Fallout 3 is the third installment in the Fallout franchise (as the name implies), and the first one from Bethesda. The first two games were created by Interplay. They had a similar story and returning characters (the Brotherhood Of Steel and the Enclave for example). While there was a drastic change in graphics, controls and overall gameplay, all three Fallout games had one mission – to show what the world would be like if a nuclear war took place.
The main story line in Fallout 3 is to find the main character’s father – who escaped from Vault 101 for one reason – “Project Purity”. Along the way the player will encounter many sorts of creatures, including human beings, and come across many different places. Like in previous Fallout games, other characters will provide additional quests that may help gain experience, rare items and ultimately – change the final outcome of the game. Megaton, the first town in Fallout 3, is a giant lump of junk, and has an active nuclear bomb in it. The choice of either activating the bomb and leaving the town in complete disaster or de-activating it is up to you. Most of the quests in Fallout 3 are straight forward – they either consist of killing someone, retrieving a lost item, exploring an area or ridding an area of its mutants. After a while the quests start blending together.
There aren’t many kinds of enemies a player will encounter throughout the game, and consist of mostly Mutants, which are people exposed to radiation. The different Mutant classes range from Super Mutant to Super Mutant Brute and to Master, all with their own strengths and weaknesses. Like previous games in the series, there’s also major insect problem – Radroaches, scorpions and blowflies are all included here – roaming the wasteland and subways. Rats also. They are all pretty weak and easy to kill. There are also five Mutant Behemoths in the Fallout 3.
The battle system is a combination of first person shooter and the brand new V.A.T.S (Vault-Tec Assisted Targeting System) – which allows you to pause the game and target specific body parts. Fallout 3 offers different weapons – each with their own unique use: ranged weapons, melee weapons, unarmed weapons, grenades, and mines. Your effectiveness with a weapon depends on your skill, on your condition and on the enemy’s damage resistance.
When you kill an enemy or complete a quest you will gain experience and advance to higher levels – resulting in increased HP and a chance to get some new Perks. A Perk is an alternative way to target a specific skill or an advantage in a weapon. Skill points are also gained to increase your weapon effect and security skills. There are punishments for inappropriate actions (like murder and theft) and people might become hostile and even attack.
Fallout 3 provides everything needed in order to survive the wasteland. Enemies can be eaten for a slight health increase, but this will cause for a radiation increase. Stimpacks are the main healing item. The currency is Bottlecaps. Each person has a limit of items they can buy from you, so you can’t push it too much. Caps are found in containers on zombies and after a refreshing drink of nuke-cola.
The ending is a little disappointing – and consists of a brief cut scene of how you got to where you are and what happened as a result of your decisions.
Strengths
The visuals of the Fallout 3 are just breath taking. A post nuclear world never looked so great. The subways and building interiors differ from one another – each with its own unique look and effect. The gameplay is like no other experience.
Weaknesses
If you follow only the main quest, Fallout 3 can be quite a short game. There are a couple of bugs which could cause the game to crash and if you are signed into the Playstation Network it pauses every time a friend goes offline or online or if you get a message. A patch is supposed to come out soon, that should be able to take care of most of the problems.
Overall
The game is fantastic – like Oblivion in the future. The visuals, gameplay and feel are totally different from anything you can find on the market. Every choice you make effects the outcome and the future of the story, and each time you play it is different from the other.
Score – 91
