A producer who is working on the game with development studio Obsidian Entertainment told me I would be free very early in this game. As soon as I stepped outside of the game's few-minute profiling section I could go anywhere I wanted across the New Vegas landscape. This Fallout sequel is less linear than its predecessor, the developer told me. We gamers are expected to wander it and can pursue one of four main paths, allying ourselves with the factions of the game's violent Vegas-area West. We can take the path of the California Republic or of Caesar's Legion or one that has us side with the people of the vibrant New Vegas either with or without its leader, the charismatic Mr. House. There are about 2200 speaking characters to encounter in this game, the producer said, and all but one of them can be killed — and will stay dead — if you choose to be such a brute.
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There are some changes, of course - character customisation now has the double-edged Traits, like Four-eyes, which increases your acuity when you have your specs on but reduces it significantly when you don't - but even some of these are cosmetic. Character creation is less of a labour than in Fallout 3's Vault 101 - a product of a few barked questions and a Rorschach test - but the results are familiar, and it turns out the ability to adjust your character's age with a slider has no tangible ramifications beyond appearance.
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Then over the horizon, I see it: A huge roller coaster rising into the sky -- the defunct ride welcomes me to Primm, Nevada. Like many of the real-life locations represented in Fallout: new Vegas, Primm exists in our world, but unlike real life, New Vegas's Primm is surrounded by burned out buildings and razor wire fences, and the city is populated with escaped convicts. They had been members of the Powder Clan.
"Awesome," I think. "I stole a powder gang outfit when I offed those two gang members on the way over.  I'll just slip this on, and waltz into town."
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There are a few other additions as well -- perks are back, along with "traits," which are returning to the series after being absent in Fallout 3. They're special abilities that come with a price -- "Good Natured" will boost your social skills at the cost of some attack damage, and "Wild Wasteland" will create some "interesting" encounters, both good and bad. Traits are optional, but they seem like they could both add some variety to the game, and make for some excellent replay value. Radio stations are back, but I only heard Mr. New Vegas playing some swingin' tunes for the desert denizens.

I couldn't tell you specifically why, but VATS feels better -- it feels smoother and easier to use. In the first title, I often found myself just playing in real-time, but in New Vegas, I much more instinctively pulled up the VATS system, both for the great camera views and to help me set up my shots. I used the new VATS against a faction called the "Powder Gangers," chucking dynamite and decapitating them with laser pistols in slow motion.
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