Well I just recall that there's multiple paths for each "storyline" (e.g. the vampire blocking another path)
Viewing post in Caliross, The Shapeshifter's Legacy comments
That's still a thing. There are some ways around that: you can find a magical being (a dragon) well hidden in the game, and he can grant you 3 wishes to undo certain paths (so you can in theory see some mutually exclusive content). Then again, that probably counts as making things more complicated. XD