NatsumeAshikaga

To most Fallout purists Fallout: New Vegas is the game that Fallout 3 should have been. Taking a broader step in to the first person arena, and bringing us back to the west makes this game stand head and shoulders above it's predecessor, and nearly shoulder to shoulder with Fallout 2. With current patches the bugs have been more or less squashed and stability improved to even better than Fallout 3 with current patches. So lets get on to the game it self. Like any self respecting Fallout title your character, the Courier in this case, starts with a fairly simple main task. This time the main task is getting revenge. From there the story expands and if you play your cards right you might just save the world. The good: The tweaks Obsidian gave the Gamebryo engine make this game look far more polished than Fallout 3 and makes things feel a bit more real. The characters in this game are much more colorful than 3's were and rival the characters of Fallout and Fallout 2. This game was worked on by a lot of old hands from Black Isle who developed the first two games, as a result the humor is back, in a very big way if you pick the Wild Wasteland trait. The game recaptures that desolate desert feeling of the originals and the open feeling they gave you. The music, especially on the radio is fantastic and really shapes up the atmosphere. Though I failed to mention it in my Fallout 3 review Fallout 3 does have that same feeling. On the subject of sound the voice talent is again top notch like all Fallout games. Ron Perlman returns yet again a s our Narrator, Michael Dorn returns as the Super Mutant Marcus, Wayne Newton graces our radios as Mr. New Vegas. Not to mention other huge stars and great voice actors who lend their voices in this game. With the most current patches the game feels solid and tight. Along with the Main game the DLC adds hours of fun to the game. Again having the PC version is paramount due to the mod-friendliness of the game, and again we get the GECK to make our own mods when the creativity bug bites. The mods are doubly important as they can extend the games life several times past the main play throughs of the game. Also like Fallout 3 this game rewards exploration, and if you can see it in the distance, chances are you can go there. The best part in my opinion is the return of the Super Mutants and Nightkin from the Miraposa Military Base/Masters Army. It's nice to have some intelligent Super Mutants wandering around rather than the dumb as dirt ones from Fallout 3. Possibly the best part is that this game more fully embraces the Lore of Fallout and adds back in a lot of the sleaze factor that made the originals so desolately charming. There are also some nods to the originals, though Fallout 3 had them there were fewer there than here, and they felt less sincere than this time. One last thing here, if you pick energy weapons as a tag skill to start, you get an energy weapon to start with, finally we're not punished for liking laser guns! The bad: Still no usable vehicles or mounts... Still that matters a lot less than it did in Fallout 3 due to better spacing of towns and outposts in which to resupply. We still didn't get back the vault doors of the originals which is somewhat disappointing. Some bugs still crop up with the newest patches, but I've yet to run into any game breakers. The path feels a bit linear compared to previous titles even the third instalment, still there are plenty of reasons to back track which makes it all worth while. The lack of intelligent Deathclaws and those nasty Wanamingos from Fallout 2 feel like a sorely missed opportunity. That damned companion limit of 2. Really please bring back the Charisma based companion limit. The final note on the bad: This game was made by Obsidian, and it feels like it. By that I mean it feels like there's a little bit missing, this is because there is a little bit missing. As with almost every Obsidian game a few things that really leave a gap when cut, were cut. This is almost always due to deadlines with Obsidian, and not for artistic reasons like exhibited by Black Isle. This is also why the game need as many patches as it received. Other thoughts: V.A.T.S. still feels useless in a real time game, but it's still very entertaining to kill enemies with it. Obsidian contains a lot of old hands from Black Isle Studio who made the original games. Final thoughts: This really does seem like the game Fallout 3 should have been. It stands shoulder to shoulder with Fallout and Fallout 2 and a bit taller than 3. It captures the feeling and spirit of the originals, while elevating that to the first person arena. Proving that some games can make the leap to 3D. It's an excellent addition to the Fallout universe, an excellent RPG, and an excellent game that all RPG, FPS, and Fallout fans should have in their library.

Fallout makes the jump to first person, and while a glorious step in the right direction it suffers from some serious flaws. While many of these flaws may seem like minor nitpicks to a lot of them are serious issues. You play a character who will become known as the Lone Wander, at first wandering out of the Vault you grew up in, to search for your father. This fallows the same plot line where things expand from the main quest which evolves into a plot where you eventually end up having to save the world from a sinister evil force. The good: Fallout finally reaching first person makes this game nearly amazing. Your first steps out of the vault presents you with a dire wasteland that seems to stretch on for ever. The game retains many of the mutant creatures we've all become familiar with in Fallout, and some new and interesting additions are wandering the wastes. The world is flushed, and if you pay attention to the NPCs you'll get quests galore. The game also encourages you to explore, and the more you explore the better a position you'll be in when you reach the end game. There are some amazingly well done moments in this game, and like the rest of the Fallout franchise there's some big voice talent backing the cast. The game also retains the S.P.E.C.I.A.L. primary stats, skill based derived stats, perks and traits system Fallout is famous for. With several expansions in the form of DLC that add hours of game play and even more fantastic stories to play through this game really does shine inspite of it's flaws. The best part, for PC gamers at least, is the mod-friendliness of the game, which will give the game life long after you've explored all the possibilities through multiple play throughs. The GECK program which is free from Bathesda's Fallout 3 site is also great and gives you the ability to modify the game to your heart's content if the creativity bug bites you. Also the game retains the ability to cripple the limbs of enemies either in real time combat, or using the V.A.T.S. targeting system. The bad: Even when this game came out it had some issues, one of which is the graphics which were dated in 2008. I can't blame the game too much for this as it uses the same version of the Gamebryo engine that Oblivion used. Even with the latest updates this game has some bugs, though very few of them are game breakers. The story is a bit on the lack luster side until your father (voiced by Liam Neson) dies. As a hard core Fallout fan the biggest complaint is the fact that the game really eschews the lore of Fallout. There are quite a few things that don't fit, most of the energy weapons have been redesigned, the Vault doors look nothing like the ones in previous games, and worst of all power armor doesn't feel like well power armor. The game lacks a lot of the dark humor that populated the original two Fallout games, mixed with the depressing atmosphere this can make the game a arduous experience. The lack of any usable vehicles, or even a horse or mount of any kind makes treks through the wasteland exasperatingly long. The final offence is that you can only have 2 companions, while in previous game you it was based on your charisma stat, allowing up to 5 with max charisma, along with an extra with a certain perk. Side note: The V.A.T.S. targeting system can sometimes feel useless because of the real time combat of the game. On the other hand it's always entertaining to watch a slow motion scene of an enemies head exploding when using V.A.T.S. The final word: While a great game that does manage to capture most of the feel of Fallout it just doesn't quite live up to it's Isometric ancestors. The lore is a bit broken and it feels less Fallout than other Fallouts. Still it fits well enough in to the Fallout universe and style that even the most purist fans can appreciate it. It's a fantastic RPG despite it's flaws and for Fallout fans it's a great jump back in to the post nuclear apocalyptic retro 1950's sensibilities of a universe we've come to love. For RPG, FPS, and Fallout fans this game is a great addition to your library. Though it does feel more family friendly than previous instalments with the lack of Fallout's legendary sleaze factor, and lacking the ability to shoot people in the groins.

What can you say about a legendary game Such as Fallout 2? This game is arguably the one that really put the Fallout franchise on the map. You play the grandchild of the Vault Dweller, who grew up in a small tribe isolated from the rest of the world. As the Vault Dweller's grandchild you are naturally the Chosen One in the village. A drought has plagued the village, the cattle are dying, crops withering, and children are sickly. The only ray of hope is the legend of the Garden of Eden Creation Kit, or G.E.C.K. which has the power to save the village. But saving your village will be more complicated than just retrieving this artifact, of that you can be sure. The good: While the gameplay is nearly identical to it's predecessor much of the gameplay has been improved. You can now loot multiple corpses if they fall on the same hexagon which is a massive improvement. The item transfer box is now capped at 99,999 and the counter moves much faster for precision item transfers, like money. The music is still great and lends to the atmosphere of a wasteland, top talent like Ron Perlman who returns to as the voice of the Narrator, and Michael Dorn who voices the super mutant sheriff of Broken Hills, named Marcus. There are also more than double the items, more weapons, armor, and tools are at your disposal in your quest to save Arroyo, your village. With more companions, more humor, more everything. Also the option of a car that makes travelling across world map much faster, and gives you a mobile storage container for those goodies you might need, but can't carry. The down side of course is that the car eats up energy from Microfusion Cells and Small Energy Cells like crazy, both of which are the ammunition for your energy weapons. Which means that at some points you can get stuck deciding on weather to fuel the car, or have use of your exotic guns. The bad: Too many pop culture references, there are far more then necessary. The lucky part is that if you don't get the joke it generally doesn't get in the way. Due to being top down isometric it suffers some of the same flaws as it's predecessor. If enemies are close to the edge of an area they can die in places you can't loot them in, and sometimes they end up in places you can't shoot at them in. Luckily your companions can shoot enemies outside the screen area. Final thought: An overall improvement on the original game, with a more user friendly interface. The game is overall double the size of the original with twice, or more the weapons, armor, locations, characters, side quests, and companions. A must have for RPG fans.

Fallout a game set in an alternate universe, in the late 21st century in a picturesque futuristic retro 1950's style society an atomic war happens. Nearly a century later your character, in living in a secret underground Vault, a long term fallout shelter designed to protect people from the atomic devastation. Your character is then tasked with finding a new waterchip for the vault as the old one broke and the Vault can no longer purify it's own water. So you are sent naive out into the world in search of this necessary component. You'll quest the wastes in your search picking up clues along the way, then return the working chip to the vault. Over this quest a second far more dangerous threat will show it self, a threat which you alone must deal with. The good: Graphically the game looks fantastic even today because of it's advanced 2D engine. With Ron Perlman narrating the beginning and end, along with other voice actors voicing key characters, not to mention great ambient music. The game still sounds fantastic, even the gunshots sound great still. With many characters whom you may fall in love with, or loathe with every fiber of your being, the development of the story is fantastic. The story it self is tied into tons of small experiences that make this game shine still from a narrative standpoint in ways most modern titles can't match. The turn based combat is a fine system that allows you to form strategies at your own pace, though computer turns can take a while. There are plenty of weapons, starting simple and getting bigger and more powerful as you go. When you get your first laser or plasma gun it feels like a real accomplishment. Same goes for armor with your first power armor making you feel neigh invincible. The game is full of adult and dark humor that's good enough to illicit a chuckle from even the most jaded cynic. The bad: Due to the isometric boards being seen from only one view point somethings can be difficult to reach and enemies may die in places you can't loot them in. Also the game lacks in the fact it uses a hexagon layout on the isometric boards. Looting enemies can be a chore because you have to take each item, or item stack individually. Another note is that if two enemies fall in the same hex you'll only be able to loot one of them. A final issue is that the counter for item movement maxes out at 999, this can make transferring large numbers of bottle caps(the ingame currency) a bit of a chore, also the counter moves slowly if you're not moving a few or a lot of caps all at once. Final note: While not perfect this game is a legend in it's own right, and Black Isle made one hell **** out of it. With it available on Steam and Good Old Games packaged with it's sequel and Fallout Tactics: Brotherhood of Steel it's well worth picking up.

Fallout Tactics: Brotherhood of Steel is a tactical shooter set in the Fallout universe. A group of dissenters split off from the main Brotherhood in the Core Region. In part it's to escape the strict nature of the Brotherhood, but also to chase escaping militant Super Mutants from the Masters Army. The game fills a nice niche, taking place between Fallout and Fallout 2, in the still to this day unexplored mid-west United States. The good: Solid tactical game play. Some big voice talent such as R. Lee Ermey as General Barnaky, and Ron Perlman narrating. Not to mention that all of the main characters, and many secondary characters are voice acted. With it's isomeric view it hails to the first two Fallout games with a good deal of homage. There are many objectives in each mission, and the better you do, the better the final outcome of each mission. But if you only complete the base objectives expect to get berated a bit, and if you mess up expect to be berated a lot. But if you fail the voice of your commander will encourage you to try again. As a strategy game few even today can actually match it. The addition of usable vehicles, which your characters can shoot from is nice though. The bad: Unlike previous games in the Fallout franchise this game is entirely linear, about all of the exploration you get is in each mission. While this can net you needed equipment to use or sell it can get a bit tedious. The game is also repetitive, very much geared for strategy fans more than RPG fans. RPG fans may find the strategy gameplay tedious. On the other hand Strategy game fans may find the RPG elements tedious. Other notes: This game has a ton of items in it, which can be good for players who like more micromanagement, but bad for players who don't. While linear it has a good story to go on with. Still purist fans of Fallout won't like this game at all, but more hardcore fans hungry for more Fallout might just. Again for people who like to micromanage, there are tons of squad members who you can customize quite a bit, from armor and weapons, to skills. Final note: The massive graphical overhaul, diversity of weapons, more tense background music, and simplified combat system all add up to huge potential. But due to the nature of the game it makes a terrible RPG. Still it makes a better than average tactical strategy game set in the Fallout universe. Despite this it's strategy elements will probably disappoint most RPG fans, and the RPG elements might make the game too confusing for many strategy fans.