“October 2277 CE… as my eyes adjusted to the exceedingly bright light outside, a vista of blasted rock and crumbled buildings came into view. Far in the distance the shell of what only could be the Washington monument could be seen… looking to me like the city was giving the finger of defiance to the atomic rain which caused the destruction so long ago. Behind me I could hear metal grinding as the massive steel door to the Vault, the only home I had ever known, sealed itself with a loud clang. With a sigh I resisted the urge to look back. That life was over… I was on my own and no amount of regret would change the decision I had made. Where to go? What to do? The world was wide open to me and ready to be explored.”
So begins my experience with Fallout 3 after the short prologue that takes the player from birth, through childhood, to escape from Vault 101. Back in the late 90′s the original Fallout was released on an unsuspecting computer gaming market and quickly became one of the most popular titles of that generation. That quirky, filled with dark humor, and oh so violent title kept me amused while attending an extremely liberal college after my ETS from the Army. After yet another lecture from some psuedo socialist twit it was rather enjoyable to sneak, shoot, and loot my way through the post apocalyptic California the original game provided. The original company, Interplay, went pear shaped a few years ago and no one expected the once popular franchise to be resurrected then Bethesda Software acquired the rights.
Frankly, I was expecting an all too similar experience as their previous release Oblivion… but with guns and mutants rather than swords and zombies. Instead what arrived was faithful to the original in both scheme, scope, and employment. For those unfamiliar with the premise behind Fallout 3 I’ll put it in a nutshell… the game’s time line and reality diverge in the fifties. Macarthyism won out and things developed along the lines of how social and technological thinkers of that era imagined they would be. The pinnacle of technology that existed in 2077, the year nuclear war broke out, is as seen in the sci-fi “B” movies of the era. Robots that look like Robbie, cars which might have mini atomic reactors as engines but also sport the huge bumpers and chrome of a 50′s Cadillac, and energy weapons which could of come from the prop department of the Buck Rodgers serial all provide interesting visuals. Anyway, while most of the nation’s population either died or became hideously mutated by all the radiation a select group in each region survived in massive underground bunkers or “Vaults.” Your avatar is one such individual who escapes the twisted utopia that his home had become.
Graphically the title delivers an amazing experience. The environment is extremely well designed and detailed. Vault 101, you former residence, is on the outskirts of what had been Washington DC. This setting is haunting and I have to admit, disturbing… mainly because Bethesda did a darned good job of recreating the places we all know in a wrecked and dilapidated form. The Capitol Building, White House, Jefferson Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, Pentagon, etc… are all present and provide a rather creepy backdrop. From the city core to outlying towns, industrial parks, and farms, the terrain and wreckage “feel” right with no jarring discrepancies to interfere with immersion. Collapsed elevated highways crisscross the region and scrub brush makes a tenacious come back providing both concealment for you and well… sometimes hiding the mutated animals that might be stalking you. Character models are impressive with facial features that actually convey emotion while speaking. Yep, that wasteland settler who is terrified of whatever has been bumping around her shack in the night really looks scared and when you return to tell her the threat has been neutralized she looks genuinely overjoyed. Little touches like that really make the experience more enjoyable.
Gameplay… hmm… how to describe it? Okay… it looks and can be played like a first person shooter but to do it in real time constantly would rob yourself of effectiveness. At heart Fallout 3 is a stat based RPG which can make firefights frustrating if you don’t work with the system. At any time during a fight you can pop the VATS (valt-tech assisted targeting system) that freezes the action and allows you to target specific areas on your target(s). Not always necessary but it’s a real equalizer when your being overrun. Your opposition ranges from normal and mutated giant bugs and critters to human (or humanoid) opponents which employ weapons, to robots. Each opponent has a different method of attack. Radscorpions (the size of a car) will charge straight for you and the terrain can be used to impede halt their progress while dogs will use cover and concealment to approach… humans on the other hand will work together and will suppress, flank, and even break contact if they feel outmatched. One does not simply run and gun in this game… doing so will get you killed quickly. Tactical thinking is required, especially when dealing with multiple opponents. Mechanical ambushes have become one of my favorite techniques for example… lay a spread of anti-personnel mines on likely avenues of approach then engage at range to draw the opposition into the kill zone. Oh! Word to the wise, never ever use a car or truck as cover… if you see one burning, didi mau away from it…
Weapon effects are pretty gruesome with limbs and heads being removed regularly. Speaking of weapons… there is a massive variety to be tried out from very real to fanciful. Melee devices include baseball bats, knives, sledgehammers, crowbars, and player made sillyness such as the shishkabab… imagine a flaming electric carving knife… Conventional firearms include a few different pistols, a submachine gun, two different shotguns, and several different rifles. Ammunition is scarce and while some use the same round (.32 revolver and a cobbled together bolt action hunting rifle for example) you will find yourself hoarding any ammunition you come across for use later on. Energy weapons are fewer and far between during the early part of the game but quickly become common place as you advance the storyline. Word of warning though… to be effective with a weapon you have to put points into the skill as you level. To max out both firearms and energy weapons requires sacrificing other skills which are incredibly usefull so pick one to advance and stick with it.
Combat is not the only aspect of gameplay of course. Throughout the experience you will be scavenging for equipment, food, medical supplies, etc. It never ends… weapons and armor can be repaired but to do so requires similar devices… otherwise you will have to spend caps (the currency of the realm is bottle caps) to have a mechanic fix your stuff. The best loot is never left unsecured and usually requires unlocking it via the lock picking mini game (which is actually not annoying and fairly easy as long as your skill has enough points in it) or hacking a terminal (which can be annoying…) Interaction with the inhabitants of the various settlements and such depends on both your speech skill and your level of karma… see, every good deed you do add positive karma and bad ones add negative. Both extremes open dialogue options with good and evil characters which usually provide missions or useful information. Speaking of missions… yep, you have a few standard RPG quests of the fed-ex type… or so they seem. Rarely are goals so straight forward as bring item A to person B. Instead they are subjected to mission creep of a good sort with surprise twists.
Realism… well… it is sci fi fiction from the perspective of the 50′s with modern angst. How much realism could their be? The settings are accurate to the concept I suppose. One nod to period source is the use of the FN prototype FAL that the US Army tested as the model for the assault rifle… otherwise I’d have to say that “realism” is sort of moot unless you count violent and chaotic combat.
This title will keep one busy for many hours… it’s not for the instant gratification crowd and requires some thought to be successful in. Definitely not for kids… the mature rating is well deserved. If your able to invest the time and enjoy traipsing about a persistent environment that you can directly impact, then this is the game for you.
No comments yet