Vampire®: The Masquerade - Bloodlines™

I never reviewed this in the past and don't generally write any at all, BUT I was motivated to recently write a review of Bloodlines 2 before I refunded it. This game is unquestionably better. Playing the sequel (a dogs breakfast of a game) dredged up a lot of nostalgia for this title and thought it was only fair to give this one its due. Given this is now on sale: suggest you refund your $90 copy of the new trash and buy this 10x over if you don't already own it. Search around youtube, you'll see other folks agree.

Personally, one of the best RPGs ,in terms of storytelling and characterization, of all time. A must play for anyone who has an interest in urban fantasy though it has faults the pros truly outweights the small part of inconvience in each playthrough. I can only say for myself that I recently started playing games that are quite "dated" and having played several modern day RPGs I can see the replayability and narrative structure differ quite a lot from modern titles. The choices of clans to play as a vampire with different disciplines makes it a high recommendation to play at least two to three times with the various clans. Storywise, I can't really put a finger on why it is so good compared to other games, maybe it's the well crafted backgrounds and lore put together with expressive voice acting as well as memorable characters. Something I would like to say is that the combat could have been better. And I wish the game would be a tad bit longer with some more quests from the minor characters insted of just one or two quests. Other than that, I would really recommend this game as one of the greatest yet flawed masterpieces of gaming history.

Ok, this was one of my favorite games, so I openly admit nastalgia plays a large part in how I feel. That being said, the game is undeniably buggy and needs the community patches in order to work optimally. That being said, the story still holds up, and is a deep adult story line. My biggest qualm is that I have not found a great way to map a controller to the game so I can play on my couch. Widescreen and gold patch: http://www.tessmage.com/forum/index.php/topic,58452.0.html That website also has an adult patch if you're looking for nudity. It's under the forums - downloads Camarilla overhaul - http://www.moddb.com/mods/vtmb-camarilla-edition This is a complete overhaul. I would recommend once you've beaten the game already to get more bang for your buck. There are a plethora of other mods and patches overhauling everything from resolution to sounds. This game is still supported by the community, but it should not cost so much for a 22 year old game.

Somehow on my 4th playthrough I encountered more bugs and glitches than the entirety of the previous 3 combined. It really complimented the cursed nature of the Nosferatu, which I was finally trying out this time around. Having now sunk nearly 100 hours into Bloodlines I can firmly say this is one of the greatest RPGs available, if you're looking for something that immerses you in its world. Yes the third act is combat focused and yes there's still that dreaded sewer level, but everything else outshines those rough spots. My personal highlights with the game are just roaming around the hub areas and soaking in the night life. Popping out of a sewer cap in Hollywood and seeing the expanse of the city in the distance, as the iconic score (composed by Rik Schaffer) began to play. Magical stuff.

The game has the best characters and dialog I have seen in a video game. Atmosphere is great and tone is mature like few other games (like Fallout 2). These parts make the game feel unique and worth throwing 40 hours in (side quests inlcuded). This said, many other aspects are at best mediocre : level design, combat, sneaking. Even with the unofficial patch, the game remains riddled with bugs: collision, invisible walls, enemies shooting you from nowhere. Some parts of the game are chores, no less, especially the infuriating boss fights and the very last quests with their never ending fights, weird difficulty balance and lacking ammo. The story, while being clever and thrilling in the 3 first parts collapses at the end, taking away one of the best aspect of the game. I think the unique aspects of the game overshadow how clunky and broken it really is. This said, there is nothing like it so if you have the patience, it's highly recommended.