Revisiting VtM: Bloodlines

[Häyhä]

Okay my fellow Kindred, news of Bloodlines 2 have sparked my interest to visit Bloodlines once again after a long torpor, but I'm completely out of the loop regarding the mod scene. I haven't played the game with any mods previously, only with Wesp's patches (thanks for all of your work Wesp5 ) so I would like to try something new. Which added content is the best/most complete/in working state) you guys would recommend to check out first? The Sabbath one sounds interesting at least. Any other mods I should be aware of besides content ones and are there issues with getting them to work together?

 

[Wesp5]

You can't merge any major mods, including the patch, but all of them can be run in parrallel out of subfolders of one Bloodlines installation. If you want to experience something really different, I recommend Bloodlines Prelude I where you play as a hunter in a prequel to the original game. It has some of the best new maps, excluding Prelude II which is currently in the works !

 

[GhostCow]

Honestly I've never played a Bloodlines mod that didn't feel very hacky and amateurish. I don't think it's possible the really make a mod for Bloodlines with the quality of a mod you'd see for something like Mount and Blade or a Bethesda game.

 

[Wesp5]

Honestly I've never played a Bloodlines mod that didn't feel very hacky and amateurish. I don't think it's possible the really make a mod for Bloodlines with the quality of a mod you'd see for something like Mount and Blade or a Bethesda game.

Have you played the Prelude yet? I'm alpha testing Prelude II at the moment and the new hub alone could be included into the main game and nobody would notice !

 

[GhostCow]

Honestly I've never played a Bloodlines mod that didn't feel very hacky and amateurish. I don't think it's possible the really make a mod for Bloodlines with the quality of a mod you'd see for something like Mount and Blade or a Bethesda game.

Have you played the Prelude yet? I'm alpha testing Prelude II at the moment and the new hub alone could be included into the main game and nobody would notice !

Haven't played this one. It's been many years since I played any VTM mods. I'll check it out.

 

[negator2vc]

Anyone tried this mod? Is it any good?
VTMB HD Overhaul
Since it's on nexusmods I am a little hesitant especially with all the latest crap they pulled with
mods they don't agree with.

 

[kites]

Anyone tried this mod? Is it any good?
VTMB HD Overhaul
Since it's on nexusmods I am a little hesitant especially with all the latest crap they pulled with
mods they don't agree with.

The trailer didn't look half bad, but I'm now after reading some comments..

Spoiler

 

[negator2vc]

Anyone tried this mod? Is it any good?
VTMB HD Overhaul
Since it's on nexusmods I am a little hesitant especially with all the latest crap they pulled with
mods they don't agree with.

The trailer didn't look half bad, but I'm now after reading some comments..

Spoiler

View attachment 47612
View attachment 47613

Thanks. I guess sticking with the original graphics.

 

[Semiurge]

OG Blade is probably still the best urban fantasy vampire movie. Whether that's sad or not I dunno.

Sometimes reddit delivers

View attachment 47568

If that was "Kotaku in Action" that doesn't count as Reditt.

It's from the main VtMB sub. They uh, aren't optimistic about the sequel, to put it lightly.

Then it's doubly puzzling. First, a critical thought appeared on this "optimistic" forum. Two, that's what they're kidding about. I can't imagine these types of jokes on Reddit in 2016, 2017.

Troika took inspiration from Blade movies when they were making Bloodlines. 2000s edge was the best shit.

Pop culture used to be very free spirited and therefore inspiring. There were a lot of new things, edgy but not only that, a bit of surrealism, playful in a healthy way. After 2014, we basically have one model of pop culture - pastel pseudo-manga for people who treat fiction like a therapy session.

From this:

To this:

Anyone tried this mod? Is it any good?
VTMB HD Overhaul
Since it's on nexusmods I am a little hesitant especially with all the latest crap they pulled with
mods they don't agree with.

I'm not sure bruv.

If that's the Viper R... Asp Hole then they replaced the blond bimbo blood doll with her. For inclusivity of course.

 

[Wesp5]

Crashes are common for all Bloodlines HD mods, because the engine can only handle a certain texture folder size. But in case of this specific project, I never liked that he strayed too far from the original textures in the first place!

 

[La vie sexuelle]

Crashes are common for all Bloodlines HD mods, because the engine can only handle a certain texture folder size. But in case of this specific project, I never liked that he strayed too far from the original textures in the first place!

HD mod is too shiny. Vampires needs grid!

 

[Nikanuur]

I also add my vote for no-HD modding. Bought VtMB in a sale yesterday. My third attempt to play this classic. I never really got into the game, but I find it almost a moral crime that's been weighing heavily on my consciousness all these years.
I looked for some HD mods and found mostly only horrible attempts that take the soul away from the original. I think downloading reShade and playing with some grain and lightning effects myself would do.

 

[Fedora Master]

but I find it almost a moral crime that's been weighing heavily on my consciousness all these years.

Your feelings are correct.

 

[Fargus]

I also put a vote to no-HD modding of this. Bought VtMB in a sale yesterday. My third attempt to play this classic. I never really got into the game, but I find it almost a moral crime that's been weighing heavily on my consciousness all these years.
I looked for some HD mods and found mostly only horrible attempts that take the soul away from the original. I think downloading reShade and playing with some grain and lightning effects myself would do.

I remember using this one

 

[NecroLord]

Why do all these modder pricks have to RUIN the lighting in the game??

 

[DavidBVal]

I really don't understand what's wrong with the original graphics. They are good enough to provide the immersion sought. Any visual mod would probably distract me, trying to spot what is original and what isn't.

As for the unofficial patch, that's different. I tried to play vanilla last time, and crashed badly. I've heard some people can play without it, though.

 

[La vie sexuelle]

I really don't understand what's wrong with the original graphics. They are good enough to provide the immersion sought. Any visual mod would probably distract me, trying to spot what is original and what isn't.

As for the unofficial patch, that's different. I tried to play vanilla last time, and crashed badly. I've heard some people can play without it, though.

Modder doesn't get the difference between functional meaning of art style and technology. Shiny=new=better.

 

[Wesp5]

I really don't understand what's wrong with the original graphics. They are good enough to provide the immersion sought.

I completely agree. Upscaling original textures by AI is fine for people who need this, although those mods crash a lot, but why completely change e.g. poster and pictures? That's not what a HD mod should be about!

 

[negator2vc]

Because they cannot help themselves! They need to insert their own ideas & sensitivities into an old (and usually offensive in their eyes) game.

 

[Nikanuur]

Is the Mezzanine song in the main menu the doings of the Unofficial Patch or was it there even in the vanilla game?

 

[Vincente]

Is the Mezzanine song in the main menu the doings of the Unofficial Patch or was it there even in the vanilla game?

Troika guys asked Rik Schaffer to make a song similar to Massive Attack's Angel.

 

[Nikanuur]

Just some goofing around the shaders... Do you care for playing VtMB in a semi-vga-adventures-of-old-kind of style?

 

[Wesp5]

Is the Mezzanine song in the main menu the doings of the Unofficial Patch or was it there even in the vanilla game?

Troika guys asked Rik Schaffer to make a song similar to Massive Attack's Angel.

Yes, I didn't touch that. I only restored a lot of Rik's unused songs elsewhere and replaced a duplicate one in the plus patch...

 

[Nikanuur]

What a bunch of uptights you are with your "NOs" It was supposed to be a funny reminder of how the games used to look like, not some "newest and best way" to play VtMB or whatnot.
Anyway, I've played with the ReShade quite a bit, and I don't think the original game can be reworked to anything remarkably better with it. Not the HD textures, nor the reshades, OG truly seems to look the best.
Maybe, in some future, when AI gets so advanced it can rework anything to near-realism while retaining a semblance of the original spirit. But even so, I daresay the charm of the old games lies, in great part, in them actually looking dated.

 

[deama]

What a bunch of uptights you are with your "NOs" It was supposed to be a funny reminder of how the games used to look like, not some "newest and best way" to play VtMB or whatnot.
Anyway, I've played with the ReShade quite a bit, and I don't think the original game can be reworked to anything remarkably better with it. Not the HD textures, nor the reshades, OG truly seems to look the best.
Maybe, in some future, when AI gets so advanced it can rework anything to near-realism while retaining a semblance of the original spirit. But even so, I daresay the charm of the old games lies, in great part, in them actually looking dated.

Witness, the future...