Vampire®: The Masquerade - Bloodlines™

I'm glad to see Troika's flawed masterpiece is finally seeing the light of day here at GoG. However, I do wish we were getting the official 1.2 release rather than a version with a particular set of third-party fixes. Why? There are actually two series of third-party patches for this wonderful game, which are incompatible with one another. If you like Wesp5's Unofficial Patch, great. If not, then as it stands, too bad, GoG baked it into the cake. As it happens, the UP is not the only solution out there to fix the game's released near-alpha state. I've been playing a boxed copy of VTMB for years using Tessera's True Patch Gold, which takes a more purist approach to fixing bugs without adding content that was often cut for a reason. But to each their own. I'm not telling anyone which patch to use...GoG is doing that by including UP code in their release. In the name of providing options, I hope GoG will someday see fit to release the 1.2 version of the game as an alternate download, for those of us who would like to make our own decisions as to which patches or mods we would like to use. The True Patch Gold version of the game is easily worth five stars. Troika really did hit it out of the park with this one, minus the bugs. But I will have to take a couple of stars off for GoG's inclusion of code forcing players to play with one particular fan update, rather than letting us have the choice.

VTMB is an Action-RPG commonly compared to Deus Ex 1 or Alpha Protocol. Like those games, it has its share of flaws but these are easily made up for with the game's brilliant writing and art direction. The game is so seeped with intriguing lore and saturated with atmosphere that once you're in game, it's easy to overlook the otherwise dated graphics. What about gameplay? Well for the first half of the game you're treated to a true RPG where you have the option to approach many challenges as you see fit, be it through combat, stealth, or diplomacy. Unfortunately the later half of the game resorts to a series of dungeon crawls. Combat can be a little clunky but is made up for by the fact that you can seamlessly switch between melee and firearms and between 1st and 3rd person camera perspectives. Just make sure you invest points in your combat skills because they'll make a big difference. The slope for guns is particularly severe, being almost useless unskilled but enabling you to breeze through boss fights when upgraded to 8 or higher. VTMB is worth at least three replays, thanks to a robust character sheet and your choice of vampire "clan", which defines what magic disciplines (like Deus Ex's augmentations) you can use and may apply special rules. The crazy Malkavian clan has its own set of loony and spoiler-filled dialogue and the grotesque Nosferatu force you to slink in the shadows as you're penalized for being seen by humans. I recommend the Tremere for first timers but all choices are viable and add their own twist. Overall, the story may be less reactive than Alpha Protocol and the maps less interesting than those in Deus Ex, but if you enjoyed either of those games and want to dive neck deep into a vampire RPG that doesn't pull any punches, VMTB is sure to satisfy.

... but your money isn't going anywhere good buying this. Bloodlines' publisher, Activision, either through malice or through what must have been some of the grossest incompetence this industry has ever known, sabotaged the game's development and throughout development drastically cut their funding of the game's developer, Troika (successor to the creators of Fallout, Black Isle), which, coupled with Activision having chosen to release the game on the same day as a little title you might have heard of called Half-Life 2, resulted in financial failure for the developer which soon forced them to fold - right as they were working on a spiritual successor to Ultima Underworld and were about to acquire the rights to the Fallout license. Now, with Troika dead and Activision still alive, any money spent on this game goes not to its contributors, but to its malefactors. Do not give Activision money for this game. I'll repeat: DO NOT GIVE ACTIVISION MONEY FOR THIS GAME.

The world of Vampire the Masquerade is fangtastic, bloody amazing and humorously batty. After the great success with Vampire the Masquerade: Redemption, Activision You start your journey by plunging into the world of darkness after a dark kiss. Having woken up that morning as a mortal, and gotten 'lucky' enough to have gone to bed that night with someone who turns out to be a real pain in the neck, you start the night as a kindred, a vampire. The world of darkness throws you right into the fangs of the politics of vampire society right after you have been newly sired. It is a lot to take in, but as your initial mentor, Jack, informs you of what you are and teaches you what 'The Masquerade' is, you start to get the hang of it. Jack also tells you about the big players in town.. About the Camarilla and the Sabbat - the two main vampire factions in the game. Taking roleplay to new heights with making the different clans have some specific powers and benefits that can have some story impacts. The music brings a great atmosphere to the game and the Source Engine displays some nice graphics for its time. There are even more factions and clans to encounter in this dark, gritty and exciting world that Troika Games splendidly paints up. We can't talk about VtM:B without adressing its claws.. I mean flaws, Troika Games have always made fun games, sadly, not the most stable ones. Which is why GOGcom has taken steps to make sure this GOG version is released with WESP5's Vanilla Unofficial Patch from the get go! Plug and Play! This is a game for any RPG fan out there, it got everything you want: Talents and Skills, Story, Action, Intrigues, Friggin Chicken, Deb, Sexy vampires and different ways of completing quests. PLUS it is DRM-FREE, vanilla patched and ready to go. As a recommendation: Get the Unofficial Patch for the PLUS version by WESP5 if you want the restored content and some extra bells and whistles.

One of the best (Action) RPG's of all time, finally, DRM-free! Supreme Storytelling, excellent Atmosphere, a gorgeous Soundtrack, awesome and interesting Characters with, indeed, superbly written dialogues (and a fairly OK Combat-system) make this game stand out from the rest. Truly, a Masterpiece. Don't forget to apply the (unofficial) patch, and trust me when I say, this game is worth every single penny.