Activision and Nihilistic Software have released a role-playing game that takes the terror of mythical monsters to a new level. The result is a program that will tantalize, and terrify with an intensity that is tough to match.

“It is a world of darkness.”

Thus begins the saga of Christof Romuald, a man-turned vampire. Through 800 years of game play, he battles his nature and tries to overcome the evil responsible for his predicament. This program is about blood-lust. And it is intense. You must survive dungeons, labyrinths and castles with enemies lurking at every turn.

It is the struggle of the human spirit against that which is unholy and transforming. A need to survive, a will to keep that sliver of humanity left, but still drawn by the nature of what Christof has become. To reach his goals, he enlists the aid of other vampires, forming about him a clan to combat that which has relegated him to one of the undead. Fortunately, most of the enemies are sort of stupid. You can cast aside their attempts to stop you with a little planning and some decoys.

Redemption is wonderfully rendered, sporting some of the best graphics seen to date in a program that asks so little of a computer system - PII 233 and 64 megs of RAM. It is the install that will bite deep into the throat of your hard drive. The minimum install is 720 megabytes, with the maximum sucking up 1.25 gigabytes of hard drive space.

But in spite of the long install process, this program is amazing in its graphical rendering. The scenes are incredibly rich and detailed, and the polygonal figures spring to life on the monitor. This is a program that is easy to fall into because of the graphics alone. Game play is from the third-person perspective.

Redemption brings so many elements into play: There are clans, both those you can align yourself with - up to three other vampires can travel with you - and those you must battle to survive. The plot is multilayered as Christof struggles with his identity and his blood need. And there is violence - a lot of violence. It does seem, at times, that all this program offers is confrontation. Perhaps that is a great outlet, but it does bog down after a while.

Controls are somewhat intuitive. They are, for the most part, mouse triggered, and your character cannot access a set of actions without first learning the disciplines involved. In order to learn, you must recover scrolls. As your character progresses through the game, he learns new skills and grows stronger.

The sound is solid, but not outstanding. The graphics are the strongest portion of this program. The program’s downfall lies in the save function. This can be a pain in the neck (pun intended). It does get tough, at times, to save the game in progress. But if you play it smart, you can survive even that.

Redemption is an amazing journey through time; a well-rendered escapade that gives a boost to RPGs. No, it is not the definitive role-playing game on the market, but it does give the genre a leg up. If you are not the squeamish type, and you enjoy RPGs, this game may give you that dark thrill you’ve been waiting for.

Vampire The Masquerade: Redemption is rated Mature for animated blood and violence. The game supports LAN and Internet play. There is also a scenario editor to enable you to create your own storylines.

Install: Hard. This is a two-CD install consuming between 720 megs (minimum install) to 1.25 gigabytes (full install). The install features nothing more that icons from the game.

Gameplay: 8. This program sports seamless play, with the only problem being that it can be too seamless. Gee, you really need to save it once in a while. If not for the tremendous graphics and the handy options menu, this program would probably fall on its fangs.

Graphics: 9.5. Luscious is the best word to describe these polygonal-based graphics.

Sound: 7.5. The music gets a little old, but the ambient sounds are solid.

Difficulty: 8.5. The AI is somewhat predictable, but the overall scheme presents a challenge.

Concept: 7.5. This is a sequel spanning many ages. It may not be entirely new, but still presents a somewhat fresh approach to the adventure genre.

Overall: 8. There are some problems with the save function, but this game still presents great graphics and solid game play. Sure, it may be a little on the dark side, but that doesn’t diminish its playability and enjoyment.