Intro
Vampire the Masquerade Bloodlines 2 may be shelved for an unknown amount of time, but this should be seen as an opportunity rather than a problem. For those looking to get into the series, now may be a great time to acquire its prequel, Vampire the Masquerade Bloodlines to correctly grasp the series and the world these blood-sucking yet human-acting creatures live in.
The Setting
For those new to the series, before we can get into the gameplay, we need to set the scene due to how heavily it factors into said gameplay. Your character is thrust into the world where Vampires and some other mythical and horrifying creatures exist but are under the strict code of the Masquerade: A rule where the everyday human being must remain ignorant of
vampire society as a whole.
It's this world of strict rules, secret societies, vampires hiding in plain sight, and bickering clans that you must navigate to survive in the Masquerade. The penalty for breaking this along with threatening the status quo is death.
The Clans
As alluded to earlier, there are various vampire clans, with some sounding familiar in concept due to hallmarks of the many different iterations of vampires of years of their mythos. You have the Toreador who dazzles and glamorizes people with both their powers and their dashing good looks and charisma. There's the Nosferatu who have the unfortunate curse of looking like a dog got pieces of their face while resembling a mistreated cancer patient. And then there are those like the Tremere who delve into the more magical skillset that vampires have, including but not limited to boiling the blood of others.
These are only a few examples within the Bloodlines video game and even more so in the Masquerade world. What makes these clans so unique is that each clan you choose to play progress through the game in a very different way from their counterparts, giving you incredible amounts of replayability. The nosferatu, for example, have to spend their time scurrying through the sewers to avoid having their horrific visage seen and breaking the Masquerade. The Tremere can use their bountiful amounts of charisma and insufferably good looks to talk their way through situations where most would have to shoot, slash or blow someone up. The possibilities are bountiful, and you should take advantage of that.
You The Player
So, where do you fit in all of this? Without spoiling too much of the plot, you find yourself the recipient of a one-night stand gone horribly wrong, resulting in you getting turned into a vampire. The problem? One cannot turn another into 'kindred' without the consent of the Camarilla, the governing vampire body.
The one who turned you is executed for their crime, and you would have joined them if not for the timely intervention of another. Sadly your free trial of unlife as a kindred comes with the task of having to work for the Camarilla in return for your continued new existence.
Combat
There's no covering it up. The combat portion of the game isn't something one should consider the game's strong suit, considering just how awkward and janky the controls can be at times. One thing that combat in this game has going for it is the sheer variety of ways you can kill or maim anyone getting in the way of your goals.
You can kill someone with your bare hands, claws, or fangs and resort to the magic I mentioned earlier, but if you don't like either of those methods, you could fall back on using the different firearms available, not unlike an average human. Something that perfectly segways into one of the most exciting and fun parts of the game.
The People
In Bloodlines, don't immediately expect you're going to see the classical gothic-styled vampires that you grew up hearing stories of. What sets these vampires apart from others you've seen is how human they can be, which perfectly makes sense given what they once were, even if some of these kindred are centuries old.
From smart-alecky thugs to nightclub owners to even wealthy businessmen, these bloodsuckers go through all different walks of life, and even though the graphics aren't the greatest, the amount of depth in the characters themselves more than makes up for it, along with the story that they slowly build as you progress through the game.
Conclusion
This is a game that you should pick up if you're not just into role-playing as a fish out water vampire in a very grimy and dark version of Santa Monica, but also if you like an immersive tale that you'll experience with the memorable characters that come with it.
As you experience this game, one can only hope that despite the troubled development that it has gone through, Bloodlines 2 will improve upon this game's strengths and even improve upon its weaknesses to make it a standout.
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