
Still, the character sheet seemed similar from what I remember it being: circles to be filled for each stat up to a maximum of five points. For interaction with others and things, characters use feats, which are usually the sum of two stats. Then there are the Disciplines: a set of cool vampire powers, each Clan with their own three (few are shared, I think).
In the pen & paper Vampire, my character was of the Ventrue clan, "--the rulers, leaders and politicos of the Camarilla--", and who have access to Dominate, Fortitude, and Presence. I liked the ventrue but I thought back then he was missing a discipline I really wanted to have: Celerity, which grants unnatural speed when used. So for Bloodlines, I made a Toreador, "--some of the most beautiful and glamorous of the Kindred.", who seem not too dissimilar to the Ventrue -- and who obviously have access to Celerity.
I suppose each Discipline has its uses, but being able to move with almost the speed of bullets helped quite a bit. Speaking of bullets: Bloodlines is a shooter (apart from being an action RPG), yet I found shooting to be difficult and ineffective.
Instead, I put my points into unarmed combat (helps in feeding on unwilling suspects also) and clawed my way through most of the game. Well, there was a lot of talking too, my female character being persuasive and seductive Toreador after all. But firearms I used only when melee opponents proved to be too deadly. In the very last missions of the game, I started finally using a katana as my weapon. Moving with Celerity 5 and pumped up with Blood Buff, my character was quite a force in close combat.
Bloodlines has many main and side quests to do - it took me quite a while to finish the game. The storyline works (mostly) and is intriguing. I like the concept of The Masquerade; the Kine shall not learn of the Kindred lest the vampires get destroyed; and all the politics and interests that are born when not all care about it. I found some of the key characters to be lacking, though. For instance, LaCroix didn't seem smart enough to be a vampire prince. Sorry excuse of ventrue if you ask me. Yet I sided with him to the bitter end...

The last third of the game also got repetitive: each quest involved the same hacking and slashing of a whole bunch of ghouls and humans. At least the last mission didn't have submachine guns. I really started hating the sound they make.
Overall, the game contains loads of entertainment value, and it really is a great RPG. Bloodlines just lacks the grandeur and scale to make it truly awesome experience. Honorable mention for the amount of experience granted through talking; it is often more worthwhile to avoid bloodbaths.
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