Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines (2004), an action RPG using Valve's Source (Half-Life 2) engine, was the last game developed by Troika (which was founded by former Fallout devs according to MobyGames).
Gameplay
First off, the game is somewhat buggy. I played it as Steam delivered it to me, so some of the unofficial patches out there may have fixed some of the bugs I encountered. (Actually, reading them, they seem like they may improve the game a lot, but I'm only reviewing what I played.) The worst was getting stuck in the terrain a couple times, forcing me to reload. (If you're a power user, you can also start the game with the -console option and turn off clipping when you get stuck.) And loading and saving take a long time in this game, not long enough to kill the game for me, but enough to be annoying. Then again, I hate load times more than most people.
The action aspect of the game gives you options. Go unarmed. Go close combat weapons. Go firearms. Go stealth. Some of the later missions are entirely combat, which may render stealth impossible. I can't say as I went through as a Brujah (one of the six vampire clans you can play), mostly unarmed, then close combat weapons towards the end. I found this pretty satisfying, although there were only a couple baddies where my strategy was more complicated than "run up and make them stop living with my fists". Also the close combat collision detection is sometimes sketchy, which is par for the course in any game that isn't entirely hand to hand.
You also have Vampire Super Powers (called disciplines) to use. As a Brujah, I could magically slow time, boost my strength (although this became useless once my strength was maxed out, which is pretty lame), and produce a field that reduces the combat effectiveness of enemies in a small radius. Other clans can turn into animals, turn completely invisible, drive people insane, and other creature of the night type stuff.
Outside of combat, there's still a lot of options. The game is something of a big choose your own adventure book. There are multiple factions and individuals you can ally with and do side quests for. The game has five endings to reflect this. And there are multiple ways to accomplish many objectives. A hacker could shut down cameras whereas I had to kill all the guards. Some people can be smooth talked, seduced, or intimidated whereas my options were murder or bribery. It's a simple life. :) Fair warning though, many sections of the game, including the endgame, are strictly combat, so smooth talking will only get you so far.
Theatrics
Bloodlines has many memorable, well defined characters. The acting and directing are also well done. The facial animation system the Source engine provides could have been leveraged a bit more effectively, but overall, the major characters (and there are loads of them) are among the most fully realized gaming has to offer.
And you're one of them. The options the game gives you don't cover everything you might want to do in real life, but for a game, they're pretty wide ranging. I wanted to play the brute with a conscience, and the game pretty much let me. It was fun. I'm looking forward to the options I'll have as a master manipulator.
As for the overarching story, it's okay. I have a low tolerance for speculation, so the main plot didn't much intrigue me. People have been complaining that BioShock's endgame sort of betrays the principles the game establishes in the early phases. I feel the same way about Bloodlines. This game lets you make a lot of choices early on, many with moral ramifications. At the end of the game, you really have no choices at all. After a peek at GameFaqs, I can see that there are five endings, none of which change the endgame much at all. They probably ran out of money.
Aesthetics
The sound's fine (although one of my pet peeves, ambient sounds that come from only one ear, is present).
The visuals are uneven. Some of the city streets look great. But some of the places you fight are the same textures over and over. The characters you talk to look great, but the characters you fight can appear downright robotic. Again, it gives one the impression that the developers didn't have the time or money to give the game its last layer of polish. Considering it was a November release, that's pretty par for the course.
Final Score
4 of 5
It probably bears repeating that my scores are based on enjoyment and replayability, and Bloodlines has replayability in spades.
1 = so bad I couldn't finish
2 = regret finishing it
3 = was worth finishing
4 = was good fun; may play through again
5 = sad it's over (probably already playing through again)
I'd like to try a female character. I'd like to try a manipulator. I'd like to see how difficult it is to play the clan that can't show its face above street level. Turning into animals could be pretty cool. And people on the boards say you have to play through at least once as the crazy clan. Yeah. I've got a lot to experiment with. Fun.
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