True Patch Gold Edition -- DIRECT DOWNLOAD LINK

[gerda]

Ahh ,thanks Tessera and thanks for all your work on this great game over the years.

on a sidenote ,
i use a small pdf program called Sumatra  ,it's usually ok for most pdf files.

[Tessera]

PREVIEW: TPG Hotfix #9


I would like to announce that in the very near future, I plan to update the True Patch with Hotfix #9, which will add forced anti-aliasing function to the game.

There's been a delay in this next Hotfix... not because anything is wrong. No, it's because I'm looking into doing something even more ambitious.

I don't want to reveal my idea prematurely... let's just say that if I can get it to work, then the VTMB community is going to be in for a special treat.

Well... True Patch users will be in for a treat. Everyone else is gonna be shit outta luck.  :laugh:

More info soon. Just hang in there, until I can do a bit more research.

- Tessera -

[Ratcatcher]

Color me intrigued.

[Tessera]

It may take another month. Hang in there.

[Ratcatcher]

No worries, quality takes time. 

[pli]

@Forum_Pirate
Safedisk can't be an issue, because the TPG removes Safedisk DRM from the main executable (vampire.exe).

apparently only when you start the game - you get as far as the menu

under Win 7 32bit and 8.1bit with automatic updates enabled I still had to revert to

sc config secdrv start= demand
sc start secdrv

I have not tried the registry tweak

it seems like the safedisk stuff is not only used when starting the game but also when you start a new game and if you load a game

now things work the way they are supposed to (European retail versions - with English, German, and French included)

[Tessera]

The registry tweak is the best solution. It's permanent, it won't harm anything, and all of your other games that use Safedisk will work perfectly in Win 7 (and beyond).

[Gokuthegrate]

I got the game from GOG and when I went to install the patch I saw that the unofficial patch was installed. After deleting that folder I moved the folders I was told to to the game where the exe.12 was located. Now when I check the Gameplay section it used to say the unofficial patch was installed now it says Game Mod Loader. Just want to know if I did everything correct.

[Tessera]

I have no idea. I do not support the GoG version of Bloodlines, due to it being a corrupted "pre-patched" mess.

My suggestion would be to ask GoG to refund your money. And then, purchase a legitimate copy of Bloodlines (such as the downloadable Steam version).

[corsair1]

Hi.
I have downloaded and installed the true patch gold and everything works great except camera control from 3rd persion view, is there somthing I have to do (except making sure num lock is on) to make this work? or have I done something wrong
I did look at the autoexec and it looks like the necessary text is there.
Running windows 7 and installed the gog vtmb version of the game before installing the true patch.
Please help
Thanks for a awesome patch, great job

[Tessera]

Please read my previous post.

The True Patch is not compatible with the "pre-patched" GoG version of Bloodlines. Nor do I support that version of the game.

I'm sorry that you are having trouble. The people to complain to are the people at GoG. They should not be selling a retail game that is "pre-patched" with amateur third-party content.


IMPORTANT NOTE:

If you installed the GoG version of VTMB, and then simply installed the True Patch right on top of it, then it is certain that your entire game installation is now hopelessly corrupted. You will need to delete the entire game and then re-install it from scratch. And you CAN NOT install the True Patch into the GoG version of Bloodlines, due to it already having been patched with Wesp5's so-called "unofficial patch."

This is a very unfortunate situation, but there is absolutely nothing that I can do about it. What GoG is doing is quite simply wrong, and I recommend that everyone who is interested in Bloodlines avoid buying the game from GoG. Go get the original, legitimate, "pure" version of VTMB from Steam instead.

[Cylnar]

It's a sad day when you have to promote the use of Steamingpile on this website. Too bad the 3-CD version of Bloodlines isn't more widely available. And too bad GoG made the decision they did.

[Forum_Pirate]

If you're worried about corruption, It comes with a completely unpatched version. The relevant files all have .12 as the file extension. Delete anything that has a .12 counterpart, remove the .12 file extensions, remove the "-Unofficial Patch" command line from the shortcut, delete the Unofficial patch files (that shouldn't be necessary but they don't do anything so no reason to keep them around, ) install true patch as normal.

[Tessera]

That procedure may or may not work. Good luck to anyone who wants to try it.

But my "official" stance on this matter is unchanged: I can not and will not offer any support
for the "pre-patched" version of Bloodlines being sold by Good Old Games (GoG).

VTMB players who wish the use the True Patch Gold Edition are therefore urged to AVOID the GoG
version of VTMB, and instead purchase a completely legitimate "plain-vanilla" copy of the game.

These days, your two best options are (1) buy the game from Steam, or (2) search for the original,
3-CD retail version of VTMB on eBay.

Either way, the True Patch was constructed in such a way that it will ONLY work properly when installed
into the original, legitimate, unmodified version of VTMB.

Which is, after all, exactly as it should be. 

[corsair1]

So I followed your advise and bought the steam version, then followed the steps in the read me and installed the true patch, but when i try to start the game from steam i get a message saying that i need to log on as admin, (I have only one user on my computer and I am admin) and then the game crashes. then I tried the exe file, and then i got a message saying "could not find steam" and the game did not start up.  What have I done wrong?
Thanks in advance for any help.

[Tessera]

So I followed your advise and bought the steam version, then followed the steps in the read me and installed the true patch, but when i try to start the game from steam i get a message saying that i need to log on as admin, (I have only one user on my computer and I am admin) and then the game crashes. then I tried the exe file, and then i got a message saying "could not find steam" and the game did not start up.  What have I done wrong?
Thanks in advance for any help.

What did you do wrong..?



Well... for starters, you didn't read this very important article:

http://www.tessmage.com/forum/index.php?topic=59301.msg95323#msg95323



Read that article, and then follow the procedure that is outlined within the article. Everyone who bought VTMB through Steam needs to do it. There are no exceptions to this rule.

VTMB is not compatible with Steam. I know you bought the game from Steam... and that's fine... but don't try to run VTMB from under the Steam shell. Especially if you intend to use the True Patch, or any other third-party patches and/or mods. VTMB is a game which predates the Steam service by about a year... and the VTMB version of the Source engine is simply not "Steam-aware."

No worries, though. Just read the article that I linked and everything will be fine, assuming that you carefully follow my instructions to the letter. Basically it involves re-installing Bloodlines, moving the entire game out and away from Steam, installing the True Patch, and then running the game as a stand-alone program... the way it was originally intended to be run. That article will fill in the details.

[corsair1]

That a bit embarrassing 
Thanks for your help

[Tessera]

Don't be embarrassed. I mean... wouldn't you expect the game that you bought from Steam to actually work properly with Steam..?

But as weird as it may seem to some people, VTMB is simply not going to work properly if you try to run it from under the Steam shell.


Some things to remember about VTM: Bloodlines...

(1) It predates the Steam service by about a year, hence it is not compatible with Steam.

(2) VTMB must be run as a stand-alone program. No launchers... no Steam shells... no nothing. The game was designed 12 years ago to be launched and run exclusively from its own executable file (vampire.exe).

(3) VTMB does not recognize any sort of "must be connected to the internet" requirements and so, any attempts made by Steam to force it to run that way are guaranteed to cause various glitches and headaches. Which, in fact, it does.

(4) VTMB was designed using the now-obsolete Safedisk form of copy protection (must have the CD in the drive in order to play the game). All versions of Windows from Windows 7 on upwards have SafeDisk disabled by default. If you are having trouble running VTMB on Windows 7 (or 8, or 10) after installing the True Patch, then it is almost certainly because the SafeDisk driver (secdrv.sys) is disabled in your version of Windows. The good news is that it can be enabled by doing a quick edit to the Windows system registry. Instructions on how to do so may be found on this board, or on numerous other game-related web sites. Just Google it: "How to enable SafeDisk driver in Windows."

(5) The multimedia aspects of VTMB were programmed using DirectX 8. If your version of Windows does not include the necessary files to support a DirectX 8 game, then VTMB will not run on your computer. Windows 10, for example, offers absolutely no support whatsoever for older versions of DirectX... so you can forget about trying to run VTMB on Windows 10, unless the DirectX 8 compatibility issue is remedied.

(6) VTMB was not designed to be run on widescreen monitors. It comes from a time when almost everyone was still using small screen CRT monitors. In order to see VTMB in all of its glory on a modern widescreen monitor, the game engine needs to be patched, so that it can output a proper 16:10 or 16:9 ratio video presentation. Fortunately, the True Patch Gold Edition includes all of the tools and instructions that you will need in order to accomplish this wondrous feat. It is also very easy to do... assuming that you carefully follow all of the included instructions.



What everyone needs to remember is that we're all trying to adapt a game that began its development waaaaaay back in 2002. Probably even earlier than that. It is, quite frankly, an obsolete game by modern standards. But if you are ready, willing and able to go through a few extra steps, then it is entirely possible to run VTMB on today's modern operating systems and hardware. But there's no getting around it -- you WILL have to do a bit of extra work in order to get it all up and running properly. That's just the way it is.