Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines

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For the bloodlines in the game Vampire: the Masquerade see Bloodlines in Vampire: the Masquerade.

Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines
Developer(s)	Troika Games
Publisher(s)	Activision
Designer(s)	Jason Anderson, Leonard Boyarsky, Tim Cain
Engine	Source engine
Latest version	1.2 (Unofficial patch 3.5)
Release date(s)	NA November 16, 2004 EU November 19, 2004
Genre(s)	Action RPG
Mode(s)	Single player
Rating(s)	ESRB: M (Mature) OFLC: MA 15+ BBFC: 18 USK: 16+ PEGI: 18+
Platform(s)	Microsoft Windows
Media	3 CD-ROMs or Steam download
System requirements	1.2 GHz or 1.2 GHz Pentium III or higher; 384 MB of RAM, Quad-Speed CD-ROM, 3.3 GB uncompressed hard disk space and 1.4 GB for Windows swap file, 100% DirectX 9.0c compatible videocard; 16-bit sound card and drivers
Input	Keyboard, Mouse

Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines, abbreviated as Bloodlines or VTMB, is an action role-playing game for Windows developed by Troika Games in 2004. Like Activision’s Vampire: The Masquerade – Redemption, Bloodlines is set in White Wolf, Inc.’s Vampire: The Masquerade universe, but it is not a sequel to the earlier game. The game allows the player to choose one of several different vampire clans and progress through the game according to the different strengths and weaknesses of the player’s character, as in its paper and pencil role playing origins.

Bloodlines is notable for being the first game along with Half-Life 2 to use Valve’s Source engine, which allows the game to be played from either the first-person or third-person shooter perspective. It is also Troika Games’ third title and the last to be made before Troika closed down in February 2005.

Contents 1 Introduction 2 Gameplay 3 Storyline 4 Characters 4.1 Sebastian LaCroix 4.2 The Sheriff 4.3 Mercurio 4.4 Nines Rodriguez 4.5 Smiling Jack 4.6 Therese and Jeanette (Tourette) Voerman 4.7 Gary 4.8 Brother Grunfeld Bach 4.9 Rosa 5 Locations and objects 5.1 Santa Monica 5.2 Elizabeth Dane 5.3 Downtown 5.4 Hollywood 5.5 Chinatown 5.6 Ankaran Sarcophagus 6 Organizations 6.1 Camarilla 6.2 Anarchs 6.3 Sabbat 6.4 Kuei-jin 7 Development 8 Patches 9 Marketing and sales performance 10 Models 11 The game and common vampire beliefs 12 Trivia 13 Soundtrack 14 References 15 External links

[edit] Introduction

The game begins with the creation of a character of one of seven Kindred clans, either male or female. Once a character has been created, the introductory sequence begins with an in-game cinematic of a vampire Sire Embracing the player's character. (In Vampire: The Masquerade's universe, the "Embrace" is the term for the process by which a human is turned into a vampire.) Shortly after the Embrace, both the player and his or her Sire are captured by the Los Angeles Camarilla for the unauthorized act. The player’s Sire is executed at the order of the 'Prince' – the leader of the Camarilla in Los Angeles – and for a moment it seems the player will suffer the same fate. However, a man in the audience jumps up and calls the Prince out, and he relents. However, the player is soon to find that the Prince's decision isn't the act of mercy it seems at first to be.

[edit] Gameplay

Bloodlines is a real-time game with the choice between first- and third-person perspectives. The player character's ability to overcome obstacles is in many cases a mixture of player and character abilities, with character stats determining the effectiveness of actions, and player abilities determining whether or not the actions succeed. For example, the ability to move silently and avoid being detected is heavily influenced by the character’s Dexterity and Stealth ratings; however, if the player does not stay in the shadows while sneaking past enemies, the character can still be detected.

The player character increases in power dramatically during the course of the game through the expenditure of earned experience points on attributes, skills, and vampire abilities called "disciplines". A multitude of items, weapons, and books can be found or purchased that also make the player character more powerful.

Unlike most RPGs, the experience needed to increase stats and skills is not awarded for killing enemies. Experience points are awarded solely for completing quests, no matter how many creatures the player eliminates in the process (though the quest objective often involves killing). This encourages the player to complete quests in creative ways and significantly increases the game’s replay value.

[edit] Storyline

The storyline of the game is dynamic. This comes not only from the presence of numerous optional quests, but also from the existence of five different endings. The plot revolves around a mysterious archaeological artifact called the Ankaran sarcophagus, believed to contain the body of an ancient vampire (Antediluvian) in torpor. As the various factions of L.A. conspire to obtain this artifact, or to foil each others' attempts to do so, the player must decide whom to trust: Prince LaCroix, Regent Strauss, the Anarchs, the Kuei-Jin, or remain independent.

However, while the game does give players great freedom, the overall plotline does not change no matter what is done, and all the core missions still need to be completed. For example, if the player decides to side with the Anarchs, they will still need to obey Prince LaCroix, as they are told to act like they are still loyal.

[edit] Characters

The following is a list of some of the most notable NPCs:

[edit] Sebastian LaCroix

A French Ventrue of at least 180 years of age, LaCroix is the Prince of the L.A. Camarilla, which only recently moved back in to the Los Angeles area. Once a soldier serving Napoléon, he is now the head of the LaCroix Foundation, and resides in the Venture Tower in the game’s 'Downtown' area, commanding the city from his penthouse office.

It is worth noting that "LaCroix" — following French rules of pronunciation — should be pronounced [l'akrwa], but the in-game pronunciation is [lacroj]. Presumably, he has spent enough time in the United States for the anglicization of his name to occur. "La croix" is the French phrase for "the cross".

[edit] The Sheriff

The Sheriff is LaCroix’s personal bodyguard, killer, and enforcer. At seven feet in height, he towers over everyone else. He is of indeterminate clan lineage (based on the disciplines he is seen to use, the closest match within the Vampire: The Masquerade system would be the Nagloper clan of Africa), but in a particular sequence he has been shown to seemingly teleport, an ability the Naglopers do not have (this may be a form of Celerity - supernaturally fast movement). He never speaks, and has animalistic physical traits, like dark and leathery skin. LaCroix recruited him in Africa about one hundred years ago. He carries an extremely large sword used for both combat and execution purposes, and has the ability to shape shift into a gigantic bat called a Chiropteran Behemoth (the closest matching power in the published World of Darkness system is Chiropteran Marauder, a shape-shifting ability related to the Vicissitude discipline; but this seems to have been exaggerated for the purpose of allowing the Scourge to serve as a game 'boss').

There has been speculation as to what job his role seemed to fit best. Considering the fact that he has the right to kill anyone he deems fit, the "Sheriff" would most definitely be the Prince's Scourge.

[edit] Mercurio

Mercurio is a ghoul (a human that serves a vampire) that works on the behalf of LaCroix, based out of Santa Monica. He specializes in acquiring contraband goods such as high-grade explosives or weaponry. The result of his consumption of vampire blood is apparent in his youthful appearance. He is however in his 60s, as stated in the game when the player first meets him.

[edit] Nines Rodriguez

A Brujah that lived through the Great Depression, Nines is the virtual leader of the Anarchs in downtown L.A. and elsewhere. The Depression era ingrained into him a belief that people in power cannot be trusted at all, and from this stems his intense hatred of the Camarilla. He strives to maintain L.A. as an Anarch Free State. His hatred for the Camarilla is second to his hatred for the Kuei-Jin in Chinatown, who killed the last leader of the Anarchs. Nines has a soft spot for the player's character because he too was left sireless.

[edit] Smiling Jack

A Brujah brawler and a notable Anarch from the nights of the Anarch Free States, Smiling Jack is the one who teaches the basics during the game's tutorial sequence. He speaks crudely, but his beliefs and willingness to take action make him a likable person. Fiercely independent and roguishly charismatic, he is seen by the common vampire folk as a legend. It is rumored that Jack, during his life, was a pirate in some capacity. According to White Wolf books, Smiling Jack is approximately 400 years old, and is one of the most (in)famous members of his clan.

[edit] Therese and Jeanette (Tourette) Voerman

Jeanette, a Malkavian, is the game's signature character whose likeness is displayed on the game’s box. She can be found in Santa Monica at the Asylum club, which she runs with her sister Therese, Baron of Santa Monica, who is also Malkavian, but fancies herself to be a Ventrue, as displayed by her lofty attitude and hatred for the Nosferatu. They share an interesting love-hate relationship and, as the player eventually discovers, the same body. Jeanette turns out to be a personality concocted by Therese as an escape from the sexual abuse she endured at the hands of her father. The player is given the opportunity to either help destroy ("kill") one of these personalities or to help the two sisters reconcile and coexist peacefully. The resulting merged personality is referred to as Tourette in the game documentation. It is possible for characters of either gender to sleep with Tourette, but extremely difficult, and if the wrong reply is chosen at any point during any conversation with Therese, Jeanette or Tourette, the option does not become available. This option has been made more accessible in the fan patches.

[edit] Gary

Nosferatu leader and primogen to his clan, Gary lurks in the Warrens, a network of havens under the Hollywood Graveyard. "Gorgeous" Gary Golden is believed to have been a handsome movie star in life, but arrogance and good looks are a dangerous combination to have when there are Nosferatu around. Now hideous and stealthy like the rest of the clan, but also sarcastic and possessed of a fine feeling for grotesque, Gary is a character who also knows many secrets in the City of Angels — and may share them with anyone, for the right price.

[edit] Brother Grunfeld Bach

Grunfeld Bach is a Catholic Christian fundamentalist warrior monk and the leader of the Society of Leopold. He has very strong views, is a third-generation vampire hunter, and has a personal vendetta against Sebastian LaCroix, who killed both his father and grandfather. Bach is one of the most powerful mortals alive, capable of summoning so much faith that he possesses two supernatural powers: the ability to temporarily blind anyone within close to medium proximity, and the ability to render himself invulnerable for short periods of time. Recently, Bach and the Society of Leopold have come to Los Angeles to kill Sebastian LaCroix and destroy the Ankaran Sarcophagus.

[edit] Rosa

While she is a minor character in the game, she is without a doubt one of the most interesting. She is a thin-blooded vampire seeking refuge on the beach of Santa Monica with E. and the rest of the thin bloods. You first meet her during the Surf's Up quest where she will greet you when you first enter the beach and direct you to the top of the hill where the men you are looking for happen to be located. She is hesitant to share her gift with you at first, but after you pay her she offers unique insights.

[edit] Locations and objects

It is interesting to note, that while the areas found in Bloodlines are in fact real places, they do not completely resemble their real-world counterparts. Based in the World of Darkness, the locales are significantly darker and more run-down than their real-life Los Angeles counterparts. There are however many landmarks, such as the Santa Monica Pier and a Chinese theatre which complement the feel of each locale.

[edit] Santa Monica

The starting area, Santa Monica has seen better days. Thin-blooded vampires stray at the beach, and law enforcement is poor, among other things. It is home to the Asylum nightclub, the blood bank, and the haunted Ocean House Hotel.

[edit] Elizabeth Dane

A small-scale cargo ship, the Elizabeth Dane was discovered by fishermen who received no replies to their radio hails. Maritime law enforcement agencies subsequently discovered signs of an incredibly-violent struggle onboard, but they were unable to locate any remaining signs of the crew. Aside from a cracked container holding the Ankaran Sarcophagus and a stolen package, the police were unable to locate anything else of note.

On a side note, Elizabeth Dane is a sunken ship that is behind the story of the 1980 film The Fog. As well, one of the passwords of the level's computer is "antoniobay". Antonio Bay was the area/town where The Fog takes place.

[edit] Downtown

Downtown L.A. is home to the local Camarilla, based in the Venture Tower, and street side Anarch movement, based in the pub The Last Round. The area is also home to Club Confession, the Empire Hotel, the Nocturne Theatre, Skyline Apartments, the local Tremere chantry, among other areas of secondary interest, like the condemned hospital.

[edit] Hollywood

Hollywood is Anarch territory, claimed by the Baron Isaac. It houses the Asp Hole and club Vesuvius, both owned by vampires. The Chinese Theatre and cemetery are local landmarks, although the Theatre is currently abandoned (apart from a stone Gargoyle which the player may choose to kill or assist during a quest), and there is a serious cemetery problem — overseen by Isaac's ghoul, Romero — which the player can resolve in a number of ways. The Nosferatu are also headquartered here, though no one knows where exactly.

[edit] Chinatown

Chinatown is Kuei-Jin territory. Almost universally avoided by the native western vampires, Chinatown is the headquarters for eastern vampire holdings in L.A. and the surrounding areas. The head of the local Mandarinate is Ming Xiao, a shapeshifter who rules from the Golden Temple.

[edit] Ankaran Sarcophagus

A sarcophagus that was previously discovered an untold number of years ago by Church authorities and subsequently re-buried, it was rediscovered by the Norwegian archaeologist Dr. Johansen, and was on its way to an American museum for examination. Bloody handprints on its surface found while onboard the Elizabeth Dane indicates it may have been opened from the inside.

The Vampires of Los Angeles circulate rumors that the sarcophagus holds an Antediluvian, a third-generation vampire, one of the eldest and most powerful in existence, and also a sign of Gehenna — the Vampire "end of days" scenario. The vast majority of them believe that it should never be opened, or destroyed entirely.

Beckett believes it to hold nothing more sinister than an Assyrian king, a hypothesis confirmed by Dr. Johansen, who however brings to note that this king was attributed with 250 years worth of achievements. While he notes that previous royal names were probably just erased, or that the name was passed onto subsequent generations, he chuckles at the idea that the king could have lived to 250 years of age.

The surface murals depict figures drinking bowls of blood, which Dr. Johansen stipulates was more of a result of rituals or simply the royalty's way of dealing with blood-iron deficiencies, rather than any proof that whatever lies inside is a vampire.

It should also be noted that said murals could be depicting the Ankaran Sarcophagus resident as a ghoul.

[edit] Organizations

[edit] Camarilla

Beaten out of L.A. through brute force by the Anarchs 60 years ago, the Camarilla have recently returned to the city, with LaCroix leading the effort to establish a new presence. Headquartered in the downtown area, they are having trouble consolidating power due to opposition from the Anarchs. A Camarilla member who claims domain over a city is called a Prince.

[edit] Anarchs

The Anarchs maintain a steadfast belief that the authoritarian control proposed by the Camarilla is unnecessary, and that self-regulation is sufficient. The majority of Anarchs are Brujah, due to their idealistic tendencies. An Anarch who claims domain over an area (and is strong enough to keep it) is called a Baron. There are two in the game: Isaac Abrams of Hollywood and Therese Voerman of Santa Monica. Isaac, a Toreador, is far more civil than the typical Anarch, but nonetheless hates the Camarilla just as much. Therese, however, is not as loyal, and seeks to join the Camarilla. If the player chooses to let Therese be "killed" by Jeanette, a later discussion reveals that Jeanette stays loyal to the Anarchs.

While Anarchs can be found in many North American cities, they are largely regarded as immature and foolish, unable to achieve anything on their own. However, an Anarch revolt in 1944 led to the slaying of Don Sebastian, the Toreador Prince of Los Angeles, and the establishment of the "Anarch Free States" – a zone on the West Coast where several large cities were put under Anarch control. This changed in the early 2000s, as a Kuei-Jin attack on L.A. weakened the Anarchs enough for Sebastian LaCroix to step in on behalf of the Camarilla. The fate of most of the previous Anarch leaders is unclear.

The Last Round is a bar in downtown where the Anarchs Nines Rodriguez, Smiling Jack, Damsel, and Skelter gather.

[edit] Sabbat

Disliked by just about every clan not allied with them, the Sabbat relies heavily on force of arms to achieve its goals. This mindless charge into everything they do garners Sabbat members a reputation as brutish idiots, but their willingness to abandon what remains of their humanity for bestial fury and their strong blood ties to their packmates make them feared by all opponents. The Sabbat push into L.A. is part of a larger effort to encroach on Anarch and Camarilla holdings close to the West Coast and the Mexican border. The leader of the L.A. Sabbat is a Tzimisce named Andrei, who occupies the Hollowbrook Hotel in downtown.

[edit] Kuei-jin

Vampires native to Asia, the Kuei-jin (also known as Cathayans) have gained a foothold in Los Angeles as part of a larger globalization drive spearheaded by their home authorities, and have taken the local vampiric population largely by surprise. The locals look upon them as demons due to their wildly powerful abilities and differing worldview. Based in Chinatown, they are seen as dangerous invaders.

[edit] Development

Troika officially began work on the game in November 2001, but the nearly three-year-long production cycle was plagued by many problems.^[1] Each time Troika's programmers attempted to integrate new code developed by Valve for its Source engine, the game broke and required a month's time to get it working again. Because Valve's work on opponent AI was not completed in time for Troika to show Bloodlines at a press event, Troika wrote their own AI routines, which never worked as well as the code that Valve eventually developed. Early attempts by Troika to create a multiplayer mode and levels working were unsuccessful and eventually the feature was abandoned. The original writing team was replaced midway through the project, causing most game levels and dialogs to be completely revised.

When Troika had not completed a playable Santa Monica hub with combat and discipline usage that met Activision's satisfaction after more than two years of development time, the publisher took several steps to bring closure to the troubled project. First, Activision increased the budget to add Troika's second development team to the project in March 2004, after they had completed work on The Temple of Elemental Evil. Next, it sent the game's Activision producer and two testers to work on-site at Troika's offices until the game was completed. Finally, it set a hard deadline of September 15 for Troika to produce a Code Release Candidate.

Troika delivered the Code Release Candidate on the required date, although not without taking a toll on the development team, as comments found in the game's files suggest: "#TJP: SEPT 15th I'm drunk. Hasn't this game shipped yet?" Due to the game's size and complexity, the Code Release Candidate took three weeks to test, but on October 4, 2004, Bloodlines went Gold as Version 1.0. Since contractual obligations with Valve would interdict Bloodlines to be released before Valve's debut of the Source engine in Half-Life 2, Activision did not publicly announce that the game had gone Gold and instead gave Troika an additional week to polish the game, after which Bloodlines Version 1.1 underwent another three weeks of testing. It was this second version of Bloodlines that shipped on November 16, 2004 — the same day that Half-Life 2 was released.

[edit] Patches

There were still many technical and playability bugs in the released version of Bloodlines, but none were judged to be serious enough to further delay shipping the game. After Bloodlines was released to the public, Activision compiled a list of problems customers were reporting to its customer service department and on various Vampire websites. It then authorized Troika to spend a week creating a patch to address the most serious issues. However, Troika's inability to find revenue from another project had already forced the developer to lay off all its employees in two waves, except for the three owners: Jason Anderson, Leonard Boyarsky and Tim Cain. Fortunately, several employees stayed on without pay to work on the Version 1.2 patch, which after another three-week round of testing, was released on December 22, 2004.

This was to be Troika's final patch despite the number of bugs still remaining. Unable to find additional work, Troika closed its offices for good in February, 2005.^[2], but a large dedicated fan base of Bloodlines remained to create and release unofficial patches to address most of the remaining bugs and even restore content not available in the retail game, such as histories mode, unused models, and additional dialog text. These patches were started by Dan Upright and then continued by Werner Spahl, with huge input from the Bloodlines community. The latest unofficial patch is version 3.5^[3], released on March 15, 2007.

[edit] Marketing and sales performance

Bloodlines sales underperformed in the first few weeks, selling 72,000 units ($3.4 million) ^[4] despite generally favorable reviews.^[5]

A factor in Bloodlines' failure to sell could be the release of Valve's blockbuster first-person shooter Half-Life 2 at the same time, going against earlier plans about postponing the release of Bloodlines until Spring 2005 so that it would not compete against Half-Life 2 during Christmas.^[6]

Additionally Bloodlines, like Troika's previous games, received a high level of criticism for technical and playability bugs in its initial release. This was escalated by the delay of a patch to address those problems.

Former Troika artist Michael McCarthy believe that Troika would have survived Bloodlines low sales had they sold the game directly to customers without having to go through a publisher such as Activision:^[7]

“

If Troika was able to sell the games they made through Steam and sold only a 1/4 of the units they did, they'd be thriving today and everyone would have really cool RPG's to play. The more people who download, install, and actively use Steam the better. Its really small developers only hope to get their games out to people.

”

Bloodlines was added to Steam's catalog on March 22 2007. ^[8]

Bloodlines on Steam ships as the 1.2 version, which is known to crash on many Windows XP desktops. Despite both Valve Software and Troika's publisher, Activision, unwillingness to support the game with an official patch, an unofficial patch exists to solve the issue, and it does appear to work with the Steam version of the game.

[edit] Models

Three models were hired to be used for references when designing the official promotional images such as wallpapers [1]. These same three models were also used to promote the game at certain events like GenCon 2004, E3 2003 and Bloodlines official launch party.

The models portrayed the character;

• Jeanette (who features in most of the promotional art) (model, Erin Layne)
• Max Schreck the Nosferatu
• Ming Xao the Kuei-Jin

[edit] The game and common vampire beliefs

Vampires in the game are unaffected by garlic or (running) water. Holy symbols are ineffective against vampires, however the game does state that saints and others with extreme faith develop powers capable of repelling and (with strong enough faith) harming vampires. An amusing anecdote in the game hints that a vampire was once repelled by a stockbroker holding a credit card (he had great faith in money). A wooden stake driven through the heart paralyzes a vampire, eventually driving it into a deep slumber but leaving them otherwise unharmed. On the other hand, vampires are hurt by fire and electricity. Sunlight, as it seems, kills a vampire instantly, but this has no effect on the gameplay as no action takes place in daytime. Artificial light, UV light, or any other effect is not harmful, much less lethal to a vampire (cf. Blade Trilogy). If a vampire is killed, its corpse bursts into flames and turns to ashes within a few moments, much like in aforementioned Blade series. Compare with Bram Stoker's Dracula who had crumbled to dust instead.

According to the Vampire: The Masquerade mythos, sunlight will not kill a vampire instantly, but merely burn them as though they were engulfed in intense flame. Kindred with incredible mastery of the Fortitude Discipline are said to be able to survive in direct sunlight, but one Elder, reportedly able to shrug off a cannonball to the chest, was still reduced to ash in less than twelve seconds.^{[citation needed]} No form of artificial light can hurt a vampire; the curse is purely mystical. There are a few exceptions – the particular weakness of the Setite clan is a vulnerability to bright lights. Formerly known as Followers of Set, Setites believe they don’t descend from Caine, thought to be the first vampire.

[edit] Trivia

• In the European version, the Scourge in the opening execution cutscene keeps his sword suspended above the head of the player's sire rather than bringing it down to behead him/her. This is because the camera usually does not cut away quick enough before the sword beheads the sire, and it was thought that an actual decapitation scene would not pass the German ratings board.
• There was supposed to be one more character creation mode in the final version of the game: the histories mode. This mode allows player to give his character a specific history rather than just set various attributes by hand. The choice of history has a large impact on the game, as it basically gives players a bonus effect in certain areas and a negative effect in others. For instance, if players choose "Eldritch Prodigy" (Tremere specific history), he gets a 40 % bonus thaumaturgy duration, but loses one XP point every time he gains three as a penalty. Histories are disabled by default in the final version due to instability issues. They can be re-enabled manually, and have also been re-enabled by the unofficial patch.
• Most player clans have the same dialogue everywhere, except for some minor references to their clan. Malkavian characters on the other hand have a different dialogue nearly everywhere, reflecting their insanity and unique insight. This altered perception even goes as far as the television screens in safehouses: Malkavians hear news bulletins which directly address them. There are other instances where Malkavians get a special interaction while nothing happens for other clans, a Malkavian can get into an argument with a stop sign for example.
• Bloodlines is the official prequel to White Wolf, Inc.'s Time of Judgment expansion/storyline for its Vampire: The Masquerade pen-and-paper role-playing game and therefore is considered canon.
• When any character uses the Auspex trait, the enigmatic Taxi Driver has a purple aura, which is used for supernatural entities such as vampires in the game. A Malkavian character can identify the Taxi Driver as "Caine" in dialog. Additionally, the sound files containing the Taxi Driver's dialog audio are all named with the prefix "Caine", implying that this character is intended to be the father of all vampires. One conclusion that could be derived from the taxi driver's name is that since he's the father, he must drive his children; the characters in the game. Around the city. However, in an interview a developer simply stated that whether or not the taxi driver was Caine or not was a question which had no answer, comparable to the contents of the briefcase in Pulp Fiction.
• The Zombie fighting graveyard caretaker Romero is named after famed director George A. Romero, famous for the movies Dawn of the Dead and Night of the Living Dead.
• There is a character in the Hollywood Redspot named Spicoli with bloodshot eyes and a penchant for saying crazy things. He's a rather obvious reference to Jeff Spicoli in Fast Times at Ridgemont High.
• When playing the Brujah clan, there is a point in the game where it mentions the Bush administration when talking with Prince LaCroix.
• The Nosferatu hacker named Mitnick is named after the real life and infamous computer cracker Kevin Mitnick.
• White Wolf was not happy about their logo not being present anywhere at all on the game box.
• Posters for a variety of Metropolis Records bands such as Bella Morte and Collide are present in the Asylum and throughout the downtown area.
• Nosferatu computer network mentioned by Mitnick, SchreckNet, is named after Max Schreck, actor who played the role of vampire in original movie Nosferatu. (However, this "Tangled Web" quest also uses the password "gil bates" for the first computer hub installed. Gilbert Bates is part of the main quest for Troika's first game, Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura, wherein you can find a schematic for Schreck's Multi-Barreled Pistol.)
• The name of a gun, the Lassiter Killmatic, bears remarkable resemblance to the Lassiter laser pistol from the television series "Firefly", supposedly the first laser pistol ever invented.

[edit] Soundtrack

A number of songs were licensed for the game. The song "Bloodlines" performed by Ministry, is said to have been created specifically for the game — however only the words were created specifically. The music behind is a revised version of the song "So What" from their 1989 album The Mind is a Terrible Thing to Taste. The soundtrack was released through Best Buy stores for customers who pre-ordered the game. The tracks are as follows:

Title	Written by	Performed by	Courtesy of	Plays
"Swamped"	Marco Coti Zelati, Cristina Scabbia and Andrea Ferro	Lacuna Coil	Century Media Records	In Asp Hole (Hollywood), and at the end of the game
Cain	Johan Edlund	Tiamat	Century Media Records	In Asp Hole (Hollywood)
"Bloodlines"	Al Jourgensen	Al Jourgensen/Ministry	Sanctuary Records	In Club Confession (Downtown)
"Needles Eye"	Written by F.G. Reiche	Die My Darling
"Come Alive"	Daniel Ash	Daniel Ash
"Pound"	J. Blackwell, H. Cummings, S. Smith, C. McCall and M. Wolfe	AERIAL2012
"Isolated"	Emileigh Rohn	Chiasm	COP International (License)	In The Asylum (Santa Monica)
"Lecher Bitch"	Jennifer Vincent, David Vincent and Vincent Saletto	Genitorturers		In The Last Round (Downtown)
"Smaller God"	C. Elen, J. Thomas, and S. McManus	Darling Violetta		In the Empire Hotel (Downtown) by a human singer, and on the Thin Bloods' radio at the Santa Monica Pier

As a side note, the theme song sounds similar to "Angel" by Massive Attack.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines Official Site
• Planet Vampire fan site
• Vampire Bloodlines fansite & fanlisting
• Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines Wallpapers
• Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines at the Internet Movie Database
• Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines at MobyGames
• Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines at Game Rankings
• Vampire: the Masquerade – Bloodlines Unofficial Patch download