they become part of the fictional canon "of the Vampire: The Masquerade universe" and are "canonically set alongside the various multimedia extensions of the franchise, including video games, books, graphic novels, and more".
References
{{reflist}}