Fallout 3

[Tonnica]

I'm getting this thread up early so I can post more later. I picked up my pre-order of Fallout 3 for PC today and I plan to do a synopsis of the gameplay, story, and overall experience. I hope to bring a few fresh observations to the table beyond what so many have already provided in developer videos and previews.

I think I'll call it: "Fallout 3: Diary of a Hat Thief"

What I Got:

I picked up the Collector's Edition of the game. The set includes the game in a standard size DVD case, a small artbook with glossy pages and a satiny screen print cover, a "making of" DVD in a Holovid themed cardboard slip, a Pip Boy bobblehead figurine, and a retro metal lunch box that contains all the previous items.

The game case is your standard black poly-plastic affair with a good sturdy DVD clip not prone to breakage. There is a colour instruction manual included made of very very glossy paper which uses a combination of game screenshots and comical illustrations to outly the game system. About every third page there's some kind of little Pip Boy illustration of him doing something relating to the game play or menus. Organization of the content is decent and most description paragraphs do not exceed 1/3rd the height of a page.

The art book is very nice to the touch and printed at high quality. Magazine-type moire is practically invisible on the printed pages. I look at the art included and am reminded of days spent leafing through RIFTS books just to look at the illustrations. The subject matter is pretty well spread-out from a quick thumb through. There's a little bit of everything in the book from monsters to costumes to weapons.

I'll have to watch the "making of" DVD later but I do like the Fallout 3 referential slip-cover they put it in. Like the Fallout 3 soundtrack the print on the outside looks pre-weathered like it's been sitting in some dusty rusty corner for a few years. It's a nice little touch.

The Pip Boy figurine has most of the weight centered in the body of the figure. So far I haven't found him prone to tippage and the figure looks appropriately goofy and mental. There's been a decent painting job and a very decent sculpting job. There's only one noticeable lump where the top of the mold was, but it's been sanded down. A+

The lunch box is an aluminum affair covered in a shrink wrap type cover of Pip Boy illustrations and the Fallout 3 logo. While not a full sized lunchbox, it is deep enough to hold a decent amount of whatnot if you chose to use it for storage. The clip is your standard spring-loaded metal lunchbox clip and holds the box tightly shut when closed. There is a small plastic handle on two square brackets on the top of the box. Nifty and once again very retro-futuristic themed. Pretty much everything you'd expect in a collector's edition.

[Darren Dirt]

"Fallout 3 The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly"
http://forums.sinsofasolarempire.com/?aid=328504

(a detailed review, in a forum post on the GalCiv devs' website -- which by the way looks spectacular; has anyone played it? cuz I was looking at "X3" and "X2" and remember how much fun "Elite" was a few decades ago, and how good of a gameply experience Freelancer "should" have been )

Fallout 3: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
Impressions from a player
By Annatar11 Posted October 29, 2008 07:25:38
So, after years of waiting Fallout 3 is finally here. I took half the day off work yesterday and only missed delivery of my box by about 40 minutes which wasn't too bad. I installed it immediately and got to playing (mostly nonstop the rest of the day).

So, how good is it?

The Good

- Atmosphere. Yes, it's no isometric Fallout 2 but I felt like Bethesda got the Fallout "feel" about right. You get to experience a little bit of the life in a vault as part of character creation and when you first step out and your eyes adjust to the light, you're immediately offered a pretty breathtaking vista. On your right, a broken and crumbled bridge with only the supports left intact. To your left, a winding path down the hill and the burned out ruins of some buildings. Looking far, far ahead you can see many more ruins of buildings big and small and you immediately get the feeling of "Yeah, so, this is definitely a wasteland".

- S.P.E.C.I.A.L. The traditional Fallout character progression system is pretty well preserved. It didn't survive in its completeness, but it's very close. You get the same attributes, you earn EXP to level up (no more cheesy Oblivion-like system), distribute skill points among the traditional skills, pick perks. One notable thing is the exclusion of traits. In the old Fallouts, on character creation you could pick two traits that are with you from the beginning. These don't exist in FO3. Also, you get to pick a perk with each level rather than every so often. There are new perks added and a bunch of them have several ranks. Some of the skills also have a bit of a different functionality. For example, in the Fallouts the Doctor/First Aid skills increased your chances to self heal. Self healing like that isn't possible in FO3, and the Medicine skill (combined Doctor/First Aid) increases the amount of hp you gain from stim packs, for example.

- Voice acting. When the first Megaton trailer hit, there was a lot of complaining about recycled voice actors. So far, most of the characters I encountered could be talked to with various dialogue trees and they've all had unique voices. In some games, it's pretty easy to tell that the voice overs aren't very enthusiastic. Not so in Fallout 3. You hear patronizing voices, condescending, hateful.. Hell, one girl you meet actually has a pretty believable emo tone when she talks about cutting her wrists in the moonlight surrounded by candles wearing her pretty black dress (long story..). These characters feel like they have actual personality. One rather excited store owner you meet can best be described as "bouncy". She always talks in a very upbeat, cheery voice that really gives you a feel for her personality. Now, it has been ages since I played Oblivion so I can't honestly say how many actors were re-used, but just playing FO3 I would say the voice acting in general is superb.

- Combat (VATS). So, VATS is the new combat system and it's pretty damned ingenious. It basically tries to bridge real time and the turn based combat of the previous games. When you hit the VATS key, action pauses. You can scroll through available targets and select body parts to shoot. You then queue attacks (each gun uses some number of action points to shoot in VATS, and you can only queue as much as you have APs for) and execute. You can queue however you like. You can do 3 shots to one target's head, or a shot to each of 3 targets' heads. The awesome part of VATS is that how you see the enemy counts. For example, a super mutant with a minigun holds it in his right arm, with the left supporting. When you're staring at one, the left arm is in front of the body and covers up the right arm - so in VATS, you have a much higher chance to hit the left arm than the right. Another example is those crab things we saw from the videos. They have a "face" protected by the shell. Sometimes, they lower their head so their outer shell blocks your vision of the face which means you can't even target the face in VATS. It's a great system, and once you start using it it's hard to stop. You can shoot in real-time without it of course, but VATS is just too much fun.

- Humor. Yep, there's plenty of it. From the emo girl to the bouncy store owner writing a book on how to survive the "basic" wasteland dangers of finding food, medicine, and not getting blown up by land mines, to an exam questionaire during your stay in the vault that asks such questions as "Your grandmother hands you a gun and tells you to kill another Vault citizen. What do you do?" and having one of the available responses "Ask for a minigun, after all you don't want to miss". A lot of characters have their own little bits of humorous conversation or tones.

- AI. It's a bit early to be definitive here, but so far the AI seems pretty good. It hasn't been doing stupid stuff like getting stuck, and seems to be pretty smart in combat. In general, people tend to drop their weapons when you shoot their arms. Usually that's a good thing since them punching you is better than shooting you. It becomes decidedly less good when a second super mutant decides to pick up a minigun that another mutant dropped, though.

- Item repair. In FO3, your armor and guns wear out. Guns do less damage, armor offers less protection. You can pay various merchants to repair your stuff.. or you can do your own that goes along with your Repair skill. The way it works is you repair by salvaging parts from similar items. If you want to repair your 10mm pistol by yourself, you need to have other 10mm pistols in your inventory. Those get destroyed, and depending on your Repair skill you repair your original a certain amount. It's a pretty neat take on a durability system.

NOTE: I can't comment very much on the story since I just barely scratched the surface, so I'm not including it.






The Bad

- UI. It's obvious Bethesda didn't put any extra effort in the PC version. The UI is suited for consoles, but severely lacking for PCs. In basic functionality, it's similar to Oblivion in that you open your Pip Boy and it has various screens that you can navigate through. Armor, Weapons, Aids (chems, stims), Ammo. Then there's your stats, your SPECIAL screen, skills, maps, quests, notes, so on so forth. The problem is there's no quick access and no hotkeys for anything. If you want to use a stim, you have to open the pip boy and navigate through the list of aids to find the stim and use it. You can't assign weapons to hotkeys, so to switch out a weapon you have to open the Pip Boy each and every time. The Pip Boy itself looks good and inline with what should appear in the setting, but it's a very cumbersome system. You get used to it, but I still wish they at least had hotkeys for weapon switching/stims.

Edit: Per kryo's sage advice to RTFM, there is a way to assign up to 8 hotkeys for items. I missed it on my first quick pass through the manual. Holding down the hotkey and left clicking on the item will bind the item to the hotkey (so, same system as Oblivion).

- Map. It's not that it's "bad" per se, it's just not easily readable. It's basically a single color (depends on what color you chose for your UI in the options) and just tries to differentiate different areas with shades of that color. It fits in with the Pip Boy theme, but doesn't do much for making maps easy to look at. For example, in one area the world map there was a big black gap - which normally gives you the impression that it's not something you can navigate through. That would be the wrong impression, because most of that area turned out to be pretty normal land. Maybe the map just shows elevation and since that area was "below" the horizontal it showed blacked out? Who knows. There's also a local map for the nearby area/building schematics but that's no easier to read. Corridors and pathways don't show very clearly at all. I was in one mine with narrow pathways, but on the map it was impossible to tell what was a path and what was a wall when zoomed out to be able to see the whole layout - and it was not that big of a mine.






The Ugly

- It's obvious also that the PC version didn't get much special loving with textures. It looks good, but the textures could've been made higher resolution to take advantage of more memory generally available for PCs. It doesn't quite stand out like a very sore thumb, but if you go up to a wrecked/burned car, well.. it doesn't look very prettily textured. Other than that, the game really looks great.



All in all, I think it's a great game. It's not perfect, but so far it definitely seems like a worthwhile addition to the Fallout family of games. I'll post more stuff here if I think of anything

[Melbosa]

LOL DD sometimes you just crack me up with your posts.  You went to another game developers website, read the forums and posted a review from that website about another game, then asked about the original game developers latest game in a forum thread that has nothing to do with it at all (even a different genre of game, not even remotely related to Fallout 3).

To answer your question, Sins of a Solar Empire is a very slow game, and a very tactful one.  Multiplayer a game could last 5-10 hours.  And it isn't an open world running on its own on a dedicated server either.  So yes I have played it.  Very nice graphics, but too much time to play one single game with others.

Back to Fallout 3....  I tried the first 20mins last night... and enjoyed the character creation sequence very nicely.  Instead of just asking you your gender, looks, stats, etc, the game starts you out in a delivery room.  Your father asks, over the nurses shoulder, "Lets see what you are..." and a dialog opens up asking you Guy or Girl.  Then some more dialog, and the father asks "What should we call you..." and a dialog opens up with Player Name highlighted for you to enter a name.

I don't want to spoil it further, but the next level where you are 1 year old just about had me in tears laughing.  You can walk around going Dadda, Gugga, Daddieeeeeeee with a push of a button.  FUNNY!

I didn't play much more; have other games to play at the moment; and by chance tried Dead Space after this one... too bad, as I shouldn't have, because Dead Space puts Fallout 3's graphics back on the shelf, with Jersey in hand, saying "Thanks for coming out, keep the Jersey".

[Melbosa]

I forgot to mention, this one is a direct port from the 360 version.  Even picked up my 360 controller that I have plugged into my PC, assigned all the 360 controls to it, and even the menus were asking me to press Y or B or A to complete transactions.

Only reason I mention this is that, on the PC, you can:

A) Get a higher Resolution than 1080P
B) Are ways to get a "full featured demo" to try before you buy
C) The PC version is the first to fully utilize the Games for Windows Live! features, which allows you to get the same downloadable content that the 360 people get, and I think the Achievement system might exist too (can't confirm that)
D) And the BIG ONE!  The PC version is $10 cheaper!

[Lazybones]

traded Fable 2 for fallout 3 today. Just getting started but the intro has been enjoyable.

[Darren Dirt]

The stuffy ol' G&M has even got enough of teh hipness to get someone to review it...
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20081028.wgtfallout1028/BNStory/PersonalTech/

CHAD SAPIEHA

Special to Globetechnology.com

October 28, 2008 at 7:07 PM EST

Reviewed on: Xbox 360
Also available for: PlayStation 3, Windows PC

The Good: Post-apocalyptic wastelands are stunningly realized. Unique FPS combat delivers gruesomely cinematic action sequences. Engrossing character development system.
The Bad: Character models and facial animations don't quite measure up to those of other top-tier games. Time consuming inventory system can be a drag.
The Verdict: Set it in one of the most dauntingly enormous game worlds yet created, this post-atomic holocaust adventure masterfully combines* role-playing smarts with a slick first-person shooter presentation.

The reviewer "Chad" apparently loves the game, and the commenters agree...
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20081028.wgtfallout1028/CommentStory/PersonalTech/



*dammit, FPS combined with RPG? This Guy With Not Enough Free Time On His Hands immediately thought of the original Deus Ex ... combined with a dark sense of humour, oh how can I resist...

it's about as close to flawless as I've seen in a game of this ilk. Bethesda Softworks has masterfully melded role-playing game intelligence with heart-pounding first-person shooter action, and set it in one of the largest, most immersive and compelling game worlds yet made. Fallout 3 is a strong contender for best game of the year, and will be seen as a benchmark for open-world interactive entertainment for years to come.

:sweet:

[Lazybones]

Far deeper and complex than fable 2.

Still not very far yet, finding it a bit hard in places.

[Mr. Analog]

I bought it on Friday night thru Steam and tried it this weekend.

I tried to make a smart guy who has proficiency with laser weapons... unfortunately all those attributes are useless for what the game seems to demand (so far).

The urge to make a big fighty jerk is tempting.

[Lazybones]

The Science skill is generally useful right away for hacking computers, I put skill into laser weapons as well, but so far the laser pistol I found isn't that good.

[Tonnica]

So far so good!

Character Build
As with any big sandbox game like this it's best to choose a simple build and stick with it. I chose to roll a kind of "gentleman thief". Max Charisma (10), high Agility, high Luck, below average (lower than 5) for everything else. My key objectives in the game are: be able to pick locks with a high success rate, have a very high success rate for convincing NPCs to give me things, and steal really nice hats.

Having a good lockpick skill means that early in the game I had access to lockers, locked boxes, and rooms where ammo and other useful items were stored. I didn't have a problem with ammo starting out because I could load up on things I found in the wasteland. Lockpicking has a minigame feel to it, as does computer hacking. The minigame feel isn't bad in my opinion as it's been fairly spread out for me so far.

Experience So Far
I'm enjoying the western style of the updated Fallout system. Gear has weight in pounds and depending on your strength stat you can carry more or less. My STR stat was only 3 when I rolled because it was one of my "dump" stats. I am now level 4 and can carry an amazingly forgiving 180lbs of gear. When I exceed my carrying limit I can no longer run due to being over-encumbered. This is a pretty big pain because the walking speed in Fallout 3 is slow slow slow. The set walking speed feels more natural while exploring buildings and tight corridors but can be agonizing during exploration of the wasteland. Travel time is at least partly cut by the Pip-Boy instant teleport function that allows you to jump to any previously discovered location.

As far as the Pickpocket ability goes it's interesting and tricky to use at times. You must crouch while out of sight to become Hidden, then you must sneak up on the target undetected to be able to rifle through their pockets. As of level 4 I cannot steal equipped items off a character so I'm thinking it may not be possible to swipe the hat off an NPC's head without disabling them first.

My Fancy Stolen Hats count is up to 4 and includes the fedora of an important NPC who crossed the law in Megaton.

And finally, speaking of stealing here's a big one:

Karma's A B1@*#
Your character interactions can give you positive or negative karma depending on how you answer. Agreeing to help without asking for more Caps generally nets you some positive karma. Stealing or extorting for money nets you negative karma. Your total karma affects how people react to you just as much if not more than how you choose to answer character-type questions. If you've been a goody-goody some people will sneer at you and refuse to team up because your style doesn't "mesh" with theirs. If you've gone and accidentally killed someone in plain sight (a huge karma hit) everyone starts chasing you like you were at 5-stars in GTA. And trust me, everyone has a gun they're willing to shoot at you with. Even the kids.

So far my main use of the positive karma I've gained is to couple it with the Speech ability and get people to give me the keys to locked "stashes" of goodies. Sure I could pickpocket the keys, but in some cases it's too hard to get in the Hidden state around NPCs to swipe anything. For now I'm satisfied to be the goody-goody being pursued by angry bounty hunters because it nets me more items and ammo which in turn nets me more hats per hour of game play.

(Edit: added a little something about the minigame feel of lockpicking and replaced "bumped" with "killed", I am not a gangster geeze)

[Lazybones]

I love the lock picking and hacking mini games, they feel more real than the goofy puzzles or button mashing memory games most games have.

[Lazybones]

So I was playing a super goody goody, and then I finally broke down and started stealing. Turns out if you have super karma, and you steal it isn't so bad as long as you don't get caught.

It is possible to get your own place to live and it makes things so much easier. If you get the apt in megaton you can sleep when ever you want to heal, get unlimited secure storage, and access to filtered water (+20hp). Of course if you blow up the town you sort of don't have that option.

[Mr. Analog]

So I was playing a super goody goody, and then I finally broke down and started stealing. Turns out if you have super karma, and you steal it isn't so bad as long as you don't get caught.

It is possible to get your own place to live and it makes things so much easier. If you get the apt in megaton you can sleep when ever you want to heal, get unlimited secure storage, and access to filtered water (+20hp). Of course if you blow up the town you sort of don't have that option.

How'd you get your own place?

[Thorin]

It is possible to get your own place to live  [..] Of course if you blow up the town you sort of don't have that option.

ROFL

This is sounding like an interesting game...  Now to just find some time

[Lazybones]

So I was playing a super goody goody, and then I finally broke down and started stealing. Turns out if you have super karma, and you steal it isn't so bad as long as you don't get caught.

It is possible to get your own place to live and it makes things so much easier. If you get the apt in megaton you can sleep when ever you want to heal, get unlimited secure storage, and access to filtered water (+20hp). Of course if you blow up the town you sort of don't have that option.

How'd you get your own place?

Well if you DON'T plan on blowing up the place, you could always defuse the threat of the bomb.