To me, this goes right alongside VTMB as a fantastically written, almost masterful RPG that kinda sucks to play and is unfinished (minus the last part due to the constant updates).

There's plenty of bloat, what with the apartments you don't need and the cars you don't want cause the driving sucks, and for every amazing side mission where you find yourself caring for a character you thought you'd only see once there's another where someone wrote two sentences and called it a day, but that only somewhat detracts from the experience.

At the end of it all, regardless of the fact the combat is samey and the options kinda lame, the story and everything that comes with it are nearly impossible not to get absorbed into. And that's mostly what matters.