Playing through VTMB for the second time. Played it once years ago but never finished it; gave up in sewers, I was playing a Toreador with little to no combat skills, so this time I've made a Brujah focusing on hand to hand combat, with a minor in persuasion and hacking. I remember the atmosphere being good, but it really is some of the best in any game. There are so few games set in modern, real cities, and Troika nailed the filthy, depraved underside of a city. Stuff like the security guard in the apartment complex selling surveillance footage of the residents, or the psychotic prosthetic surgeon. Feels like you're wandering around in a Jim Thompson or James Ellroy story. Only game that comes close to this style is Man Hunt - it's a real shame more games don't explore this kind of urban horror. The graphics may be stuck in that limbo of not quite realistic because of tech limitation but not fully stylized, but stuff like the characters faces hold up surprisingly well - I'm shocked at how expressive the faces are, to the point where I'd say they're better than the shit I see in modern games like Mass Effect or any Bethesda shit.
Also there is some genuinely funny shit in the game, nice contrast to the emo darkness. I convinced a guy that the blood packs I had were unicorn blood, and that by transfusing them with his blood he would cure his vampirism - sold them to him at a high markup. Profit. Also that radio station, the night talk show. Holy shit I was cracking up. Funnier than anything I've heard in the GTA games. Too bad there doesn't seem to be much of it.
