dotCommie - you didn't work on the original Python scripts for Bloodlines by any chance?

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http://www.gp32x.com/

Is this game open source? If not should it be?

The game is not open source as its engine, the SOURCE engine featured in [i]Half-Life 2[/i], is still being licensed out to other developers (e.g. Ritual with [i]Sin: Episodes[/i] and Valve with [i]Half-Life 2: Aftermath[/i] and [i]Team Fortress 2[/i]). If Activision, the publisher of [iloodlines[/i], would simply release the SDK for the game a lot of the remaining issues with the game could be addressed properly. Having the source code as well would help but that won't happen for probably at least another five years.

Earth and Beyond could've went this route. God I miss that game.

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latest track: http://www.kxmode.com/media/music/kxmode_-_driftwood.mp3
more free music: http://music.download.com/kxmode

Is this game open source? If not should it be?

I'm sure Valve wouldn't like their Source Engine code to be all over the internet... though I guess it already is thanks to the infamous Sept. 30th leak of HL2... but it would be nice if everyone followed id software's example of opening the code to everyone. If the game is obsolete, and you're not making money off it anymore, AND if you are not licensing the game engine (or using a licensed one), then what harm could come from releasing the code? At the very least you don't have to pay a QA department and the developers for bug fixes - the fans can fix things themselves if they choose.

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Blue's Post Enhancer Greasemonkey script:
http://camaro76.web.aplus.net/bluesnewspostenhancer.user.js
Blue's Punk Buster (Troll-B-Gone) Greasemonkey script:
http://camaro76.web.aplus.net/punkbuster.user.js

play.com has it for dead cheap

That seems to be only a UK and Euro site. Do they ship to the US?

GW: Grad Mcgarth W/N Going to finish game before I start a new character me thinks

Great job these guys are doing. I'd love to see them fix up the first Vampire game. (The one nihilistic made)

No chance of that, eh?

This comment was edited on Feb 2, 23:42.

Is this game open source? If not should it be?

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latest track: http://www.kxmode.com/media/music/kxmode_-_driftwood.mp3
more free music: http://music.download.com/kxmode

I played it pre-patch as well. I believe I had only 1 or 2 CTDs for the entire game. One thing I did was flush my cache through the console if I'd played continuously for say 45 minutes (which someone recommended at the time on some of the boards) - I think the command was called "flush."

The only noticeable bug for me (and actually I avoided it because the boards were all pre-warning you) was a dialogue option when first meeting the character "E" which if you don't follow it correctly doesn't give you the opportunity to follow-up on a quest.

I've played it through 3 times and notice that the game combat seems to favor for the most part a mixture of stealth kills and melee - particularly when the latter is combined with the Celerity attribute.

People complained about the combat, and the projectile weapons combat is certainly nothing to brag about (other than the flamethrower which is kind of fun to use). I stuck with the katana/occult blade throughout almost exlusively and used the Remington M700/Jaime Sue for some stealth-sniping to good effect. The main problem is that projectile weapons usage is actually required in certain instances or against certain foes.

Basically, I found activating Celerity plus running into a bunch of bad guys with the katana/occult blade as being about like Max Payne in bulet-time - complete with the amusingly exaggerated response effects when you hit them as they go flipping and flying end over end. Also, I played entirely in 3rd-person POV except for when using projectile weapons required the 1st person POV. I really think the game was intended to be played from 3rd person perspective and perhaps many people stayed in 1st person mode, which wasn't as good.

Voice acting was excellent, dialogue was excellent, atmosphere was excellent except in some places particularly entering the end-game, ability to play through some quests through different means was probably best portrayed in the beach house quest at the beginning of the game but never replicated to that extent afterwards although options for both violent and 2-3 "talk your way through" outcomes were often available, music was excellent and you could always drop in your own MP3s to change any of them as you wished anyway.

People have different tastes that suit them. I played through Temple of Elemental Evil and found it really blah throughout with nothing making me ever want to play it again. I played the Arcanum demo originally and couldn't get into it. But I enjoyed Bloodlines as much as I enjoyed KOTOR, and although I'd have preferred the quality and depth of the earlier game to have been maintained through the end, I was satisfied enough. KOTOR2, which also started out great and then suffered from being prematurely released unfortunately experienced a far worse drop-off than Bloodlines because its last 1/5 or so of the game was left with so many "huh?" holes where you weren't sure what happened because of the cuts.

Bloodlines is a great game with many flaws and is still a better RPG than any RPG on PC this year.

The Fan pathes have solved many many problems with quest not working, to adding/completing quest that did not get done, gameplay balance and tons of dialgoue fixes, due to Activison forcing this game out at least 6 months early.

This game is definatly worth at least 2 play throughs, once normally and a second time as a Malk.
The dialogue is Sooo completly different you wont really know what/how you are responding if you play a Malk first and miss some neat game dyanamics.

The ending is not as good as it could have been, but it is better than 90% of the endnings of current games, so the point is moot.

Too much "fat", not enough "muscle". random.thought you definitely live up to your name...

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latest track: http://www.kxmode.com/media/music/kxmode_-_driftwood.mp3
more free music: http://music.download.com/kxmode

Oh don't mind Hellbinder. He's the resident jester around here. People laugh at him, yes, but not when he makes an attempt at a joke. It's when he's at his most serious that he's the funniest. I have it on very good authority that he's mentally ill. Some other Hellbinder gems:

The only thing truly ignorant are…..

Secular Progressives and Liberals.

By definition it is nearly impossible for a true conservative to be ignorant. Being that Conservatives are generally for what is "Good" and progressive Liberals are for every evil thing under the sun.

This, just a couple months back, on rude people (keeping in mind that he just told you to "put the crack pipe down"):

I am so sick of you little piss-ants being insulting and rude in 98% of every topic on this site. The lot of you should be banned.

Just one example. some ASSININE comment about how its *telling* that this interview talks about buying and selling items and getting sued so *obviously* it must mean they don’t care about the Quality.

You are rude, lame and YOU ARE A MORON!!!!!

Bluesnews has been completely overrun with Rude, cantankerous people.

Another hypocritical post about how different people find different games fun:

There are tons of different kinds of games and different people find them fun for different reasons. Odds are if any of you knuckle heads actually tried a game like this you may find it addicting and fun.

This, on the super-awesome-but-not-really-to-every-other-critic-on-the-planet launch of the 360:

The Xbox 360 hardware is awesome. Especially the Xenon GPU. The games i have seen are equally awesome. Especially in HD.

I dont see anything that looks rushed. Several of the launch or near launch titles are simply must haves imo.

You guys are pathetic sony fanboys.

Another "opinion," this time about Steam:

Btw Steam is Cool. And you are all freaking MORONS for saying otherwise.

None of your reasons for hating it make any sense at all. Your just a bunch of punk cry baby kids who cry about everything.

And just so you get an idea of this guy's sense of taste, here is him slobbering over Derek Smart's games:

This game rocks. If any of you have any hankering towards Sci-fi and simulation give a world appart a shot. I know there is a lot of hate for Derek Smart etc. But this game has really come a long long way and its just awesome.

Hellbinder playing religious advocate:

Jesus as in the *messiah* the King of all creation Does not need to be Blasphemed or used as a swear word for some pinhead with no vocabulary.

One day when you all find out the hard way that you have been slandering the Guy who Died for you and paid for your Sin.. It's not going to be pretty.

You want to use a *diety* to swear use Buddah or Allah. Its not like they will ever know.

...and it goes on, and on. Seriously, i wasn't joking when i said that he loses at life.

This comment was edited on Jan 13, 20:41.

Perhaps, you need to have your mommy wash your mouth out with soap.

Im too busy raping yours. Now go and cry about it.


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music from space captain:
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/6/errantways_music.htm
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/4/invisibleacropolis_music.htm

Please put the crack pipe on the ground slowly.. and step away.. step away slowly sir, slowly... That’s right sir.. everything’s going to be oook.

Hmm resorting to personal attacks when someone doesn't think your favorite piece of software is the best thing ever, instead of arguing your point. How long have you been a rabid fanboi? I bet you even own darwinia and rag doll kung fu.

Its not really a strange comparison, they both use the same engine and were released close together. Your comparison is even stranger. You're comparing my comparison to a comparison of two disimilar games, using two different engines, one of which isn't even released yet.

you're a regular carrot top, hellbinder - why dont you wipe that derek smart jizz off your chin while you are at it

Perhaps, you need to have your mommy wash your mouth out with soap.

Or is it to late for that where you are concerned.

Please put the crack pipe on the ground slowly.. and step away.. step away slowly sir, slowly... That’s right sir.. everything’s going to be oook.

HA. HA. HA. HA. You lose at life.

you're a regular carrot top, hellbinder - why dont you wipe that derek smart jizz off your chin while you are at it

________________________
music from space captain:
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/6/errantways_music.htm
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/4/invisibleacropolis_music.htm

Not to beat a dead horse, but I urge everyone to play this game too. Its like twice as good as HL2, bugs and all

Please put the crack pipe on the ground slowly.. and step away.. step away slowly sir, slowly... That’s right sir.. everything’s going to be oook.

(like the implementation of the RPG systems)

What exactly does that mean, because from where i'm standing it doesn't make any sense. The role-playing elements in this game kicked ass. It was the combat that had issues.

I also played through this game before any patches were released. I only had minor problems (which were easily solved in-game) and it never crashed on me. The recent unofficial patches have helped the, sometimes, uneven gameplay.

Playing as a Malkavian is quite entertaining but even this doesn't help the sadly "hit-run-repeat" ending of the game.