Vampire: The Masquerade - Redemption

This game is great. I loved this game. It was a fun rpg that exposed White wolf's RPG to the world. The politics the depth of the classes where unheard of for a Vampire game. Before this there weren't many vampire themed games. Most rpgs take place in one time while this game spawned many different ages. Good story and fun gameplay. The only reason this game didn't do better was because it came out right before Diablo II. I remember one reviewer said they didn't like hack/slash rpgs (yes it has hack/slash) so they were waiting for Diablo II, which was a hack/slash game and wasn't anywhere near as good as this one. If you didn't play it before now is your chance. Don't miss out on one of the most interesting and original PC RPGs.

I love this game, it is a classic and though I appreciate the effort of bringing it to Windows 7, it's unplayable. When I die and load a game, enemies don't respawn and loot doesn't go back to its place. Also, I have no XP. It's completely impossible to play the game like this. Also, it doesn't help to save a lot. I can't overwrite a save so when I load one where I though I was deep inside the first dungeon I end up at the start of the game again. You can't delete save slots and you only have ten. I tried re-installing several times but the saves are still there for some reason. And the enemies I killed never return so I'm stuck without that precious first XP. It's unplayable, I'm sorry.

I like to think of this game as 2 in 1. First half is set in Dark Ages, where I personally believe World of Darkness setting is at its most interesting, and the second half is set in contemporary late 90s which is also interesting but nowhere near as cool as vampires in plate armor. You start off this game as a human who then gets embraced after showing he's worth - which is destroying a Tzimisce vanguard consisting of tons of szlachta and a single young Tzimisce Vampire infesting a silver mine. Some may think that it's not "lore friendly", but we have to keep in mind that humans like Christof who dedicated their entire lives to combat, are on top of tht boosted by "faith" and have access to armor + holy water are more than a match against young inexperienced vampires. Sure if this was an experienced vamp Christof would get his ass handed to him, but lorewise it's a warsetting between Ventrue/Tremere alliance and Tzimisce, which means that both sides are gonna be embracing footsoldiers like crazy and they aren't exactly toptier combatants when they're this young - so it makes sense (sorta). Gameplay is archaic, but enjoyable. I grew up with mid to late 90s and early 2000s games so I felt at home. It's point and click mostly. The difficulty comes from managing party, its builds and its abilities/blood, which was sort of interesting. A wrong build will suck, while a correct one will make game stupidly easy. I played lorewise, so I maxed potence/celerity and physical stats and ignored everything else and Cristoff was destroying everything solo - especially after he got the magical 2h bloodstealing sword. You get access to many companions who will join and leave you through game, which I found to be a breath of fresh air. Situations and self-interests often clash which is why it makes no sense that companions should stick with you throughout entire games - it's a shame that industry moved away from this (though I understand why they did). Dungeons can drag on tho

Vampire: The Masquerade – Redemption is a game that, despite its age, still manages to captivate with its atmosphere. It’s an incredibly atmospheric title – from the dark, gothic cathedrals of medieval Prague to the neon-stained grime of modern New York, everything exudes the aura of mystery and decadence typical of the World of Darkness universe. While the storyline is rather cliché – a fallen knight seeking redemption after being turned into a vampire – it’s told with passion and manages to stay engaging. The experience often resembles a theater performance: dialogues, character animations, voice acting, and the minimalist scenery create the impression of watching a carefully staged play rather than a typical action game. Mechanically, Redemption captures the tabletop system of Vampire: The Masquerade quite well – Blood Points, Disciplines, and the Masquerade rules are quite faithfully translated into computer RPG form. As a result, the game carries the distinct “narrative weight” known to fans of the source material. And of course, it’s about vampires, which is always a plus – few titles treat this theme with such seriousness and style. Unfortunately in a single player campaign we have no option to choose a Clan. Fortunately almost all Disciplines are accessible, which is good from game play perspective, but kills immersion. Unfortunately, on the technical side, Redemption can be haunting in less endearing ways. The game forces you to have companions, but their AI and pathfinding are frustrating, often leading to moments where they get stuck in doorways or refuse to fight. In the end, this isn’t a relationship-driven or tactical RPG – Redemption is essentially a hack’n’slash, where reflexes, resource management, and mastery of powers matter far more than moral choices or branching dialogue trees. The game is also highly random, which can be infuriating — the outcome of a fight often depends more on the whims of the engine than on player strategy. And yet, something about it is undeniably compelling: maybe it’s the atmosphere, maybe nostalgia, or maybe just the fact that so few games about vampires treat their material with such respect. I have not tested multiplayer.

This was my first Vampire The Masquerade game back in 2001 when I got my first PC. It has since been overshadowed by the somewhat unfortunate but legendary Bloodlines, and yetI still hold to the view that it is far superior to the sequel. Firstly, it combines two World Of Darkness settings, one set in the Medieval and another in the modern times. The story revolves around an English crusader who falls in love with a Bohemian nun while fighting against the pagans in Moravia. It takes the protagonist from Prague to Vienna and back, then across time to modern London and New York City just before the dawn of the new millennium. Secondly, the story and lore are the game's strongest point and it keeps bringing me back to it for over two decades. I just love it. The dialogues are amazing and the characters are as memorable as they get. It's flawless. The gameplay is a mouse-controlled 3D top-down RPG where you make a party of up to 4 players you can switch between. Unlike the sequel, it is not a non-linear FPS with a character you create but a linear RPG albeit with three possible endings, and pre-built characters who play an important role in the story. Characters have different "disciplines" or magic-like abilities powered by their vampirism, which you can enhance as you up your characters. The RPG elements are strong in it in general, and reflect the WOD tabletop RPG rules. A thing needs to be said about running the game on modern PCs. It runs very well without any extra work but you may want to adjust the resolution. Other than that it feels as good as it felt back twenty years ago. In general, the game is very atmospheric and has a beautiful love story at its core, while delving deep into the Vampire The Masquerade lore as you play, learning about different vampire clans and threats that haunt the nights. The story, the art and the graphics are mind boggling for that era. There is simply nothing like it to this day. A must have for any VTM \ WOD fan.