Hype is for the inexperienced. Pre-orders are for the fools.
I'm a fool sometimes myself, but I haven't seen anything yet about this game that would wake a long dead malk inside of me. It's wishlisted on Steam, but that's it for now.
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indeed.
if you pre-order a game or buy it within the first few months you are paying to test the game.
you said it perfectly. Hype is for the inexperienced. or those who are spending there parents money.
has there even been gameplay footage released yet?
im a huge vampire masquerade fan, but ive been around the block a few to many times to be fooled by hype.
but no really, is there any gameplay footage out yet or is it all still cutscenes?
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We only have the inital gameplay teaser when they initally announced it. We'll see at E3 if we get a new gameplay trailer.
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the trailer on steam is not gameplay.
wow so many people buying a game they have never seen any gameplay for. maybe video games do make people stupid...
i mean really how can some1 be so naive.
i hope the game is good, not just for my sake down the road, but for the sake of all the morons who blindly payed for it
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We got a gameplay video when the game was announced. So we have seen one.
I mean people bought No Man's Sky(yes the game is better now, but it still stands) & Anthem
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please link me to a vid with gameplay. i can find 50 vids but they are all of the same 2 min cutscene. or clan intro cutscene.
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It was from the game awards last year, pretty sure. when they originally announced it. We got a sorta gameplay trailer then.
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Idk, I always felt guilty spending parents' money on crap. At least with my money, it's my money I'm wasting.
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Yes. I don't understand all the hype about a game where they've barely shown a few vids, maybe not even gameplay and that lives on a reputation of it's predecessor which was buggy as hell and broken.
Everybody who pre-orders this is proving to publishers that hype is all you need for a sucessful launch.
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Original Bloodlines was made by 3 people in Troika, with a bit wider team joining later, and they worked on the untested Source engine back then with a constraint they have to release before HL2 and... well, yeah. If it was a normal publisher and not "back then Activision" it could have been a very nice and polished game. Which unofficial patches proved. That's not really an issue.
It's just that we know close to zero about THIS game, THIS team, THIS project...
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Try https://www.moddb.com/mods/vtmb-unofficial-patch to get Bloodlines 1 working.
As for Bloodlines 2 - I am hopeful, but the fact game is made be developers who only made one multiplayer-focused shooter is rather worrying. Especially since all trailers so far are all about either listening to some monologues, or plain "boom boom, bang bang, magic magic" shooting scenes.
I get that talking isn't making a great trailers, but would love to see some non-action parts of a game.
Give me some Bloodlines 2 version of "meeting the Jeanette" or "the name's Jack" and I'll be in.
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Unoffical patch is automatically integrated into Clan Quest Mod, if you'd prefer to take the option that adds more game content, rather than being limited just to bugfixes. Unofficial Patch+ similarly adds a bit to game content (and can also be activated through CQM), but it throws off lore and balance in places, so it's not recommended for starting players.
I'm totally with you on the fact that the trailers completely run contrary to the expectations set by the first game. It's unlikely, but here's hoping that it's just a matter of how the trailers were handled, rather than of the game basing off little more than the name of its predecessor.
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I still need to play the first one. Before that I need to buy it. Before that I need to actually find a good deal for it, which is now unlikely since it seems they're going the whole "New game's coming out so we can gouge for extra cash from the previous game since there's interest again" route.
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You don't need to play the first game. They're completely independent from each other. (besides some character that might have a cameo according to the devs) A lot has changed from one game to the other. V5 edition of the Masquerade has a bunch of new things and the new game will probably follow the new rules. In fact, playing the first game might be counterproductive at this point as the rules are obsolete and so are the graphics.
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I believe you are correct. It's a personal preference mainly. I not only want to see the story evolving, but I also like seeing the same thing happening to graphics, gameplay mechanics and perhaps also worldbuilding.
I made this mistake with Skyrim. I still haven't been able to get into Oblivion and I know I would've loved it hadn't I played Skyrim first.
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It's not Skyrim's fault. Oblivion is just the worst. xD
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I found it pretty boring. Although, I'll say that I was pretty crazy about achievements at that time and played it for +100h to unlock them all. That may or may not impact my feelings toward that game. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
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Unfortunately there are a lot of troll posts going on in the threads, but I don't care. Not only am I happy Paradox is actually doing something with White Wolf (because the franchise felt utterly neglected under CCP), I am personally looking forward to the new VtM games coming out and not just a Bloodlines sequel.
As far as the original Bloodlines goes, are you using the unofficial patch? I have never experienced major issues with the game, even when I ran it under the 1.0 patch way back in the day... except for no clipping. Noclip is your friend. :P
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Yes actually. If you ever get the opportunity to play the entire game, you will see why it is so endearing. However, when I mentioned using noclip, I meant use it when necessary through the command console (not a patch), as there are areas that is a pita to get through otherwise - if at all. Just add -console 1 to your shortcut to be able to access the command console from within the game.
As far as mods go, I highly recommend playing vanilla first so you can see all the different endings. Later on, however, the Antitribu mod is amazing! Just be sure you are running the Unofficial Patch to support it, or any other mod you decide to use. Just check around and see what is available to your tastes. :) Currently I am running three different clan characters in vanilla before the sequel comes out... just because. But I am also using a nice reshade preset to give the game that dark, ambivalent feeling that is fitting for WoD; as well as some NPC and character skins just to make it a little different.
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Worried is the better word.
Looove the first, but nothing I have seen or heard about the new one inspires me with confidence and seems more like just using an existing IP to shovel crap.
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I'd say the fact that EA or Activision isn't involved with it should be a word to not be worried. I mean you have the original writers involved. It feels like a Two-point Hospital successor to this franchise
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Cause nothing bad ever was published outside those 2 companies?
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Paradox is known for great games, albiet stratergy games and not rpg. I'm going on the fact that its a triple A company that isn't owned by the handful of flailing companies
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You're right Paradox can make good games. The only concern with them however, is that they release 1/2 the game and rest of it with paid DLC's. Hope not though.
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We do know for a fact of there being 3 pieces of story DLC and all the clans not playable at launch will most likely come as free DLC as they have put that out
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Paradox - free DLC - LOL. Maybe there'll be 1 free dlc and 5 paid ones if they end up making more dlc. They make good games but the prices on their mountain of DLC is also sky high.
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Its 3 paid story DLC(which you can get for "free" when you buy the higher tiers of pre-order) and there should be like 10+ free DLC that just adds in a new clan. The free clan DLC is afaik confirmed. there is 5 clans at launch, the rest come as free dlc. Also remember this is on GoG as well as steam, so idk how they work with the rest of the dlc after that
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To be fair, afaik Bloodlines 2 won't be a grand strategy, and even with those games there are only a handful "must have" DLCs recommended to get - in CK2's case, in 7 years. ( Long-term game support is great, but if it costs money, people aren't that eager about it)
In my opinion people really should look into DLCs because it's often ignored how much they add to a game, people just frown on the price tag.
cPersonally I hope they will go the Fallout New Vegas way. Self-contained story, start to finish, and DLCs expand the story in the middle, adding new stories. And if a clan costs money, it's better be unique enough that it's worth replaying the game with.
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So long as the game feels complete without the extra DLC, it will be OK I guess. Can never be sure with Paradox, but they do tend to push DLC boundaries to it's breaking point - and sometimes beyond.
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Correction, you have ONE of the original writers involved, and he has admitted that he plans to change the tone of things to match the times. He was one part of a team, and now he is one part of a very different team with a considerably different vision.
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The whole matching with the times thing makes sense, since the original was a modern times RPG that was a product of its time. Biggest hope is that the nosferatu clan has been changed to not being a walking masqurade violation as that change would be one of those QoL changes of the times
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It's not about updating the setting. They've made it quite clear they intend to be rather politically correct.
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Being Inclusive to the LGBTQA+ people isn't being PC, It generally would make sense for a vampire to choose their preferred pronouns and such. I mean they'll have to move with the times, they aren't like those weak ass magic users of Hogwarts that are stuck in perma early 19th century tech because they are too reliant on magic
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A) Didn't say anything about "inclusivity". Fact is that the writers / developers have specifically talked about toning down sex, changing the depiction of mental illness (including the Malkavians), avoiding supposed stereotypes, and "punching up rather than punching down" among other ways they intend to make the game more palettable to current sensibilities. It is very much PC.
B) It makes little sense for a vampire to give much of a shit about modern PC culture outside of it being part of the masquerade. It might be something they play at for the sake of the masquerade, but in vampire society? No. The older vampires, the ones with power and experience, would laugh at being told by some neophyte that they need to conform to the niceties of the human world.
The original Vampire the Masquerade was a dark, gritty, brutal experience that took jabs at everyone all across the political and social spectrum. Every indication is that this new game has a very particular slant to it.
You know what would have made for a great story? If the vampires were pulling the strings on this modern brand of identity politics and using this obsession with political correctness to maintain their own shadowy power, just like they do with other forms of tribalism. But no, we will never get a plot that daring and poignant.
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The story you want is in Deus Ex. That story you want would be really bland and generic. you can still be gritty and dark while being inclusive. Vampires come from a time when they had to have the balls to show themselves and in high society no less. Having a trans vampire wouldn't ruin the story or what not, because there probably are elder vampires that decided to transition when they initally became vampires as it technically is a clean slate for them.
You make as if LGBTQA+ is only apart of modern culture. If the original game was made with the amount of knowledge and such we have now, pretty sure that would run deep in the lore. Hell, we'd probably actually be able to chat to the taxidriver about a ton more.
I take it you loved having to walk in the sewers as the nosferatu in the original game because you're considered a walking masquerade violation.
All the elder vampires have lived through a ton of history and you'd probably find some of them empathetic with the Jews, LGBTQA+ people but not so much with those who prosecute.
Also if you want a masqurade game with such a bland story, you make it instead of letting your homophobia show
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Nice strawman you've concocted.
I specifically said this had nothing to do with so called "inclusivity", and cited numerous things the developers and writers intend to change that have nothing to do with transgenderism, yet you choose to focus in on that as if I complained about there being a trans character. I didn't.
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You specifically went for PC and the only PC thing that this game is doing is adding the same character creator options as the newest inclusivity stuff in Sims 4. That was your main point
There wasn't much sexual content in the original game anyways, so there isn't anything to tone down. I never played the obvious crazy clan because they didn't look like the clan I'd play, but toning down the crazy would make sense so that they can focus on the story and less on your vampire talking to every traffic light because they are a type of crazy.
By using logic and the process of elemination, your only real qualm here is with the inclusion of the LGBTQA+ in the character creation
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It looks interesting, but I don't understand, why someone would pre-order a game, that doesn't even have a gameplay trailer, let alone any gameplay related footage.
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Because its a sequel to a age old classic and shows promise. I'm actually considering pre-ordering it when I get the cash and I'm generally a not a fan of pre-ordering
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What exactly shows promise? I don't think they showed anything so far.
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You have of the original team working on it and every single dev talk on each clan, since they decided to reveal them one by one. I have a strong chance of Paradox giving the game life
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Not yet, but that isn't gonna kill my hype. Remember Anthem, where we saw tons of gameplay and it turned out bad because EA and prodding on Bioware. Paradox isn't EA/Activision so I already have higher hopes
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Anthem“s team also included writers and people I liked from the Mass Effect franchise, but Anthem was evalutaed based on its gameplay, people didn't purchase it. In this case, you are evaluating it based on a hunch, I am not sure that's better.
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Difference is, people saw ME:A and still preordered Anthem then wondered why it was cruddy. Anthem was evaluted based on its gameplay videos and many people pre-ordered it just to be gibbed by the gameplay and EA's settup for it.
I'm working on it being from a conpany that is known to make good games still and has gotten of the original team to work on it. The reveals and settup of the lore so far also helped
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Known to make one good game... 7 years ago... I'm hesitant to call that "known for".
Anthem was a commercial failure, so likely not enough people purchased it, let alone pre-purchased it, probably because they saw, the gameplay and then read the reviews.
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Huh, didn't know Blacklight: Retribution was SOOO old...
Was thinking more 2015 than 2012.
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Nope, it was a commercial failure because a ton of people refunded their game if they could. People were hyped on Bioware making a new IP because the gameplay videos seemed like the game was gonna be good and Bioware is known for the DA & ME franchises. They totally forgot on the settup of swtor and as such got disspointed at the lack of finish when the game launched. As someone that due to knowning at least a few people that bought the game and regretted paying at most $130 on the game(since pre-order didn't let you play the game early and you had to buy the origin premuim service to do so). There is also the fact the game would softlock people's PS4s for a time. All that bad PR is what drove less people to buy the game.
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Unless you back that up with numbers, that's basically anecdotal evidence.
Either way, I am not really sure what your point is. You say, people were hyped because of past games from the developer and gameplay videos and totally forgot about the shitty games from the developer. This is exactly what you are doing, you are hyped up because of a past game and overlook all the bad games Zombie Studio was involved in, except you have even less information than the people who pre-ordered Anthem, since they actually saw some of the game they wanted to buy.
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Paradox is known for their good games and hasn't made a bad game recently. Unlike Anthem, VtMB2 is a sequel so you can work on less. People were hyped for anthem since it meant a potentionally new loot shooter, but it ended up sucking because of the giant EA slapped on it.
If a triple A company that isn't Bethesda/Activision/EA/Ubisoft is working on it, that gives the game some hope to not be really bad at launch.
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Paradox is the publisher not the developer!
Hardsuit Labs is the developer, they had several hits and misses during their Zombie Studio days.
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They are being headed by a member of the original team and sometimes that is all you need. I never heard of Zombie Studio, but that is probably since all Hardship labs did before this game was mobile games
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Unfortunately, no. The CEO had nothing to do with the original game, he was the head of Zombie Studios before, they mainly developed less than stellar games.
Not one of the three leads from Troika is working on the new VtMB2 game. This can be checked easily... not sure what you are talking about.
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Maybe check the other comments from others saying that there is people from the original team working on the sequel.
Just remember that sometimes it just takes that 1 or 2 people to push a good game out, plus the publisher is a good company
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I don't need to, just check the linkedin page of the company or the bio of the former leads, it's there in black and white, takes like 3 minutes of research...
There is exactly one writer from the original team working there, hardly enough for a miracle, wouldn't you say?
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Actually it sometimes is enough. Anyways who uses linkedin anyways
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Someone who wants to get information and not just hype blindly:)
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Its not blind hype since I know Paradox's resume and they aren't known for publishing bad games or prodding devs to do dumb shit like EA/Activision
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Umm... what original team? Except Mitsoda, no one is involved.
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They have two writers from the original team.
Game is developed by team who have one game in their dossier - multiplayer-only shooter.
And people in that team are known for bunch of games that scored somewhere around 50/100 (sometimes 40, other times 60, nothing worth remembering).
And so far they only showed various ways we can kill enemies, not a single one where we can talk to enemy and convince them we're with them.
I only got my hopes reduced so far, but they still have a year to actually show something cool.
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I haven't heard of more than a single writer from the original team working on the project. Rather, most of Troika's staff should be working for Obsidian these days, so it may be hard to make a game which taps into a similar vibe without having Obsidian on-board.
A deeper issue is that the trailers thus far have been RADICALLY different from the original game, being much less atmospheric and much more actiony. If you're going in for nostalgia, and the trailers are accurate to game content, you're guaranteed to be in for a let-down. It's not about being cautious as a general "what-if", it's that the team has already given us strong cause to doubt the degree of similarity between the two games.
In other words, there's nothing wrong about being optimistic (or "hyped") for the game, but one does need to acknowledge that we've already been shown indication that the game may not live up to expectations. Better to acknowledge that and hope against it, than to be unpleasantly surprised after-the-fact, right?
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Well, there is that. But since there is a high chance of seeing a better trailer at E3 so we can see if it'll still be there. I'm liking the lore and the changes seems to be good, esp since the clan videos didn't really say much of how the game would be. From what we know, it will still be dark and gritty, since ya know, permanent darkness doesn't really forebode much else. I acknowledge that it might not live up to any expectations, yet I'm still optimistically hyped for the game.
I don't see EA/Bethesda/Activistion/Obsidian anywhere in the game so I'm pretty much seeing that as a good thing.
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Sequels do not promise anything. Because they are sequels. Jurasic park 2 for example.
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Yes, long periods between sequels don't mean much. I do feel like Paradox will be a better publisher/higher-up to the dev team. And you did use a bad example, since there is only 1 good Jurassic Park Game and that was Genesis. Jurassic World Evolution was an attempt at a spiritual successor to it and its meh.
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The original was kinda bad so I could care less about 2.
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I'm a bit excited, but, I wish they wouldn't announce games a year before release. Even 6 months feels too long to me. It's hard to maintain hype levels over such a long time. I'll wait and see what user reviews look like for the week after it releases. If it's good, I'll probably buy it then.
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Super excited, but that still only means it is wishlisted, I wont pre-order and will wait for reviews.
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First VTM - Redemption - was Best game about vampires I ever played. Second was good, especialy when you play malkavian. Hope third won't be another YOBA game.
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Agreed. Too bad Trokia didn't add a storyteller mode like Redemption has.
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I still haven't played the first one. So many things to do!
It's always interesting when a game gets a sequel some decades after the original is released. Incidentally I also need to play Wasteland 2.
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As a huge fan of the first game (perhaps my favorite game ever, or one of the top-3 at least), I have serious doubts about the new one.
Kinda seems to me that they're trying to capitalize on nostalgia and nothing else so far. All this catering to SJW is also a worrying sign. So definitely not preordering, not buying at release and possibly not buying at all unless I hear really good reviews from trustworthy sources.
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Waiting to see some actual gameplay footage before making a decision. Every bone in my body wants to pre-order it, but yah... Last thing I want is to be completely disappointed.
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Bought it for 4.88€.
I'm happy. How bad can it possibly be ?
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Probably some preferencial regional-pricing with added "Epic pays you back $10".
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Probably that while it was still at the begining of that sale. VtM:B 2 is currently not on the EGS since epic didn't tell the devs how the sale was gonna work before it started. BL3 was also removed from EGS for the rest of the sale
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I'm gonna wait for reviews but I'm indeed excited :)
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I loved the original, so I'm tentatively hopeful for this new one. Diablo III is the last game I preordered and probably will be the last ever.
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You are missing the option of waiting for the fan patch Wich fixes the bugs before buying. The original bloodlines was a great game but buggy as all get out.
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Interplay->Black Isle/Troika->Obsidian aren't exactly known for releasing bug-free games, though, and those who had split off into Troika were arguably the most prone to that kind of thing. As much of a handicap as it is for them to be making the game without the creative talents of that group of individuals, the one good thing about another team taking the lead on VtMB2 is that we've good odds of getting a more stable game from the start.
Besides, VtMB's issues came in large part due to Activision actively sabotaging the project [after which they fully took over the license and profits, making it one of the few games you can give moral basis to the pirating of]. That'd not to say that Troika wasn't running a bit rough to begin with [Later, Obsidian'd be in similarly strained circumstances with New Vegas, before moving on to crowdfunding Pillars of Eternity], but Activision screwed over Troika's access to critical developmental tools, marketing, funding, and more.
In other words, Activision alone likely couldn't have brought Troika down if Troika wasn't already in a place to be brought down, but Activision ends up taking the full moral responsability for what happened, as they were the only one of the two not acting in good faith.
Anyway, point is, we're unlikely to see such a high profile game (moreover, one which seems to actually be supported by its publisher) end up being a hot wreck on release. Flip side, most every game has a few bugs on release, so your consideration is still worthwhile in a broader sense.
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I'm sad the game won't be allowing players to play a Nosferatu class.
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My first thought is "Clan DLCs". :P
Along with Malkavians, Nossies were one of the two most notable clans in the first game, gameplay mechanic wise, so they'd be an odd pick for exclusion. Similarly, while they were angled more as being more of a challenge than the other clans, that's in large part due to their being the full-stealth clan. If they're not in at the first, that doesn't bode well for how much consideration was given to the development of the game's stealth aspects.
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Good point on the DLC. It would seem possible since it is Paradox dealing with the IP and they are known for the weird amounts of DLCs in their games.
As for the Nosferatu, there weren't a lot of stealth gameplay shown based off of what I've seen so far in public release videos. Of course, I wouldn't rule them out but I guess we have to wait and see.
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A few days ago I googled the malkavian mod for Deus Ex. Then something related to this game appeared in my recommendations. To be honest, I don't even know what the game is about, but I always like videogames and movies related to vampires and werewolves.
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Long story short? (spoiler part is from the starting sequence, you can google it too)
You hook up with someone.
Ends up biting you
You vampire, they shouldn't have turned you, they are executed, you only survive the local prince ( vampire head of the city) kinda wants you employed.
Congratulations, you're an almost nobody running arrands for higher-ups, but inevitably will end up in politics, powerstruggles (and backstabbing, and intrigues), and exploring the world of creatures of the night. Main positive of the game that you can beat people to a pulp, outrun bullets, suck them dry, make them commit suicide, kill them with blood magic, coerce them into fleeing, charm guards into a little hanky-panky behind the corner to enter the unguarded building, etc, etc. Story-wise is important - it's not a high-fantasy setting. It's dark, sometimes it's fucked up, and everyone is out for themselves in the first place, but interests may align.
It's a really refreshing world after Skyrim, The Witcher 3 and many other RPGs - you are nobody.. or just yourself. You aren't special, and just part of the world.
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Sounds funny. I like it better when there are also normal humans hunting said creatures, but I guess that being able to experience these worlds from the vampire's perspective is interesting enough. I'l probably give it a chance when it comes out. Or perhaps I'll try the first game first..
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