The history...
War. War never changes. It has been many years since we heard Ron
Pearlman first utter these words in the introduction to the first of
Interplay's post-apocalyptic games: Fallout. In the game, we were
greeted with a destroyed world where the remnants of human life barely
managed to scrape by. But time passes, and ten years after Fallout 2,
Bethesda Softworks released the much-anticipated Fallout 3, which
has been on the lips of many gamers for some time now.
Same premise, new game?
As anyone interested in the series knows, the original idea was to
develop Van Buren, supposedly the sequel to Fallout 2, but
this never came to pass. Instead Bethesda acquired the license and began a
major overhaul of the entire game, going back to square one. The game was
to be built on the engine from the extremely successful Oblivion,
incorporate a 3D perspective and not be the same kind of turn-based action
we all grew to love (or despise) in the first games. This proved to split
the fans of the game into two major camps – the old-school fans who
detested the changes, and the more open-minded gamers who did not really
oppose them and stayed their judgment. So, did the third installation of
the series become a revolution in the First Person Shooter/Role-Playing
Game world, or is it simply “Oblivion with guns”?
First of all, I would like to point out that I have always been one of
the aforementioned hardcore fans, who scoffed at what I felt was a
travesty done to the Fallout license by Bethesda. A first-person
game that can also be played in real-time? Surely this must be a disaster.
This would be an appropriate time to eat one's hat I guess, because even
if Fallout 3 does have its fair share of problems it's anything but
a disaster.
What the future holds?
For any newcomers to the series I can divulge the basic premise of the
Fallout universe. In a retro/sci-fi (think 50s music and style
coupled with fusion-driven cars and automated robots) United States of
America, tensions over the last remaining resources on Earth drew the
world into an obliterating nuclear war in the 21st century. This has
always been the trademark of the games; a stark contrast between a
positive radiant society and total devastation. Before this occurred,
however, a fictional company called Vault-Tec was contracted by the U.S.
Government to construct large underground vaults to house the population
in case of a nuclear war. As in the earlier games, the story revolves
around such a vault. Without saying too much, the player is eventually
forced to leave his homestead -- Vault 101 -- in search of a missing
father amidst the Washington, D.C. ruins.
When one sees real light for the first time, it is from a rocky hill
overlooking a desolate landscape with charred ruins, abandoned makeshift
shacks, fizzling vending machines and the occasional gust of wind which
strikes up a cloud of dirt. The first time, it is a quite humbling and
exhilarating experience. This feeling is something that remains, a
reminder that you really are no more significant than a bug that has
managed to worm its way out into the desert. Whenever you are exploring
ruins of a hospital, remote power stations or small villages where
settlers have tried to carve out an existence for themselves, there is a
constant depressing atmosphere over it all. One special location deserving
an honourable mention is the town of Minefield. When exploring the homes
and finding the charred skeletons of man and wife intertwined in bed as
well as that of a child in another room, this atmosphere is more present
than ever. Also deserving a mention is the Grisly Diner, because it
is a testimony to how desperate some human beings have become in this new
world.
A brave new world
The story itself is rather uninteresting, and definitely nowhere near
as engaging as in the prequels. But it is on the other hand nothing more
than a reason to explore the rich world laid out before us. The locations
are as varied as the people inhabiting them. A makeshift town, a tower
full of snobs acting as if the war never happened, underground military
bases, raider encampments, underground railroads and so on. Most of these
locations are very detailed and one often finds it hard to decide which
route to go, because it would be a shame to miss something. Some of these
locations have their place in quests and the main story, while others are
simply there to reinforce the atmosphere. It can be an abandoned shack
with a diary detailing the last gruesome moments of the owner's life or a
clue to something else possibly of interest to the player. The only
complaint would be how much traveling one has to do in the ruined subway
system of D.C. At first it's quite exciting gunning down feral ghouls in
damp tunnels, but it quickly gets old when you realize it's really the
only way to many places in D.C. Downtown.
Meet the survivors and settlers...or dispose of them
As far as enemies goes, there's really nothing to complain about in
terms of diversity. One will encounter ghouls, deathclaws, mutated
creatures (such as giant scorpions and mole rats), super mutants, robots,
Enclave soldiers and, above all, raiders (who seem to repopulate at a
disturbing rate). What is somewhat annoying is that there are specific
places where these will respawn after a certain number of days. Of course
there should be new foes to fight after some time or the game would become
a very boring one, but is even a small variation of the enemies too much
to ask for? The members of the raider band who consistently keep returning
to the Jury Street Metro station after the previous groups have been wiped
out for the tenth time really need to have their heads checked. Strangely
enough, no enemies inside buildings will respawn. This is really a shame,
because one of the most exciting fire fights I had was inside the Capitol
Building, dodging super mutants and mercenaries at the same time.
Fighting and skills
The fighting itself is done through a hybrid of turn-based action and
real-time action. The VATS-system is reminiscent of the aiming system of
the older games, allowing for aiming at more specific body parts. Doing so
will of course cost action points (which regenerate over time). Even if
VATS is a welcome break from the real-time action (which is really
mediocre and not above the standard for the genre) it has two major
letdowns; the animations and the areas to aim at. First off, the
animations are exciting the first ten times you see them, but after that
they're no more than an annoyance that has to be endured. I would have
welcomed an option to disable them, or at least speed them up. Secondly,
where there were previously seven areas to aim for, there are now only
five. Where did the ability to aim for the eyes and groin go? Also, some
weapons feel (especially the Minigun) ridiculously underpowered when
compared to those used in VATS, so the only feasible option is to use them
in real-time combat. Personally, I would have preferred an all-out
turn-based game because, as it is now, one uses all the action points and
then one runs around waiting until they have all been regained to use VATS
again.
As far as skills go, these can be used to (for example) lockpick
containers or hack computer terminals. This can be fairly useful, but in
the later part of the game ammunition and other supplies are in such
abundance that one often barely feels motivated to take the time to pick a
lock. What is more interesting is the ability to hack computers and see
personal e-mails and notes that can be of use. There are usually four
basic ways to acquire something – pick a lock, steal a key, hack a
computer terminal or use the daunting charismatic powers of the player
(which requires a high speech skill). Despite this, there is rarely more
than one way to solve a quest, and few really interesting and fun side
quests. Most are of the nature of finding something or someone and
bringing it back.
What about allies?
Also, there really aren't any factions for you to join, as there have
been previously. In Fallout 2, you could become a made man of
several mafia families, a slaver (taking part in slaving raids), a member
of the Brotherhood of Steel, member of the rangers, sheriff and many, many
more. In comparison, the options and paths available in Fallout 3
suffer from what appears to be a lack of imagination. A game shouldn't
really be compared to its prequels, but in this case it is inevitable.
Graphics and audio
The graphics overall are well done, while not superb. A longer line of
sight would be desirable, as the textures at a long distance can look
quite bulky and ugly. The game also suffers from the same horrible facial
animations as Oblivion, only slightly improved. The dialogue is
probably the biggest technical letdown in Fallout 3. Even if it was
impossible to shift away from using “talking heads” (close-ups of faces
during voice-overs), these could have been much better. I would even go so
far as to say that the dialogue with talking heads in the first game was
superior. The script was better, the response from different characters
was more interesting and there was much more to say. This is not only true
for essential characters but for minor ones as well.
The audio is well done and the conversations between Non-Player
Characters are actually quite believable this time around (even if some
conversations become outdated as the story progresses). This means that we
won't get to hear two monologues pretending to be a conversation. The
music is varied between atmospheric ambient parts and slightly more
orchestral upbeat melodies. Personally, I would have preferred for them to
use the ambient parts all the way, since this fits the game play and world
much better. Of course there's also the option to tune in to one of the
few radio stations active out in the wasteland, a very welcome feature.
Through this you can hear of your exploits and, every now and then, one or
other old American tune from the 50s, setting the mood perfectly.
Unfortunately, I had problems with the radio feature, as the music that
was played kept skipping and fizzling when I saved a game or entered a new
area.
Verdict
Fallout 3 shipped together with a great number of bugs, so the
first thing you should do is to patch it up to the latest version. Even if
some issues are left unfixed, it's still a vast improvement on the vanilla
version of the game.
One final word of advice: Fallout 3 is very bloody and very
violent. If you are not keen on this in games, you should look elsewhere
-- because this is as gritty and bloody as it gets.
Fallout 3 is by no means as much of a masterpiece as its
predecessors, but on its own it's an atmospheric game that will provide
hours of entertainment and excitement. Even if you are a hardcore fan of
the older games, don't let its flaws dissuade. You just might like it
anyway.
78%
July, 2009
design copyright©
2009
GameBoomers
Group
