This post is for anyone who complains about problems that
they may have had after installing the True VTMB Patch:
(http://www.tessmage.com/elements/504AT_vtmb_trans.gif)
THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH IT.
From time to time, we get complaints from users who insist that they "did everything right" when they installed our patch. That tiny handful of users experienced problems after the installation, therefore they automatically assumed that we must have done something terribly wrong... and that we produced "a bad patch."
THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH IT.
It is unfortunate that when certain users run into a problem, their very first assumption is that there is some sort of "bug" or other problem with the True Patch itself. So naturally, their first response to whatever problem they are having is to accuse the makers of the True Patch (Acrimonious and me) of making some sort of horrible mistake. After all, the user never makes any mistakes, right..? So undoubtedly, it must be a "bad patch" that is responsible for their troubles. Yeah... that's what it is... a "bad patch."
THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH IT.
The True VTMB Patch version 5.04AT is being used by over 18,000 users worldwide (that is the total number of downloads). Almost all of those users are having no problems of any kind. If there was an actual problem with the patch itself, then ALL of those users would be reporting bugs and glitches to us. We'd get buried under a massive pile of angry e-mails from unhappy users.
But we don't, and we haven't... and we won't, either. Wanna know why..?
BECAUSE THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH IT. ABSOLUTELY NOTHING AT ALL.
If you experience any strange problems or weird in-game behavior after installing
the True VTMB Patch, then here are the ONLY legitimate reasons for your troubles:
(1) You never read the instructions, thus you installed the True Patch incorrectly.
(2) You tried to use a pre-existing gamesave that was created before you installed the True Patch.
(3) Your computer is fucked-up.
(4) Your operating system is fucked-up.
(5) Your entire game installation was fucked-up to begin with.
(6) Your copy of Bloodlines is either damaged or illegitimate (pirated).
(7) You did something after the installation that caused the installation to become corrupted.
That's it, folks... that list represents the only possible reasons for why you may be having problems with the True VTMB Patch. There is absolutely nothing wrong with the patch itself, so do not send me any more e-mails claiming that we made some sort of mysterious and magical mistakes when we produced the True VTMB Patch version 5.04AT. No, we did not. No, we are not listening to any more of your whining. No, you can not get me to walk you through everything step-by-step, because I have already done so multiple times on this board. No, we are not being assholes... we are simply tired of hearing from people who -- for some inexplicable reason -- are unable to follow a set of very specific installation instructions. If you can not install a simple patch, then that is your problem. Install the patch again... and READ THE INSTRUCTIONS THIS TIME.
Oh, yeah... I should also mention that you need to FOLLOW THOSE INSTRUCTIONS, too. If you think you know "a better way" to install a patch that WE wrote, then you deserve whatever happens to you. So like, you can kiss my ass if you have any troubles, okay..? ;)
With all of the love in my heart,
- Tessera -
Co-creator (with Acrimonious) of the True VTMB Patch series
(http://www.tessmage.com/elements/504AT_vtmb_trans.gif)
This is not to say we don't want bug reports. If you think you've found a bug, by all means let us know. My only request is that you do so politely, respectfully, and here on this website. Also, if I tell you that I cannot duplicate a bug, then there's a very strong possibility that it's not a bug at all.
I concur. Never had any problems with it.
Quote from: Acrimonious on February 08, 2008, 08:56:09 AM
This is not to say we don't want bug reports. If you think you've found a bug, by all means let us know.
We want LEGITIMATE bug reports... yes. ;)
The current version of the True Patch has been around for nearly six months. In all of that time, we have received perhaps fifty supposed "bug reports" from users. Out of those reports, I would estimate that nine out of ten of them were not bugs at all... they were user errors that no one else was able to duplicate.
And then there are the bug reports that have nothing whatosever to do with the True Patch. I'm talking about intrinsic Source engine bugs that our patch does not even deal with, and which can not be fixed by us. Things such as the pay phones jumping back into their cradles when you're still talking, or flaky physics whenever your character steps on top of a movable object, or "stuttering" audio on computers with less than optimal audio hardware. All of those are real bugs, but they are Source engine bugs that can only be fixed by the authors of the game engine itself (Valve).
Here's an example of a LEGITIMATE bug report:
Quote from: Thoughtful and Mature VTMB Player"Hi guys, I installed the True Patch and everything works great. I did find a couple of small things, though. First, the dialogue for Strauss doesn't match the subtitles. I have included a screenshot. Also, when I went to VV's club the first time, all of the strippers had tassels coming out of their asses. I have included a screenshot of that bug, too."
Here's an example of a big fat load of bullshit report:
Quote from: Lying Dumbass Teenaged Sack Of Shit"Yo, Tess. I installed your patch and I did everything right. Well you guys screwed something up because none of the NPC's in SM are moving. Also, my character is missing her head and also, I can't get Jeanette to screw me anymore like she did in Wesp's patch. I wanted to know why you guys released a broken patch?"
Hopefully, my rather extreme examples will give everyone a good idea of what we're talking about here. :P
I would also like to throw out there the unfixable bugs that are there also...
I brought one up the other day and I knew it wasn't the patch, but as tess informed me there wasn't anything they could do about that because of where the error was located
( I am refering to the flying on a gate in the warrens)
The only thing that might prevent that kind of weird glitch would be to alter that game map,
and move the boundary to a new location in order to prevent the player from even reaching
that section of the map. Acrimonious would know better than I do about something like that.
Agreed. Sure, I have asked some questions about things, but I don't blame the true patch. Well, there was the time I found that trivial bug, but it was exactly that: trivial. The vast majority of remaining game-breakers are from corrupted saves or installations.
Quote from: StarWrecker on February 09, 2008, 06:25:10 PM
The vast majority of remaining game-breakers are from corrupted saves or installations.
Or novice modders fucking things up...
<----------------------------------------------
Quote from: Arandie on February 10, 2008, 07:14:42 PM
Or novice modders fucking things up...
<----------------------------------------------
Awwwww.... :laugh:
I don't think I would refer to yourself as a "novice," Arandie.
Most of your mods are quite good.
I was lucky enough to have the latest True Patch on my first install for Bloodlines.
Ale and whores for everyone! Huzzah!
Am new here and I don`t know is it appropriate to post this here but I have a pirated version of VTMB ( coz where I live that is the only way to get these kind of games)
and I use True Patch!!!
It works just fine set aside a little sound glitch ( dialog sounds are late for one or two seconds) but thats prolly because the pirated version.
I first started the game without the True Patch played it for a while, then I found the True Patch on tessmage and installed it and played again till the end without any problem.
Well, I never said that it won't work with pirated copies of the game...
I just said that pirated copies are not supported by us (and they aren't).
;)
Quote from: FronTeeRI have a pirated version of VTMB
Keel haul the dirty scalawag! Arrrr!!
:P
I hope this is the right thread to report a bug. I guess I did no mistakes while installing the patch. I've copied the "Vampire" folder into the main folder of the game (called Vampire - Bloodlines) overwriting all the files ("Yes to all") contained in the original "Vampire" folder inside the "Vampire - Bloodlines" main folder. Obviously, after installing the original patch from Activision.
Well, here we go:
Sometimes - which means that doesn't happen with all the quests - when I finish a quest, on the screen appears the normal message of the amount of experience points earned, but when i press C to pop-up the character sheet.. dang! 0 experience points to add. That forced me to use cheats. Expecially because I wanted to save both of the Voerman sisters and I was unable to get the points before (at least persuasion 4 is required to save both of them).
Well, neither the cheats are working (and to be sure I've pumped up my skills to the maximum), though I don't know if this is a bug too or it is well-known that pumping up persuasion by the cheats won't work in that part of the game in any case. By any means, I'm not assuming that it is a true patch bug, but I am inclined to believe so, since the last time I played bloodlines I used another unofficial patch and I did not have such problems . Also, the game version it is the same I used before, so It can't even be a corrupted game.
Sorry if this bug was already reported.
And sorry if I've been inexhaustive, I'm not really into modding.
Edit: I just checked something, to be sure. I loaded an older savegame, right before entering the museum in order to kill the blood guardian of the paintings. Once I enter I get 1 exp point (and by checking the character sheet, this time I'm able to get the point), then, after the battle the log says that I get 3 exp point but in the character sheet ive got 0 exp point to spend. So I came to this conclusion: it doesnt only fails to add exp points, it also delete all the points earned before. Furthermore, using the cheats to add exp points, I've noticed that:
1 it wont add exp points
2 it will add a wrong number of exp points
3 or it will even automatically add exp points to disciplines and feats.
I just hope the problem won't be tougher than I thought: what if I'm unable to persuade Jeanette/Theresa even if I get to persuasion 4 without using the cheats? All of this should sustain my bug theory: arent cheats meant to work properly in any case?
There is nothing wrong with the True Patch. Hence the title of this thread. ;)
Please read the official thread for the True VTMB Patch version 5.04AT,
and you will most likely discover that your answers will be found therein...
http://www.tessmage.com/forum/index.php/topic,1112.msg11667.html#msg11667
Quote from: Polvere on May 09, 2008, 11:13:57 PM
I just hope the problem won't be tougher than I thought: what if I'm unable to persuade Jeanette/Theresa even if I get to persuasion 4 without using the cheats? All of this should sustain my bug theory: arent cheats meant to work properly in any case?
VTMB -- How To Reconcile "TOURETTE"
by Tesserahttp://www.tessmage.com/forum/index.php/topic,240.0.html
Aww that explains a lot of things, in my last game I've been pretty gentle with the Voerman sisters... this time I've been a jerk. Well, guess I'll restart the game if I cant find an older savegame.
For the answers I seek.. I've checked the True patch thread until I found this:
Quote from: Acrimonious on November 30, 2007, 05:51:58 PM
It is impossible to ever know for sure what Troika did or did not intend. There is an entry in the experience table for sending Danielle to the blood bank. This suggests that we are indeed supposed to get some xp for doing so. On the other hand, one could argue that Troika decided pacifying Vandal and gaining access to his services was reward enough and intentionally removed the xp reward before releasing the game.
There are two other instances in the game where I restored xp rewards simply because there was an entry for them in the table. For the reason stated above, I've come to believe that that reasoning is flawed. Restoring unused dialogue lines is one thing, but I am hesitant to restore any more xp rewards at this point. In cases such as this, you'll need to provide a very convincing argument that the non-xp rewards are insufficient for the effort involved.
FROM TESSERA: Agreed.
Does that means that on certain quests you guys removed exp rewards?
Quote from: Polvere on May 10, 2008, 10:24:59 AMDoes that means that on certain quests you guys removed exp rewards?
Nay, we did not remove any XP rewards. What Acrimonious was pointing out is that we didn't ADD any XP rewards.
The True Patch does not change the gameplay of Bloodlines. It primarily fixes bugs, errors and some missing content.
It's a minimalist patch, for people who wish to play the real game... not a massively hacked version. ;)
So in a few words, taking the example of the blood guardian, you're telling me that Troika games meant not to give those 3 points of exp reward after beating him? The log on the screen hasnt been fixed tho, if that's what they meant, cause it still tell me: "exp rewarded: 3 points" and it also delete that exp point i get once i enter the gallery.
The main folder of Bloodlines is called "Vampire - Bloodlines" and it should be inside the hard drive C:, into the "Programs" (or "All Programs", I think it depends on the nationality and the language of the machine) folder.
Inside the "Vampire - Bloodlines" main folder, there is another folder called "Vampire", that's the folder that must be overwritten with the "Vampire" folder of the True Patch.
oooohhhhh i seee it, yeah i opened the folder with "Vampire - Bloodlines" and there it contained a other folder called "Vampire". yeah thanks a lot!
But i have folder that contains a few patches a long with the True patch, ssoo im guessing i just put that folder into the other folder that is named "Vampire".??
You need a fresh installation in order to play the True Patch correctly, it's all written in the "Readme NOW" file by the way.
yeah i have read it many times,
but its fine i guess ill hopfully figure it out sometime
i have uninstalled it like literally 3 times
but ill figure it out :)
QuoteEdit: I just checked something, to be sure. I loaded an older savegame, right before entering the museum in order to kill the blood guardian of the paintings. Once I enter I get 1 exp point (and by checking the character sheet, this time I'm able to get the point), then, after the battle the log says that I get 3 exp point but in the character sheet ive got 0 exp point to spend. So I came to this conclusion: it doesnt only fails to add exp points, it also delete all the points earned before. Furthermore, using the cheats to add exp points, I've noticed that:
1 it wont add exp points
2 it will add a wrong number of exp points
3 or it will even automatically add exp points to disciplines and feats
Turn off Auto Spend XP.
Ok, I'm dumb. You've got the rights to insult me now :)
It's a common mistake.
But like the title of this thread says: there is nothing wrong with the True Patch.
Almost every single "bug inquiry" that we've ever received about 5.04AT was a
case of user error. The patch itself works great. 8)
yeah, well i tryed. it aint working on my comp or something.
or its just that im really fucking dumb when it comes to comps...
uninstalled VBTM 5 times, reinstalled the patches 2 times, red the "Read me Now's" 10 times
got the "replace all files" notice once but i checked and it didnt work, and havn't seen it since.
idk, but im giving up....kinda frustrated.
But from what i see on the pics and what i read sounds like u two did a damn good job
Good Work!
You mean you're machine is unable to overwrite the original files with the patch ones? That's pretty strange.
Can you post an image of the tassles coming out of the dancers asses in VV's club?
Just sounds kinda odd yet intriguing at the same time.
Huh..?! :o
At the beginning of this thread you mentioned that you had a message
Quote"Hi guys, I installed the True Patch and everything works great. I did find a couple of small things, though. First, the dialogue for Strauss doesn't match the subtitles. I have included a screenshot. Also, when I went to VV's club the first time, all of the strippers had tassels coming out of their asses. I have included a screenshot of that bug, too."
I just thought it'd be interesting to see said bizarre ass tassel bug.
That's a new one on me... :-\
yeah its pretty wack too.
Well, now that there is an entirely new version of the True Patch on the web, it was inevitable that I would start getting e-mails from end users who almost certainly did not install the patch according to its instructions. Hey... that's fine. We all fuck up from time to time, myself included.
I just finished sending a reply to one of those users, and I wanted to reproduce that reply here... so that others can read it and hopefully benefit from reading it:
***************
QUOTE FOLLOWS
***************
Hello and thank you for contacting me.
There is no error within the True Patch Gold Edition, so far as the Santa Monica warehouse is concerned. I even double checked it just now to be sure, even though I knew that it was fine. The warehouse level loads up perfectly and without any significant errors of any kind whatsoever.
Please double check your installation. You may have done something incorrectly when you first installed the True Patch. When all else fails, it is helpful to completely uninstall Bloodlines, then re-install it, and then re-install the True Patch according to its instructions.
Remember that if you had previously been using any other "unofficial patches" created by parties who shall remain nameless, then you CAN NOT simply install the True Patch on top of theirs and expect it to work. The entire game MUST be uninstalled and wiped clean, and then re-installed prior to installing the True Patch Gold. Failure to do so will result in a hopelessly broken game. This fact holds true for any fan-made patches... not just ours. You absolutely must start off with a 100% clean installation of the game, prior to patching it.
You can not use an existing character after you install the True Patch. You must start the game fresh, with a brand-new character which has never been played before. This is vital, otherwise you will run into numerous map-related glitches, caused by incompatibilities with your previous character's gamesave file. You can find additional do's and don'ts within the ReadMe_NOW.txt file that is included within the True Patch. It is vital that you read and fully understand those written instructions, prior to installation.
Remember that if you install any other third-party mods after patching the game, then you must first make sure that they are fully compatible with the True Patch. When in doubt, contact the authors of such mods and ask them directly. We are unable to offer support or technical advice regarding problems which may be caused by using incompatible third-party mods created by others. For the record, all of my own VTMB mods -are- fully compatible with the True Patch and should not cause any problems.
Good luck and let me know if I can be of any further assistance.
All my best,
- Tessera -
www.tessmage.com
I just want to reiterate a couple of things...
The True Patch Gold Edition was created on a computer which has been optimized for Bloodlines. How else would I be able to produce an accurate patch for this game..?
The exact specifications of my gaming rig/test machine are as follows:
Asus Crosshair IV motherboard
AMD Phenom II "Thuban" 6-Core Multiprocessor
ATI Radeon HD5870 (2-GB "Toxic" version) video card
16 Gigabytes of DDR3 system RAM
PC Power and Cooling 1000-watt power supply
Extra large, well-cooled aluminum PC case
Western Digital Caviar Black RAID series 2-TB hard drives (5 total)
Pioneer Blu-Ray DVD burner
Windows XP Professional 64-bit Edition operating system (OS1) <--- used for testing Bloodlines
Windows 7 Ultimate x64 Edition (OS2) <-- used for testing True Patch compatibility with Win7
Ubuntu Linux x64 (OS3)
Windows 2000 x32 (OS4)
Entire system built, tweaked and tuned by yours truly.
Now that I've finished with the tech specs, let me mention a few things about Bloodlines...
First of all, this game does not get along very well with ANY version of Windows Vista. Nor does any other game which uses the Source engine, such as Half-Life 2 or Left 4 Dead. Vista simply sucks for gaming, period. So if you are using Windows Vista and if you have anomalous behavior with some of your games, then get rid of Vista and get a better operating system.
Similarly, I don't know of a single game that gets along with any version of Windows "User Rights Management." Gamers who are using Vista or Windows 7 are advised to deactivate User Rights Management entirely. It's a bullshit "system security" gimmick created by MicroSoft to sell more copies of Windows. But in reality, it causes far more headaches than it solves. Especially for gamers.
Bloodlines does not get along with the Steam service. End of story. If you bought VTMB through Steam, then you need to move the game out of your Steam folders and into a new folder of its own on your hard drive. And then, you need to create a new desktop shortcut for it (create a shortcut directly to vampire.exe). The True Patch Gold Edition enables you to do so and your performance during Bloodlines sessions will be far more stable as a result. Bloodlines hates Steam... that's the bottom line... and I have oodles of hard data which backs up that statement.
So then... if you are experiencing problems with Bloodlines that nobody else seems to be experiencing, then the problem is on your end... not ours. Over the years, all sorts of people have shown up here whining that there is something wrong with the True Patch -- because after installing it, their game started doing all sorts of strange things. And of course, whenever I try to duplicate whatever it is that they are talking about, nothing happens. Everything is fine. I have even gone so far as to create a test video in many of those cases, showing the user than indeed, there is nothing whatsoever wrong with the True Patch. Not if it has been installed and configured properly, according to its instructions.
The great thing about those test videos is that they tend to shut up the most persistent whiners instantly. That's why I make those videos in the first place... to put a decisive end to any possible arguments. There it is... right in front of you in my test video and working like a charm. So then, the problem is obviously coming from your own machine... and not from the True Patch.
Ever since it was released, I can count the number of legitimate bug reports concerning the True Patch Gold Edition on the fingers of one hand. In almost every other instance, it was a clear case of user error. Well, I can't fix your user errors... only YOU can.
Lastly let me mention that if you install any mods into Bloodlines after you have installed the True Patch... and if you start having problems as a result... then the mods you are using are not TPG-compatible. So then, do not contact ME looking for a fix... contact the author of the mod in question and ask him or her why their patch is not TPG-compatible. It is up to the modders to make mods which are compatible with the TPG. But it is not up to me to make a patch which is compatible with their mods. The patch comes first... and the mods come second. My job is to give you a rock-solid patch... and I have done exactly that. Anything above and beyond that is the responsibility of the end user.
Please keep all of the above in mind, before you post any bug reports on this board. I am ready, willing and able to help you... but if I tell you that no such bug exists, then you are just going to have to trust me on that. In such cases, the problem is most certainly happening on your end.
Tessera, a question... Do you think the patch is compatible with Bloodlines translations to another languages?
I have no idea. It's an American-made game and I'm an American, too. I don't concern myself with any of the translations.
My suggestion would be: if you want to play American roleplaying games, then learn to speak English. :P
It must be compatible with any translation just as any other patch, or mod... as long, as you know, how to transfer the text part of dialogs, options (and other things) to their original position in patched files. And modify the trackerscheme.res, if the translation uses not the standart font files.
Trust me, this question was pain in my ass for a looong time :P and i guess will be again soon, meh.
The original version 1.2 patch created by Troika was compatible with the original English language version only.
Therefore, the same rule holds true for the True Patch. It is intended to be used with the original English language version of Bloodlines.
There are too many bad translations out there for me to concern myself with any of them. It would become a never-ending ordeal... one that I am simply not willing to get involved in.
My original response still stands. It's an English language game. It was created by English-speaking people in the United States. If you want to play it, then learn how to speak English. Or, convince the people in your own country to create their own games in your language.
This game is American in origin. I am an American, too. So, I make patches and mods for the games which were written in my own native language. It is not my job to be a translator.
Seems pretty simple to me. :P
Quote from: Tessera on August 01, 2012, 09:15:12 PM
The original version 1.2 patch created by Troika was compatible with the original English language version only.
Therefore, the same rule holds true for the True Patch. It is intended to be used with the original English language version of Bloodlines.
There are too many bad translations out there for me to concern myself with any of them. It would become a never-ending ordeal... one that I am simply not willing to get involved in.
My original response still stands. It's an English language game. It was created by English-speaking people in the United States. If you want to play it, then learn how to speak English. Or, convince the people in your own country to create their own games in your language.
This game is American in origin. I am an American, too. So, I make patches and mods for the games which were written in my own native language. It is not my job to be a translator.
Seems pretty simple to me. :P
It was never my intention to make you change your opinion. Or be involved in some mess = )
Every game (book/movie/song etc.) has only single origin.
But you can't force all the people on planet to learn and speak another language, just to have an opportunity to play the games. Even magnificent ones.
Bad translation means a bunch of bad translators. But there is no problem, that can't be solved.
Well then, what is the point in playing Bloodlines AT ALL if you do not speak English..? Think about it for a moment.
Every single bit of spoken dialogue in the game is in American English. Even if you have foreign subtitles, it's even worse than watching a foreign film with subtitles. It would be impossible to get every nuance and intended emotion, unless you understood the spoken words in the game. Talk about yanking you out of the immersion...
I don't think it is wise to play an RPG that features spoken dialogue if you do not speak the language. Another type of game, maybe... but not an RPG, in which just about everything that we are meant to experience hinges upon the spoken dialogue and the voice acting.
Anyway, as I have said previously, translations are not something that I have the time (nor the inclination) to get involved in.