Fallout 3 Preview

By Kieron Gillen Published 25 April, 2008

Out, believe it or not, in the fall.

Given that the developer is responsible for the most successful Western-style RPG of recent years, Oblivion, it was a little surprising, during Fallout 3's demonstration, to get the sense of a team with something to prove. While there's much about FO3 that recalls Oblivion, there are also regular elements that arise as if to signify, "You know - we're good enough to deal with a legend as big as Fallout. Watch this." In itself, this is a tad touching. A team like Bethesda would probably be justified in going, "Damn the lot of you - our way is the best way." The result is something that - on these impressions - seems to be the next logical step on from Oblivion, while infusing as much of what made Fallout Fallout as they reasonably can.

While they showed a lot more afterward, the sensation's most apparent in the opening sequence. The game's central plot - though it allows you to ignore it completely and go and do your own thing - is your Liam Neeson-voiced dad disappearing, and you being sent out into the wastes to try and find him. While having that particular voice be your dad buys significant sympathy, you can easily see this failing to engender enough motivation if you start the game and are given a plain order to Go Get Pops. I don't know Pops! Why should I care?

So, Bethesda's stroke of inspiration is a return to the old RPG standard of moving through your childhood playing out key events and you making decisions which shape your future. Of course, with modern technology this has mutated from simple question-and-answer to a walkthrough of life in the radioactive shelter, the Vault, in which you observe life at birth, one, ten, sixteen and - the start of the game - nineteen years old. It's ten that made me start to see the message-to-gamer most.

'Fallout 3' Screenshot 1

Don't seduce dogs in junkyards, readers. Trust us.

It's at your birthday party, and you've just received your Pip Boy wrist terminal and promised your first work detail, but between the amusement of robots ruining birthday cakes, you get your initial conversations. The first one is standard enough (though it introduces the concept of lying), but the next one we're shown is with a bullying peer by the name of Butch, where you appear to have at least six cake-related options available; everything from a diplomatic, sharing-it-fifty-fifty option, to the openly perverse provocation of spitting in it and then giving it him. Bethesda's Pete Hines, demoing, stresses that these options will all play out differently down the line. The point is to show that we're a long way from the "Yes, I'll help you"/"Yes, I'll help you for three pounds fifty and a cheeseburger"/"I WILL KILL YOU AND TAKE YOUR STUFF" conversation options with which most modern RPGs satisfy themselves. Hines and co. have talked about the game being a much more dense conversational game than Oblivion, and this is them showing how they're walking the walk as well as talking the post-apocalyptic talk. About talk.

There's some other neat stuff in the opening, too: any game which starts you between your mother's legs, looking up at your dad, and being able to bawl by pressing a button deserves a round of applause. It's at this point you also decide what you're going to look like as an adult, and then the game - from your choices - generates what your Dad would have looked like. Also worthy of a quick appreciative nod is the age of one sequence, where as a Toddler you make your way around your room making the literal first baby steps in the game. You also select your future abilities in a fully illustrated kids' book called "You're Special!", arranging your assorted statistics. Is it too much to read this as a pointed eye-rolling at the perennial accusation of dumbing down? I suspect not.

Then later, after you've left the Vault, you end up getting your faithful hound, Dogmeat. As well as an ideal thing to satisfy fans of the originals, and keeping up the post-apocalyptic reference of Harlan Ellison's Boy And His Dog, the hound is an ideal companion in a game which promises to allow you a wide variety of moral stances. A dog doesn't care if you're good or bad - just that you're its master. He's a useful pet to have around: you can order him to go off and find something, like a firearm, and he'll go off searching until he finds one lying around. Clearly, telling him to do this near an enemy base may not be that smart. You're also able to order him not to attack or stay safely behind in areas where you don't want a mutt getting hurt. There are other NPCs who can join you, related to your personal karma, which changes depending on your actions. Basically, nice guys tend to get people who are similarly nice, and bastards flock together.

Combat including the VATS (Vault-tec Assisted Targeting System) is also demonstrated - and here my expectations are somewhat confounded. I came not entirely convinced by the VATS system's utility - it struck me as the worst of both possible real-time and turn-based worlds - and leaving quietly impressed. Related to your dexterity, you gain an amount of pause-time, which you can spend on specifically calling shots - for example, aiming at arms to lose their weapons or just pummelling their body to knock them down. This then plays out in a cinematic video of the conflict, with agreeably macho angles. It looks actually stylish - in fact, this turn-based-game with 360-era graphics makes me even think that a fully turn-based game would have worked. Why can't we have a turn-based game which goes for a crazy graphic effect? It'll have the attraction of being distinctive, anyway.

This is especially pointed as the non-turn-based side fails to convince as much as you'd hope. While "Oblivion with guns" has been the rather sarcastic description from cynics, my personal take was... well, I'd kill for Oblivion with guns. Probably using a gun. It'd be everything we traditionally have to opt for an RPG to get at, but with a setting that's a little less derivative. Sold. The problem only struck me after watching a battle with mutants. You see, at the time of release, Oblivion was probably as good as a first-person sword combat game as we'd had. It wasn't mind-blowing, but no-one had done it better. Even now, only the PC version of Dark Messiah is a peer. Conversely, everyone in the world has done gun combat - and the second you take this angle, you're immediately competing on some level with Valve, Bungie, et al.

'Fallout 3' Screenshot 2

Size Zero diets are a no-win.

Which is unfair, but that's how it is. On a personal level, I found Mass Effect had a similar problem - the hope has to be that Fallout has a similar grace to Bioware's game. That is, the combat is just about good enough to serve the purpose the game demands of it, and leaves the rest of the game's charms to get its hooks into you. When there's elements like the nuclear rocket launcher - with very rare ammunition, obviously - which irradiates the area of the strike, you begin to see how placing this sort of combat in a larger setting could lead to something with a character and appeal of its own.

In other words, there's much to be excited about with Fallout 3. With BioShock putting 1950s retro-futurism back on the scene, Fallout's return serves as a timely reminder of who actually applied the approach to games in the first place. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. showed how an open world and claustrophobic setting could pay dividends, but for those of us who found it a little too light, a more true-RPG approach is welcome. And for those who Oblivion was a bit too Land-of-the-Fairies, the dense and atmospheric Fallout universe offers a very different experience. As with any game as big of this, we'll only really get a chance to see how it hangs together when we stride out into the waste to see what's out there. I'm looking forward to it.

Fallout 3 is due out on PS3, 360 and PC later this year. Check back soon for some Q&A action with Pete Hines.

Picture of Kieron.

About Kieron Gillen

Kieron is one of the founders of the lovely Rock, Paper, Shotgun and nowadays writes comics for Marvel starring characters that even his mum has heard of.

Read more articles from Kieron by visiting the Kieron Gillen archive page.

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Comments (73) Latest comment 4 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Psychotext #1 4 years ago

    FALL!?!

    What... is this suddenly USGamer?

  • mingster #2 4 years ago

    I need a new PC ... i want this a lot.

  • NthSimulachum #3 4 years ago

    EEeeeeee!

    By the way, it should be:

    "And for those who [thought/felt] Oblivion was a bit too Land-of-the-Fairies, the dense and atmospheric Fallout universe offers a very different experience."

    The Pedants will not rest, Gillen.

  • muscleblade #4 4 years ago

    "Out, believe it or not, in the fall."

    I believe it when i see it.

  • Katsumoto #5 4 years ago

    Autumnout isn't the name of the game, though ;). But, whilst' we're spotting americanisms, it's "afterwards".

    /slaps self

    Anyway, I'm glad you were left impressed overall. As i've said in the forums, I think the best approach to take to this if you're a giant fallout fanboy twat like myself, is forget the fact it's Fallout 3, and just play it for what it is. I loved Oblivion after all (just not as much as I love Fallout). If I treat it as Fallout 3 expectations will be impossibly high, but I have no doubt this well end up one of the best games of the year regardless.

  • Optyk #6 4 years ago

    Can't wait.

  • Prodigy_BE #7 4 years ago

    Raise hands everyone who thought Oblivion had you chasing that red marker all the way through the game, completely shattering the feeling that you where this guy (or girl, or lizard, or... well, you know) who had to FIND stuff in this wonderful world.

    The previous one, on Xbox, was a lot better when it came to that.

    I hope they fix that in Fallout (huge fan of the old PC ones), because that kinda took Oblivion down a notch for me.

  • Bitkari #8 4 years ago

    Do Want.

  • penhalion #9 4 years ago

    :) ahh the ol' red marker.

    Yea the main quest in oblivion isn't actually that long. It's a simple ahnd holding thing where you jump from one oblivion gate to the next until you get the medalion back.

  • BiscuitBase #10 4 years ago

    But will it be as good as HAZE?

  • sn3jk #11 4 years ago

    Hoping for EPIC WIN

    Got a semi while reading :(

  • NthSimulachum #12 4 years ago

    A semi-automatic? Or a semi-erect penis?

  • Xerx3s #13 4 years ago

    \0/

  • Widge #14 4 years ago

    I didn't mind alot of the criticisms that you read RE:oblivion on the TES forums; fast travel, compass etc

    What I really didn't like was the level scaling that lead to you levelling up massively rather quickly, suddenly faced by daedric armour wearing bandits and getting trounced somewhat badly. The tip to playing the game was to set skills that you don't use as your majors so you don't level up too fast and not hit your +5 bonuses.

    This, by all reports, is fixed in Fallout 3. As you go into new areas, creatures there are fixed at your level, but stay at that level. This means that if you go somewhere that is hard, you can go away and train to sort that bit out later. Also means you don't suddenly lose all the lower level creatures in the world too.

    AM hoping they actually bother to fix the bugs in the game, only PC owners got the ability to sort out all the holes in Obv thanks to the modders.

  • Britesparc Verified Creative, ITV #15 4 years ago

    Wow, two RPGs with dogs in one year. Excellent.

  • Weezer #16 4 years ago

    After GTAwhore, this and GoW2 are the things I'm most looking forward to.

    Ah, but on what format: PS3 or 360? Oh the stress of modern day life...

  • Moz #17 4 years ago

    Yeh the bit about the dog did make me think of fable, does sound a little "look we have a dog companion too"

  • Killerbee #18 4 years ago

    I'm very much liking the look of this. Oblivion is one of those games I keep dipping into to do a few more missions every now and again, so something with more of a futuristic setting would be cool. The almost, sort of turn-based combat sounds very interesting too.

  • TriggerHippie #19 4 years ago

    As long as there are HI-larious over the top critical hits, I'll be happy.

  • Katsumoto #20 4 years ago

    "Ah, but on what format: PS3 or 360? Oh the stress of modern day life..."

    If it's anything like Oblivion, neither! Go for PC so within a few months modders will have fixed the inevitably dreadful interface ;)
    Although who knows, maybe some of the mods will be available on the ps3 this time around.

  • Daxxy #21 4 years ago

    No its not a we have a dog too...

    It's look Fans of Fallout, Dogmeat is in the game!

  • Zanuah #22 4 years ago

    Will be getting this for PC... Especially for the added Mod support, which it will most likely have.

  • UncleLou #23 4 years ago

    All paltform fanboyism aside, this one really needs to be bought for the PC. The mod scene for Oblivion was just fantastic, and turned it into a significantly better game.

  • Widge #24 4 years ago

    I doubt we'll see mods on PS3 as beths:

    a) can't be bothered to patch the bugs
    b) can't be bothered to provide DLC

    meh

  • chicknstu #25 4 years ago

    I still can't believe this is happening. It's going to be fantastic!

    Expect 'Gamers' to ignore it en-masse.

  • Saladin #26 4 years ago

    Any game that features a mini-gun = win.

  • Ergates_Antius #27 4 years ago

    @Psychotext: Seeing as no-one else has pointed this out, I might as well...

    It's Fallout. Its OUT in FALL. OUT - FALL. FALL - OUT. It's a pun - do you see?

  • mischief #28 4 years ago

    can you ask them to puch it back a few months?
    i might actually finish Oblivion by then

  • quantumsheep #29 4 years ago

    Awesome stuff. Particularly intrigued by the 'flashback' bits of your life.

  • PameBoy #30 4 years ago

    My main problem with Oblivion was that it was unutterably, relentlessly, rip-out-your-hair-and-sew-your-eyes-and-mouth-shut boring. Even WAITING for stuff is less boring than oblivion, because at least if you're waiting you can daydream about something more interesting.

    Make games smaller, and cram them up to the ears with stuff to do. No more "four miles of open terrain with fuck all in it" please, even if we are dealing with a barren, post-apocalyptic wasteland.

  • Khanivor #31 4 years ago

    Here's hoping the rest of the game is as good as the wonderful sounding beginning.

    And Fall is actually an older English word than autumn.

  • hannibaldave #32 4 years ago

    @ Ergates_Antius: Actually the 5th comment down said that...

  • GitSomE_UK #33 4 years ago

    EG - We have Autumn in Europe FALL is a bastardised Americanism and we won't have any of that here. Naughty EG, naughty!

    Fallout 3... I have wood - That is all.

  • Khanivor #34 4 years ago

    GitSome, you are wrong. How can something derived from Olde English be an Americanism? A word in use probably before even that Viking fella set sail, let alone Columbus...

    Anyway, why let etymology get in the way of a good pun?

  • konnsky #35 4 years ago

    im just about to read this, just wanna say one thing - excited!

  • Azazel #36 4 years ago

    frod: Fucking dingbat morons.

    :D

  • konnsky #37 4 years ago

    "..in fact, this turn-based-game with 360-era graphics makes me even think that a fully turn-based game would have worked. Why can't we have a turn-based game which goes for a crazy graphic effect?"

    exactly my thougths as well..

  • henneth #38 4 years ago

    Ah - it's almost indecent how much I want to get my greasy little mitts on this, the illicit love-child of my two favourite series of games.

    It's reassuring to see how revered the Fallout universe appears to be within Bethesda - I just hope the have the balls to retain the more dubious aspects of the Wasteland in, what is after all, going to be much more of a commercial game than the originals.

    Actually, I can't decide what I'm most looking forward to: actually playing the game or pissing myself laughing at the histrionics of some of the dolts on the No Mutants Allowed forums...

  • foamy #39 4 years ago

    I didn't understand one thing. The turn-based thing with the time pause is only in the called-shots, or is the full combat like that?

  • UncleLou #40 4 years ago

    vMake games smaller, and cram them up to the ears with stuff to do. No more "four miles of open terrain with fuck all in it" please, even if we are dealing with a barren, post-apocalyptic wasteland.

    Absolutely terrible idea. I love wandering through spacious landscapes in games. I don't need to stumble upon something "interesting" every few meters. Now Oblivion had its fair share of problems, and the rather uninspired landscape design was one of them, but a game like Stalker showed how just wandering around can be a reward in itself. if done right, it can create tons of atmosphere.

  • tapper #41 4 years ago

    Expectations

    As a fun game: moderate to high
    As a worthy successor to Fallout: low to very low



  • holy_bazooka #42 4 years ago

    sorry but i have to do this, its too important and people dont get it.
    "...this is a tad touching."--no it is not.
    "A team like Bethesda would probably be justified in going, "Damn the lot of you - our way is the best way.""--thats exactly what they have done, all along the dev time.
    "The result is something that - on these impressions - seems to be the next logical step on from Oblivion, while infusing as much of what made Fallout Fallout as they reasonably can."--exactly the problem. Oblivion was/is a great game, played 100's of hours of it but Fallout way too important to be the next step in some studio progression. It deserves a better deal. It deserves to be its own game.
    "...neat stuff in the opening,"--It was good ehh.., we'll see if its good the 60th time your unsatisfied with character and want to start again.
    "As well as an ideal thing to satisfy fans of the originals, and keeping up the post-apocalyptic reference of Harlan Ellison's Boy And His Dog,"-- How charming, all boxes ticked in, I see.
    "Why can't we have a turn-based game which goes for a crazy graphic effect?"-- Finally some sanity.

    The thing that bugs me about this whole thing is that its called Fallout 3 but its not, its just beth's new game. Its sad when a series as good as fallout is end up as padding on someones cv.

    /takes one long look back and rides into the sunset

  • sirtacos #43 4 years ago


    Screw GTAIV, I want Fallout 3. NOW.

  • Trikk #44 4 years ago

    Lolling at console users. Of course you hated Oblivion, it was never targeted for a casual audience (even if they dumbed it down significantly compared to Morrowind).

    The great thing about Elder Scrolls 3 and 4 are the mods.

  • no #45 4 years ago

    m0t0rbikes?!?!


    (sorry)

  • sirtacos #46 4 years ago

    I love you.

  • Kostabi #47 4 years ago

    I want this. Lots.

  • Grayvern #48 4 years ago

    It could work out better i mean by the time you got high level in fallout killing radscorpions or ants, ie broken hills mines, got to be an annoyance. In this i could drop to real time and blast em.

    We better get radscorpions and ants mind you and the nuclear ammo rocket launcher still sounds bloody dumb.

  • Grayvern #49 4 years ago

    But i would like to say no developer has the right to say screw you ill do it my way, because then their games become unplayable homage to their own collective ego's.

    And they have done that, they refused help from members of the Black isle fallout team. (It's like if James Herbert decided to prequels to Frank herbert's Dune (interesting as story exposition but nowhere near as well written) Wait that did happen and the results will be about the same.

    The Nuclear rocket launcher does not fit in with fallout, an alien blaster you say, well that and the other future guns were all understated enough to work. That and Fallout 2 was blatantly not polished enough for the more game breaking comedy to be taken out.

    Im not worried about the combat system, I haven't been worried for months since ive seen the previews on many other sights.

    Finally frankly Eurogamer staff I find your love of Oblivion perplexing, just like WOW. Both games eventually become more like jobs because the plots just aren't that good.


  • _Price_ #50 4 years ago

    This is the combat system I want! As with Mr. Gillen, I'd probably prefer it to be a bit more turn-based but otherwise it sounds like exactly the sort of mix of ES/KotOR that I've been looking for.

  • Mashum #51 4 years ago

    It's a pity you didn't find the Obliv story lines and world to your taste...it was the interwoven bits of story filled in by the NPCs and books and notes and stuff that helped me to forget I was playing a game. It kept me going for many tens of hours after I had seen all of the art assets had to offer.

  • Lawlost #52 4 years ago

    This is bound to be an excellent game but I am preaching to the converted. No doubt it will be ignored by the masses who prefer mass effect the lack of comments so far is testiment to this......

  • The-Bodybuilder #53 4 years ago

    >"No doubt it will be ignored by the masses who prefer mass effect..."

    Would you like a WAAAAAHHHHHHHHmbulance?
    Quit your whinning and take it like a man, this thread is brimming with bitterness (from certain folks). Mass Effect is a great game, fantastic even. Geez, some of you old-school PC guys really irk me, having such low-appreciation of consoles because PC games usually don't match up (in terms of sales) to console games. It's like wondering into one of those wii threads, where everyone bitches over the fact that it's aimed at the mass market.

    I personally was looking forward to this, but I'm not 100% convinced on the battle system. There, I said it, I don't like turned-based games. Never liked them, kept trying, and probably never will (other than pokemon). I'm sure some of you classic RPG nuts will probably start foaming at the mouth that such a lowly, console peasant like me will dare to have my own taste other than the one that fits in with a true gamer.

    I'm 90% certain that the people will begin to resent fable2 if it sells more (sort of like how certain PC fanboys hate any sucessful console FPS like halo or goldeneye), simply because;
    1. Some people here view the games as similar, just because they both are western-rpgs, both out on the 360 (but obviously fallout is multiplatform), and both have dogs.
    2. Some will ofcourse see fable as an rpg "dumbed down for the masses", therefore not worthy enough to get thier support.
    3.It's gonna sell more.
    My slight fear is that EG are sometimes suceptable to such things.

    Oh, and for anyone who cares, I've never played any of the fallout games before and don't even know what they look like. Yes, I am a console gamer, feel free to look down upon me.

  • _Price_ #54 4 years ago

    Entirely turn-based combat always tends to be on the dull side, or becomes dull with time (like as soon as you realise the exact order of attacks that will destroy anything after two and half rounds). On the face of it the system in Fallout 3 has the potential to be a truely interesting pseudo-turn-based effort that'll play out like a cross between Mass Effect, Final Fantasy XII, Neverwinter Nights, KotOR and Future Tactics than your typical affair.

    Still, just have to wait and see if it lives up to my building expectations.
    Edited by 1 at 26/04/08 @ 21:40

  • Katsumoto #55 4 years ago

    @ the bodybuilder,

    fine, you've never played fallout and you hate traditional rpgs, but your complete dismissal of the earlier fallouts and their fans doesn't exactly ring you out as being any more tolerant.

    The point is, this isn't Post-Apocalyptico 1 or Barren Wasteland 1, it's Fallout THREE, and it's not, therefore, asking too much to at least admit the expectations that will be out there.

    :)

    p.s. you should really try Fallout! Fucking amazing game. Just cuz it isn't played with a pad doesn't mean you wont enjoy it!

  • peak_performance #56 4 years ago

    Heck, Fallout 3 isn't even turn based and it's dumbed down for console masses. Like Fable 2. So don't worry, bodybuilder-man.

  • Henrik_se #57 4 years ago

    I loved Fallout, I hated Oblivion. My expectations are loooooow for this game. :-/

  • The-Bodybuilder #58 4 years ago

    >"fine, you've never played fallout and you hate traditional rpgs, but your complete dismissal of the earlier fallouts and their fans doesn't exactly ring you out as being any more tolerant. "

    I have not or did not "dismiss" the earlier fallouts, neither have I even dismissed this one. I do dismiss those fans who are suffering from a severe case of elitism, and feel the need to attack console gamers, console gaming and specific console games (specifically mass effect) to justify why this fallout 3 comments thread hasn't reached the same popular heights as other console games.

    Specifically, I dismiss PC fanboys, who tend to be very elitist, and hide thier fanboyism (which is no better than any other type of fonboyism) under the sharade of being patronising.

    I mean, the fact that I read 2 pages worth of preview and the comments page is indicationtion that I am interested in this game, as I'm a sucker for these sort of settings anyways.
    P.S: My reason for not playing any previous fallout is because I simply don't have the time. That goes for any console game too.

  • craziii #59 4 years ago

    I am praying that this game doesn't have generic dungeons like oblivion or that dumb dumb auto lvling of mobs.

  • sirtacos #60 4 years ago

    "This is bound to be an excellent game but I am preaching to the converted. No doubt it will be ignored by the masses who prefer mass effect the lack of comments so far is testiment to this......"

    Quit your misplaced snobbery. Your pedestal isn't high enough for you to turn your nose up at Mass Effect.

  • f00b_inc #61 4 years ago

    Is it worth going back to play Fallout 1/2 if you haven't... ? Have they dated well?

  • sirtacos #62 4 years ago

    More or less f00b. It takes some getting used to but all things considered the games have aged very well. I was frankly startled at the amount of choice available. I'd give them a go, they're dirt cheap anyway and take up very little space.

  • UncleLou #63 4 years ago

    Specifically, I dismiss PC fanboys, who tend to be very elitist, and hide thier fanboyism (which is no better than any other type of fonboyism) under the sharade of being patronising.

    It's games, not platform fanboyism, that's the big difference.It's all about the games. Don't blame the lack of quality of console gaming in certain areas on PC gamers. Console gaming has its place and terrific games, but the games just doesn't reach the deph of the best PCs had and have to offer. If you prefer that kind of games, be my guest, but don't deny that there's a difference - especially if you're a console-only gamer and don't even know the respective PC games. That's the funny thing anyhow, most people who prefer PC games also have consoles in my experience, while the console fanboys who cry the loudest about "elitism" never touched a PC game in their life.

    And FWIW, I think Bioware have become a bit shit before they ever released a console game.

  • Lawlost #64 4 years ago

    @the bodybuilder and sirtacos

    I own an xbox and also own Mass Effect. My point is that from past pedigree this is likely to be an excellent game, but because it will not launch with the hype of Mass Effect it is likely to be missed by the masses.

    +1 to UncleLou
    Edited by 2 at 27/04/08 @ 13:55

  • The-Bodybuilder #65 4 years ago

    >"Don't blame the lack of quality of console gaming in certain areas on PC gamers...while the console fanboys who cry the loudest about "elitism" never touched a PC game in their life."

    Please quote me on when I've said any such thing.
    Fanboyism is fanboyism. Just because it's for games, doesn't justify it or make it anymore acceptable. Ofcourse I've played games on my PC, specifically strategy games, and started online gaming on the PC. I just never viewed myself as one of those hardcore PC gamers, so never called myself one.
    And I may not know the history of certain great PC games, but the same applies to me for many console gamers too. Just because I'm ignorant of fallout is not indication that I never played games on the PC (thank you for your anecdotal "evidence" by the way), that's like saying because I never played chrono trigger, I have no knowledge of console j-rpgs.

    >"Console gaming has its place and terrific games, but the games just doesn't reach the deph of the best PCs had and have to offer."

    Perfect example of what I mean. Can you quantify this esoteric depth that PC games can reach that no console game can? Is it control? time? What exactly is this subjective quality? It's utterly subjective, and it cannot be defined, not matter how logical it seems to you.

    As I said, I am interested in this game (thus why I'm here), I just find it bizarre that people have felt the need to attack not only fallout 3, but to take pops at console gaming too.

  • The-Bodybuilder #66 4 years ago

    >"but because it will not launch with the hype of Mass Effect it is likely to be missed by the masses."

    I suggest you look back at many of the mass effect threads. Other than the review comments, most comments pages never went further than 2 pages.

    And besides, obvlivion sold like 1.5mil. Not bad considering it had even less hype than this (in the console community).

  • peak_performance #67 4 years ago

    @bodybuilder-man:
    It's not that the consoles inherently can't make "deep" games, it's just that it seldom does - there are som examples of the contrary of course.

    But looking at series that started out on the PC and lately have been developed with a focus on consoles, the trend is clear - Rainbow Six, Thief, Deus Ex, Bioshock (compared to System Shock 2)... not to mention fan favorite TES4 Oblivion, even though Morrowind wasn't that deep it was a step backwards.

    The thing is just... your stab at fanboyism from PC-users does seem quite off - this thread has been pretty clean so far, at least it was until you came and started shouting about WHAAAAAAAMbulances and everybody bitching 'bout console games selling more than PC games.

  • CunningLinguist #68 4 years ago

    Am I the only one here who likes Fallout 2 more than the original? And considering the head producer said it's gonna be more like the first one since they're not such big fans of winking at the camera, this is pretty much a no buy. Add this to the fact that they seem more keen on milking the name than making a worthy sequel to Fallout 2, and you got a bunch of greedy fucks. 5.6 million dollars for the license, they gotta make some money don't they? The true Fallout 3 was canceled, this is a joke.

  • craziii #69 4 years ago

    I dunno about true fall out 3, but I am excited about this game as a gamer.

    fallout 1 + 2 are dated, I cannot play it :( I point the finger at the person who claimed other wise. well, at least it cost me like 10 bucks, no biggie.

  • special_move #70 4 years ago

    @ Grayvern "the nuclear ammo rocket launcher still sounds bloody dumb."

    bloody dumb + military = win

    and here's the proof:
    http://ww w.noahshachtman.com/archives/00...

  • ph101 #71 4 years ago

    Looks like it will be ace. It does make me miss stalker though. I look forward to the sequel to that too.

  • lordvitriol #72 4 years ago

    Fallout 2 and all the other d&d games is probably the most overrated crap there is imo.

    Im not looking forward to this, i love scifi but in books and other genres not in RPG's, for PC i want TES5 because reinstalling Oblivion every few months is getting old and so is it.
    Edited by 2 at 28/04/08 @ 20:01

  • olirulesall #73 4 years ago

    "aiming at arms to lose their weapons or just pummelling their body to knock them down" what about aiming at the groin to make us piss ourselves laughing? that was one of the best parts of fallout 2! and people exploding in ridiculous ways when you blast them with the minigun? what people need to remember is that it was the certain aspects of immature comedy mixed in with the incredibly deep/open gameplay that made the fallout series such a massive hit with us all. But mainly it was shooting people in the groin ;)