HCG Review: Fallout 3

Approaching a review of this game is almost as overwhelming as the game itself. Like the recently released Fable II, there is so much to cover, so much to see and do, so many things that can be easily missed or overlooked. I suppose the best thing to do is start with the basics and then move up to the bigger picture.

First off, this game is not “Oblivion with guns.” Moving on.

Fallout 3 begins with you literally being born, in the first person perspective, in the relatively safe confines of Vault 101. The year is 2277, 200 years after a cataclysmic nuclear war that saw most of the world reduced to an ashen wasteland. Thousands of people took shelter in giant underground vaults just before the bombs fell, and some eventually emerged to try to rebuild society. The first part of the game sees you growing up and creating your character as you go. It also introduces you to the controls and the general way in which the game will play out. Eventually, your father goes missing, and through a series of tragically violent events, you emerge, half blinded, from the vault and see the entirety of the post-nuclear Washington, D.C. wasteland below you.

The developers, Bethesda Softworks, have crafted a staggeringly detailed world for you to explore. It’s hard to comprehend how much work must have gone into creating so many square miles of destruction while still having it be interesting and fun to play in. Fallout 3allows you go anywhere you set your eyes on, and even though I’ve played Bethesda’s previous two open world RPGs, Morrowind and Oblivion, it’s still an intimidating prospect.

As you begin exploring, you will encounter the varied residents of the wasteland. Some are bloodthirsty raiders who only want to take your stuff before torturing your mercilessly. Some are members of the mysterious Brotherhood of Steel. Some are holed up in the few towns you eventually find. Megaton is built around an undetonated nuclear bomb. Rivet City is built in the broken hull of an aircraft carrer. The residents of these and other locations may be friendly towards you, or may not want to have anything to do with you. Some will give you tasks that unfold into huge multi-hour quests. Some may give you small tasks that have no reward for you at all.

It’s these small incidental quests and moments that make up the best parts of the game. The main story line has some cool moments and settings, but overall is fairly disappointing. I didn’t care about any of the characters, and what should have been some of the most powerful and emotional moments were simply glossed over and pushed aside to get to the next plot point. The most rewarding parts of the game are when you enter an abandoned ruined house and piece together the events that went on in there simply by the placement of objects around the room. Or when you get jumped by five super mutants and three centaurs in the bombed out ruins of Georgetown and survive by sniping two from a distance, then blowing up a nuclear powered car to take out a few more, and finally switching to the combat shotgun to get up close and personal with the rest.

Fallout 3 rewards exploration and taking the time to simply wander around and absorb the world around you. Some rewards can only be found by finding clues scattered around the wasteland. The best loot is found by hacking terminals or picking locks. There’s a noticeable feeling that your actions are actually having an affect on the world around you, especially when the slightly crazy radio DJ tells of your exploits, and random people come up to you and thank you for the good you’re spreading across the wasteland. As you progress through the game you can pick up followers to help you along on your travels. Some will only follow you if you have a high amount of good karma. Others will refuse to travel with a goody two shoes. Nearly all of the quests have multiple outcomes. Sometimes you can talk your way through a situation. Other times you can find information by hacking a computer terminal. You almost always have the option of playing as a good guy, bad guy, or somewhere in between.

The combat is very satisfying. Pulling up the pseduo-turn based Vault-Tec Assisted Targeting System (VATS) allows you to queue up your attacks against multiple enemies. You can target individual limbs, and each limb has a percentage probability that you will hit it. The probability is affected by your distance, whether you’re standing or crouching, the condition of your weapon, the condition of your own limbs, and the skill level you have with the type of weapon you’re using. After all the shots are lined up, you press a button and watch the carnage play out in dramatic fashion. In this way, the game is very much a role playing game that determines success or failure based more on statistics than on twitch reflexes. It can be played completely in real-time, but for me playing in VATS was simply much more fun.

Bethesda has crafted a masterpiece of a game with Fallout 3. The locations and characters are memorable, and you may spend your time away from the game thinking about how you might want to approach a situation with a different character. The game encourages specializing in a few skills, rather than trying to be only sort of good at everything. I know I missed a lot of side stories and background information because I didn’t have my Science skill high enough to hack a lot of computer terminals. There is simply too much in the game to see in only one playthrough. This game is absolutely worth the full price I paid for it, and will only get better as the inevitable DLC is released for it. Nobody should miss it.

It should be mentioned that the language in Fallout 3 is less than desirable.  There are some adult situations also that present themselves such as the prostitute in Megaton who offers you her “services” for a fee.  The game is certainly not for minors but for those who can look past the language and see the artistic value in the presentation I believe that you can truly enjoy this experience.

Verdict: Buy