Review Fallout 3 review round-up OH GOD WHEN WILL IT STOP

[DarkUnderlord]

Tags: Fallout 3

Not yet... Not yet... In a round-up of what other people are saying about Fallout 3 <a href="http://gamebanshee.com/reviews/software/fallout3-1.php">we have GameBanshee</a>:
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<blockquote>Sadly, not all parts of the character system are as well thought out. For some reason, despite allowing characters to select three (or four) times as many perks as in Fallout 2, Fallout 3 actually has fewer perks to choose from, which is just odd. For any sort of perk or bonus system, it’s always better to give players too many options rather than too few, and Fallout 3 has too few. Melee characters in particular get the short end of the stick here, since no perks were created for their playing style at all (what happened to the slayer perk?).</blockquote>
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Followed up by Codex regular <a href="http://scarsofwargame.com/blog/">Naked Ninja who posts on his blog</a>:
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<blockquote>You see, if you start exploring the wastes you get a nice post apocalyptic, survivalist vibe. But Megaton…well, megaton is like a poorly done post apocalyptic theme park. It’s got a neat layout, too neat, like a carefully constructed amusement ride. The whole thing is too…fake. People are fairly content, the place is self contained, the problems of survival in the wastes too far removed. Instead you get given quests about detonating the nuclear bomb in the middle from men trying way too hard to be ominous. Or women who want you to step on landmines as “an experiment". All with incredibly clumsy dialogue to boot.
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It just pours cold water on the atmosphere, really. I was, at that point, about to put F3 aside and go back to Dead Space. But a few others who were playing it convinced me to hang in there, and, surprisingly, they were right. It got better. Much better.</blockquote>
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Last up we have <a href="http://www.scifitv.com.au/Blog/2008/11/Fallout-3-Game-Breezethrough/">SciFi Channel</a>:
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<blockquote>That said - what you seem is up to you, and this is the really cool part. Your actions define your character. For those who played Fable, this isn't anything new, but with Fallout 3's vast range of branching stories, mini-missions and sheer open-ended 'do whatever the heck you want'-ness, the gameplay is shockingly malleable.</blockquote>
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"<i>For those who played Fable</i>"... Yup.
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Thanks <b>mahdi</b> and <a href="http://www.nma-fallout.com">NMA</a>!

 

[Tintin]

Congratulations, Naked Ninja...you have reached the sufficient level of fame where a review posted on your blog gets you onto a Codex news post.

Completely agree with this part:

The core problem is whenever Bethesda try to be clever. Their standard, down to earth characters are actually fine. They don’t stand out but they are convincing bit parts, you can believe them as people. Whenever the game tries to show you some special character or storyline though, it really drops the ball.

 

[Naked Ninja]

Congratulations, Naked Ninja...you have reached the sufficient level of fame where a review posted on your blog gets you onto a Codex news post.

:DeclineOfTheCodex:

 

[Shannow]

For those who played Fable, this isn't anything new,

I read Fallout and wouldn't have noticed without DU's comment *Freud*

*declineofgamingjournali....wait,notpossibletoreachlowerlevels*

 

[Barghest]

Go back to Dead Space? Another disappointing game as well.

Yes, I've played both and feel very underwhelmed.

 

[Naked Ninja]

I was getting fairly into it, wanted to see what happened after I watched that Dead Space prequel movie thing.

 

[shihonage]

I played Dead Space a lot longer than Fallout3, but it got old around chapter 3... it's got too much Doom3 syndrome.

 

[flushfire]

dead space is alright for what it set out to be. i haven't heard/read anything about it being a sequel to anything. or trying to be another genre other than fps.

 

[thesheeep]

I played Dead Space a lot longer than Fallout3, but it got old around chapter 3... it's got too much Doom3 syndrome.

Yes, unfortunately.
The first two or three times one might be a bit shocked by the monsters, but after that, it just becomes routine. And as if that wasn't enough, the game tries to increase difficulty by simply sending more troops at you, instead of more difficult ones.

 

[dagorkan]

Great article Ninja!

I fully agree with judging a game on it's merits, the debate over what F3 can be compared to makes both sides dumber.

I also agree on the Repair/Customize and Radiation/Health mechanics. Simple but interesting. They really stand out as innovative and progressive design which you'd think Codexers would appreciate, even if you don't like the rest of the game.

 

[Naked Ninja]

Thanks Dagorkan

 

[dagorkan]

Added a bit.

 

[Naked Ninja]

They really stand out as innovative and progressive design

Indeed. They represent "setting/theme-based design", ie where the designer builds mechanics to support the overall theme of the game, in this case PA scavenging and surviving in an environment where even the food is dangerous.

Too often we just see a copy-paste of existing D&D-like mechanics, transplanted to Setting X. Nice to see developers taking a moment to think about how they can express the setting through gameplay.

 

[dagorkan]

I don't know if they did it through long deliberations and talent or sheer luck and I won't speculate on it, but compare to Fallout 1 -> 2. Both games forced you to 'loot', at least at the beginning, basically carrying around junk and twenty or so of the same guns to sell to then buy armor, often I even find myself calculating the value of different items (because I take Small Frame) to maximize my efficiency (ie real time, in other words minimizing my boredom - good game mechanic?). And in both radiation (in a PA world) was never a big problem and you usually could restore hit points by resting (passing time) anywhere. There was also never a need to sleep, but in a way that's not restrictive or annoying.

All of which break realism and suggest the Fallout 2 designers learned nothing.

In Fallout 3, what you loot/carry is a lot more instinctive and realistic. 'Merchants', the few of them there are have a limited amount of money. Carrying around lots of junk duplicate items to sell to buy a better weapon is a waste of time. On the other hands, salvaging an item to fix your current one is a lot more worthwhile, as you mentioned. Mad Max didn't go around picking up random crap, making regular trips to look for someone to sell them to. He takes what he needs and what's convenient and rolls with it, money/rewards come through achievements (ie "quests"), and not menial garbage collection.

Same for the health system - radiation does matter and voluntarily taking on some radiation will enter your considerations based on the situation. 'Sleeping off' damage is not usually a viable solution, unless you find a bed in a safe place or a place you're certain you've cleared from enemies. You don't set up tent in the Wasteland. Also sleeping matters for experience. The +10% XP for "well rested" is balanced just right, and I've found myself regularly returning to Megaton after difficult quests (or even fast traveling back part way through the quest) to receive that bonus, though obviously if I was three quarters of the way through a long dungeon it wouldn't be worthwhile. Again something to think about and which 'grounds' your experience more than F1/2.

 

[Applegate's Breasts]

Hey Gareth, is your girlfriend older than you?

(Nice review, also.)

 

[Naked Ninja]

Hey Gareth, is your girlfriend older than you?

She is, yes. 5 months older.

We're both 26.

 

[inwoker]

I played Dead Space a lot longer than Fallout3, but it got old around chapter 3... it's got too much Doom3 syndrome.

Yes, unfortunately.
The first two or three times one might be a bit shocked by the monsters, but after that, it just becomes routine. And as if that wasn't enough, the game tries to increase difficulty by simply sending more troops at you, instead of more difficult ones.

No. How about monster that can be hit from backwards only? How about mutated soldiers with fucked in stasis so they move very fast? How about unkillable monster, that you must avoid during some period before door opens? How about big bad boss with whom you fight in low-gravity area and must avoid his tentacles?

 

[Claw]

Since I can't be bothered to register at Gamebanshee (or forgot my password), I'll simply express my amusement here.

Bethesda had a lot of problems with the voice acting in Oblivion (...) Fallout 3 doesn’t have these problems. Bethesda must have doubled or tripled the number of actors in the cast, so you hardly ever notice different people with the same voice (...)

Yeah, unless you happen to encounter a group of about half a dozen ghouls who all say the same thing in the same voice. Then you notice.

 

[Twinfalls]

But Megaton…well, megaton is like a poorly done post apocalyptic theme park. It’s got a neat layout, too neat, like a carefully constructed amusement ride. The whole thing is too…fake. People are fairly content, the place is self contained, the problems of survival in the wastes too far removed. Instead you get given quests about detonating the nuclear bomb in the middle from men trying way too hard to be ominous. Or women who want you to step on landmines as “an experiment". All with incredibly clumsy dialogue to boot.

That's very well put. There also seems to be a problem stemming from the designers trying to present a 1950s vibe (women with those neat hairstyles being just too nice and polite) alongside a 'gritty' PA vibe (gratuitous, cringe-making swearing). It doesn't gel.