Vampire: The Requiem is a storytelling (or role-playing) game where a group of players cooperate to tell a story. .Each player takes on the role of a single vampire, or Kindred, except for the Storyteller This player takes on the roles of pretty much everything else. He describes the world to the other players, acts out the parts of other characters, and determines what challenges the players' characters face. Players roll dice to determine whether their respective characters can overcome the challenges created by the Storyteller.

Here's a sample exchange:

"You rise from a day's slumber in the small basement you use as a haven. A scratching at the door tells you someone is trying to get in. What do you do?"

The players describe their characters' actions, usually in the first person. "I sneak up to the door and look through the peephole."

The Storyteller describes the results of the action. This sort of play goes back and forth until the scene is resolved. Players roll dice when they try things, but they aren't guaranteed success. Jumping out of a moving car, for example, requires a dice roll; leaving a stationary car does not.