IGN's Fallout 3 Preview

[Sander]

IGN has published a Fallout 3 preview. Besides a detailed description of the demo they received, it also describes the V.A.T.S. system in more detail than we have seen so far:
<blockquote>Players who feel a bit challenged by the more intense real-time battles or players who simply want to take a bit more control over combat can make use of the impressive Vault-Tech Assisted Targeting System (VATS). The feature is essentially a more detailed version of the combat system in Knights of the Old Republic.

On the Xbox 360, you'll enter VATS by pressing the right bumper. The game will pause and the camera will zoom in on the enemy you're currently targeting. Each area of the enemy that isn't behind cover will be outlined in green, showing both your chance to hit that particular area as well as how damaged the area already is. Naturally, trying to hit a smaller target, like a head or a pistol, is going to be more difficult than aiming for a torso or a leg.

Using a pool of action points determined by your Agility, you'll queue up fire actions to the targets you want to hit on your enemy. You can even switch enemies to queue up a series of shots against different members of a large group.
</blockquote>
Furthermore, it appears that Bethesda has also put in some more mini-games, including a form of Lingo to crack security systems:
<blockquote>To get the Protectrons up and running, you'll need to hack into one of their control terminals. Once you find one, you'll have to play a short mini-game to gain access to it. The game displays a list of possible passwords and you're given a certain number of tries to guess the correct password before you're locked out of the system. Each time you guess you'll be told how many letters of the password you selected match the letters in the correct password. If you're smart and lucky, you can narrow the field down with each guess until you arrive at the right password.</blockquote>
The preview also confirms that some form of far-away third-person view is in, although details on its workings are lacking.

Link:
IGN's Fallout 3 preview
Audio interview with Todd Howard on IGN

Thanks DirtyDreamDesigner!

 

[Morbus]

Yet another big load of nails to fallout's coffin... Oh! The irony that the coffin is called fallout 3 is just mindblowing...

 

[Sorrow]

If you're lucky enough you might be able to get hold of a Fat Man, the game's personal mini-nuke launcher. This is essentially a bazooka that fires nuclear bombs. Even with the small mushroom clouds sprouting up right on target, the Super Mutant Behemoth doesn't go down that easy.

 

[Starwars]

There are so many things plain wrong about this preview I don't even know where to start. What the hell are you doing Bethesda?

Your basic stats aren't going to change much during the game (except as a result of radiation poisoning), but you can collect bobble heads found throughout the game to bump them up a bit. All these skills, perks, stats and such can be accessed at any time by simply looking at your Pip Boy.

What the fuck, just what the fuck?

To get the Protectrons up and running, you'll need to hack into one of their control terminals. Once you find one, you'll have to play a short mini-game to gain access to it. The game displays a list of possible passwords and you're given a certain number of tries to guess the correct password before you're locked out of the system. Each time you guess you'll be told how many letters of the password you selected match the letters in the correct password. If you're smart and lucky, you can narrow the field down with each guess until you arrive at the right password.

The return of minigames.

Now, there are some areas of the game that will be scaled to present a challenge appropriate to your character's overall level but, unlike Oblivion, once a difficultly level has been established for an area, it will remain the same throughout the game.

I'm not even sure what the point of this is instead of just flat out creating a world with set levels/challenges for the different areas?

 

[Belinik]

bleh someone just call bethseda and tell em bout million times this is not fallout 3 , this is a fps who got killer-action point kill shots , bout all this VATS is about anyways

as for fallout series its now officially dead , where is the critics in gamingpress who actually played fallout 1-2 and can show bethseda that they are going into the direction thats leading away from the actuall fallout 1-2 series , guess critics only heard once stuff released and toned out before due to they can cause bad press , pff darn the allmighty $ (currency in general)

 

[MrBumble]

3volushen my friends, 3volushen !

Also, thhey just HAD to put mini-games because...well they HAD to !
This is sooooooooooooooo( feel free to add as much o's as you want )ooooooooo wrong.


EDIT : there seems to be at least ONE good news though, but we have to handle it with care :

The conversations with Simms and Burke show off both the new AI system and the new focus on NPC interaction. An improved radiant AI system allows for even more behavior and dialogue options on the screen and your speech skill allows you to influence an NPC to do things that might not necessarily be in their best interests. For each dialogue option that makes use of the speech skill, you'll see a percentage chance of success. You'll want to take note of these numbers because if you fail, it's likely that you'll really irritate the person you're talking with.

 

[Sander]

The things that initially attracted Bethesda to the Fallout franchise are the same things that make the Elder Scrolls games so appealing. Both allow players to create virtually any type of character they want and then explore a large and detailed world with a nearly limitless degree of freedom. Though you have a tremendous range of choices, your actions also matter a great deal in both series and the worlds will respond to your choices in very realistic ways. The work that Bethesda put into Oblivion is already paying off in the design of Fallout 3

Bwahahahaha!

Also, again the bullshit hype-word 'immersion'. Why do people keep re-hashing that horseshit?

Thousands of Americans took refuge in massive underground vaults that protected them from the attacks, only to emerge years later to find their former cities inhabited by unfeeling mutants and vicious monsters.

Because that's what Fallout was about! Cities overrun by unfeeling mutants and vicious monsters!
*sigh*

In case it sounds like Vault 101 is built solely around tutorials and character creation, there are plenty of quests and meaningful interactions to be found during the hour or so that you spend here.

You only spend an hour there, but there are a lot of meaningful quests? Hunh?

The first priority is to find a weapon.

...

Players who feel a bit challenged by the more intense real-time battles or players who simply want to take a bit more control over combat can make use of the impressive Vault-Tech Assisted Targeting System (VATS). The feature is essentially a more detailed version of the combat system in Knights of the Old Republic.

Go-go innovative real-time with pause.

On the Xbox 360, you'll enter VATS by pressing the right bumper. The game will pause and the camera will zoom in on the enemy you're currently targeting. Each area of the enemy that isn't behind cover will be outlined in green, showing both your chance to hit that particular area as well as how damaged the area already is. Naturally, trying to hit a smaller target, like a head or a pistol, is going to be more difficult than aiming for a torso or a leg.

Using a pool of action points determined by your Agility, you'll queue up fire actions to the targets you want to hit on your enemy. You can even switch enemies to queue up a series of shots against different members of a large group.

And now we know how that works. Queuing actions that cost action points for the win!

Of course, as dangerous as you are, you'll face enemies who are even more dangerous. If you do get hurt (and you sowill), you'll have to heal yourself by drinking the water you find in pools, fountains, flasks and various other receptacles throughout the world.

Or, in other words, magical health pools spread throughout the wastes.

An improved radiant AI system allows for even more behavior and dialogue options on the screen

What the fuck? Does this guy even have a slightest clue as to what 'AI' means?

You can choose to fight your way through each and every encounter you have in the Metro but it's often more convenient to sneak by enemies or use your other skills to take them down. The Metro Protectron pods, for instance, are a great example of how you can use other skills to avoid direct combat. The Protectrons were basically robots that served as guides and ticket masters in the old Metro system. They also happen to be well armed and mercilessly faithful to their programming.

*sigh*

To get the Protectrons up and running, you'll need to hack into one of their control terminals. Once you find one, you'll have to play a short mini-game to gain access to it.

*sigh*

The game displays a list of possible passwords and you're given a certain number of tries to guess the correct password before you're locked out of the system. Each time you guess you'll be told how many letters of the password you selected match the letters in the correct password. If you're smart and lucky, you can narrow the field down with each guess until you arrive at the right password.

Are you kidding me? Yeah, that's it. Play LINGO to hack passwords!
Let me guess, the science skill now just increases the number of tries?

Now, there are some areas of the game that will be scaled to present a challenge appropriate to your character's overall level but, unlike Oblivion, once a difficultly level has been established for an area, it will remain the same throughout the game. So if you enter one of these scaled areas and find it too difficult, you can come back after you've gained a few levels and have a better chance of taking on the challenge.

So, run through every area early on in the game and the scaled areas will be a breeze later on, whereas if you spend time to improve yourself early on and then go there it'll be a lot more difficult? Go-go rewarding speed-running.

What the hell is it with this company and the need to scale stuff?

Some of the still have a bit of juice in their nuclear-powered engines. Hit them just right and BOOM! Instant mushroom cloud.

*sigh*

To take out the abnormally large Super Mutant Behemoth, you'll probably want to shoot at him with more than just your laser rifle. If you're lucky enough you might be able to get hold of a Fat Man, the game's personal mini-nuke launcher. This is essentially a bazooka that fires nuclear bombs. Even with the small mushroom clouds sprouting up right on target, the Super Mutant Behemoth doesn't go down that easy.

Right, because in 50s sci-fi nuclear bombs were totally not that powerful.

Also, hurray for sub-bosses. *sigh*

Naturally, as you're killing things, completing quests and exploring new areas, you'll be gaining experience points. Each new level brings an opportunity to improve your skills and gain a new title based on where you sit on the game's Karma scale. Every other level you'll be able to pick a new Perk to help refine your character and focus on the activities that you enjoy. Your basic stats aren't going to change much during the game (except as a result of radiation poisoning), but you can collect bobble heads found throughout the game to bump them up a bit.

*sigh*

You can also use the Pip Boy to listen to the radio. Bethesda has licensed 20 songs from the 1940s that play throughout the course of the game on one of the Pip Boy stations. Even better, there's a DJ on that station who can fill you in on local events. Once you start having a big impact on the world, you might even hear him referencing your own actions.

While the '40s songs is a cool touch, what is this, GTA? There's a bleeding active radiostation in a completely destroyed world?

While it's pleasant enough to listen to the radio and hear someone talk about how important you are, there are more important uses for the radio. The Galaxy News Station helps to keep you up to date on the goings on in the world

...
Say what?????

 

[lisac2k]

Bethesda is also committed to maintaining the tone of Fallout. The original Fallout was pretty violent when it was first released with death and destruction around almost every corner. You'll find that's also true in Fallout 3.

Yep, they have to sell it somehow. And what's that shit with bobble heads anyway? I eat a bobble head and my charisma increases for 1... Now, are there ANY rational minds at Beth?

 

[mr. pastorius]

Oh boy, this keeps getting better and better. Healing fountains? Personal nuke launcher? Guessing passwords? Speaking of FPS/RPGs, System Shock 2 had a nicely implemented hacking system, but this is just... Ugh.

 

[SuAside]

whoopti-fucking-doo.

this indeed keeps getting better and better.

while this is becoming quite entertaining (you know, like laughing with morons faceplanting) if for a moment i disconnect this game from being FO3, but it does keep popping up the same question: why buy the franchise if you're not going to be faithful to it (both in canon and in mechanics)?

you couldve saved yerself a few million dollars and made your own game? not as if Bethsoft doesnt already have a large enough fanbase for this kind of game...

 

[Tails]

i hope that world ends before Fallout 3 release...
It's a horror... damn you Bethesda... how can they fuck up so Fallout ? I guess that they never play FO1/2 only saying so.

 

[10mmCurator]

Mmm this game starting to feel like its based on the movie Screamers... andriods and pocket nukes.... BAH! WTF?

 

[Silencer]

There's a bleeding active radiostation in a completely destroyed world?

While I can see it happening - a lonely, half-mad wastelander who restored a generator and radio broadcast equipment only to end up in a shock when you tell him there's actually someone - you - who was able to receive that - is kind of amusing.

Although I doubt it is what Bethesda sees it.

Also: minigames

 

[xu]

An improved radiant AI system allows for even more behavior and dialogue options on the screen and your speech skill allows you to influence an NPC to do things that might not necessarily be in their best interests.

That's a good thing. Anyone noticed?

 

[SuAside]

a radiostation in itself isn't too bad, it kinda depends on how they implement it.

if a recently opened vault uses its equipment to broadcast some stuff to its dwellers who are slowly spreading now and keeping them informed, it wouldn't be too bad.

but in a normal post apoc town, it is unlikely someone has the money to spend on juice or batteries to even listen to that kind of shit.

also note they say "one of the Pip Boy stations", implying there are more than one broadcasting. wunderbar.

 

[Silencer]

Unless it's another mini-game.

 

[Sander]

An improved radiant AI system allows for even more behavior and dialogue options on the screen and your speech skill allows you to influence an NPC to do things that might not necessarily be in their best interests.

That's a good thing. Anyone noticed?

Yep, but this quote makes no sense whatsoever. The Radiant AI system has no effect on NPC dialogue, that's all scripted.

 

[PaladinHeart]

There are even some cool opportunities to make your own weapons or ammunition from items you scavenge in the world. All those pointless rocks and Barbie heads you find on the ground can be loaded into a makeshift Rock-It Launcher and put to good use. You can also pack a lunchbox with bottle caps and explosives to make a homemade shrapnel bomb.

That reminds me of Jagged Alliance: Deadly Games. While the game does sound like it would be fun to play, it doesn't sound like Fallout. They should have made up a new name for it.

If they could just get the turn based in there, and get the super mutant looks right and all the rest of the canon they've ignored, then I wouldn't mind.

But no matter how good it is, if it's disliked here at NMA then I'm going to wait for it to be $20.

 

[radnan]

Players who feel a bit challenged by the more intense real-time battles or players who simply want to take a bit more control over combat can make use of the impressive Vault-Tech Assisted Targeting System (VATS). The feature is essentially a more detailed version of the combat system in Knights of the Old Republic.

Strange.. from what i read so far it sounds quite different from that of KOTOR - AT LEAST in kotor (i think) there were turns behind the real-time facade - correctly counting the stats. While Fo3 sounds more like MaxPayneish omg you have a vats super power nice

Evidently Bethsoft really doesnt know what the struggle of the everyman and the charm that goes with it is.

 

[alec]

Even better, there's a DJ on that station who can fill you in on local events. Once you start having a big impact on the world, you might even hear him referencing your own actions.

+ Protectrons? + Minigames? + Fountains of youth? + Eating corpses? + Bumping up your stats with bobbleheads? + BBC World?



Oh my...