News Roundup: White Wolf Hires New Lead Game Designer + Toon Reboot

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This week’s edition covers the appointment of two new leaders within the TTRPG space. First is a lead game designer for the people behind VAMPIRE THE MASQUERADE. There’s also a new art director over at CALL OF CTHULHU publisher Chaosium. Finally, Steve Jackson Games is inking up a new reboot of its cartoon-themed TTRPG.

Brazilian Indie Game Maker Takes Over as White Wolf Lead Game Designer

White Wolf, the recently rebranded entity behind the World of Darkness IP as well as the Vampire: the Masquerade, has brought on a new game designer to oversee its popular properties. Diogo Nogueira, a Brazil-based game designer and owner of Old Skull Publishing, announced on Friday that he will be taking over as lead game designer for White Wolf.

“After years of working as an independent game designer, like a good Anarch, I joined the Camarilla,” Nogueira wrote in an update, referencing the iconic political factions featured in Vampire the Masquerade. “I am now the Lead Game Designer at White Wolf, that made me realize that TTRPGs could be about a lot more than killing monsters. I can be one of them and surprisingly be even more human!”

The World of Darkness games were among some of the first that Noguiera read in english and has shaped his view of the industry. He intends to bring his game design philosophy of “playing more with less” to make WoD more accessible going forward.

Nogueira is best known for his work on independently published games like Primal Quest (a TTRPG about living in prehistoric times) under the Old Skull Publishing brand. He’s also worked as an illustrator for North Wind Games, Bloat Games, Appendix N Entertainment, Skeeter Green Publishing, Shield of Faith Studios, Magpie Games, and many others.

World of Darkness announced in May 2025 at its LARP event Darkness Emergent that it was rebranding as White Wolf, a return to the original publisher that had created VTM and its many other properties. The rebrand was an indication of its desire to “develop both classic and new IPs faster and with a clearer long-term transmedia vision, always in collaboration with our passionate fans and partners.” This was followed by former D&D executive Jess Lanzillo joining White Wolf in July as its new creative director.

The company hopes to push new versions of WoD’s old splatbooks, including Vampire: The Dark Ages and Mage: The Ascension in the near term, although the company has not confirmed any timelines or plans beyond allusions to the properties in media interviews.

The big focus of WoD and its parent company Paradox Interactive in 2025 was the release of Bloodlines 2, a spiritual successor to the cult classic vampire-themed video game from the 2000s. The game underperformed in sales and was marked as a loss in recent reports.

Toon: The Cartoon Roleplaying Game Gets Update After 40 Years

Steve Jackson Games surprised long-time TTRPG fans with the announcement to crowdfund a new version of TOON, its Disney/cartoon-inspired TTRPG. The game was originally published in 1984.

“Designed by Greg Costikyan and developed by Warren Spector, Toon is all about the classic slapstick and the ridiculous logic of cartoons. Zaniness abounds as players become the characters of their choice – a playful platypus, a lighthearted lion, a malignant mailman, or whatever they’d like to be,” SJG said in a press release. “A falling grand piano may flatten them, dynamite could disintegrate them . . . Fear not! Everyone may Fall Down, but no one will ever die, and they’ll be right back and ready to go in the next scene.”

The updated version will have simplified character creation rools, new “Silly Tables” and more adventures. The updated version will involved Steve Jackson and Possum Creek’s Jay Dragon.

The game is expected to crowdfund on Dec. 17, 2025.

Paul Tobin, Former Art Director for LOTR Adaptations, Joins Chaosium

Chaosium announced that it appointed Paul Tobin, a former concept artist and art director from the film-focused Weta Workshop, as its next art director.

Tobin’s worked on a lot of major film franchises like The Hobbit, Shadow of Mordor and Chronicles of Narnia. He’s also made illustrations for Earthdawn, 13th Age, Trinity Continuum, Werewolf: The Apocalypse, and Curseborne as well as new art for Chaosium’s knight-focused Pendragon TTRPG.

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