Review Bloodlines - Just Shy of Greatness

[Jason]

Tags: Troika Games; Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines

The <a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/issues/issue_244/7258-The-Last-Masquerade" target="blank">latest edition</a> of The Escapist turns its gaze to games that are "nearly great," including Troika's <b>Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines</b>.
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<blockquote>Sadly, Bloodlines was the last game that Troika would ever make, as the company folded just a few months after its release. With more money, time and manpower, Bloodlines could have been a genuine masterpiece rather than the cult classic it eventually became. But even though it stumbled out of the starting gate, Bloodlines accomplished something great: More than five years on, there is still a dedicated community creating unofficial patches and restoring cut content, a feat that few games - even incredibly popular and well known ones - can boast. Great games may inspire awe, but Troika's swan song stirred a feeling in players that is just as powerful: devotion.</blockquote>
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Spotted at: <A HREF="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/editors_note/7259-Editors-Note-Needs-More-Cowbell">The Escapist</A>

 

[Gragt]

And a host of nude patches.

 

[Jason]

Retarded minds think alike. I was this close to throwing in a jiggletech comment, but decided one tasteless newspost is enough for the week.

 

[Ausir]

More than five years on, there is still a dedicated community creating unofficial patches and restoring cut content

Same with ToEE, too.

 

[Andhaira]

The ToEE mod had cloud's sword in it, so its worthless.

 

[Hoaxmetal]

More than five years on, there is still a dedicated community creating unofficial patches and restoring cut content

Bloodlines - even five years isn't enough to fix it.

 

[VentilatorOfDoom]

But where's all the Arcanum devotion?

 

[Konjad]

Same applies for all Troika Games. I'd say every game of Troika had something UBERAWESOME no one ever managed to do better - nor before nor after. Sandbox, yet great world in Arcanum (happened only in Fallout), great fighting system in TOEE (no one made anything good like that) and atmosphere + dialogues(with voice acting) of Bloodlines (nobody made that kind of atmosphere so good as well and other games dialogues sound silly when compared to Bloodlines, well except PST but it had nearly no voice acting).

Troika had a great potential... but it died so Bioware's or Bethesda's games could spawn.


Now you made me sad :'(

 

[Murk]

All of Troika's games had someone else creating a long string of unofficial patches - Drog just managed to do Arcanum's in a much shorter period of time than the rest and was anally retentive enough to keep things gestalt.

All three of Troika's games were perfect in at least one capacity and great in most others... and had one heinous flaw, as well. Also, bugs. Lots and lots of bugs.

 

[Fens]

the writer's private blog has an article on dragon age, which sounds vaguely codexish:

As I said, I’m enjoying Dragon Age a great deal, but I’m enjoying it despite of BioWare’s best efforts, not because of it.

 

[Kingston]

the writer's private blog has an article on dragon age, which sounds vaguely codexish:

As I said, I’m enjoying Dragon Age a great deal, but I’m enjoying it despite of BioWare’s best efforts, not because of it.

I think that's a bit too clever for current Codex standards.

 

[DriacKin]

All three of Troika's games were perfect in at least one capacity and great completely shit in most others... Also, bugs. Lots and lots of bugs.

Fixed.

 

[Dionysus]

I think they needed more than money and manpower. They needed more focus. Sometimes it felt like they were trying to make Fallout with FP combat and sometimes it felt like they were trying to make Doom with interactive dialog. Those two goals aren't compatible.

 

[Hory]

I think that more money and manpower would have translated into more features with more bugs. That's what makes Troika so great - rough diamonds instead of polished plastic.

 

[The Feral Kid]

Troika had a great potential... but it died so Bioware's or Bethesda's games could spawn.

It's too bad that VtM: Bloodlines failed as it had so many technical problems because otherwise it was a good game. But that's Troika's fault entirely and nobody else's. The industry's merciless with this kind of stuff and nobody is going risk their money funding a game that will end up a buggy mess.

As for ToEE it was flawed from its very conception. Just giving a D&D PnP session some nice graphics is not what crpgs are about, sorry. You need to adopt this for a new medium like the PC.

 

[Volourn]

"All three of Troika's games were perfect"

Nothing is perfect. Stop the bullshits, start the truths!

The article title is right. Bl is a good game thatn coulda been great.

And, everyione should get their tongue out of Troika's ass. They failed ebcause they weren't good enough. Take that.


"As I said, I’m enjoying Dragon Age a great deal, but I’m enjoying it despite of BioWare’s best efforts, not because of it."

This deosn't fuckin' make any sense. FFS

 

[Jaedar]

Remember kids, Bloodlines was nearly great and Fallout 3 is the best game evar.

 

[Clockwork Knight]

I like how the text differentiates a great game and a cult classic

This game is great but five years from now nobody will remember it. r00fles

 

[Droog White Smile]

What was actually 'great' about Bloodlines? Tits? Gore? Jerky animations? The linear story (with lots of fake choices)? Jeanette? Goth music?

Meh, I finished it only once. The absurd amount of filler combat (with awful combat mechanics, I might add) killed the game for me. I don't care how good the story is if the game is shit to play. And since it's a completely linear game, you can't really enjoy it for its story more than once.

R00fles!

 

[Melcar]

Bullshit.

 

[Jaedar]

And since it's a completely linear game, you can't really enjoy it for its story more than once.

R00fles!

Except for the fact that it will be radically different if you play a Malk, or at least your perception of it will be.

 

[Begriffenfeldt]

What was actually 'great' about Bloodlines? Tits? Gore? Jerky animations? The linear story (with lots of fake choices)? Jeanette? Goth music?

Meh, I finished it only once. The absurd amount of filler combat (with awful combat mechanics, I might add) killed the game for me. I don't care how good the story is if the game is shit to play. And since it's a completely linear game, you can't really enjoy it for its story more than once.

R00fles!

The characters and the dialogues are great, especially the Malkavian ones. The rest is p. lame.

 

[Droog White Smile]

And since it's a completely linear game, you can't really enjoy it for its story more than once.

R00fles!

Except for the fact that it will be radically different if you play a Malk, or at least your perception of it will be.

No, it will still be exactly the same. You're a fuckin' LARPer if flavor dialog affects your perception of the game so much.

FFS

 

[Gragt]

Bullshit.

 

[Jaedar]

dialogue= two people talking.
So if you change everything one of the participants say, you change quite a bit.

 

[Volourn]

"Remember kids, Bloodlines was nearly great and Fallout 3 is the best game evar."

I hope your target here isn't me as I LOATHE FO3!