After three years, there is finally a new version of the True VTMB Patch: the Gold Edition. This updated and enhanced patch was roughly two years in the making and it is by far the most extensive True Patch that we have ever released.
Hundreds of new bug fixes have been incorporated into the Gold Edition, as well as a fair amount of enhancements which help to bring this aging game (circa 2004) more in line with modern-day computer hardware.
Full installation instructions for the True VTMB Patch Gold Edition can be found within the "
" file that is located within the root folder of the patch. That file is also reproduced below.
Because this patch is far more extensive than previous versions of the True Patch, the installation will be slightly more involved... hence it is CRITICAL that everyone READS AND FULLY UNDERSTANDS THE INSTRUCTIONS prior to installing the True Patch Gold Edition. Keep in mind that nine out of ten requests for support end up coming from people who did not properly follow the installation instructions. So before you install ANYTHING, be sure to read those instructions COMPLETELY and THOROUGHLY. I can not stress this enough.
Those of you who are VTMB "purists" like myself are going to love this new True Patch. It has everything that we want, and absolutely nothing that we don't want. The originally intended Bloodlines experience has been carefully preserved. I would never, ever do
of an arbitrary nature to undermine Troika's final masterpiece... and that attitude is reflected throughout the main body of the True Patch Gold Edition (or "TPG" for short). This in turn makes the TPG patch an ideal baseline for mod developers, since it essentially does nothing except fix bugs and repair broken content.
To give everyone an idea of how much material has been added in the Gold Edition, we can simply compare the size of its zipfile with that of the previous True Patch... version 5.04AT. The new Gold Edition weighs in at a hefty 482 megabytes... where as version 5.04AT was much smaller (and less comprehensive) at a mere 55 megabytes. Note that I am referring to the compressed ZIP archives here. The actual size of the Gold Edition patch will be significantly larger after it has been unzipped to your hard drive. It really is one hell of a piece of work, yet is also designed in such a way as to be non-invasive and as transparent as possible.
I hope everyone enjoys this impressive new patch. As for myself, I wouldn't play Bloodlines any other way.
True Patch GOLD Edition
INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS
July, 2010
- Tessera -
---------------------------------------------------------------
INSTALLATION:
---------------------------------------------------------------
(1) First, you will need to remove any existing copies of Vampire -- The Masquerade: Bloodlines from your computer.
The True VTMB Patch Gold Edition requries that you begin with a fresh new installation of the game. Failure to follow
this first step can and will result in corrupted game files. So be smart, and wipe all traces of VTMB from your machine
before you proceed.
(2) Now install a fresh copy of Bloodlines. Just follow the normal installation procedure for whichever version of the game you own.
(3) Once you have installed a new copy of Bloodlines, you will need to navigate to its "root" folder. This is the same
folder where the file named "vampire.exe" resides. Note that we are referring to the ROOT folder here... NOT the "Vampire" folder.
We need to apply the True Patch Gold Edition to the same folder where "vampire.exe" is located. Got it..?
(4) The True Patch Gold Edition contains several sub-folders. The main body of the actual patch is contained within a
sub-folder named "TRUE_PATCH_MAIN" and it is very important that you locate this folder correctly. Do not simply dump
the entire True Patch into Bloodlines and expect it to work properly. Specifically, we are going to be applying ONLY
the material located within the "TRUE_PATCH_MAIN" sub-folder. BE sure that you are clear on this point, before proceeding.
(5) And now comes the fun part: let's install the actual True Patch to Bloodlines. The way to do this is quite simple,
once you have properly identified all of the folders mentioned in the previous steps.
(6) Navigate to the folder named "TRUE_PATCH_MAIN" and COPY all of its contents, including all files and sub-folders within.
(7) Now, highlight your working Bloodlines root folder (the folder that has "vampire.exe" in it, remember?) and PASTE everything
that you copied in step #6 into that root folder. If you do this correctly, Windows will warn you that "a file named blah blah blah
already exists" and then ask if you wish to overwrite the existing files. Just say "Yes To All" (or the equivalent for Windows 7 users).
This will allow the True Patch Gold Edition files to be copied into their correct locations. THIS STEP IS CRITICAL, FOLKS... SO MAKE
ABSOLUTELY SURE THAT YOU COPY/PASTE EVERYTHING CORRECTLY. I can not stress this enough. The True Patch contains hundreds
of files and sub-folders and ALL of them need to be copied over to their correct locations. Otherwise, nothing is going to work properly.
(8} Assuming that you performed all of the above steps correctly, it is advisable to defragment your hard drive, prior to playing
your newly patched game. This will ensure that your gaming performance in Bloodlines will be optimal, following the installation
of the True Patch Gold Edition.
(9) If you wish to install any optional third-party mods for Bloodlines, then now would be the time. But be advised that there are
certain mods out there which, for whatever stupid reasons, are not fully compatible with the True Patch and they could cause your
game to malfunction or even crash. If you are uncertain about a particular mod, then you are advised to contact the author of that
mod directly and inquire about whether or not their mod is compatible with the True VTMB Patch. All of Tessera's mods -are- compatible
with the True Patch, but other people's mods may not be. In each case, you will need to contact the authors if you are unsure about
the suitability of a particular mod.
(10) So far, so good..? Then go ahead and launch Bloodlines. Make absolutely sure that you create a NEW CHARACTER after patching the game.
Because of the peculiar nature in which Bloodlines stores map data into its gamesave files, YOU CAN NOT USE A PRE-EXISTING CHARACTER AFTER
YOU HAVE PATCHED THE GAME. This principle holds true for EVERY kind of VTMB patch... not just the True Patch. You need to start fresh.
Enjoy playing Bloodlines. Those of you who prefer to play the originally intended Troika game will be very, very happy with the True Patch Gold Edition.
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EXTRAS:
------------------------
Several optional add-on mods have been included in their own separate sub-folders within the True Patch Gold Edition.
You will find instructions on how to install and use those mods within their corresponding folders.
Some additional documentation can also be found within the sub-folder named "Docs."
Some helpful utilities have been included as well. And agin... the instructions for those utilities can be found within their corresponding folders.
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SUPPORT:
------------------------
Official support for the True Patch Gold Edition may be obtained through the tessmage.com Forums at:
http://www.tessmage.com/forum/index.php/board,48.0.htmlJust look for the thread entitled "True Patch Gold Edition -- Official Thread." Forum members may post their inquiries there.
NOTE: the tessmage.com web site contains nudity, profanity and other mature content. ADULTS ONLY, please.
------------------------
CREDITS:
------------------------
The True Patch GOLD Edition was created and compiled by Tessera -- from March 2008 through June 2010.
The True VTMB Patch version 5.04AT, upon which the True Patch Gold Edition is primarily based,
was created and compiled by Acrimonious and Tessera in the spring/summer of 2007.
All versions of the True VTMB Patch have been carefully beta tested by volunteers from
the tessmage.com community. Many, many thanks to them for their invaluable assistance.
Every single one of those volunteers is a veteran Bloodlines player and they helped us
to identify quite a few glitches that the True Patch authors had failed to notice.
This is why all versions of the True Patch are independently tested prior to release:
because we're trying to FIX bugs -- not introduce any new ones.
BETA TESTERS:
Acrimonious
Tessera
Alehezar
Erelas
Jordi
Paramecium
Tinman
Steeal
Kandid
Cylnar
Tessgirl
"FREE LILY" REPAIRS: original data courtesy of DDLulu and posted publicly in April, 2010. Many thanks.
Core engine repairs, memory allocation fix and DX9 updates: Tessera, Jordi, some public info posted by
"SomeJ*Doe" and a group of Russian and eastern Euro hackers who shall remain nameless. :p
The True VTMB Patch was conceived of by Tessera in late 2006 and co-authored by Acrimonious and Tessera.
Absolutely no content of any kind from any other authors has been copied, mimicked, "stolen" or otherwise
malappropriated and inserted into the True VTMB Patch GOLD Edition. The True VTMB Patch is a 100% original
piece of work, unless otherwise noted within these patch notes. Any use or misuse of its contents is expressly
forbidden, unless prior permission is obtained in writing from Tessera.
The True VTMB Patch Gold Edition is being distributed free of charge and as-is. The authors do not accept any
liability for any problems of any kind whatsoever which may arise due to your use and/or misuse of this patch.
Therefore, any claims of damages, whether real or imaginary, will not be considered valid. It is to be understood
that you agree to install and use this patch your own risk. If you do not agree to these conditions, then you must
not install the True VTMB Patch Gold Edition under any circumstances. This agreement is mutually binding and
non-negotiable, however your own local laws may vary from region to region.
If you wish to host a copy of the True VTMB Patch Gold Edition on your own web site, then please contact Tessera
for permission. In most cases, permission will be granted, so long as you agree not to alter any of the contents
of this patch in any ways whatsoever, or to use it for any illicit purposes. If you wish to apply for permission
to host the True VTMB Patch Gold Edition on your web site, then you may contact Tessera directly at:
tessera@tessmage.com"The True VTMB Patch" and "The True Patch GOLD Edition" are both copyrighted trademarks of Tessera and tessmage.com. All rights reserved.
OFFICIAL RELEASE DATE of The True VTMB Patch Gold Edition: July 08, 2010
--------------------------
OFFICIAL WEB SITE:
--------------------------
www.tessmage.comFor Mature Gamers
(Adults Only)
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END
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True Patch GOLD Edition
Patch Notes and Misc. Info
July, 2010
- Tessera -
---------------------------------------------------------------
The following repairs and miscellaneous alterations will be
introduced with the True Patch GOLD Edition:
---------------------------------------------------------------
Instead of a boring enumerated list, let's just talk about what sorts of things have been added to the Gold Edition...
Let's start with something controversial. The player dance trigger inside the Confession Club
has been moved to a nearby location. This was reluctantly changed by Tessera, after he begrudgingly
acknowledged that the default dance spot inside Confession is indeed too buggy to be left as-is.
The new dance location is slightly closer to the front door of the club, and a little to one side.
This alteration will completely bypass the rendering bug which occurs when you stand on top of
the runway lights in the floor. That bug still exists... but the dance location has been moved
away from it. This will make it easier and more pleasant for players to observe their character.
Of course... once Tessera moved the location of the dance trigger, guess what happened..? None of
the NPC dancers in the club were dancing in the correct locations anymore. When the player starts
dancing, the other dancers are supposed to walk over and join us. Well, they were still walking to
their default dance locations, which pretty much screws up that entire scene. So naturally, this meant
that all of their dance locations had to be moved, too... which turned out to be a rather daunting
task. But eventually, everything was moved around so that the Confession dance scene is properly
choreographed in such a way as to be based around the new player dance location. So what does all
of this technical crappola mean to you, the player..? It means that when you enter the Confession
Club after installing the Gold Edition, be prepared for a very pleasant surprise... because you
are going to see an entirely new set of dance locations that looks a lot more spread out, not to
mention a lot better organized, so far as the NPC behavior is concerned. I am mentioning this
issue right off the bat, because it represents something that we normally tried to avoid with
True Patch series -- namely, it is a significant deviation from the way things were setup in
the plain-vanilla game. We have always tried to avoid making such changes when they were not
absolutely necessary. But in this case, it was finally decided that it is indeed a necessary fix.
Appropriate idle behavior restored/added to Therese Voerman, courtesy of Acrimonious and Tessera.
Basically, there is a random chance that both Therese and Jeanette will exhibit one or more new
behaviors when you encounter them in their upstairs office. They will no longer simply stand in
one place like an inanimate statue. Therese may stroll over near the couch and take a cell phone
call, for example. Or, Jeanette might walk over and start using her laptop computer. There are a
few other such behaviors being added to the Voerman twins by the Gold Edition and they definitely
add quite a bit to the immersion of those scenes. These animations were discovered after both of
the Voerman models were decompiled and examined. As it turned out, there were several animations
for both sisters that were not being triggered. So... now they are being triggered and they look
very nice indeed. But don't worry... none of these new animations will interfere with the flow of
your game. You can interrupt either of the Voerman sisters at any time and engage them in dialogue.
They will immediately stop whatever they were doing and speak to you just like they always did.
The first time you see Therese casually putting her phone down so that she can speak with you should be a fun event.
A texture rendering glitch in the female Toreador player model has been corrected by Tessera. Just a minor cropping of
her skirt, so that it stops flying up into her butt every time she runs. This repair was released privately to members
of the tessmage.com Forums more than two years ago... and it is now being incorporated into the Gold Edition.
Several misfiring audio files have been located and restored to their correct locations. There should be a noticeable
increase in ambient sounds now... but without them becoming distracting or annoying. Each restored audio file was
tested one at a time, to make sure that they were not firing too often. It's just a subtle change, but it does add
a bit to the overall atmosphere of the game. The game engine routinely displays "missing audio file" errors all over
the place... but we decided to err on the side of caution and so, we only restored a very limited number of them.
The last thing that we wanted was to turn this dark, atmospheric vampire RPG into a cacophony of background noise.
Hundreds of subtitle dialogue errors have been identified and repaired. Many thanks to the True Patch beta testing team.
Where as version 5.04AT only repaired a limited number of such errors, the new Gold Edition has gone quite a bit further
when it comes to repairing the ridiculous number of spelling errors, syntax errors, grammatical and punctuation errors,
and just downright WRONG subtitles that have plagued this game ever since its release.
A major rendering glitch involving female player character models during the "freeing Lily" scene (Act 1, BloodBank)
has been fixed. A texture rendering error involving Yukie in Chinatown has likewise been corrected by the Gold Edition.
Many thanks to "DDLulu" (aka "Dan") for publically posting the instructions regarding both of those fixes. That horrible
glitch during the "free Lily" scene was particularly awful and I am glad that somebody finally figured out how to fix it.
Now if we can just change Phil's voice during that scene... so that he doesn't magically mutate into an Englishman... :/
Quite a few new map repairs by Tessera are being added to the Gold Edition. Most of these repairs involve adjustments
to various entities (objects, items, spawn locations, etc.) on certain game maps which were misaligned or simply
not functioning properly in the plain-vanilla game. Tired of seeing trash cans falling over all by themselves..?
Tired of facing the wrong direction when your character changes from one zone to the next..? Or seeing NPC's standing
on top of furniture, or taxi cabs that float two feet off the pavement..? Well, most of those types of map errors
have now been repaired. There are no doubt a few such errors that we missed, but all of the noticeable ones are now fixed.
Several new hidden "texture stamps" have been added by Tessera, for the purpose of identifying the Gold Edition.
In relation to the above -- good luck trying to find them in the game. They are VERY well hidden... but visible
if you know -exactly- where to look for them. Your chances of noticing them during the course of normal game play
are just about zero, however. So... have fun pixel hunting..!!!
Pre-compiled node graphs and location data have been added to the Gold Edition. You will no longer be interrupted
during first-time game play with those "AI Disabled" messages when you enter a new map for the very first time.
For players with LCD monitors, we have included a nifty utility which will patch the game in such a way as to add widescreen
(16x9 or 16x10) resolutions to the game engine. This is necessary for anyone who intends to play Bloodlines on an LCD widescreen
monitor or HDTV. Please refer to the included instructions ("ReadMe_UTILITY.txt") for detailed instructions. There are also some
helpful hints in that document which will allow you to push the graphics quality even higher on Bloodlines, if you so choose.
Several optional mods have been bundled into the Gold Edition, courtesy of Tessera. No... none of them are nude mods.
Specifically, Tessera's Hi-Res NPC Pack, as well as Tessera's Club Music Replacement mods have been included. There is
also a fun mod which adds a dance node to the player haven inside the Skyline apartments building (sorry, Nossie and
Tremmy players). You can dance inside your haven..!!! Hee hee. These mods are optional and separate from the main body
of the True Patch. They must be installed after you have installed the True Patch Gold Edition, if so desired. You may
install any or all of them, at your own choosing. They're just a little added perk, courtesy of Tessera.
Some documentation has been added to a new "Docs" sub-folder, including a PDF reproduction of the original Bloodlines
game manual in its entirety (the manual which was included in the original 3-CD retail release). There is also an
installer for the Adobe PDF Reader, if you happen to need it. Additionally, a complete walk-thru of the game, as well
as a complete listing of the various computer passwords and door key codes has likewise been included. Try not to use
them if you can avoid it... but hey, everybody gets stuck sometimes and those documents should help in a pinch.
The official version 1.2 patch from ActiVision has been fully integrated into the Gold Edition. You will no longer need
to apply the official version 1.2 patch from ActiVision if your version of Bloodlines requires it. Simply install the
game from its original CD's and then, install the True Patch Gold Edition. Everything will be patched accordingly.
Note that this does not apply to those of you who play the Steam version of Bloodlines. The Steam version of VTMB
is already updated with the version 1.2 patch. It will not matter either way, in other words. No matter which version
of Bloodlines you own, the True Patch Gold Edition will make sure that all of the critical game files have been patched
and updated to their correct versions.
A "no-cd" version of the game launcher has been incorporated into the Gold Edition, too. This was done for two reasons.
First, the original 3-CD version of Bloodlines is no longer being manufactured, hence it has become a collector's item.
It is not reasonable, therefore, to expect the owners of the original game to keep placing their valuable CD's into their
CD-ROM drive every single time they want to play this game. Because each time you load up your CD, you are causing further
wear and tear upon a CD which essentially can no longer be replaced. Secondly... and this is something which will no doubt
annoy the company that owns the Steam service... this "hacked" launcher will enable those of you who own the Steam version
of Bloodlines to completely free yourselves from Steam when you play the game. Yes, I know that there are other ways to
do that, but this setup makes it a lot easier. You can simply place a shortcut to the new vampire.exe file on your desktop
and then launch the game as a stand-alone application from now on... the same way that it was originally meant to be played.
No more having to launch it through Steam. And since there is evidence that the Steam service itself can randomly cause
corruption of Bloodlines' gamesave files, this option to bypass Steam altogether becomes that much more attractive.
The core engine files for Bloodlines have been repaired and updated for the True Patch Gold Edition. Several segments
of the original code have been fixed, in order to prevent certain memory errors, graphical errors, blurry fonts and
menu textures, missing sprite effects, misfiring ambient sounds, and so on. All engine coding repairs were perfomed
by Tessera, with the invaluable assistance of Jordi. Also, many thanks to the Russian and eastern European hackers
(you know who you are) who umm... stole the Half-Life 2 beta Source engine back in 2004. It is to them that we owe
quite a bit of credit for certain engine repairs, because the early beta version of the HL2 Source engine contained
certain key segments of rendering code that the VTM: Bloodlines engine lacked. That code has now been inserted into
the Bloodlines engine... with quite pleasant results. Bottom line: get ready for some extra eye candy in VTMB.
There are dozens of other minor fixes included within the Gold Edition, which are too numerous to list. But if you
compare the overall size of the Gold Edition to the size of version 5.04AT, then it should be immediately apparent
that there is A LOT of newly repaired material incorporated into the Gold Edition. We're talking MAJOR here, folks.
Tessera has been working on this new version of the True Patch for nearly TWO YEARS... so you can expect it to be
quite a bit more extensive than the previous version of the True Patch.
As with all versions of the True Patch, the Gold Edition has been extensively tested by a team of volunteers,
prior to its release. In fact, they tested the Gold Edition for two full weeks and their assistance in identifying
various bugs, glitches and inconsistencies was invaluable. All of the Gold Edition beta testers are veteran players
of Bloodlines, who know this game backwards, forwards and upside-down. Nothing was left to chance, because we believe
that a patch should FIX bugs... not introduce new ones, the way certain other "patches" have consistently done.
Oh... and on that note, the infamous "Wespoop" gag introduced by Tessera in version 5.04AT of the True Patch has now
been removed. It served its purpose at the time, but it is no longer relevant. Point made... ya know what I mean..? :p
As in all versions of the True VTMB Patch, none of the default quests, gameplay or items have been modified... except in
those rare instances where there was simply no other logical choice. The originally intended gaming experience from Troika
has been very carefully guarded and preserved. You will be playing Troika's game... just with a lot less bugs.
------------------------
CREDITS
------------------------
The True Patch GOLD Edition was created and compiled by Tessera -- from March 2008 through June 2010.
The True VTMB Patch version 5.04AT, upon which the True Patch Gold Edition is primarily based,
was created and compiled by Acrimonious and Tessera in the spring/summer of 2007.
All versions of the True VTMB Patch have been carefully beta tested by volunteers from
the tessmage.com community. Many, many thanks to them for their invaluable assistance.
Every single one of those volunteers is a veteran Bloodlines player and they helped us
to identify quite a few glitches that the True Patch authors had failed to notice.
This is why all versions of the True Patch are independently tested prior to release:
because we're trying to FIX bugs -- not introduce any new ones.
The True VTMB Patch was conceived of by Tessera in late 2006 and co-authored by Acrimonious and Tessera.
Absolutely no content of any kind from any other authors has been copied, mimicked, "stolen" or otherwise
malappropriated and inserted into the True VTMB Patch GOLD Edition. The True VTMB Patch is a 100% original
piece of work, unless otherwise noted within these patch notes. Any use or misuse of its contents is expressly
forbidden, unless prior permission is obtained in writing from Tessera.
The True VTMB Patch Gold Edition is being distributed free of charge and as-is. The authors do not accept any
liability for any problems of any kind whatsoever which may arise due to your use and/or misuse of this patch.
Therefore, any claims of damages, whether real or imaginary, will not be considered valid. It is to be understood
that you agree to install and use this patch your own risk. If you do not agree to these conditions, then you must
not install the True VTMB Patch Gold Edition under any circumstances. This agreement is mutually binding and
non-negotiable, however your own local laws may vary from region to region.
If you wish to host a copy of the True VTMB Patch Gold Edition on your own web site, then please contact Tessera
for permission. In most cases, permission will be granted, so long as you agree not to alter any of the contents
of this patch in any ways whatsoever, or to use it for any illicit purposes. If you wish to apply for permission
to host the True VTMB Patch Gold Edition on your web site, then you may contact Tessera directly at:
tessera@tessmage.com"The True VTMB Patch" and "The True Patch GOLD Edition" are both copyrighted trademarks of Tessera and tessmage.com. All rights reserved.
OFFICIAL RELEASE DATE of The True VTMB Patch Gold Edition: July 08, 2010
--------------------------
OFFICIAL WEB SITE:
--------------------------
www.tessmage.comFor Adults Only
------------
END
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Author
