Lilah

VtM: Bloodlines is a game that I love almost in spite of itself. The vision at it's core is a compelling one - a goth CRPG heavy on dialogue and roleplaying, with deep character creation, a reactive take on the World of Darkness, and systems aimed at simulating the experience of being a vampire. When the game manages to execute on that vision, as it does for most of its first half, there's nothing else like it. There's a dark, palpable atmosphere as you explore the early hubs and dig up interesting sidequests, lure humans into dark alleys to feed, surf the local goth clubs and go through memorably creepy levels like the oft-praised, very haunted Ocean House Hotel. Depending on what clan you choose, your experience interacting with that world can shift dramatically - I played as a hot charismatic Toreador who talked her way through most situations, but I've still not dug into the Tremere (who wield freaky blood magic), the Malkavian (who get significantly different dialogue and hear voices throughout the whole game) or the Nosferatu (whose monstrous appearance requires stealth around humans). Even after 20 years, there still hasn't been another game like it, and it remains gaming's definitive take on vampires.

Unfortunately, it's all wrapped in the skin of a pretty weak Deus Ex-like with bad combat and unsatisfying stealth. While the game rustles up some memorable levels when those levels are focused on narrative, the stealth + combat focused areas are uniformly uninspired, full of repetitive corridors that fail to conjure a sense of place or put the game's systems to any interesting use.

That's fine during the first half, because the focus is much more heavily on role-playing, exploration, and narrative. But as you continue past that, the game's infamous development woes cause the game to start falling apart at the seams in real time. The later hubs start to shrink and become progressively less interesting to explore. There's an increasing reliance on long, repetitive dungeons, including a septic odyssey that ranks among gaming's worst-ever sewer levels. An increasing focus on combat culminates in a series of unavoidable, ultra-hard boss fights with damage-sponge bosses (even with a nearly-maxed out firearms skill, I had to turn on god mode and infinite ammo). The writing isn't spared either, partially thanks to an unpleasant late-game visit to Chinatown that's steeped in racism.

A decade ago, when I first played this, I was unequivocally in love with it. And despite the flaws, I still love it now - I was deep in its clutches until the last few hours, and even then considered starting another playthrough as a different clan. But this is a deeply frustrating game, with very high highs and very low lows. Troika got a raw deal from Activision, and deserved a chance to more fully execute on their vision