Another one from the London showing. This one takes the prize for combining the lowest possible amount of information with the highest density of superlatives.<blockquote>It's rare that a game can provoke such a physical reaction in us, and even rarer for it to do so just minutes after we've got the controller in our hands. But every detail we've witnessed to date of Fallout 3 promises something special, and it's a game that threatens to consume our every waking thought once it finally sees the light of day this October. We've previously been captive to a guided and therefore strictly controlled tour of the game's Vault-bound opening, with Bethesda's own Peter Hines at the controls, and we left impressed but with more questions than answers. While today goes some way to answering some of these, it's also an infuriating tease for a game that will only prove itself over weeks, nay months of play.
Our first steps outside the Vault reinforce the fact that Fallout 3 is gorgeous, its landscape a considerable improvement over Oblivion's rendering of Cyrodiil, and despite the bleak nature necessitated by the post-apocalyptic setting it inspires awe on a regular basis. While we'll stop some way short of saying it's one of the best looking games of the current generation -- textures can prove a little flat and it sometimes lacks the high-def sheen that marks out the frontline of other AAA titles -- it's certainly one of the most atmospheric this side of BioShock. Small details all add up to create a pervasive environment that draws you in, and in just half an hour its dystopian vision has already seared itself in our heads.
(...)
Fallout 3's combat is something that could easily prove divisive, positioned in a potentially uncomfortable middle ground between action role-playing mechanisms, but after our brief time we'd already tailored our approach to gunplay in a way that proved satisfying. Those going to the game expecting anything resembling a first-person shooter are going to be disappointed, and may well be dismissive as they come to terms with some far from robust mechanics. Switch to the VATS system, however, and there's a far superior system to get to grips with. Maybe it's our impending middle-age, but we've recently found ourselves becoming increasingly drawn to turn-based combat, and the VATS system looks to be an excellent compromise, giving a tactical option that still proves spectacular.
Game critics are fast running out of superlatives following the likes of Metal Gear Solid 4 and Grand Theft Auto 4, but we'll back up our US colleagues assertion that this could well be the game of the year. While it maybe lacks the far-reaching appeal of Rockstar's opus, or the camp bombast of Solid Snake's swansong, it's a game that looks to have a grip that could potentially far outweigh either of those games. We're adverse to making promises that Fallout 3 will live up to its billing, as the very nature of the game mean that we wouldn't want to deliver an opinion without giving over more of our time to the wastelands of Washington D.C, and that's something we cannot wait to do.</blockquote>Link: Fallout 3 preview on IGN UK.
Our first steps outside the Vault reinforce the fact that Fallout 3 is gorgeous, its landscape a considerable improvement over Oblivion's rendering of Cyrodiil, and despite the bleak nature necessitated by the post-apocalyptic setting it inspires awe on a regular basis. While we'll stop some way short of saying it's one of the best looking games of the current generation -- textures can prove a little flat and it sometimes lacks the high-def sheen that marks out the frontline of other AAA titles -- it's certainly one of the most atmospheric this side of BioShock. Small details all add up to create a pervasive environment that draws you in, and in just half an hour its dystopian vision has already seared itself in our heads.
(...)
Fallout 3's combat is something that could easily prove divisive, positioned in a potentially uncomfortable middle ground between action role-playing mechanisms, but after our brief time we'd already tailored our approach to gunplay in a way that proved satisfying. Those going to the game expecting anything resembling a first-person shooter are going to be disappointed, and may well be dismissive as they come to terms with some far from robust mechanics. Switch to the VATS system, however, and there's a far superior system to get to grips with. Maybe it's our impending middle-age, but we've recently found ourselves becoming increasingly drawn to turn-based combat, and the VATS system looks to be an excellent compromise, giving a tactical option that still proves spectacular.
Game critics are fast running out of superlatives following the likes of Metal Gear Solid 4 and Grand Theft Auto 4, but we'll back up our US colleagues assertion that this could well be the game of the year. While it maybe lacks the far-reaching appeal of Rockstar's opus, or the camp bombast of Solid Snake's swansong, it's a game that looks to have a grip that could potentially far outweigh either of those games. We're adverse to making promises that Fallout 3 will live up to its billing, as the very nature of the game mean that we wouldn't want to deliver an opinion without giving over more of our time to the wastelands of Washington D.C, and that's something we cannot wait to do.</blockquote>Link: Fallout 3 preview on IGN UK.
