Fallout 3 Hands-On #8

[Brother None]

Another day, another round. Fallout 3:APNB links to a SarcasticGamer video on their hands-on experience. Next, PS3 Fanboy.<blockquote>Fallout 3 is Oblivion set in the post-apocalyptic future. If you don't mind that fact, then you'll probably love this game. From the minute you set eyes on the title, the similarities are obvious. This is still clearly Fallout, though. The world feels lovingly recreated from the original games, but expanded with some Bethesda flair.</blockquote>Ripten.<blockquote>With time for the demo running short, I equipped my portable radio. This lets you pick up transmissions, which can only be heard if you’re within range. The one I settled on was a radio address from the President of the United States, who was explaining the necessity of keeping the details of his election a secret for matters of national security. “Rest assured,” he said, “I was fairly elected by the right people.”

He went on to explain that at the time when his term expires, he will leave America’s democracy in the hands of the people with a worthy successor. This sort of makes you wonder—can my Fallout 3 character pursue the highest political aspirations? Can you become the President of the United States?</blockquote>Joystiq offers an audio interview and tidbits, still holding off their preview.<blockquote># Find out why some of the elements are very reminiscent of BioShock, which Todd Howard calls "Easily one of the best games of the last five years." The short answer is that "a lot of today's gamers weren't alive when Fallout first came out and contained in-game vending machines.
# How quickly did Bethesda decide to use the Oblivion engine? "Instantly." To Bethesda, this is a great tool for building really huge games both now and in the future.
# Did they think about calling it something besides Fallout 3? Like, Fallout: Origins? They did, but Howard is "not a fan of that... I like Halo 1, Halo 2, Halo 3. It didn't hurt Grand Theft Auto 3, did it?"</blockquote>Kotaku is running a "justify your game" (really is a "why should I buy your game?" kind of thing) feature. Todd manages in 10 seconds. Additionally, Kotaku also offers their hands-on.<blockquote>While we all started at the point in the story where we were exiting the Vault we grew up in for the first time, within 15 minutes each of the groups at the six kiosks they had put up in their booth were in completely different places doing completely different things. Some had made a beeline for a nearby settlement, some had found a ruined school building nearby and were involved in combat with some seedy B&D enthusiasts, while others spent a good 10 minutes trying to see if the ruined playground equipment was working from a physics point of view (it wasn't, and yeah...that was me).</blockquote>OMG RPG (thanks Anani Masu):<blockquote>A massive standee of the game's supreme power armor (identical to Fallout 2's, according to Expert Testimony) adorned the PR booth.
(...)
The writing is sharp, the dialog trees are extensive, and the clothing frequently hilarious. Just speaking as a general fan of RPGs, there's nothing to dislike here-- the writing is always intelligent, witty, or just plain silly and amusing. The very realistic 3D, almost shooter-style graphics at times only serve to enhance the humor.
(...)
Bethesda seems to have pulled off the impossible here, making a game that is interesting and exciting on its own (for a player like me), but also full of fun in-jokes and homages for Fallout vets (like Kou). Making a game, especially an RPG, that pleases even one small group of players can be pretty hard. Pleasing two very broad groups of players should be nearly impossible, yet here I am writing this.</blockquote>

 

[K.C. Cool]

The short answer is that "a lot of today's gamers weren't alive when Fallout first came out and contained in-game vending machines."

So, 1-10 year olds playing M rated games? I'd hate to call that a a lot of gamers.

 

[Sam Ecorners]

The short answer is that "a lot of today's gamers weren't alive when Fallout first came out and contained in-game vending machines."

So, 1-10 year olds playing M rated games? I'd hate to call that a a lot of gamers.

I don't think there were many 7 year olds playing the game in 97.

 

[Brother None]

I don't think there were many 7 year olds playing the game in 97.

Regardless, "weren't alive" is a bit of a silly choice of words.

Eh. You know what he means.

 

[Black]

Fallout 3 is Oblivion set in the post-apocalyptic future

This is still clearly Fallout, though.

Yeah, that make sense. Because Fallout and Oblivion are oh-so-similar.
Also, weren't rabid fanboys the only people who called FO3 "oblivion with guns" ?


Oh, those pesky 11 years old. Tsk, tsk!

 

[Sam Ecorners]

I don't think there were many 7 year olds playing the game in 97.

Regardless, "weren't alive" is a bit of a silly choice of words.

Eh. You know what he means.

Well, we both know that Todd speaks with the grace of dancing brahmin.

 

[kyle]

Also, weren't rabid fanboys the only people who called FO3 "oblivion with guns" ?

maybe they're from NMA

How quickly did Bethesda decide to use the Oblivion engine? "Instantly." To Bethesda, this is a great tool for building really huge games both now and in the future.

like they had much choice ...

while others spent a good 10 minutes trying to see if the ruined playground equipment was working from a physics point of view (it wasn't, and yeah...that was me).

another blow to immersion factor with faulty phisics

also, president broadcasting through radio is kinda disturbing for me, suddenly enclave decided to fight for votes of mutants?
and if its not directed at mutants then who? they repopulate wastes now?

 

[Per]

I thought I saw some positive overarching statements without redundant qualifiers like "in my estimation", "from what I saw", "as far as we know", "with some hopeful extrapolation" or "unless my grandma is attacked by bees bees my god".

A question for the Amerikaners: are the "after the jump" and "after the break" phrases some kind of TV metaphor? Because I would have guessed it means you have to scroll past some ad or something but in most cases there isn't one.

 

[Logan]

I used to play Fo1 when I was 7 years old. Sure, I hacked my character. But then, Super mario was more entertaining than having to read looong dialogs in english
Personally, I think they are going to create a stereotype for the president(fighting for "his" people and for the cleasing of the world), for the BOS(macho wasteland cops) and for the mutants(brutish, mindless and violent barbarians). Really, I doubt we're seeing someone REALLY interesting in the game.
But then, I might be just too disapointed with the recent news.

Edit: Typos

 

[Brother None]

A question for the Amerikaners: are the "after the jump" and "after the break" phrases some kind of TV metaphor? Because I would have guessed it means you have to scroll past some ad or something but in most cases there isn't one.

Check the frontpage of sites that say that. The "after the break" bit is where the article is cut off on the frontpage, and you have to click "more" to read the rest.

 

[Seymour the spore plant]

"not a fan of that... I like Halo 1, Halo 2, Halo 3. It didn't hurt Grand Theft Auto 3, did it?"

Quite the examples you picked there, Todd. The Halo series, which you seem so fond of judging from how often you mention it as an inspiration, has never seen anything close to the overhaul you're making with Fallout 3 - hell, in the three installments it had so far, changes were pretty minimal, so at best you're shooting your own foot there.

Now, GTA has actually seen a change in perspective from 2 to 3, but what about the major criteria with which you seem to justify the naming of Fallout 3 on, namely setting and storyline? Do you think the series would have profited to be on its sixth iteration by having a 4 and 5 instead of Vice City and San Andreas? They're all canon, they all added to the background of GTA's world, and they are still kept separate in the naming convention.

some had found a ruined school building nearby and were involved in combat with some seedy B&D enthusiasts

Oh look, a tiny snippet of FOoS flavor. I wonder if they also based their sexual deviants on Bettie Page.

 

[Pope Viper]

I used to play Fo1 when I was 7 years old. Sure, I hacked my character. But then, Super mario was more entertaining than having to read looong dialogs in english
Personally, I think they are going to create a stereotype for the president(fighting for "his" people and for the cleasing of the world), for the BOS(macho wasteland cops) and for the mutants(brutish, mindless and violent barbarians). Really, I doubt we're seeing someone REALLY interesting in the game.
But then, I might be just too disapointed with the recent news.

Edit: Typos

Thank you for making me feel incredibly old.

Seriously.

 

[Anani Masu]

If the audio player on the joystiq page is busted for anyone else, here is the direct link to the MP3 I pulled out of the page.

http://stadium.weblogsinc.com/joystiq/audio/fallout3.mp3

 

[Mungrul]

Check the frontpage of sites that say that. The "after the break" bit is where the article is cut off on the frontpage, and you have to click "more" to read the rest.

Yeah, it's also to do with a lot of people reading these sites through RSS readers, and generally, the articles stop "before the break", forcing you to click through to the site in order to read the rest of the article.

 

[Ausir]

also, president broadcasting through radio is kinda disturbing for me, suddenly enclave decided to fight for votes of mutants?
and if its not directed at mutants then who? they repopulate wastes now?

It's probably just propaganda directed at the "mutants" for them to think that the Enclave is their government, while they're just trying to regain their power and try to wipe them out when the time comes, and use them to further their goals in the meantime.

 

[Brother None]

It's probably just propaganda directed at the "mutants" for them to think that the Enclave is their government, while they're just trying to regain their power and try to wipe them out when the time comes, and use them to further their goals in the meantime.

What.

 

[Jesuit]

Well the Enclave shouldn't have FEV anymore so who knows what their plan is. If Bethesda is obvious about, and there's every indication that they will be, it probably has something to do with whatever the BoS found inside the Pentagon.

Maybe the Enclave isn't strong enough to take the BoS on? In which case they'd have to be recruiting... maybe?

 

[Ausir]

What.

Well, it's pretty obvious from their previews that they changed their tactics, but their long term goal is probably still eradication of the mutants, even if they want to e.g. use them as cannon fodder against BoS in the meantime.

 

[endaround]

Yeah, it's also to do with a lot of people reading these sites through RSS readers, and generally, the articles stop "before the break", forcing you to click through to the site in order to read the rest of the article.

It also has to do with the fact many of these come from blog posts and blog writers are paid based on page views. So they'll have a teaser paragraph in hopes that you'll click through to the story and make them an extra 2 cents.

 

[The Dutch Ghost]

While it is all possible, Enclave trying to convince everyone that they are the true government and such, my question is; do people feel it is necessary?

Personally I would have let the Enclave be dead and forgotten with a few remnants of them here and there.
Instead there could have been a new government, perhaps formed by people from another Vault who now want to build a new America and have scavenged some eye-bots to spread their message.