Vampire: The Masquerade® - Bloodlines™ 2

I love it! Story Is interesting so far. But its much less rpg than the original. The DLC is good 2

so here of my thoughts: as a st, and fan of world of darkness universe, without being said the biggest mistake was putting the bloodlines tag on this, and I don't blame the devs because I know this was a ♥♥♥♥ show of a project. and this no bloodlines but an ok dues ex vampiric revolution game. and as someone who has probably played most the world of darkness games. honest it's not the worst I played. it's by far not the greatest like the o.g blood lines. as far as just vampire games in general its pretty good, the only reason this falls short is because of the legacy of the series. it is trying to stand on. but as a game itself its ok. especially if you like exploring and like that kind of human revolution kind combat vibe with a vampire coat of paint. the story is ok and flips between murder mystery and revenge. Seattle feels pretty good and has more life than many open world games. powers can be Interesting at times but after a bit it gets very Samey. it's very lacking in content. but what is there is interesting but can be better. I'd say if the game is on sale for like $30-$40 give it a shot with the dlc. they been good about adding outfits as well. and features.

Really fun game, I liked the story and gameplay. I think the only reason this game gets so much flack is because of the Bloodlines 2 subtitle. This game could have never lived up to the expectations people built up in their heads for the past 20years. Give it a shot when it's on sale, because it's definitely a good deal for 50% off.

I actually found myself really enjoying the game after a while. The story is good and keeps you hooked and there is enough open world that it keeps you interested. Some of the disciplines are done well and can be a lot of fun. After playing I even bought the DLC, which was short but enjoyable. The down side is that is not bloodlines, if anything its more like redemption. Once you get that it's more of a straight line story with very few side quests then you get into it more. Personally I would have preferred an inventory system and more options on that side of things, but it does force you use the things around you more. My hope would be that like other paradox games they keep adding to it. It could be a good base game with more and more layers added over time (more away from the main storyline rather the just prequal DLC). It's not great having to pay for things not in the base game, but if they add enough, people will complain but still buy it.

I have not played masquerade 1. I wanted to enjoy the story, but the writers made sure that it will be difficult. Performance is meh at times even with my specs. Voice Acting and the story writing just seems really weird where the voice does not fit the characters or the characters just do stuff that do not fit the moment at all. Also the dialogue options are "extrmely" lame, where you can choose diffrent option just for the character to go "no i dont want to do this yet". The game makes it seem like you have options, but you are made to just go the linear dialogue path. gameplay itself felt nice.

Honestly loved the story and the combat. Custom game settings after to beat the game through is also awesome! Think prototype 2 but your a Elder Vampire awakened in a new century with people are trying to use you as the ultimate weapon and you don't take kindly to that!

I really enjoyed this game. Going to buy the dlc and playthrough again. Would recommend.

Washed myself of any pretense that this was a true Bloodlines sequel before playing and it massively improved my enjoyment. It's still a pretty mid game. Ostensibly a stealth-action brawler but the stealth is half baked. Masquerade violations don't really do anything, there's no humanity system to stop you from beating down on cattle and there's a very limited roster of characters you can actually speak to. It's a shame because most of the writing is good. Not Bloodlines good, but good nonetheless. Even the character that annoyed me most, the incessant voice in your character's head, actually grew on me over time. He's only there because the developers apparently couldn't trust players to pay attention to their game unless some inner voice prattled on at them because our brains are fried by short form content, but at least he's got some substance. The combat and movement are where this game shines. I wish they'd just spent all their time on that. Handing out beatdowns as an Elder Vampire feels great. You can use telekinesis to grab weapons in the heat of battle, and you have a roster of other powerful abilities you can use too. It's a power fantasy, sure, but some of the fights were still pretty tough with the sheer numbers they throw at you. Movement is the other half, running across rooftops, gliding over streets, scrambling up drainpipes. I wish there was more of this too. At times I just wanted to run forever. Based on some of the other reviews I went in expecting this to be worse than it actually was and was pleasantly surprised. Its not really the Bloodlines 2 we deserve but it's the only one we're getting. Slow down and enjoy the ride.

great game, story becomes tedious with flashbacks but worth playing

I like everyone else who is a fan of the original Bloodlines, had been waiting for years. I watched a disaster rollercoaster as they hired and fired previous talent (Brian Mitsoda) without transparency or discussion. I was one of the first to buy the ultimate bundle when BL2 was announced. It became apparent through their actions that those decisions were based primarily on greed rather than love of the genre or series. They locked clans behind paywalls and had DLC announced on day one. As a fan of VtM, Bloodlines, and Redemption before that, I wanted this game to be excellent. I was cheering them on all the way until I realized that investors meant more to this company than their customers. They wanted a quick buck and when it looked like they weren't going to get that, they scrapped everything and started from the ground up. Horrible business decisions like this is why franchises are failing. That said, I will say that the community hasn't been 100% candid about BL2. I get why. I'm upset and confused too. However, this game is not as horrible as some have made it out to be. Many of the elements people complain about are actually rule-sets within the tabletop game lore itself, including diablerie, and taking other vampires abilities by taking in their blood. Some are upset about how you play the game. But, if you learn the mechanics of the fight system, it is a lot less wonky than the first BL. Many have rose colored glasses, but the first game fighting was a hot mess. Others are upset because there isn't much that changes anything. Again, replay the first BL and tell me if the whole thing wasn't on the rails. Except for some decisions towards the end, your decisions didn't really matter in that game either. Another community concern is over going to the same locations over and over. Yeah. I admit it. That sucks. While the first BL had a fair amount of backtracking, you literally weren't going over the same locations over and over again between two characters. Customization of your character is something brought up often as well. People don't seem to like having an actual persona to don instead of creating a self-insert. Yet, people are fine with Cyberpunk and other games where the character has an identity. Personally, I'm not upset by this. Another issue seems to be over the masquerade rating system not being more like GTA. I don't understand why. Cyberpunk uses a similar system as BL2 and I don't remember complaints about that. However, one other thing they have in common is insta-cops popping up from nowhere. At least Cyberpunk dealt with that issue. Not so much here. So, where does that leave my rating? Overall I would say its worth a buy at 50% off. Lets not reward anti-consumerism and corporate greed. I haven't played the DLC, but from what I've heard, I will likely get them at an equally steep discount. They do not plan to have any more updates to this game or pursue another game installment in the franchise. Perhaps someone will suggest to Paradox executives at some point that they will make money if they provide a quality game for the fans instead of trying to nickel and dime their customers. And I hope they learn a lesson about treating developers, writers, and that if you treat them well they will treat you well. The community will also appreciate them for it. The TD:LR is that BL2 is worth your time and money when its at least 50% off.