Fallout 3

[Schaden]

vaguely remember it being half Oblivion's or something.

I believe an interview said FO3 land area is 1/4 the size of Oblivion.

 

[Skrying]

If it's more dense and unique then that could be a good thing. Oblivion, while large, was mostly the same areas stitched together. Even the snow covered mountains were nothing more than a ground texture change. Make the area more unique and it will seem more interesting and alive.

 

[betan]

Just listened the talkxbox Fallout 3 interview.
A couple of things I didn't know:
Total quest time is around 100 hours (compared to "hundred and hundreds" hours of Oblivion) including around 25 hours of main quest.
No faction quest lines any more.
Planned 360/PC DLC is comparable to Knights of the Nine. No plans for smaller DLC.

Now, reduced quest time and smaller world is not necessarily a bad thing, as long as quality and variety is better than Oblivion. Lack of faction quest lines however, is a big disappointment, since I'm not big on random side quests and exploration.

By the way, there is some online chatter about how PS3 version is inferior compared to 360.
It doesn't seem to be a deal breaker, and is certainly not surprising since Bethesda shifted over 360 lead development, but to be noted under inferior ports list for future reference.

 

[obonicus]

By the way, there is some online chatter about how PS3 version is inferior compared to 360.
It doesn't seem to be a deal breaker, and is certainly not surprising since Bethesda shifted over 360 lead development, but to be noted under inferior ports list for future reference.

Surprise, a Bethesda game is better on PC. Again, here's hoping they didn't put in poor textures in the PC version because of the console version.

Edit: bogus URL.

 

[PARANOiA]

A 10/10 from Eurogamer. With this and Fable 2, it's a great time to be a gamer... though my girlfriend isn't really too happy with my lack of time and money right now!

Anyone playing yet? There are apparently copies floating around at retail now.

 

[Tap In]

Eurogamer Review - 10

In any case, I'm scraping the barrel for things to pick holes in. Fallout 3 has been by some margin the most enjoyable game I've played since BioShock - a game with which it shares a similar artistic vision and ambience. Despite so many worries, Fallout 3 almost effortlessly succeeds in its central aim of reviving a much-loved brand to appeal to the vast majority of players. It's a thrilling, all-consuming experience that will absorb you for weeks, whether you're attracted by the action, the adventure, or the role-playing, as you fall in love with the relentless excitement, incredible atmosphere, sense of place and sheer choice.

Bethesda has once again delivered a game of life-affirming brilliance that will be heralded as a classic, and talked about for years to come.

 

[RobertR1]

Damn you good reviews!!! I'm torn between this and LBP Then Gears 2, Left 4 Dead and Banjo and NO MORE games for the rest of this year for me :|

 

[Tap In]

Damn you good reviews!!! I'm torn between this and LBP Then Gears 2, Left 4 Dead and Banjo and NO MORE games for the rest of this year for me :|

I know, crazy right?

TeamXbox Review - 9.4
All told, Fallout 3 is a great game. Granted, I still have a lot left to explore, but the pace and scope of Wasteland is fabulous. It’s not a platformer, so if you’re expecting nonstop thrills, this might not be for you. You’ll have sections where you’re zigzagging across the landscape and minutes between combat, but there’s a depth to this trek. You feel as if you’re a post-apocalyptic survivor searching for a close relative who may or may not be in danger…and who has to grow up through near-death encounters with the worst creatures or others seeking to survive the same horrors you are. When people talk about deep, immersive video games, Fallout 3 can stand as a reference.


1UP Review - A


If you seek to break the world, you'll occasionally find a way -- which is understandable, given the limits of time and tech -- but it does pull you out of the otherwise broad and engrossing experience. Faults be damned, though; this is the kind of hugely ambitious game that doesn't come around very often, and when it does, you'd be a fool not to play it and enjoy the hell out of it and look forward to the day (next-next-gen?) when the fidelity of open-world RPGs takes another big step closer to the uncanny valley's far side.

GameSpy Review - 5/5
Pros
Massive, highly detailed environment; engaging storyline; gorgeous visuals; haunting score; excellent presentation.

Cons
VATS can make things a bit too easy; some technical issues here and there; lots of time spent walking.

oh and evidently there is a bug in the way the PS3 version handles friends list stuff or notifications that freeze the game. Bethesda is aware and is fixing. in mean time they suggest turning off notification while playing.

 

[DrJay24]

It's hard to get excited by FO3 when Oblivion let me down. Some reviews are saying it has many of the same weaknesses as Oblivion. I think this might be a good game to get in early 09 on the PC when it's $30.

 

[Shifty Geezer]

I know, crazy right?

So many games are coming out with 90% scores. It has to be bad for the companies! Why haven't they spaced them out throughout the year? I hope the casualties aren't too severe and sales are equivalent to whiat they'd be without the stiff competition.

 

[Tap In]

So many games are coming out with 90% scores. It has to be bad for the companies! Why haven't they spaced them out throughout the year? I hope the casualties aren't too severe and sales are equivalent to whiat they'd be without the stiff competition.

agreed. so many games that a year or two ago would have been 1 million sellers right out of the gate are going toe to toe with each other. I understand that the holiday bucks are where the sales are (especially in this economy) but I hope it does not mean losses for some really great efforts.


It's an embarrassment of riches really. unprecedented in my opinion. this generation has been more rewarding in my mind for software than any generation yet. Not just in the sheer volume of good games but the experiences have exceeded my expectations in many cases.

 

[Cheezdoodles]

It's hard to get excited by FO3 when Oblivion let me down. Some reviews are saying it has many of the same weaknesses as Oblivion. I think this might be a good game to get in early 09 on the PC when it's $30.

Same here, i loved the original Fall out titles, but i feel this may be rather far from it, that coupled with the fact that Oblivion got very good review scores aswell, even thought the game itself imo was broken (leveling system etc)..

Anybody here have it?

If so, how are conversations handled?

In the originial fallout the conversations where by far the most important factor of the game imo, with the right charisma and batter skills, you could make people do some sick things, aswell as a lot of fun and rewarding things.

In oblivion you basically just ran up to a NPC, selected between 3 or so topics, and listened to a monologe (stupid way of having dialoges in RPG's, aspecially when you yourself dont say anything, and have no saying in where the direction of the conversation is going (well, monologue). You couldn't influence what happend in the monologues at all.

 

[silhouette]

So many games are coming out with 90% scores. It has to be bad for the companies! Why haven't they spaced them out throughout the year? I hope the casualties aren't too severe and sales are equivalent to whiat they'd be without the stiff competition.

After xmas, there are not many games exciting on both camps. Killzone2 on PS3 and Halo Wars for 360 (maybe). I am pretty sure these games will continue to sell well well into next summer.

 

[Tap In]

If so, how are conversations handled?

I watched a play through yesterday and there are several types of responses similar to Mass Effect that direct the story and your character with NPCs. also according to a review, you can level up your convo skills to (for example) have very persuasive dialog available as a smooth talker.

 

[Arwin]

It's hard to get excited by FO3 when Oblivion let me down. Some reviews are saying it has many of the same weaknesses as Oblivion. I think this might be a good game to get in early 09 on the PC when it's $30.

Totally of the same opinion, except that I'm not convinced I'll like it on budget either. So far there's nothing in the world that appeals to me. Oblivion was much the same. Dead Space ditto. In Bioshock I only really like the graphical atmosphere and not much else. All in all, then, it doesn't seem likely that this is the game for me.

So thank god then, that's another touch choice less. Though I'll be reading this thread for impressions of course to see if I'm right or not.

Oh and to get back to the contents of the game, I heard an interview on Insomniac's podcast of all places where it was explained that Fallout 3 started out being about half the size of Oblivion but very densely populated. During playtesting they realised that for such a wasteland, it was too densely populated so they greatly increased the space 'in-between'. However, when they then playtested that, it felt too empty again, so they added new content again, so that they ended up with something roughly the size of Oblivion after all.

 

[Tap In]

...

So thank god then, that's another touch choice less. Though I'll be reading this thread for impressions of course to see if I'm right or not.
...

so a bunch of glowing 9-10 review scores detailing all the ways that it's better than Oblivion are not comforting to you at all?

 

[DrJay24]

so a bunch of glowing 9-10 review scores detailing all the ways that it's better than Oblivion are not comforting to you at all?

Didn't Oblivion get all 9-10s?. I'm sure it's a great game, but if you were not in love with Oblivion, then FO3 might just not be a must have for now.

The game also has a lot of little issues, many of which are straight out of Oblivion, though there are some new ones, as well.

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=13399304&postcount=388

 

[Npl]

so a bunch of glowing 9-10 review scores detailing all the ways that it's better than Oblivion are not comforting to you at all?

To be interesting for me, it shouldnt be better than Oblivion, it must be plain incomparable to that "Game".

 

[Tap In]

Didn't Oblivion get all 9-10s?. I'm sure it's a great game, but if you were not in love with Oblivion, then FO3 might just not be a must have for now.



http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=13399304&postcount=388

I was not a fan of Oblivion after about a week of play but some people are just way too picky .

I guess if budget is a big concern I can see people only buying titles that are absolutely the best of everything they like in games (good luck with that )

With my ability to trade games in at a pretty good value, i would hate to pass on a fun quality game completely that will satisfy me for even a couple of weeks of gameplay just to experience the parts that are good.

Hell at a $30 trade in value ($30 net cost) and even if I only play it for a couple weeks for 10-20 hours of gameplay is $1.50 - $3 /hour of entertainment... that's a pretty good game for my buck.

 

[obonicus]

So many games are coming out with 90% scores. It has to be bad for the companies! Why haven't they spaced them out throughout the year? I hope the casualties aren't too severe and sales are equivalent to whiat they'd be without the stiff competition.

There was a reference to this in a Gamers With Jobs podcast I just listened to. The person who had worked retail at gamestop said that during regular months you can practically take a nap inside the store, while in november-december they'd be behind the register the whole time they were in the store. They naturally made exceptions for colossal games/franchise games that will sell no matter when they're released (GTA4, MGS4) but they suggested that the difference in the retail channel is so huge as to make up for any disadvantages in 'overcrowding' retail.