Buy Vampire®: The Masquerade - Bloodlines™

This game is the definition of style. The atmosphere, the visuals, the characters, the music, all of those things get you right in the mood to walk on the streets of LA as one of the cursed undead. If you like vampires and/or RPGs, then you quite simply need to play this little gem.

However, you must know that the game is kinda buggy and needs a bit of fixing from your part, so make sure to download the unofficial patch. Oh, and one more thing:

DON'T OPEN IT.

It took me years to finally try Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines after hearing so much praise for it, and i have got to say it was worth it. VtMB is a really great RPG, it may be dated, buggy and even "unfinished" but with the help of a patch or two nothing is stopping you from enjoying the game. I can say now I am most definitely interested in playing a new Vampire: The Masquerade game at some point in the future.

I would recommend Bloodlines to pretty much any RPG or classic game fan. I feel the series would be much more popular had more people played Bloodlines, and recommend you do so if you even find it remotely interesting.

Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines is an action role-playing game, developed by Troika Games and released in 2004. Overshadowed by other landmark releases such as Half-Life 2 and crippled by a rushed development, this criminally underrated Source game is a faithful interpretation of the popular table top classic and an enjoyable - albeit pulpy - romp through the World of Darkness.

Presented in both third- and first-person perspective, the gothic reimagining of Los Angeles features a tumultuous social and political landscape between the various factions of vampires vying for control. You assume the role of the unnamed protagonist thrown into this violent underbelly and join the clan of your choice before being literally let loose in to the new (and often strange) world.

But what happens next is up to you.

The game world is the centrepiece of Bloodlines as it constantly invites the player to really explore the depths of what it has to offer. With the incredible variety of methods and playstyles available within this sandbox-like environment, replay value is immense, as is the sheer enjoyment of exploration. There are plenty of unique abilities to use (and abuse) on the unsuspecting citizen, ranging from the seductive bloodsucking of the Toreador to the animalistic brute strength of the Nosferatu or Gangrels. Each clan has its own particular style and the variety of outfits available to the player reflects this.

Despite associating yourself with a particular clan at the beginning of the game, there isn’t content that is locked off to the player due to the constant political in-fighting of the Camarilla that forms the basis of the game’s narrative. Revealing your presence to the human population results in Masquerade point deductions, which can result in failing the game entirely and your activities depend on keeping up this secrecy. Outside of that however, your journey actively encourages as much havoc as possible and those interested in the supernatural will not be disappointed.

Pros
• Great depth to RPG elements and remains true to pen-and-paper origins.
  
• Fascinating and diverse list of characters, backed up by fantastic voice acting.
  
• Plenty of gameplay freedom and emphasis on player choice.
  
• A tonne of interesting missions and side quests, if a bit repetitive.
  
• Excellent atmosphere, with equally remarkable writing and dialogue options throughout.
  
• Phenomenal restoration effort (and ongoing support) by the community.
  
  
  Cons
• Technical issues abound.
  
• Requires a fan-made patch to properly play and actually finish.
  
• Frequently poor visuals; a mixed bag generally.
  
• Though varied, combat tends to be clunky and dissatisfying at times.
  
• Stealth A.I. is poor.
  
• Some abilities/attributes are useless or progressively made redundant.

Final Thoughts: Technical issues aside, VtMB is the vampire-themed game that you've been dying to play. A great example of the capabilities of the Source engine in it's prime, embrace this flawed gem with lowered expectations or during a sale and prepare for a bloody good time.

Rating: 6.5/10

This review was written for and is published on the Lit Reviews [LR] curator page.

Great Story, chunky graphics and a buggy mess but still one of the best RPGs you'll ever play.

Quirky Characters, racial steroetypes and bad combat but still one of the best RPGs you'll ever play.

Hard like a motherf*cker, lots of stuff to do and even more stuff to miss ( Looking at you Mrs. Redhead and you too person from before all this happened ) but still one of the best RPGs you'll ever play.

Melee is overpowered, sneaking is 50/50 and spells are just a mess but still one of the best RPGs you'll ever play

See what I'm getting at ?

Even with all it's flaws this game is a beautiful experience, through and through.

RPG's like these aren't made anymore, sadly.

TL;DR

PLAY THIS GAME INSTEAD OF SKYRIM/FALLOUT/WHATEVER IF YOU WANT TO FEEL WHAT AN RPG IS ABOUT

Also Vampire ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

Area 3/5 - About 8 hours.

The elevator pitch for this game:
It is Deus Ex, but with vampires in a 90's LA setting.

Game is good.

Pros:
- Awesome hidden gem.
- Very immersive game where vampires are actually cool and not edgy sex objects for tweens.
- Universe is based on a tabletop game, so the lore and backstory are crazy in-depth.
- Themes are dark and mature.

Cons:
- Falls off a bit in the late game (feels like it was rushed).
- Some clans unbalanced. Anyone with 5 points in Fortitude basically takes no damage at the end of the game.
- Slightly buggy, but no major issues. There are unofficial patches to fix them.

Oh cool, cheap hookers!

Buy this game for them sweet, yung, cold vampire waifu mammaries.
Ignore the people who can't install the patch because they are absolutely ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥.

One of the best RPG's i've ever played.

Меня всегда притягивала тематика вампиров в современном мире, эта игра оправдала все мои ожидания на счет нее, чтобы погрузиться в этот шедевр мне достаточно было просто зайти в клуб, насладиться музыкой и увидеть Жаннет.

I was always attracted the vampire theme in the modern world, this game is embodied in reality all my expectations, to immerse yourself in this masterpiece was just enough for me to go to a club to enjoy the music and see Jeannette.