Since I essentially missed last weeks IOTW, this week, to make up for it, I will supply a DOUBLE DOSE of IOTW. First up, this week, is Fallout 3; the latest first-person RPG from Bethesda.

While Fallout 3 falls short in a number of categories for me, the game definitely comes home as one of the best new games to come out from any of the big developers in the past couple years. Based on the same gameplay engine as Oblivion, Fallout 3 is part first-person shooter, part RPG, part madness. If you liked Oblivion, you will love Fallout 3 (FO3), and if you didn’t like Oblivion, its still worth giving this title a try - its like Oblivion, with guns.

Basic Plot

The game is set in the late 21st century, but not like you would imagine it. As you begin, the technology is far beyond what we see today with laser weaponary, digital arm displays, and floating robots. However, as you progress through the game, you realize that the scenery and atmosphere is from quite a different time.. a time more akin to the 1930s-1950s.

The game is a post-apocalyptic drama wherein you awake locked in a vault where many humans went when

Fallout 3

nuclear Armageddon rained down. You were born in this place and, for all you know, so was everyone else. As you progress you realize that many submit willfully to being trapped in the vault and others are less convinced that its the only way to live.

Soon, your father escapes the vault and this is where the game unlocks to your total control. The tutorial is over at this point and from here you are free to continue on with the game as you see fit, doing side-quests or continuing on to the main plot.

Where it falls short

The game has some flaws that bring it down a bit for me. First of all, there is an obvious number of graphical glitches that occur in the game. Bethesda has admitted to this and is working quickly on a patch, but they are so noticeable its hard to believe they shipped with this problem. Essentially, the major glitch, is one where a strange bar blinks at you on the right-hand side of the screen from time to time.

Another problem is a lack of skill points to adequately move through the game. There is a large number of skills to choose from and you receive too few points to make the game hugely enjoyable. For instance, I focused on combat related skills (small weapons, big guns, melee) but continuously miss out on other aspects such as hacking (science), lock-picking, and medicine, all three of which mean that some portions of the plot go completely missed. For instance, I came across a guy that was laying on a bed sick. The options were to put him out of his misery or leave him alone. However, had I gotten medicine training I could have healed him and continued that portion of the plot in some way. Instead it was left to my imagination or for another play through with new skills.

Finally, the game seems to me limited in terms of difficulty. Once you are level ~4 the monsters don’t get that much more difficult and instead it becomes a battle of ammunition or stimpaks. They also become much more predictable as you learn their nuiances. Essentially, after fighting super mutants several times, I can essentially fight them without taking much damage if any because they become so predictable. Again, perhaps replay on a harder difficulty (I started on normal) would yield different results.

Where is succeeds

The game brings it home on a number of fronts though. The graphics are beautiful on my GTX 260 and I don’t even have them maxed (I will once I get done enjoying the game). The environment is intense, even if it is a barren wasteland with baddies all around. You get the sense that it could really happen and that this is what the world would look like when it was all over. The game-play is fun and friendly, there is very little learning curve when you play and the tutorial teaches you how to handle all the controls.

A unique aspect that I think makes combat interesting (but maybe too easy) is the VATS targeting system. Essentially, you are given a number of action points to use which replenish naturally over time. Hitting ‘V’ on a particular target brings up a targeting system that allows you to select points on the target you would like to shoot for. If you have a full AP bar, you can normally shoot four times at a target. Once you are out of AP you either have to hide till your AP bar is full again or do your own targeting and shooting.

VATS, however, lends itself almost entirely to selecting nothing but the head for shots and makes combat a little more dumbed down. However, it becomes almost required because there is not enough ammo laying around so you need to make every shot count. VATS makes sure that a large percentage of your shots do count. I find myself using mostly a hunting rifle because it allows for long-range shots that are extremely accurate, but this is a factor of your stat points and where they are placed.

Another strong aspect of the game is the large side quests that you can do. In fact, I have done very little of the main quest because I have gotten so wrapped up in doing side quests that have me running all over the map. With each side quest that you do, you change the face of the game. For instance, I was offered the opportunity to ignite this nuke in this town, and instead opted to turn the guy in. The guy was ultimately killed and thus, I can no longer do that quest. However, much of the town now loves me and showers me with sets of gifts when I go there. I imagine if I HAD ignited the nuke, I would be very unfavorable to those people. It’s all about how you want to approach the game… do you want to be a good guy(saves towns for the hell of it), or a bad guy(does bad shit and only works for a reward). This time around I opted to be a good guy, we will see what happens when I take the more angry approach.

Conclusion

The short-comings of the game are more of nit-picks in my end. I think the game is extremely well down and takes a great new iteration on the Oblivion style of games.

If you were considering picking up FO3 and you aren’t sure about it, go ahead and drop the money. It’s worth it. While there is no online play short of just turning in for e-peen points, it makes for a great single-player experience with strong replay value. Again, its like Oblivion with guns, and that can’t be bad!