World of Darkness Vampire: The Masquerade - New York visual novel series from Draw Distance

[Lacrymas]

The length could be explained by the scope of the story. Is there really much more they could've done with it? You are sent to investigate the death and you solve the case. It's less laziness and more a limited foundation imo. If Bloodlines were transcribed as a visual novel, it would also be extremely short with almost no choices. What I wanted more of is Qadir. And no, not only because he's hot. Of all the characters in these VNs, he seems the most anguished and worthy of exploration. I'd have liked to get more of Ecaterina as well, she's criminally underused. Why is she even in the game?

 

[EvilWolf]

The second game not giving you much agency was, afaik, an intentional design decision and not laziness. I think people complained about not being able to save anywhere to see what outcome different choices are going to have and were forced to replay the whole game to see that, so they axed most of the branching options.

Talk about a developer missing the forest for the trees.

 

[BruceVC]

I have started playing Coteries. Its early days so I will give feedback once I am 5-6 hours in

 

[BruceVC]

I completed Coteries after 10 hours and it was fun, its one of the first narrative RPG I have played in years. It remined me of an interactive book, I thought the general writing was fine. I enjoyed the fact its set in the WOD so the lore and various characters made the fledging Vampire journey compelling

And I looooved the techno music in the club. Now Im really looking forward to Bloodlines 2 the full RPG

 

[EvilWolf]

I haven't seen Ecaterina in a solid minute. I think Redemption was the first Diablo knockoff I had played following the original.

Is Redemption REALLY a Diablo knockoff though? That's like calling Bloodlines a Half-Life knockoff.

I completed Coteries after 10 hours and it was fun, its one of the first narrative RPG I have played in years. It remined me of an interactive book, I thought the general writing was fine. I enjoyed the fact its set in the WOD so the lore and various characters made the fledging Vampire journey compelling

And I looooved the techno music in the club. Now Im really looking forward to Bloodlines 2 the full RPG

What was your favorite part? The unimaginative characitures coming to your rescue during the MacGuffin reveal or the railroaded ending that doesn't change no matter what choices you make throughout the game?

 

[Non-Edgy Gamer]

Is Redemption REALLY a Diablo knockoff though? That's like calling Bloodlines a Half-Life knockoff.

Yeah, it's more a NWN knockoff, if you're going to call it a knockoff at all.

For the time, the graphics were excellent, and even though the story was a bit meh, it was still unique compared to a lot of other games out there.

 

[Sarkile]

I haven't seen Ecaterina in a solid minute. I think Redemption was the first Diablo knockoff I had played following the original.

Is Redemption REALLY a Diablo knockoff though? That's like calling Bloodlines a Half-Life knockoff.

Diablo was the first action RPG I played where you mindlessly wander around levels and click on things with your mouse until they were dead. Redemption was the second.

I like it for what it is, and would be down for a replay if my desktop didn't hate the game, but that's 100% what the game seemed to be for me at the time. Got me into playing World of Darkness with all the other edgy retards though, so there's that.

 

[Zombra]

what the fuck are you doing, you're not Hobo Elf

 

[BruceVC]

I haven't seen Ecaterina in a solid minute. I think Redemption was the first Diablo knockoff I had played following the original.

Is Redemption REALLY a Diablo knockoff though? That's like calling Bloodlines a Half-Life knockoff.

I completed Coteries after 10 hours and it was fun, its one of the first narrative RPG I have played in years. It remined me of an interactive book, I thought the general writing was fine. I enjoyed the fact its set in the WOD so the lore and various characters made the fledging Vampire journey compelling

And I looooved the techno music in the club. Now Im really looking forward to Bloodlines 2 the full RPG

What was your favorite part? The unimaginative characitures coming to your rescue during the MacGuffin reveal or the railroaded ending that doesn't change no matter what choices you make throughout the game?

The entire game was quick so Im one of those people who doesn't over-analyze certain design problems like you mentioned
But my favorite part of the game was the WOD lore and the interesting political machinations in the WOD universe and how different characters seem to have different and opposing views to do with Camarilla and the Anarchs
And my favorite quest was Benoit Segal and his questioning of faith

 

[lukaszek]

gave coteries a quick go. From early impressions it doesnt appear to be very involving? Your available replies appear to be dumb and honestly its quite clear which option is 'green'
EDIT: finished, its a joke not worthy to be called CYOA

 

[Infinitron]

Oh, there's another one of these:

Dive into the streets of New York City in 2024, where the delicate balance of power hangs by a thread. Navigate the treacherous waters of vampiric politics as you contend with the ever-shifting landscape between the Camarilla and Anarchs. In a city where every move could mean the difference between unlife and final death, will you carve out your own destiny amidst the chaos or will your ambition spell your doom?

Vampire: The Masquerade - Reckoning of New York invites you to immerse yourself in the third installment of this gripping visual novel series, set against the backdrop of a modern-day metropolis teeming with supernatural intrigue. Embrace the darkness as a Kindred, a vampire thrust into a world of danger and betrayal where survival is paramount.

• Play with new gameplay mechanics as you harness the powers of Disciplines to overcome challenges or evade the relentless pursuit of hunters hot on your trail. But beware the insatiable Hunger that gnaws at your very being, threatening to unleash the Beast within.
• Embark on a journey of discovery and deception from two distinct perspectives, each offering unique insights into the clandestine world of the Big Apple's nights.
• As the saga of the New York Kindred draws to a close, prepare to experience the thrilling conclusion to this gripping tale in the heart of this concrete jungle.

Coming September 10th.

 

[Grunker]

Weird. The second one was much more interesting and well-told than the first, but it was still a very rough product and the """""gameplay""""" was just as disappointing. What they're doing would work if they focused on actual C&C, but with the games being so incredibly short even without it, it's doubtful they'll ever head in that direction.

 

[Zombra]

This week's thread bump reminded me these games exist and I always meant to look at them. I got the first two cheap or free from somewhere years so I'm finally trying Coteries. 4 hours in and I like it well enough. The moment to moment writing certainly has its ups and downs. So far the main story barely exists; it's a huge ripoff of the beginning of Bloodlines except it doesn't have a main conflict once you get past "unauthorized fledgling avoids being executed". It simply turns into, OK, you're a vampire now, so now what? Guess I'll hang out with some other vampires and see what hijinx they're up to. Which is all fine if a bit lackluster.

I am impressed with how naturally it introduces the setting, clans, rules, etc. while things are happening. Much more smooth than Bloodlines' "OK, I am a cool biker vampire and I'm going to dump a bunch of info all at once and baby you through this game tutorial". Sadly I played Bloodlines so I know the lore already. Still it's nice to see this done well for once. To Bloodlines' credit, I guess it actually did do a great job teaching me the setting since I'm learning nothing new here.

The art and music are a vibe. Once again I only have Bloodlines to compare it to. The mood here is done well - very much like Bloodlines if you remove all sense of humor. Which is all fine too; I can get into a cool serious angsty WOD drama. Planning to get the soundtrack once I finish the game unless it does something to make me hate it.

 

[Vincente]

The art and music are a vibe.

They get even better in Shadows.

 

[RaggleFraggle]

very much like Bloodlines if you remove all sense of humor.

That defeats the entire point. The reason why Bloodlines is so well regarded, while none of the other games are, is because of the humor. Bloodlines put the IP on the map and nobody cares about these soulless shovelware cashgrabs.

 

[Zombra]

Nobody cares about these soulless shovelware cashgrabs.

I guess that explains why Coteries was such a failure that it got two sequels. And why you yourself are still reading and talking about them.

 

[True Ukrainian]

Coteries is a bad visual novel. It tricks the player with a fairly OK start and then abruptly ends. It's like playing a visual novel with the common route only.

 

[Zombra]

Finished Coteries and am mildly surprised to find that I thoroughly enjoyed a VN. I love that rolling save with no takebacks, and moment to moment decisions are sometimes meaningless and sometimes have catastrophic consequences. Great that every subplot appears to have a legitimate chance of bad outcomes (I certainly had a few). Also love that you don't have time to pursue every side story, which ironically gives you enough agency to make it a positive choice to pursue the ones that interest you. The writing is not prizewinningly brilliant but is good enough that I became invested in the characters and cared how things turned out, not just for the protagonist but for everyone involved. Contrary to the unfocused start, the main plot does pick up speed and pressure rapidly towards the end. Apparently there is only one ending to the main story, which is fine and I don't feel like I was robbed, as I was never given the impression that I would decide the fate of the world. How you get there matters and for me it was a journey worth making. Excited to start on Shadows which is I hear is even better, and very likely will pick up Reckoning to enjoy the finale.

 

[Rahdulan]

Excited to start on Shadows which is I hear is even better, and very likely will pick up Reckoning to enjoy the finale.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts on Shadows' ending.

 

[Grunker]

Finished Coteries and am mildly surprised to find that I thoroughly enjoyed a VN. I love that rolling save with no takebacks, and moment to moment decisions are sometimes meaningless and sometimes have catastrophic consequences. Great that every subplot appears to have a legitimate chance of bad outcomes (I certainly had a few). Also love that you don't have time to pursue every side story, which ironically gives you enough agency to make it a positive choice to pursue the ones that interest you. The writing is not prizewinningly brilliant but is good enough that I became invested in the characters and cared how things turned out, not just for the protagonist but for everyone involved. Contrary to the unfocused start, the main plot does pick up speed and pressure rapidly towards the end. Apparently there is only one ending to the main story, which is fine and I don't feel like I was robbed, as I was never given the impression that I would decide the fate of the world. How you get there matters and for me it was a journey worth making. Excited to start on Shadows which is I hear is even better, and very likely will pick up Reckoning to enjoy the finale.

I don’t know where you got the impression that “every subplot has a legitimate chance of bad outcomes”, but I assure you, you’ve been duped. There’s almost no C&C. Most of what you might have perceived to be potential differences in outcomes were probably at most a different dialogue box leading to the exact same result.

The fact that there is only 1 ending is a complete joke especially because “how you get there” will vary much less than you seem to think.

I really enjoyed a lot of the groundwork of coteries, but ultimately I think it falls totally flat because it’s all in service of so little.

Shadows is better because it is generally better written and there’s actually a tiny bit of variety outcome, but the rails are still a weakness.

 

[Zombra]

I don’t know where you got the impression that “every subplot has a legitimate chance of bad outcomes”, but I assure you, you’ve been duped.

I mean, you're prestigious and I believe you buuuuuut I don't completely believe you. One story had a decision to sacrifice one person to save another, and I don't believe that all three choices would have led to the same outcome. Another had a locked door I couldn't open because I had screwed up getting the code in an earlier sequence, and if you tell me nothing would ever have opened that door, again I don't believe you. I'm sure many choices were indeed illusory, and I observed myself that often all possible dialogue choices would lead to the same response, so sure. And maybe I oversold it when I said every subplot had multiple outcomes. I don't know but it seemed like they could all go a couple different ways, which is what matters - some C&C, which you agree does exist, is sufficient to chafe my feelings as a player that all decisions should at least be made mindfully.

 

[Grunker]

I don’t know where you got the impression that “every subplot has a legitimate chance of bad outcomes”, but I assure you, you’ve been duped.

I mean, you're prestigious and I believe you buuuuuut I don't completely believe you.

And maybe I oversold it when I said every subplot had multiple outcomes.

If it's just an oversell, it's the oversell of the century

One story had a decision to sacrifice one person to save another, and I don't believe that all three choices would have led to the same outcome.

That's why I wrote:

Most of what you might have perceived to be potential differences in outcomes were probably at most a different dialogue box

See, most of those choices seem meaningful, but aren't outside of the resulting bit of dialogue. In fact, I'm sure you'll see the joke in you stating "I don't believe that all three choices would have led to the same outcome" in terms of who to sacrifice, because you can straight up fail to recruit *anyone* to your coterie ending up completely alone and the story *will progress through exactly the same arc.* So yes, IIRC (it's been a while, so I'm not saying I'm 110% sure), pretty much nothing will change depending on that.

I don't know but it seemed like they could all go a couple different ways, which is what matters

I don't agree with that at all. Mass Effect games have more actual C&C than this. The reason I didn't like Coteries despite being very pleasantly surprised at the outset is that the man behind the curtain became way too obvious, way too fast.

In fact I think I would have enjoyed it if it was the game you think it was: just a bit of C&C, just a bit of outcome variety, would have been enough. Not perfect, not great, but enough.

As is, there is woefully little that can change.

 

[Grunker]

A nice example of the game's approach to C&C is the investigation. Firstly, none of what you actually do during the investigation matters more or less at all, it's basically impossible to fail. It's just a binary question of "were you aggressive with Robert during the confrontation." And not just "were you aggressive", but "did you pick pretty much only aggressive options"?

Then if you do fail, nothing changes except I think two derisive comments.

 

[Zombra]

You can straight up fail to recruit *anyone* to your coterie ending up completely alone

Oh. Well we're actually in agreement then. Individual subplots can have different outcomes, and the main story only has one ending. This is exactly what I said the first time.

 

[Grunker]

You can straight up fail to recruit *anyone* to your coterie ending up completely alone

Oh. Well we're actually in agreement then. Individual subplots can have different outcomes, and the main story only has one ending. This is exactly what I said the first time.

No, you misunderstand. Not recruiting somebody doesn’t lead to almost anything at all except skipping their scene. And as far as consequences go, skipping scenes (which you can do manually as well) is about the most the game does.

Also why did you ignore my example of the investigation? That part is one of the most telegraphed instances of choice in the game, yet amounts to nothing. It’s less interactive than a Telltale scene.