BloodNet

I want to like this game, but the user interface is a pain to figure out. You *need* the manual, and even then it's painful. Moving the mouse is annoying. Figuring out what keys to press is annoying. The spoken dialogue is low-res and has no subtitles. For my part, I gave up after an hour or so. If I had more patience in figuring all of this out I might enjoy this game, but right now, I'm just too old for this, and I have better things to do than spend hours figuring out how to play a game.

If you have a problem with spoken English without subtitles because you aren't very proficient in the language or because you have a hearing deficiency, don't bother. The dialog is horrible, there is no subtitles to what they're saying and they talk like they're about to fall asleep since not only do they draw out every word, they have an annoying echo on the background and the music is 5 tones on repeat. Said music is way too loud and makes it harder for you to understand the characters. The controls are wonky, I suggest taking the manual on another screen because it doesn't give any hints at all. It's also an older style adventure, so grab your notepad to write down any goals or information. The Graphics are pretty meh, even for an old game. Characters are nothing more than a few blurry silhouettes with an occasional image now and then to mix it up. Most of the action is you looking at 2 silhouettes while 2 portraits appear on your screen and audio plays on the background. The story however is decent, and it might interest you, but the way conversations are executed and how slow this game feels, I just can't finish it without feeling bored. If you can look past that, this is a good game to pass the time, but don't go expecting an adventure of the year (of release). Character creation is rather robust however, there are a lot of stats, and you generate a character via answering questions (although it mostly boils down to technician, soldier or well spoken businessman).

On one side this game has one of the best settings you'd want for a game: B-rate plot, cyberpunk and vampires. But the elephant in the room is the dialogues and especially the voice acting. The lines are cheesy as hell, yet they'd still could pull this off with decent amount of over the top acting, but... the actors are typical for what you'd expect for a 90s budget title (especially the main character). You know this 'perfect' mix between 'oh, I should try really hard', 'what the hell I'm even doing here?' and low quality recording. I'd still recommend to try it, since it's pretty cheap.

I'll start just by saying that it is my favourite adventure (although it is much more) game. Bloodnet mixes elements of adventure and rpg. Among solving puzzles you command your small squad of friends and mercenaries in fights. There's a lot of character statistics influencing combat, decking (travelling through cyberspace), crafting etc... Bloodnet tells a story of Ransom Stark, who is trying to lift a curse of vampirism. It is dark, mature and really sucks in. Ransom will meet a lot of interesting and well written characters. While combat sequences are not of best quality, great atmosphere makes up for it. Important element of Bloodnet is decking. Improving cyberdeck will help to experience it. It is not a point and click game (you won't make a helicopter combining shoelaces and washing machine). Puzzles are interesting and logical. It is more of unraveling the story. If you like cyberpunk it is a must have. If you like vampires it is a must have.