As I sit with the Fallout 3 Artbook in hand trying to figure out what I want to write, I am still floored by the level of detail in this game's design and overall presentation. That's the keyword for Fallout 3 - detail. The detail of the map, the detail of the buildings, the detail found in every little nook and cranny of the 162+ locations you can discover in the Wastes. Out of all the games I have ever played, nothing compares to the level of detail that Fallout 3 brings.
You are the Lone Wanderer, born on Tuesday, July 13, 2258 to James and Catherine at the Jefferson Memorial. Your father raises you in Vault 101, teaching you basic skills like how to use your Pip-Boy 3000 and Vault-Tec Assisted Targeting System (V.A.T.S.). Then, when you are 19 years old he leaves Vault 101 and you behind - and like any good child, you follow him. What ensues is a journey of discovery, adventure, and violence. You have the choice to travel to a nearby town to find information on your father, answer a distress radio signal, or just explore the wastes. Once you find yourself outside of Vault 101, you can go and do anything you want.Like all great Bethesda games the tutorial "level", in this case your time in Vault 101, is confined and well controlled. Once you've learned enough about the mechanics of the game, they release you into a very massive world equipped with the bare minimums and expect you to survive. Unlike the Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, there are no discovered locations on your map when you begin. While Fallout 3 isn't as large as Oblivion, the fact that you have to travel everywhere on foot makes it feel ten times larger.
One thing that makes Fallout 3 such an amazing adventure is its continuity. With so many main quests, side missions, and places to explore in any order you want - it would be easy to lose the feeling that everything is connected and exists in the same game world. Yet this game world is held together by subtle little details from the Eyebots that spread President Eden's pre-recorded messages across the Wastes to the remnants of companies like Vault-Tec Industries and Nuka Cola. There are also radio stations that broadcast the latest news and music, my favorite has to be Galaxy News Radio 103.8 with its host Three Dog and the great blend of 50s music. The various characters you run into on your journey also weave a tightly spun web of stories and details that help to keep you in the Fallout 3 world.With so many characters to meet, you will find that a few are willing to even help you on your journey. Some you can buy their help and others will freely offer it after you save them. Each companion character can be controlled through an awkward menu and given orders on how you wish them to fight. I found the companion characters to actually be more of a hindrance than a help. From randomly getting stuck in my house or their refusal to listen to my requests, I felt that the companion characters were unnecessary and ruined the feeling of isolation and solitude that grows as you explore the vast D.C. Wastes. For isolation and solitude are two of the great emotions that Fallout 3 creates as you play through the game. Being the Lone Wanderer in a world that resembles so much of ours yet in a state of disarray and decay is a feeling that makes this game so much more compelling.
While the gameplay is very similar to Oblivion, one major difference is V.A.T.S. and the use of Radiation. V.A.T.S. is similar to "bullet time" as it slows down time and allows you to select certain body parts of an enemy like the head or the leg. At first I thought V.A.T.S. would make the game too easy and take much of the gameplay out of players hands but I soon found that V.A.T.S. is a great gameplay mechanic and a truly enjoyable experience. While there are times it makes the game a bit easy, being able to cripple an enemy's arm to disarm them or shoot their legs to stop them from running adds a layer of strategy not found in Oblivion. Radiation poisoning also adds another layer of depth and replaces the magic level in Oblivion. Drink too much irradiated water or get to close to a "hot spot" and you will soon feel the affects of poisoning which can be cured for a price.Then there are the moral choices, almost every choice you make can be seen as good or evil. From saving a little boy who is being chased by raiders to killing a Megaton Settler for their weapon. The choice is up to you yet the consequences of that choice will be felt throughout the game. But there is a third choice - you can choose to do nothing. You can let a passing trader save the boy or allow a Mole Rat to maul the Settler to death and then loot his body. The ability to sit back and watch is a welcomed option since many games make you be either good or evil when we just want to be neutral. All of the choices can play for and against you: being too good will make some of the more sketchy characters dislike you, kill too many people and the townsfolk will attack you on sight, and being neutral keeps people from willingly helping you. Again, the choice is yours to do what you please.
With the Game of the Year Edition, the five downloadable add-ons are included. While all of them offer a new environment to explore like Alaska's snow covered mountains or a spaceship floating high above planet Earth - none truly add much to an already extensive game. Actually, I felt that the DLC ruined a bit of Fallout 3's continuity since all the little details that I loved so much were gone. There aren't any billboards or connections to other missions and you can't even listen to the radio while playing through the DLC. While the high level of detail can still be found in the DLC, I found that the continuity that existed throughout the main campaign was lost, making the DLC feel tacked on and loosely attached to the Fallout 3 World.Fallout 3 is not without its flaws from freezing problems to odd bugs and glitches, just remember to save often and have multiple save files on hand. The most common problem I found was the game freezing while I was in V.A.T.S. and was easily solved with me getting up for a drink or a snack and then returning to find that the game had worked its way through the problem. Another problem was solved by simply not switching weapons or using my Pip-Boy 3000 after I had fast traveled to a location, another task that seems to cause the game to freeze. Also, paying close attention to what I sell or repair helped me to avoid selling or using an item that was meant for a specific mission which the game will let you do on occasion.
Detail and continuity breathe life into what at first appears to be a desolate world. The D.C. Wastes are vast and filled with many lifeless areas yet you will soon find that it only appears that way on the surface. From computer entries to audio recordings from people long since dead, Fallout 3 will slowly suck you into one of the most complete game worlds I have ever been to. A story about the loss of a father makes Fallout 3's story much more personal and compelling than Oblivion's common "save the world" storyline. With more choices and non-choices resembling real life scenarios and the fact that you can't play both sides of the fence also adds a strong emotional component to Fallout 3's world. A truly amazing journey that I have yet to find in any other game, Fallout 3 is an experience that should not be missed.
Qwarktastic Qwest!- Title: Fallout 3 (Game of the Year Edition)
- Developer: Bethesda Studios
- Publisher: Bethesda Softworks
- ESRB: Mature
- Original Release Date: 10.28.08
- Original Platforms: PS3, PC, X360
- Re-Release Date: 10.13.09 (Game of the Year Edition)
- Re-Release Platforms: PS3, PC, X360 (Game of the Year Edition)
