Vampire: The Masquerade - Swansong Image
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Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 17 Ratings

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  • Summary: What if vampires were real? What if these bloodthirsty predators lived hidden among us, meticulously and skilfully hatching ancient conspiracies? And what if you became one of them? In Vampire: The Masquerade - Swansong, you play as these alluring monsters in a sophisticated world where theWhat if vampires were real? What if these bloodthirsty predators lived hidden among us, meticulously and skilfully hatching ancient conspiracies? And what if you became one of them? In Vampire: The Masquerade - Swansong, you play as these alluring monsters in a sophisticated world where the lines between the real and supernatural are always blurred.

    Hazel Iversen, the Swan, is the new Prince of the Boston Camarilla. An iron hand in a velvet glove, she intends to assert her power and respect the Masquerade, the vampiric law designed to ensure humans never learn of the existence of these creatures of the night. But nothing works as planned. With rumours of plots, murders and power struggles, you must work in the shadows to protect your Sect in a frantic investigation that plunges Boston into chaos.

    Play as 3 vampires who are over a hundred years old. Progress through the game through their intertwined destinies, deal with their different points of view and use their character sheets to try to separate the truth from the lies. Each character has their own abilities and vampiric disciplines that you can upgrade individually to suit your preferred approach.
    Will you choose intimidation, seduction or stealth? It's your decision, as long as you can sate your Hunger for blood.

    With its unique approach to gameplay, Swansong puts emphasis on the consequences of your actions in both the investigation and your social interactions with characters. Analyse each situation carefully because your decisions can have huge consequences on your heroes' lives and the fate of the Boston Camarilla.
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Vampire: The Masquerade - Swansong | RPG Trailer
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  3. Negative: 5 out of 5
  1. Jan 22, 2023
    4
    The idea of a Vampire The Masquerade detective mystery RPG starring multiple different characters is great, the execution here is seriouslyThe idea of a Vampire The Masquerade detective mystery RPG starring multiple different characters is great, the execution here is seriously flawed. The main things that will break the immersion are the terrible voice acting and dialogue animations for the majority of characters. They often change mood from one sentence to the next.
    The writing also isn't great. Only one of the three main characters (Leysha, a Malkavian vampire looking for her daughter) has character development and is actually likable.
    It seems the devs were too busy making 'diverse' characters (some side characters are also obese, how does that happen on a diet of blood?).
    Despite how it's marketed, your choices don't seem to have that much of an impact. The ending remains the same mostly regardless of your choices., and some of the most important choices are only shown in some text slides after the ending scene! The Victoria Ash DLC has no content whatsoever and is entirely inconsequential. There are serious audio bugs present in conversations (suddenly silent if the camera moves), and surround sound is not supported. In the plus side the environments look great.
    Go play Vampyr, it's much better.
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  2. May 22, 2022
    4
    Unfortunately, my PS4 version crashes regularly, so I could only play the first three missions. I'm annoyed because of the wasted money, but IUnfortunately, my PS4 version crashes regularly, so I could only play the first three missions. I'm annoyed because of the wasted money, but I won't miss the game.

    I don't understand the whole concept of the game. It's supposed to be a narrative role-playing game, but it doesn't actually tell anything. There are no cutscenes. Each level just starts somewhere. The whole story is started in such a jumbled way that you have no idea what is actually going on or why you are doing what you are doing. No character behaves in a comprehensible way. The characters in general: You play three Ancillae, who can do absolutely nothing. I also have no idea how Hazel, as Neonate, could become the Prince of Boston.
    I also don't understand the role-playing aspect. You play three characters at once and have to level them all up separately, but you never know what skills you'll need for the missions. And actually, all three are investigators who need the same skills. Of the three, I only liked Leysha. Galeb barely had a recognizable personality and Emem was a Toreador on the outside and a Brujah on the inside. Quite an annoying character to me.
    Also, the game seems to have mistakes in the game world. Why does Galeb's childe have the same generation? Why does Hazel say that the ancillae are disappearing? The Elders are feeling the Beckoning! What is going on in the game world anyway? Has London fallen yet? Has the Tremere headquarters been destroyed yet? I could check my books, of course, but why isn't the game telling me?

    In summary, Swansong is a game that does not meet my expectations in any way. Since the game was approved by Paradox and also the last role-playing books didn't meet the expectations of the fans, I slowly see the end of WOD coming.

    Addendum: I was very disappointed that apparently only the seven standard clans are in the game. Where are the Banu Haqim, the Ministry, Hecata, etc.?
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  3. May 21, 2022
    1
    I played the original Vampire The Masquerade Redemption two decades ago which was a awesome title. This however, is a sequel in name only. TheI played the original Vampire The Masquerade Redemption two decades ago which was a awesome title. This however, is a sequel in name only. The writing is atrocious as are the characters. Graphics are serviceable as is the voice acting which ranges from extremely cheesy to average. The gameplay is pretty unbalanced and repetitive. Give this one a pass and rather play Redemption or Bloodlines. Expand
  4. Jul 9, 2022
    0
    I have nothing good to say, the vision died when the remnants of those who worked on 'Bloodlines' decided this game was a lost cause andI have nothing good to say, the vision died when the remnants of those who worked on 'Bloodlines' decided this game was a lost cause and exited.

    A real shame.
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  5. May 22, 2022
    0
    Extremely disappointing. I love Vampire The Masquerade and I was so excited to play this game, but unfortunately it didn't live up to my hopesExtremely disappointing. I love Vampire The Masquerade and I was so excited to play this game, but unfortunately it didn't live up to my hopes and expectations at all. It is simply bad. The voice acting is terrible, the graphics are dated, the story is disjointed and boring, and there's no combat whatsoever. To be clear I am ok with the lack of combat if the story is interesting and engaging. Disco Elysium is probably my favorite game from the last 10 years. But that game had an amazing story with meaningful decisions to be made. Disco Elysium kept you on your toes from beginning to end. That is not the case here. Anyway as if the game-play and story weren't bad enough, then you have to deal with all the force fed SJW BS on top of that. It's truly awful. Expand