Vampire: The Masquerade® - Bloodlines™ 2

# Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 (So Far) *This review is based on my current playthrough and I'll likely update it once I've finished the game.* I went into Bloodlines 2 knowing about the mixed reception from longtime Bloodlines and World of Darkness fans. I expected something that probably wouldn't live up to the original. Instead, I found a game that, while mechanically very different from Bloodlines (2004), absolutely understands what makes Vampire: The Masquerade *feel* like Vampire: The Masquerade. If you're expecting a modern remake of the original's tabletop-inspired RPG systems, this isn't that game. If you're willing to judge it on its own merits, however, I think there's a lot here that's been overlooked. ## Atmosphere This was the first thing that grabbed me. From the opening moments, there's this constant low-grade anxiety hanging over everything. The environments, ambient music, lighting, and general presentation all work together to make Seattle feel dangerous without constantly throwing combat at you. A lot of semi-open-world games unintentionally encourage me to sprint everywhere because getting from point A to point B feels like dead time. Bloodlines 2 has had the opposite effect. I've found myself walking. Not because the game forces me to, but because I genuinely want to soak in the city. The environmental artists deserve a tremendous amount of credit here. There's enough visual storytelling and atmosphere that simply moving through the world becomes enjoyable instead of feeling like filler between quests. ## Combat I'm playing a Tremere on Normal difficulty. Early combat has surprised me. I don't feel overpowered, and I don't feel artificially weak either. Regular enemies are dangerous because they actually work together. They'll pressure your position, flank you, and punish bad movement. That means positioning matters. Outside encounters are especially tense because it's entirely possible to accidentally kite enemies into civilians, risking a Masquerade violation. That creates an extra layer of awareness beyond simply surviving the fight. One mechanic I particularly appreciate is how feeding naturally fits my build. Since it's often my finishing move, bodies disappear afterward instead of piling up for mortals to discover. It's a small detail, but it reinforces roleplaying while also serving gameplay. As I've unlocked more abilities, combat has become even more satisfying. Learning to weave telekinesis into gunplay took some practice, but once it clicked, encounters became wonderfully chaotic. Open with Blood Salvo to thin a group, rip a shotgun out of an enemy's hands, then turn it back on the heavies. It's incredibly satisfying without feeling effortless. Stealth has been another pleasant surprise. Human weapons are legitimately dangerous, and stealing an explosive crossbow before immediately using it against an entire squad of hunters never stops being entertaining. The sniper rifles deserve special mention too. At first I wished I could simply keep them permanently. Then I realized why I can't. They're balanced around being temporary power spikes. If the game let me stockpile sniper ammunition, I'd probably break half the encounters. That's good restraint from the designers. Perhaps my favorite mechanic, though, is traversal. Flying across Seattle's rooftops is just plain fun. Once the movement finally clicked, crossing the city became something I looked forward to instead of tolerated. ## Writing & Characters The dialogue has consistently impressed me. Conversations feel fluid, the voice acting has been excellent, and characters have distinct personalities without feeling exaggerated. Fabian quickly became one of my favorite parts of the game. Initially I expected a Malkavian companion to be much more overtly bizarre, but instead his eccentricity expresses itself through this oddly cheerful noir detective persona that somehow feels perfectly at home in World of Darkness. His investigation sequences have been an unexpected highlight. Walking through his reconstructed memories gives the player room to breathe between heavier story moments, while his habit of interrogating—and occasionally flirting with—inanimate objects somehow turns detective work into comedy. Being told, "You don't have the balls," by a pool table was not something I expected from this game. I laughed far harder than I probably should have. Small touches like random NPC dialogue ("Dad was right, it's hard to be a gigolo.") also make Seattle feel inhabited instead of populated by quest dispensers. And yes... Finding a reference to Nines absolutely made me grin. ## Performance On my system, performance has honestly been better than I expected. The game automatically set itself to Ultra settings, and even while I had YouTube running in the background, it's remained consistently smooth. I've experienced occasional frame drops, but they've been brief enough that they never disrupted gameplay. Obviously your mileage may vary depending on hardware, but I've been pleasantly surprised. ## What Has Surprised Me Most More than anything else... I've become emotionally invested. Without getting into spoilers, there came a point where I had to step away from the game because I genuinely needed a break after what had happened. That doesn't happen often. Whether every story beat lands for every player is subjective, but the fact that the game managed to make me care that much says a lot about the writing and performances. ## Final Thoughts (So Far) I'm still playing, so I can't speak to the ending or how well everything ultimately comes together. What I *can* say is that I came into Bloodlines 2 expecting to understand why so many longtime fans were disappointed. Instead, I've found myself consistently impressed. No, this isn't Bloodlines (2004). It isn't trying to recreate every tabletop mechanic. But it captures something I think is just as important: the feeling of existing within the World of Darkness. Every loss has felt earned. Every victory has felt hard fought. And every hour has made me want to keep playing. I'll happily update this review once I've reached the credits, but as things stand right now, I'm having an absolute blast. Update: I actually restarted my playthrough after a major story moment. Not because I disliked what happened, but because it hit me harder than I expected and I needed some distance before continuing. I'm replaying now with foreknowledge to see whether those scenes still hold up when I know what's coming.

Huge fan of VTM. I understand why the developers wanted to change it's name. It's no way a successor to VTM Bloodlines. In every aspect of the game you can feel and see where the publishers didn't give the developers enough time. The Best way to describe this game is a walking simulator with punching. The game has many clear ways it trys to extend the length the game takes to complete. The story has some good notes to it but you really don't have much effect on anything that happens. I cannot recommend this game. It's a sad sight for the franchise, it feels like the 'Nail in the Coffin' for VTM games. We're better off with a modern remake of the Original Bloodlines.

Loved it, loved every second honestly, i love the story, the fighting, the characters, and damn even zipping over the roof tops to get to the next mission was a highlight. Now i have to say i got the game in sale for 30€ or so which i definetly recommend since the game isnt very optimized and i encounterd a few tiny bugs (fell through the floor once when tp as Fabien and of course the voice bugs which i was quickly fixed thanks to my 360 headphones so no biggie), yeah i think if i payed full prize i would be a bit more negative but since i didnt its now one of my fav games haha. (and i dont really know much about vtm yet so i cant really speak about the accuracy, i played the first game a bit and agree that its not much like the one we have here, you get just a few dialouge changes for the clan you use occasionaly and can after a while just unlock the skill of the other clans, but its still a really fun vampire game, just go in with the expectaitions that its more story/detective game and not like the first one, and i would recommend playing the game for Fabien alone, peak character, Malkavians for the win <3)

Very nice vampire game, just forget it should be sequel to VMB and You will be totally fine :)

норм тема, хейтеры с синдромом утенка прост

Ну... Что-то сырое и не внятное, лучшее, что есть это начальная атмосфера и сюжет, не советую задерживаться дольше.

I'd purchase it on sale. It doesn't dive as deep into the lore as other games have. It runs ok on my older gaming laptop.

Sarò breve, perché non c'è molto da dire. Il gioco, di per sé, si lascia giocare e i combattimenti sono abbastanza divertenti. Però, almeno per me, è l'unico vero punto a favore. La grafica offre ben poco in rapporto alle risorse hardware che richiede, le animazioni sono piuttosto basilari e le meccaniche risultano estremamente semplicistiche. Aspetto di finirlo per capire se, almeno, la storia abbia qualcosa di interessante da raccontare. La mancanza dell'italiano incide poco su di me, avendo un ottimo livello di inglese, ma posso capire che per molti possa rappresentare un ostacolo tale da compromettere completamente il coinvolgimento nella trama. Nel complesso, la mia valutazione resta negativa. Non tanto perché sia un "finto Bloodlines 2", ma perché mi sembra un gioco che non è all'altezza del nome che porta, dell'importanza del progetto e, soprattutto, del modo in cui il suo sviluppo è stato palesemente gestito. A questo si aggiunge il fatto che, per molte ragioni, Paradox non merita più la fiducia incondizionata dei videogiocatori per come ha trattato questo prodotto. Personalmente, credo farebbero bene a cedere i diritti della serie a un'azienda realmente interessata a portarne avanti lo sviluppo con la cura che un titolo così importante merita.

waste of money at first it was cool mind you i didnt play the first one its was a cool game in the begining but as it continues you can feel the game isnt fully florish its missing allot i dont recomend getting this game at full price get it on sell. i like the combat but it gets repetitive fast this game is like a walking simulator for vampire with lil combat.

Для любителей первой части можно поиграть для разнообразия.