This isn't really a review; I don't think the game needs any more of those at its age.  Just clearing my mind about the game now that I've finished it.  
 
I never really got into the Troika camp because I tend not to be able to judge things on their potential, and patched or not, I didn't go for bloodlines because I'm not into vampires.  For five bucks, I made the leap.  Troika must have had great writers and nothing else - that's the only way I can explain the game I just played.  And then the ending - I figured it was a situation like Kotor 2 where a tight schedule forced an unfinished product out the door and they padded the end with combat hallways.  Then I read that this game actually sat on a shelf for a year waiting for Half-Life 2 to come out, so I'm not sure what their excuse was.   But yeah, the writing and voice acting, and the story were all really fun and I'm curious who was responsible and what he's worked on since.  And it's a shame that the modern-setting RPG is not currently a seller, as there's definitely something about a setting that we know intimately that helps get you into the story.   
 
I doubt I'll play through the game again.  As far as time spent, at least as much of it was in 'dungeon' areas I'd rather not see again as the fun dialog stuff I might want to do differently.  But before I put this game out of mind, a shout out to Velvet Valour, cause wow, that voice.  I actually looked up the girl who did her, who's just a regular voice actress with a resume a mile long, most of which is not using seductive voices.  What a waste.

Dude, I'd play the game again just to see the other clans. That's half the fun. If memory serves, each clan has a different play style. Nosferatu have to hide in the sewers/vents and can't be seen by humans. There was also a crazy clan and I think you could end up having an intense argument with a stop sign.

Yeah, the voice acting was amazingly good for the budget and the time it came out in.  
 
I remember feeling similar to yourself. Every time I was talking to guys or running around the hubs, I would have easily put it near the top on my list of favorite games but then they forced in overly long and boring combat sections; particularly the sewer sequence in Hollywood and the end game. I remember getting within inches of quitting during those two sections.
 
What clan did you play as? Even if you HATE the gameplay, it's worth playing through again as a Malkavian. Bar none, the best dialogue choices that have ever been presented in a game. 

From what I've played of it (not a whole ton), it seems to preliminarily match what you're saying, in that combat is bad and talking is good. While I don't think it will top Temple of Elemental Evil, I am really interested in playing more Bloodlines.... as soon as I get a computer that can actually run it without severe technical issues.

 There was also a crazy clan and I think you could end up having an intense argument with a stop sign.

Oh, I did have one question about my experience.  I found that despite not having a particularly high sneak... like, a 6?  I could basically sneak right in front of dudes and even run into them - regardless of light - and they wouldn't notice me unless I failed a feed or shot them or something.  Was this typical?  It only happened toward the end of the game - I was spotted a few times on the Elizabeth Dane, I recall, and sometimes from great distances.

Oh, I did have one question about my experience.  I found that despite not having a particularly high sneak... like, a 6?  I could basically sneak right in front of dudes and even run into them - regardless of light - and they wouldn't notice me unless I failed a feed or shot them or something.  Was this typical?  It only happened toward the end of the game - I was spotted a few times on the Elizabeth Dane, I recall, and sometimes from great distances.

I just want to say the haunted house in Vampire is one of the coolest things I've ever seen.
 
Great game, though I agree about the combat.

Rock Paper Shotgun had a great article on this incomplete masterpiece. And IIRC, a lot of Troika people migrated to Obsidian after they were shut down. 
 
As for why they didn't anything for that whole year before Half Life 2 came out, I'm assuming it had to do with Activision calling the project finished and stopping the funding.

I bought this off Steam a little while ago and have yet to try it out. Kind of excited to give it a spin.

All I know is, the game is cool as hell and plays well on my PC. Are there problems? Sure, but it's all good. The soundtrack is crack. Post it big because it looks good.

I love this one.

@Ragdrazi: I haven't got there yet. Looking forward to those. I have some unfinished business downtown.

If you are going to play it, you should definitely check out the user patches. One came pretty recently I think, which is fucking crazy considering how old the game is. I'm not talking about mods, just quest fixes, bug fixes etc etc. They make the game much more playable. Same goes for planescape torment or fallout 2 or any of those old rpgs.

Dude, I'd play the game again just to see the other clans. That's half the fun. If memory serves, each clan has a different play style. Nosferatu have to hide in the sewers/vents and can't be seen by humans. There was also a crazy clan and I think you could end up having an intense argument with a stop sign.

The Malkavians. They're great for a second playthrough, since their ramblings are not only totally hilarious, but also filled with fourth wall breaking and foreshadowing. The rest? The only clans worth playing are pretty much Nosferatu, Malkavians and Tremere, since they're the only ones that guarantee a different approach to the game.