5 new gameplay videos

[Per]

It was electric and used servos. Not saying that it looked like it did anything (especially not the mark 1), just saying that's how it worked. That said, I don't think that the new model would be done pneumatically but hydraulically (substitute not being able to use it in fast succession for large weight). Still, I think that power fists are traditionally electrically powered in scifi.

Being electrically powered isn't the same as "electrocuting enemies". Anyway, I just looked up the item descriptions. The original only says it is "powered by Small Energy Cell" while the upgrade mentions servos.

One other thing I wanted to mention randomly: NPCs mindlessly running up to you to be killed by your ubar melee weapon is kinda stupid. Is this normal for FPS AI nowadays or are there games where NPCs do things like take positions, shoot you from around corners, wait you out, and generally act intelligent?

 

[horse]

thanks for the heads up, per. i thought myself unable to judge any ai movements due to the short clips, BUT...

try to run up to any npc in any fps equipped with decent ai with a melee weapon in your hands. results may vary, but best id describe what happens with stalkers a-life (which has a lot of flaws of course( but you can edit certain parameters to diminish those flaws)). in open areas, the npc will actually SPRINT away from you, NOT taking cover, but giving themselves enough room to either spray-and-pray you, OR, if they managed to get away from you for more than 50 yards, they will throw grenades. and not only your target will do so, but all other enemy npc in the adjacent area... so, you basically end up fragmented, by at least 2 grenades thrown either at your position or your trajectory, if you insist on pursuing. i tested this ai until my cpu grew bionic coprocessors from the dust that settled on it... after all, i guess i have an idea what enemy ai can accomplish even with sub par scripting in the spawns and script files.

 

[UncannyGarlic]

Seeing as how the steampunkish complaint was one raised from the first release of concept art it's absurd that they've done nothing to address it.

I think BethSoft devs tend to avoid this place and their own official forum, except those with open minds to criticism and they're not the decision makers.

Yes, Fallout 3 does mix in a lot of steampunk design. I was battered from all sides on raising this issue with the concept art, but we can consider it as proven now.

Indeed. I always thought that the concept art looked like futuristic steampunk rather than what I think of as regular steampunk but the railroad gun is undeniably steampunk and unfitting.

It was electric and used servos. Not saying that it looked like it did anything (especially not the mark 1), just saying that's how it worked. That said, I don't think that the new model would be done pneumatically but hydraulically (substitute not being able to use it in fast succession for large weight). Still, I think that power fists are traditionally electrically powered in scifi.

Being electrically powered isn't the same as "electrocuting enemies". Anyway, I just looked up the item descriptions. The original only says it is "powered by Small Energy Cell" while the upgrade mentions servos.

I misunderstood what he was saying, my mistake; you're right that it didn't do electric damage. The mega power fist "has upgraded power servos for increased strength" which sounds to me like it replaced the original servos with more powerful ones. The power fist looks more like something that would increase grip strength than make you hit harder but Beths new power fist looks more like an impact glove from Tactics. I don't think that their new design is bad, just that it shouldn't be a power fist.

 

[EnglishMuffin]

Well that is the problem with taking a TB game and making it RT. While ranged weapons are great, the melee combat will take a hit, unless you make the AI dumb as fuck. The only way to work around this would give you some minor dodge and speed bonuses when you raise your melee stat and when equipping a melee weapon.

 

[Grimhound]

Hmm...

Reclusive tower filled with the introvert and rich, plagued with a 'zombie' issue...

Tenpenny Towers = Fiddler's Green from Land of the Dead.

Megaton seems to have the overhead description based relative to the Planet of the Apes series where the Mutants worshipped a nuke.

Honestly, as much as I want to be excited about Fallout 3, I always end up coming down hard after the realization that it really has some horrible, horrible design decisions.

 

[Cow]

After loitering around the booth and playing the game for about an hour, just some things I wanted to clear up:

1. Mentats don't radiate you. In the video, when he took, he was standing a foot away from the bomb (which does emit radiation albeit very little).

2. The door wasn't made out of wood. The outside was chain link like you'd see at a military base but the interior was reinforced with rotting wood.

1. PC seems to be just finding a lot of weapons and items just lying around. It always seemed harder in first two Fallouts (or at least you had to spend some time prying into people's bookshelves).

The demo is hacked. You start out with like 200 pistol bullets but enemies rarely even carry a full clip.

Seeing as how the steampunkish complaint was one raised from the first release of concept art it's absurd that they've done nothing to address it.

There's nothing "steampunkish" about the game from what I've seen. The raildriver is made out of a spring coil, boiler, and a steam whistle which is why it makes that "train" sound (the steam is released from the whistle after it fires a nail). The naildriver and teddylauncher are design only weapons. Hines told the audience at the "exclusive showing" that you don't actually find them in game.

3. No targeting with melee weapons in VATS. What's the point of using it while using melee or throwing grenades?

Every weapon can be targeted using VATS.

5. Watching a nuclear explosion being just couple kilometers away is rather bad for your health.

It's an atomic bomb but yes it is stupid. I guess when you live in hell you really don't care about your health (although Tenpenny towers in game is actually MUUUUUCH farther away ingame than they hint at). I really wanted to check out the blast zone (maybe it opens up a secret area underneath the city, radiates the entire place, or damages Vault 101?).

7. Death/hit animations similar for most of the weapon types. Pistols shouldn't make people backflip. They will get very boring fast. Especially with the abuse of VATS, which seems to be a bit overpowered - hopefully just for the demo. Even faster with the Bloody Mess Perk.

The animations are retarded yet funny but VATS is actually a pretty clunky system. It requires AP to set up (which recharges slooooow) and the percentages to hit are laughable. Standing point blank range you can do some serious damage but then again you're standing at point blank range.

6. Swearing and dialogue (Burke, the Sheriff).

Those two are reallly the only ones (I talked to maybe about 20 characters) that are foul mouthed. Everyone else is fairly polite... or eccentric.

 

[Phil the Nuka-Cola Dude]

Every weapon can be targeted using VATS.

You can target individual body parts with melee weapons in vats? Wha?

 

[Cow]

Every weapon can be targeted using VATS.

You can target individual body parts with melee weapons in vats? Wha?

Yes. You can. You can only target "body" with traps and explosives but that makes sense so...

Is this a surprise or shock to you?

EDIT: Nevermind, you can't target with melee. You target the entire body but the head takes all the damage when using VATS in melee.

You can target weapons and enemies that are disarmed completely will usually run away and warn other enemies (or they'll pick up their guns but most of the time they run). It seems like beating the game as a "pacifist" has just become easier.

 

[Quaid]

The animations are retarded yet funny but VATS is actually a pretty clunky system. It requires AP to set up (which recharges slooooow) and the percentages to hit are laughable. Standing point blank range you can do some serious damage but then again you're standing at point blank range.

I plan on using VATS almost exclusively for combat to give the game a quasi-turnbased feel. I'm thinking of focusing on my agility and perception. Is this unrealistic? I don't mind shooting and then hiding to recharge AP, but do the enemies have that Oblivion physchic connection with their prey - so they know where I am at no matter where I run?

Is there any stat/skill/perk/drug that helps increase AP recharge rate?

Also, how are the percentage to hit numbers calculated? Shouldn't that technically be the percent chance to hit even in real time (you just get to see it with the VATS pause)? Or is it the case that we feared - l33t fps sk!llz can heavily trump character stats...

 

[Cow]

I plan on using VATS almost exclusively for combat to give the game a quasi-turnbased feel. I'm thinking of focusing on my agility and perception. Is this unrealistic? I don't mind shooting and then hiding to recharge AP, but do the enemies have that Oblivion physchic connection with their prey - so they know where I am at no matter where I run?

You can "break sight" with enemies. If they see you run in a room they'll charge in to investigate but if you move in a room, turn a corner, and hide they won't instantly spot you. Animals like mole rats and dogs can smell you. Enemies in this game are also pretty cowardly and will hide and heal themselves when damaged. You can also use VATS to shoot weapons out of their hands and rather than taking the time to pick it up they'll usually run away, call for help, then grab a bigger gun hidden somewhere else.

Is there any stat/skill/perk/drug that helps increase AP recharge rate?

There were no drugs that I found that raised agility but if there are in the full game then yes.

Also, how are the percentage to hit numbers calculated? Shouldn't that technically be the percent chance to hit even in real time (you just get to see it with the VATS pause)? Or is it the case that we feared - l33t fps sk!llz can heavily trump character stats...

The main factor is distance followed by the size of what you're targeting (head is the hardest to hit etc) followed by cover. Shooting without VATS isn't precise; the crosshair doesn't change size but they simulated a crooked sight so even when you're shooting directly down the crosshair or aiming down the iron sights/scope you can still miss if your skill is too low. I noticed critical % chance went up massively when using VATS so I'd say it's a pretty powerful system.

The real time combat honestly isn't that bad. The default sensitivity on the analog sticks was horrendous but after a quick tweak in the options it felt like I was almost using a mouse (almost). All the demo videos you seen look bad because the guys are playing on default controls with "easy" difficulty. Setting the game on hard is a whole new ballpark and you actually have to make use of cover and traps.

 

[Quaid]

Thanks for the info Cow.

What is your overall impression of the game based on your demo experience?

 

[Cow]

Thanks for the info Cow.

What is your overall impression of the game based on your demo experience?

It was fun. It reminds me of a mix between STALKER and Deus Ex. The NPC's are decent (Burke and the Sheriff are two of the worst characters I encountered but the other NPC's like the insane bomb worshipping Children of Atom were interesting to speak with) and more attention to detail was given to the world itself. There's still a lot of really dumb Bethesda things like ugly animation, fluctuating AI, and stealing items from a DEAD CHARACTERS HOME (but not their body) reduces karma but one character regarded me differently when I had a low karma so Fallout 3 probably uses it as a new form of disposition.

The game is fun. Not "pen-and-paper influenced expertly written fun" but definitely "tongue-in-cheek-lighthearted-doesn't-take-itself-too-seriously-fun." Here's hoping the story is actually good. Hines was rattling in my ear about how if you blow up Megaton the town is gone for good, word gets out, Tenpenny Towers becomes your new "base of operations" and the game's storyline takes a different turn and such so I have high hopes.

 

[UncannyGarlic]

1. PC seems to be just finding a lot of weapons and items just lying around. It always seemed harder in first two Fallouts (or at least you had to spend some time prying into people's bookshelves).

The demo is hacked. You start out with like 200 pistol bullets but enemies rarely even carry a full clip.

There aren't just items lying around in the actual game or did you talk to a Bethesda representative and ask them this? If the latter then a name would be helpful.

Seeing as how the steampunkish complaint was one raised from the first release of concept art it's absurd that they've done nothing to address it.

There's nothing "steampunkish" about the game from what I've seen. The raildriver is made out of a spring coil, boiler, and a steam whistle which is why it makes that "train" sound (the steam is released from the whistle after it fires a nail). The naildriver and teddylauncher are design only weapons. Hines told the audience at the "exclusive showing" that you don't actually find them in game.

The artists clearly drew inspiration from steampunk for certain aesthetics and the raildriver is the very definition of steampunk, it's a modern-like weapon powered by steam instead of conventional technology.

7. Death/hit animations similar for most of the weapon types. Pistols shouldn't make people backflip. They will get very boring fast. Especially with the abuse of VATS, which seems to be a bit overpowered - hopefully just for the demo. Even faster with the Bloody Mess Perk.

The animations are retarded yet funny but VATS is actually a pretty clunky system. It requires AP to set up (which recharges slooooow) and the percentages to hit are laughable. Standing point blank range you can do some serious damage but then again you're standing at point blank range.

What is slow? One preview said that it took 30 seconds but that it's faster if you have higher agility.

6. Swearing and dialogue (Burke, the Sheriff).

Those two are really the only ones (I talked to maybe about 20 characters) that are foul mouthed. Everyone else is fairly polite... or eccentric.

Indeed, that's how the gameplay demo made it appear as well. Still, the Sheriff seemed almost like a racist stereotype to me from the video, fortunately he didn't speak ebonics but none the less it seemed an interesting choice to make him constantly dropping F-bombs every few words. I'm sure it wasn't intention and certainly hope that isn't the case, I'm just saying that I got bad vibes from the gameplay demo.

Every weapon can be targeted using VATS.

You can target individual body parts with melee weapons in vats? Wha?

Yes. You can. You can only target "body" with traps and explosives but that makes sense so...

Is this a surprise or shock to you?

EDIT: Actually I think you can only target head and body with a melee weapon but I didn't use VATS much.

Get your facts straight, you CANNOT target ANY SPECIFIC body parts in VATS with melee and unarmed, this has been confirmed for a long fucking time and was reconfimed in the gameplay demo. If you're not sure then state as much, it's clear that you are not from your edit and we know you're wrong from official statements and the video of the demo that we have.

...one character regarded me differently when I had a low karma so Fallout 3 probably uses it as a new form of disposition.

You mean like disposition in Oblivion? That's interesting, I wonder how much of an effect charisma and speech have on that stuff and if karma can counter balance bad of both if you get it high enough...

The game is fun. Not "pen-and-paper influenced expertly written fun" but definitely "tongue-in-cheek-lighthearted-doesn't-take-itself-too-seriously-fun."

I find that greatly amusing considering that's the exact opposite of what they claimed they were going for.

Thanks for the info.

 

[Cow]

There aren't just items lying around in the actual game or did you talk to a Bethesda representative and ask them this? If the latter then a name would be helpful.

Hines and Howards said it at the public demo showing multiple times ("there are guards here[referring to the vault exit] but I hacked them out of the demo" "I failed hacking the computer but since this is a hacked demo it's sitting on top of the computer" "You normally build the railgun/buy the powerfist but I added them in here etc.") Pretty much direct quotes.

Several "representatives" standing by the booths also told me the game was fixed. Sorry, I didn't catch their names.

The artists clearly drew inspiration from steampunk for certain aesthetics and the raildriver is the very definition of steampunk, it's a modern-like weapon powered by steam instead of conventional technology.

No it's powered by a pressure cooker/boiler that powers a spring that launches a rail and the steam is released from the whistle. I guess you can call it steampunk but it's a handmade weapon not an actual gun. If that's not conventional technology I don't know what is.

What is slow? One preview said that it took 30 seconds but that it's faster if you have higher agility.

30 seconds in the middle of heated battle is pretty slow.

fortunately he didn't speak ebonics but none the less it seemed an interesting choice to make him constantly dropping F-bombs every few words.

He only curses during his introduction. If you act nice to him, he acts nice to you and drops his act.

Get your facts straight, you CANNOT target ANY SPECIFIC body parts in VATS with melee and unarmed, this has been confirmed for a long fucking time and was reconfimed in the gameplay demo. If you're not sure then state as much, it's clear that you are not from your edit and we know you're wrong from official statements and the video of the demo that we have.

I kind of, you know, played the game. In the public demo, Hines specifically targetted the head using the powerfist. He even scoured the super-duper-mart for 10 minutes looking for a raider so he could specifically punch the head off.

EDIT: No, you're right. My mistake. Using VATS with a melee weapon targets the entire "body" but specifically damages the head. I retract my statement.

 

[oihrebwe]

Cow are the towns walled off with a load transition like in oblivion?

 

[Cow]

Cow are the towns walled off with a load transition like in oblivion?

Megaton is walled off but there's a city or something (you can see it in the preview demo off in the distance) that isn't walled. It probably varies.

But, some characters actually leave town. When I shot the deputy, the sheriff ran out of megaton and a sniper appeared on this makeshift parapet and started firing at me. One of the raiders also escaped from the elementary school I was in. There's a caravan merchant standing outside Megaton (crazy-something, I forgot his name) so maybe important NPC's actually travel?

EDIT: Speaking of the city, there's a kid there that gives you a quest. Unfortunately I forgot about him so I didn't go there and try to shoot him. I remember someone saying kids get "knocked out" and you lose immense karma but I didn't get a chance to test it out.

That city does contain some of the more interesting level design plus it contains several "fire ants" that actually shoot fire out of their mouths.

 

[Phil the Nuka-Cola Dude]

Are the physics still broken? Where if you pick up an item off of a shelf/table, everything else jars and bounces all over the place or just straight up clips through the shelf/table and falls to the ground.

That shit was annoying as hell in oblivion, and I saw that happen in one of the trailers.

 

[Paul_cz]

Are the physics still broken? Where if you pick up an item off of a shelf/table, everything else jars and bounces all over the place or just straight up clips through the shelf/table and falls to the ground.

That shit was annoying as hell in oblivion, and I saw that happen in one of the trailers.

Am playing Oblivion right now (more than 60 hours so far), and while there is this problem, I only had it once or twice, and the items moved about a few milimeters.They never "jared or bounced all over the place". Anyway, about physics, more important question - is it overdone in combat? Are the bodies, body parts flying all over the place or is it not completely and utterly stupid looking?

And someone could maybe make a newspost with all the answers from Cow?

 

[UncannyGarlic]

There aren't just items lying around in the actual game or did you talk to a Bethesda representative and ask them this? If the latter then a name would be helpful.

Hines and Howards said it at the public demo showing multiple times ("there are guards here[referring to the vault exit] but I hacked them out of the demo" "I failed hacking the computer but since this is a hacked demo it's sitting on top of the computer" "You normally build the railgun/buy the powerfist but I added them in here etc.") Pretty much direct quotes.

Several "representatives" standing by the booths also told me the game was fixed. Sorry, I didn't catch their names.

Cool, it doesn't surprise me but it's something that needs a source .

The artists clearly drew inspiration from steampunk for certain aesthetics and the raildriver is the very definition of steampunk, it's a modern-like weapon powered by steam instead of conventional technology.

No it's powered by a pressure cooker/boiler that powers a spring that launches a rail and the steam is released from the whistle. I guess you can call it steampunk but it's a handmade weapon not an actual gun. If that's not conventional technology I don't know what is.

Hahahaha, are you kidding me? In what way is a handheld, steam powered, railroad spike cannon conventional? It's not possible to build (a small boiler doesn't have enough pressure to fire a half-dozen railroad spikes, let alone in rapid succession), it's completely impractical, and totally unconventional outside of Jules Verne.

Are the physics still broken? Where if you pick up an item off of a shelf/table, everything else jars and bounces all over the place or just straight up clips through the shelf/table and falls to the ground.

That shit was annoying as hell in oblivion, and I saw that happen in one of the trailers.

Am playing Oblivion right now (more than 60 hours so far), and while there is this problem, I only had it once or twice, and the items moved about a few milimeters.They never "jared or bounced all over the place". Anyway, about physics, more important question - is it overdone in combat? Are the bodies, body parts flying all over the place or is it not completely and utterly stupid looking?

I only played for a good twenty or thirty hours (biggest waste of time) and this was a constant problem. When you touched shit in Oblivion it didn't get nudged, it got fucking launched whether it be a fork or a watermelon.

 

[petruschka]

is there any info about the possibility of playing the game in iso-view, as seen in one of these videos?