(Posted By: Eric Rees)
I couldn't have been more excited for the middle two weeks of October. Two sequels to two of my favorite games came out, one of which being Fallout New Vegas, and boy did Bethesda not disappoint with this one.
The game starts just as Fallout 3 did, Ron Perlman coming out and waxing poetic on how war never changes. And I'm glad that it doesn't because we wouldn't have such good sequels like New Vegas if there wasn't any war.
Hit the break for the rest of the review!
The game starts just as Fallout 3 did, Ron Perlman coming out and waxing poetic on how war never changes. And I'm glad that it doesn't because we wouldn't have such good sequels like New Vegas if there wasn't any war.
Hit the break for the rest of the review!
Just like in Fallout 3 where you played as the mysterious "Lone Wanderer", New Vegas puts you in the jumpsuit of "The Courier" who took money for the wrong job. The beginning of the game has you staring down the barrel of a very nice 9mm pistol, which I later learned was named Maria, and being told that you were going to die. The man in the slick suit follows through on his promise and shoots you in the head. Unfortunately for him, you come back to life and vow revenge upon him as you take off into the wastes. Not a bad intro to a game if you ask me.
New Vegas looks a LOT like Fallout 3 did. Most will complain about this but I loved F3 so much that it's like being back at home in New Vegas. And I'd also like to point how how many people wouldn't have gotten it if the game hadn't shared some similar look to Fallout 3. The game is still based around the first person shooting with VATS along for the ride and the occasional third person view when you want to check out your character's clothes. Which brings me to the major change in New Vegas: factions.
In Fallout 3 you could go around being good to everyone, or hell on earth. Either way you went, everyone treated you the same way. In New Vegas, factions have been introduced to spice things up a little bit. This allows for you to make decisions from town to town, deciding whether you want to be nice or naughty to a different people just because they don't fold their clothes the same way you do. This also extends to the type of clothes you wear. Wearing a different factions clothes will make you cool with them while pissing off one of their enemies. An interesting and fun concept it is, but gets annoying for those who want to be good to everyone and sometimes step on people's toes while doing something for another faction.
The Mojave wasteland is a bit smaller than the Capital wasteland that most people learned on but it is much more densely packed. The main two factions in the game; NCR, the New California Republic which people will know from the earlier Fallouts, and Ceaser's Legion, a group of slaves looking to take over the wastes, are fighting for control of this small wasteland and have many posts set up for you to explore or pillage, your choice.
Thats what Fallout comes down to; choice. You get to decide what to spend your level points on and what perks you want. I leveled the speech up for my character and was able to talk anyone out of or into anything that I wanted, lots of fun for me but maybe not so for other people. The story changes how you play it and how you interact with the factions. But there is one point to the game that keeps New Vegas from being perfect. The ending.
I don't have to reveal anything to point out the flaw but Bethesda did the same thing that they did in Fallout 3 which gained so many groans from around the community; the last level ended the game. You could not go back to the wastes and continue side-quests after the final mission so you HAVE to have a save before the mission if you want to keep playing the game. I appreciate what New Vegas and Fallout 3 did with the ending, the wrap-up of everything that you have done through the game is nice, but not letting players go back is still a flaw. That's not to say I won't download the DLC that is sure to come out in a few months to extend the game and raise the level cap, but in most gamer's eyes this isn't seen as a fair business plan and will make more than a few people angry.
Overall, New Vegas is flat out amazing. Just as much fun as Fallout 3 was and is the stand out RPG to have this season. Hours of gameplay will never get old and will keep you coming back to it again and again. Fallout New Vegas gets a 4.75 out of 5.
New Vegas looks a LOT like Fallout 3 did. Most will complain about this but I loved F3 so much that it's like being back at home in New Vegas. And I'd also like to point how how many people wouldn't have gotten it if the game hadn't shared some similar look to Fallout 3. The game is still based around the first person shooting with VATS along for the ride and the occasional third person view when you want to check out your character's clothes. Which brings me to the major change in New Vegas: factions.
In Fallout 3 you could go around being good to everyone, or hell on earth. Either way you went, everyone treated you the same way. In New Vegas, factions have been introduced to spice things up a little bit. This allows for you to make decisions from town to town, deciding whether you want to be nice or naughty to a different people just because they don't fold their clothes the same way you do. This also extends to the type of clothes you wear. Wearing a different factions clothes will make you cool with them while pissing off one of their enemies. An interesting and fun concept it is, but gets annoying for those who want to be good to everyone and sometimes step on people's toes while doing something for another faction.
The Mojave wasteland is a bit smaller than the Capital wasteland that most people learned on but it is much more densely packed. The main two factions in the game; NCR, the New California Republic which people will know from the earlier Fallouts, and Ceaser's Legion, a group of slaves looking to take over the wastes, are fighting for control of this small wasteland and have many posts set up for you to explore or pillage, your choice.
Thats what Fallout comes down to; choice. You get to decide what to spend your level points on and what perks you want. I leveled the speech up for my character and was able to talk anyone out of or into anything that I wanted, lots of fun for me but maybe not so for other people. The story changes how you play it and how you interact with the factions. But there is one point to the game that keeps New Vegas from being perfect. The ending.
I don't have to reveal anything to point out the flaw but Bethesda did the same thing that they did in Fallout 3 which gained so many groans from around the community; the last level ended the game. You could not go back to the wastes and continue side-quests after the final mission so you HAVE to have a save before the mission if you want to keep playing the game. I appreciate what New Vegas and Fallout 3 did with the ending, the wrap-up of everything that you have done through the game is nice, but not letting players go back is still a flaw. That's not to say I won't download the DLC that is sure to come out in a few months to extend the game and raise the level cap, but in most gamer's eyes this isn't seen as a fair business plan and will make more than a few people angry.
Overall, New Vegas is flat out amazing. Just as much fun as Fallout 3 was and is the stand out RPG to have this season. Hours of gameplay will never get old and will keep you coming back to it again and again. Fallout New Vegas gets a 4.75 out of 5.
