More Fallout 3 facepalm inducing goodness

[Edward_R_Murrow]

Just when you thought it was safe to stop sniffing glue....

http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/888/888731p1.html

Bold proclamations for such a small amount of hands-on time, yes, but words I'll stick behind as a fan on the Elder Scrolls. In fact, Fallout 3 is very much Oblivion in a post-apocalyptic world. So if you didn't like that game, or the series for that matter, then ignore everything I've said thus far and go read something else. If, however, you spent 200+ hours in Cyrodiil like I did, or just love western-style RPGs, then you should keep going -- because your next big adventure is just over the next hill.

Oh joy!

the game also benefits from the same action point system found in its predecessors.

Somebody didn't do their homework. Damn...these fools wouldn't last a day in real journalism.

Speaking of targeting, your own body parts can be besieged and disabled just like your enemy's can. But to counter this, healing stimpacks can be used both in a broader sense and your individual limbs to quicken recovery.

Good bye most any usefulness of doctor/first aid when stimpack spam will save you.

No, what really makes Fallout 3's combat so badass is the creativity that Bethesda has worked into the battlefield.

I guess creativity is the new word for "shamelessly copying every shooter gimmick weapon in the past". Go figure.

The biggest hit of the day, though, was the Fat Man -- which is essentially is a portable nuclear bomb catapult. Fire this baby off and there's likely nothing left of your opponent afterwards except the miniature mushroom cloud.

The Fatman mentioned; DRINK!

Should you ever run out of ways to attack, the environments in Fallout are there to help you. The tube-like Preservation Centers, for instance, can be found scattered throughout the planet and provide items you can use to heal or attack with before your next big battle.

Goodbye any notion of scarcity of resources.

Scavenging is a big theme of the game too.

Uh...yeah....not so much after what was said before.

so while becoming an in-game alcoholic may sound like a funny way of increasing your charisma (which it does)

Methinks Bethesda doesn't drink much. You become more charismatic with alcohol by having others drink it, not the other way around. But charisma potions needed to be something....

These interactions can include hacking computers (which presents a mini-game that challenges you to figure out a password from a screen full of gibberish) to control robotic gun turrets, to lock-picking (another mini-game that requires you to move the left thumbstick to adjust your Kirby Grip and the right thumbstick to adjust your screwdriver) so that you can access previously restricted areas.

I think I just obliteration technique'd myself with a facepalm....

and the player ability to "surrender" to another NPC during combat by holstering your weapon,

Here's a good idea that will likely, in Bethesda tradition, be horribly broken.

As improved as Fallout 3 is, it still feels like Oblivion in a lot of ways (even if you can't sprint -- though you do move faster if your weapon is holstered). The world map works exactly like Oblivion's, as you can fast travel to places you've already been. Hitting select brings up Oblivion's "time pass" feature as well, buying you time to recover or move the in-game clock along to a more desirable point. Even the inventory system and interface is taken right out of the last Elder Scrolls, so there should be a high level of familiarity for returning players here.

Bethesda shamelessly re-use design resources? Never!

Skills
# Barter: Affects Buying and Selling
# Big Guns: Determines combat effectiveness with oversized weapons
# Energy Weapons: Determines combat effectiveness with plasma weapons
# Explosiveness: Determines power of mines/ effectiveness of grenades/ ease of disarming hostile mines
# Medicine: Determines how many HP you can heal with one stimpack
# Repair: How well weapons and apparel are maintained and increases starting condition of custom-made weapons
# Science: Affects computer hacking skills
# Small Guns: Determines combat effectiveness for smaller weapons
# Sneak: It's easier to remain undetected, steal or pick someone's pockets; increases critical chance when attacking undetected with this skill
# Speech: Governs how you can influence someone during dialogue and gain access to info
# Unarmed: Determines Melee Damage

Only eleven now?

# Perks:
# Lady Killer: 10% damage against female opponents, plus unique dialogue with them as well

Token thing that apologists can point to and say Bethesda isn't screwing up.

Even after an hour of play, it's more than evident that it's as deep as the ocean, handles responsively, and brings enough fan-service from Bethesda's two franchises to make it a strong contender for the best RPG of the year.

Well why don't you give em' another one too?

Also bolded part.

The only knock against it right now, other than the fact that role-players who like to go light on the combat are up against frequent skirmishes here

No surprise here...

 

[sportforredneck]

Let's all rage, as we do in every single fucking article that comes out about Fallout 3. Journalists are stupid, Bethesda is stupid, only us Fallout fans are righteous.

 

[MaskedMartyr]

Let's just say nothing now. We've already lost as is, lets just make fun of conventional journalism which has always been bad and is even far worse with the hype machine in perpetual motion.

 

[Comrade Hamster]

...the player ability to "surrender" to another NPC during combat by holstering your weapon...

This would only be redeemed if the NPC went ahead and shot you like the dog you are for buying and supporting this travesty.

# Perks:
# Lady Killer: 10% damage against female opponents, plus unique dialogue with them as well

Not immature and misogynistic. And I thought they were trying to get MOAR females into the audience with their house gimmick.

 

[Mareus]

Well they also added black widow perk for female characters.

Anyway... I don't know what pisses me more. Bethseda which is ruining the RPG genre with their ret-ar-do-ovations, Bethcrap fanboys who jack off on Oblivion, or the media which is so uneducated in the history of games that reading those articles is just fucking painful.

 

[Comrade Hamster]

Maybe we should turn The Codex into a prestigious gaming magazine and show them what for!

 

[Caveman]

ohhh stop crying you sniveling asses.

the best part is you will buy it anyway and you will support with your money Bethesda.

 

[Mareus]

ohhh stop crying you sniveling asses.

the best part is you will buy it anyway and you will support with your money Bethesda.

Nope. I am gonna pirate it.

 

[MetalCraze]

Nah I won't even bother torrenting it. Despite the wish to know with what to bash all those new fallout-franchise fans that will pop up in october like mushrooms after the rain.

 

[Shoelip]

I'll borrow it from a my friend who himself had it preordered for him as a gift last year. I might actually enjoy some of it if I don't think of it as Fallout 3.

 

[Caveman]

I think it isnt right to blame Betheda for doing high budget game for casual-console gamers.
Ofcourse they dumbed down a lot of things but if they spend a lot of $ I think I would do the pretty same.

Financial failure (Interplay, Black Isle) is the last thing to risk for any company.

Thats why i support with my money indie games like Dwarf Fortress. This is the only way to have games for hardcore gamers.

 

[gc051360]

ohhh stop crying you sniveling asses.

the best part is you will buy it anyway and you will support with your money Bethesda.

I bought Oblivion. Fool me once.....

I will not purchase another Bethesda product.

Plus, at least Oblivion wasn't this fucking gimmicky.

 

[Mareus]

You are right. It's not Bethseda's fault. They did invest millions of dollars into the game and they just want to earn money. They are just giving the crowd what they want. I blame the media which is so uneducated and so biased that it's painful to read those articles. But then again they are just trying to get the news first, so ofcourse they will hype the game they know will sell their magazines. So whose fault it is? It's the fucking capitalists!

Hopefully some ex commie countries like Russia or Polland will do art for art, and not for money and still earn money out of it.

 

[Gragt]

ohhh stop crying you sniveling asses.

the best part is you will buy it anyway and you will support with your money Bethesda.

Nope. I am gonna pirate it.

You still support the game and help distribute it. Even if illegal, you will be one more computer running Fallout 3. The logic consequence of your talk would be to not play the game at all.

 

[Mareus]

ohhh stop crying you sniveling asses.

the best part is you will buy it anyway and you will support with your money Bethesda.

Nope. I am gonna pirate it.

You still support the game and help distribute it. Even if illegal, you will be one more computer running Fallout 3. The logic consequence of your talk would be to not play the game at all.

If you want to make a point you have to know what you are talking about. All this ranting how FO3 will suck, because of that and this may seem valid, but no one will give a shit what you say until you have some hard concrete evidence. And for that you have to play the game.

 

[Caveman]

media are for these masses so they tell what masses of casual gamers want to hear. just go to gamespot board you will know how masses think and what they want

To make any profit Betheda must sell something like 2 mln copies. and I think I'm very optimistic with only "2 mln".


The costs of making games are constantly increasing and RPGs are really bad ass to make because of high level of complication, high number of objects, animations etc.
GTA4 costed around 100 mln $...

edit:
so the biggest problem now is that mid range game arent profitable any longer.
Now on the market we have only big player with high budget games and small players like DF dude or Gish makers.
Gish the most successful indie game was sold in 10,000 copies.

 

[MetalCraze]

And now guys remember this: http://youtube.com/watch?v=xzYmQyHl2bc
and then think of what we have now

 

[Gragt]

If you want to make a point you have to know what you are talking about. All this ranting how FO3 will suck, because of that and this may seem valid, but no one will give a shit what you say until you have some hard concrete evidence. And for that you have to play the game.

With that reasoning you should wait until you play the game before giving criticism because you have no concrete evidence yet. Still you have many clues already pertaining to Fallout 3's qualities (or lack of) that consist in Bethesda's track record, the answers they give in interview, focusing mostly on details than actual gameplay, the same promises that they were unable to keep for the last game, a complete lack of understanding of the Fallout setting...

While from a sceptic point of view I agree that there is the possibility that Fallout 3 might not be so bad after all (I remember some authors who produced mediocre works yet did a very good one), I do not feel this will be the case with the evidence already present. While I usualy want to see things for myself, I think that in this case I will wait until someone like VD reviews it before making up my mind. I'll certainly play FO3 one day, like I did for Half-Life 2 that I mostly ignored until not long ago, but not at release as I do not want to pay for it or help spreading the game evenif only on my computer. Unless I read raving comments here on the Codex and people like VD and BN declare they were wrong all along and that FO3 is great, I will simply ignore it.

 

[Micmu]

The costs of making games are constantly increasing and RPGs are really bad ass to make because of high level of complication, high number of objects, animations etc.

Don't forget that nowadays more than 50% of budget goes for PR & marketing.

 

[Mareus]

...

Like I said, most of the things people here on the Codex complain are valid, but that doesn't change the fact you have to atleast try the game if you want to include yourself in discussions on the forums once the game comes out. What people are doing now is expressing their fears and discontent with what Bethseda says it will be in the game. However once the game comes out it will probably be somewhat different (it could be better or worse). When that happens people will come and talk what was good and what was bad and if you show up and say: "I didn't play the game, but VD said it sucks so it must suck you will look a bit of an ass." I just want to have my own oppinion on the game, and if you want to wait... sure, go ahead I won't stop you.

As much as I agree with you that pirating is actually helping the game become more widespread I am not supporting anyone until I pay for the game and frankly I might as well buy the original if I like what I see. If I didn't have any intention of playing FO3, believe me I would not even read these forums, much less participate in them. You do what you think is best, but I will not be kept quiet on forums just because I didn't play the game.

PS. Skyway what was your point? What we have now is 100 times more than what I have seen in that Troika Beta game. It doesn't show anything except some graphical capabilites, and while I can only imagine what magic Troika would make with their own FO3, Bethcrap's FO3 looks a lot better, i just hate it is not isometric.

 

[Black]

ohhh stop crying you sniveling asses.

the best part is you will buy it anyway and you will support with your money Bethesda.

And you will fuck a corpse this afternoon.
See, I too can be a pathetic oracle.

 

[Jasede]

He is right, though. Most here will buy it and then bitch over it; or they'll pirate and do the same. That's rather pathetic.

Just look how many bought Oblivion here, despite we all knowing the game would be awful. Yet they still bough it; then bitched.

Volourn does have a point.

 

[Thor Kaufman]

And now guys remember this: http://youtube.com/watch?v=xzYmQyHl2bc
and then think of what we have now

if only

 

[Texas Red]

"But you will buy it anyway" is probably the most retarded argument ever conceived.

 

[Mareus]

Only Volly will buy FO3 because he never pirated a game in his life.