Troika have given Bloodlines a distinctly adult tone, and by that I don't mean Leisure Suit Larry "adult". Bloodlines isn't just adult, it's mature, in every sense of the word. Sure, there's plenty of exposed flesh and gore on show - not to mention Sapphic overtones if you play a female vampire - but never at any point does it seem exploitative, out of place or without a plausible reason. The 18 rating is well deserved; it doesn't shy away from presenting the real world of sex, violence and industrial-strength language of everyday life. There's almost a smug subtlety, a conscious wink from the developers to the player, which is delightfully demonstrated especially in the LAN café in Hollywood, where "AWP Whore" and a downwards pointing arrow is scrawled on the wall over one of the PC booths - a knowing tip of the hat to Counter-Strike culture. There are plenty of other similarly observed touches - Troika have taken great pains to make the game world seem as vibrant and real as possible, and it pays off. Similar lavish attention has been made to the script, too. Not only are each of the characters individual and memorable, they all have something particular to say and have distinct points of view and attitudes. The high quality of the voice-acting adds weight to feeling that you're interacting with people, not clichés, too.​