THESE FORUMS NOW CLOSED (read only)

Fun Stuff => CLIKC => Topic started by: KvP on 18 Aug 2007, 15:21

Title: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 18 Aug 2007, 15:21
So I searched for a Fallout 3 thread, and there was a Fallout thread that talked a bit about the third entry in the series (if you'd call it that), but it hasn't been alive for 8 or 9 months and the board software advised me to start a new thread. And about 3 months ago Bethesda started releasing info about their game, so I believe it's appropriate to start fresh.

The official Fallout 3 website is online now. (http://fallout.bethsoft.com) For those who don't know what Fallout is, most of you know what Oblivion is, and the people who made that game are making the next Fallout game their follow-up. It's to be released in the Fall of '08.

Some things about the game from some article:
- Game runs on an evolved version of the Oblivion engine. Third person view has been reworked since the verdict was that the Oblivion version sucked ass.
- Game starts with your birth and your mother's death in a vault hospital. This is essentially the character customization part of the game. Your father hands you up to have your DNA analyzed and you get to pick out all your character traits. Your dad takes off his mask to reveal similar traits to the ones you picked.
- You grow up in the vault and as you grow you get your first book titled "You're Special" which allows you to choose you baseline stats for each of your 7 primary aptitudes. You'll also get your first weapons and wrist computer (menu) as you get older you'll take tests to determine the initial layout of your skills and traits.
- Every aspect of character creation is based on S.P.E.C.I.A.L. system. Of your 14 skills you can tag 3 to grow at a faster rate than the rest as you level up.
- Battle system is called the Vault-tec Assisted Targeting System (V.A.T.S.). The article states. "While you'll certainly be able to tackle enemies in real time using first person shooting, V.A.T.S. lets players pause time and select a target at their leisure". Battle system still uses action points, but once you've used them up you'll still be able to fight targets in real time while they charge back up.
- Game is still violent and gory. One of the featured screens is of a guy's head exploding in super gory detail. Apparently all gory deaths in the game will be in slow motion.
- More than one way to play the game. Go balls out and kill people, or sneak past situations, or perhaps talk your way out of situations.
- Enemies can target you just like you can target them, so you can get injured in very specific points on you body. This is in addition to an all new health/radiation system. This new system has you measuring how radiated certain things (like water) are and how they affect you when you consume them.
- Karma system returns
- XP based system, most XP comes from quests
- Level cap is 20
- 9 - 12 possible endings based on your actions in the game
- No level scaling like oblivion, you walk into a high level area, you die horribly.
- There are NPC's you can hire, but this is not a party based game.
- It's to take place in and around the Washington DC area.
- To much derision, they've removed called shots to the eyes and groin. No more hip-kicking pig rats in the balls for us.
- Super Mutants will play a prominent role in the game.
- Liam Neeson will voice the player's father.
- Ability to kill children is still being decided.
- Player character can be a cannibal
- Player character will have to drink water, which is the primary source of radiation in F3.

Here's some press about the game thus far:
Bethesda Q&A 1 (http://www.critical-hits.com/?p=890) and 2 (http://www.critical-hits.com/?p=891)
Comprehensive IGN coverage (http://pc.ign.com/articles/800/800570p1.html)
Gamespot coverage (http://www.gamespot.com/pages/gamespace/updates.php?pid=918428&sid=6173397&tag=topslot%3Btitle%3B1&om_act=convert&om_clk=topslot&page=1)
Joystiq article (http://www.joystiq.com/2007/07/01/joystiq-first-look-fallout-3/) and bullet points (http://www.joystiq.com/2007/07/01/more-fallout-3-details-than-you-can-shake-a-nuclear-bomb-at/)
Eurogamer coverage (http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=78752&page=1)
1up coverage (http://www.1up.com/do/previewPage?cId=3160714)

I'm an old-skool Fallout fan way back from '97, but I'm not really as, eh, conservative about it as the more vocal areas of the fanbase. I was dissatisfied with the writing and mechanics of Oblivion, but I'm tentatively awaiting this game. I'm hoping it's good.

Also, before I forget - The design documents of Black Isle's long-cancelled Fallout 3, codenamed Van Buren (http://www.nma-fallout.com/forum/dload.php?action=category&cat_id=61). At the bottom of that list is the working tech demo, buggy as hell, but good for a quick look and some heartache over what might have been.

*edit to add Van Buren stuff.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: McTaggart on 18 Aug 2007, 22:51
:(
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 18 Aug 2007, 23:11
I'm not exactly as puritanical as some members of the fanbase, but I'm fully expecting to be fucking disappointed in this game. It more sounds to me like it would be a great spin off Fallout title, but I have no hope for Bethesda's "ability" to make great NPC personalities and making enough good dialog for a core game. I'm also pretty certain the water drinking aspect will be about as shitty as every other eating/drinking resource management ever made in games.

I also hate them for removing called Groin shots.

Overall, I fully expect it to be an enjoyable game that will be brought down for me by having the Fallout name.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 18 Aug 2007, 23:37
I think I'm better off for not having played either of the first two Fallouts because I can approach this game with a perspective not colored by previous experience. I think conceptually it sounds interesting, and Bethesda has proven that they can make great RPGs, so I'm somewhat excited for it. It's still far enough away at this point that it's not driving me crazy with anticipation, but I'm certainly interested in finding out more details about it. It was certainly well received at E3, if the Game Critics awards are any indication.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 19 Aug 2007, 00:33
I think I'm better off for not having played either of the first two Fallouts because I can approach this game with a perspective not colored by previous experience.
You're not. What if you play the first two and you like the third less for it? Is that really such a loss? If I haven't played FFVII (and I haven't) should I hold off until I play FFXII for the same reasons? Granted, when you play something like, oh, say, Deus Ex: Invisible War after playing the original, you'll probably be let down considering the removal of RPG elements from the game. But you'd probably be just as nonplussed with the game if you never played the superior predecessor, because it wasn't that great and some of the design decisions in that game were pretty ludicrous (Universal ammo? What?)

Besides, considering Fallout's age, interface and gameplay mechanics, if you enjoyed Oblivion you might get bored with Fallout and enjoy Bethesda's effort even more. I'd say it's worth it just to gain some background on the setting. After all, F3 is going to be a sequel at heart.

I have no hope for Bethesda's "ability" to make great NPC personalities and making enough good dialog for a core game.
To be fair to Bethesda, they have cut down on the number of NPCs from somewhere around 1,500 in Oblivion to around 500 in Fallout 3, and they've at least tried to assure us that they're working on making each one of those NPCs unique. I wasn't thrilled with the faux-Tolkien writing on display in Oblivion, but come on, it's high fantasy. They didn't even have the leeway of Bioware's Forgotten Realms games to write past standard fantasy tropes. I'll give them a shot, at least.

I also hate them for removing called Groin shots.
It makes some semblance of sense. They're not working with flavor text anymore, which was just about all groin shots were good for. If you really want to see slow-motion groin destruction, you should play Stranglehold, which comes out this week. It's quite glorious.

Overall, I fully expect it to be an enjoyable game that will be brought down for me by having the Fallout name.
Can't say I agree with this. The Godfather: Part Three wasn't a good movie diminished by comparisons to its predecessors, it was just a bad movie that aspired to be as good as its predecessors. As long as Fallout 3 doesn't try to outdo its pedigree I won't have any problems judging it on its own merits. It's difficult for me to ruin a game for myself like that anyway.

That having been said, having read the 750+ pages of Van Buren documentation and conferred with its authors, I would trade out Bethesda's effort for it in a heartbeat. There was  some amazing stuff in there. I'll admit that I did not like Oblivion. I don't like dungeon hacks in general. But most everything Bethesda made before Morrowind was better. Hopefully they can capture some of that again.

Ah, jeez, this is something like my 12th post and I'm already writing reams of text. I do this every time.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: azgarth on 19 Aug 2007, 04:53
i've played invisible war before deus ex, and im happy about it, with invisible war, i played a nice, bit too arcade-ish game, that i could enjoy from time to time, with deus ex, i played a magnificent game, i would keep comparing the two would it have gone the other way around, now i can enjoy both, same with the thief series.
i'm a huge fan of the elder scrolls series, but with oblivion, they made a big mistake, they wanted to make the market happy, i preferred the style of any of its predecessors, and that's what did them in, for me at least, it was too generic, no real flavour, generic npc,s and they made mannirmaco an altmer? he's supposed to be a lich demigod! and of course the leveled combat, i mean, come on.

these notes make me wish back for the black isle days, baldurs gate, planescape torment, you name it, sure, they had their flaws, but they had a good story, good style.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 19 Aug 2007, 08:36
So long as I have fun playing it I'm happy.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: McTaggart on 20 Aug 2007, 03:55
No flavour text? No turn-based, hex-based combat?

It had better have Troika-esque critical-success/fail animations. And it had better have a way to finish the game without killing anything. I'm expecting serious dissapointment, so maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 20 Aug 2007, 09:40
Part of my main concern really is that they keep talking about all the choices you have, but they don't seem to find it important to show this off at all in any of the presentations they've had. After the whole fiasco about all the promises and features Oblivion was supposed to have I'm expecting it to miss a lot of what I want from a new Fallout core series game.

It just seems silly they would have bought Fallout instead of making their own post apocalyptic IP. It's certainly not like they wouldn't have gotten a hype machine surrounding it since they are still Bethesda.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 20 Aug 2007, 15:08
Going with Fallout makes sense because it's a ready-made intricate world with plenty of backstory. It means all they have to focus on is creating a compelling game.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 20 Aug 2007, 16:43
I've never played Fallout 1 or 2. That being said, I'm STILL expecting Fallout 3 to plain suck. I just don't really see Bethesda doing anything, well, GOOD, with the title. That being said, I'll still watch the game grow and I might in the end be pleasantly surprised. I need to get my hands on copies of the originals.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Ernest on 20 Aug 2007, 20:17
So long as I have fun playing it I'm happy.

I'm with you on this one, especially since I haven't played a whole lot of Fallout or Fallout 2.  I'm guessing the die-hards will be annoyed with F3, though, from what I've been reading about the game.  I'm disappointed when the die-hard fans of something don't like the latest installment or iteration of something, because I am a die-hard fan of several things, and I know what it's like.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 20 Aug 2007, 20:46
The Fallout (established) fanbase has been against Bethesda from Day 1, pretty much. But they're not entirely out of their minds. They'd been jerked around by Interplay for years at that point, with the Black Isle version of Fallout 3 being cancelled, then restarted, then cancelled, then restarted again. Tactics had come out and while it wasn't necessarily a bad game, it was more Mad Max than Fallout. There was also the console game, which was perversely bad. Then again, the more vocal Fallout fans are pretty, oh, intense. They take their game and roleplaying pretty damned seriously. Every few months there's another dozen-page long tirade published about how roleplaying games are shams, how nobody gets it right, and how "real choice" could be implemented. They're hardcore gaming conservatives, basically. Some of them really seem to hate Fallout, especially the sequel. They're not fun people, and it's not difficult to understand why Bethesda has ignored them up to this point: Even taking aside the vitriol towards Bethsoft, if you took the amount of people who would play Fallout 3 with no prior knowledge of the franchise based solely on the fact that team Oblivion is behind it, that number would dwarf the amount of people who played the original Fallouts 10 to 1, easily.

So Fallout fans are afraid that Bethesda's going to take the dark, unique world of Fallout, compromise and dilute it and make it easily digestible for the average gamer who would rather level grind than roleplay dialogue or whatever you're supposed to do in an RPG. And frankly, Bethesda can easily afford to do just that. Bethesda isn't a niche developer house like Black Isle, it makes blockbuster games, and the pleasures of Fallout don't make Blockbusters. What's been released so far, namely the prominence of Super Mutants and the "Fat Man mini-nuke launcher", hasn't been encouraging as far as staying faithful to the precedent set by the first two games. And that's not even taking into account the disparaging difference in quality between the writing in Black Isle games (Planescape: Torment, Fallout) and Bethesda games (Morrowind & Oblivion). It's very easy to be skeptical, especially if you consider roleplaying to be important.

*edit for grammar.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 20 Aug 2007, 22:08
Going with Fallout makes sense because it's a ready-made intricate world with plenty of backstory. It means all they have to focus on is creating a compelling game.

Of course, but it's also a ready-made intricate world in a style of gameplay that they have no experience making, with nothing more than a cult following.

It would be kinda like Id making Half-Life 3.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 21 Aug 2007, 05:33
I'd like to see them go clear back to the first in these games for ideas; "Wasteland".
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ScrambledGregs on 21 Aug 2007, 08:21
Guys, I love the Fallout series and I'm optimistic about Fallout 3. Maybe it's because I don't think Fallout is some holy fucking grail that has to remain a 2D hex based, turn based RPG with the ability to shoot someone in the groin. Do you remember Fallout Tactics?? Pretty meh. Do you remember Fallout: Brotherhood of Steel?! Nothing could be that bad!!

The hardcore Fallout fanbase are going to hate Fallout 3 no matter what because it isn't the exact same thing as Fallout 1 or 2. They are the most close minded fanbase I have ever seen, and they act like they own Fallout, somehow. At this point I'm just glad somebody is making a new Fallout game from the standpoint of being Fallout fans. You can say a lot of things about Fallout: Brotherhood of Steel, but that game was NOT developed by fans of the series. Fallout 3 is.

I'm not saying the game couldn't still turn out to be shit. But from what I've seen so far, and from interviews with the developers, I'm optimistic.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 21 Aug 2007, 11:42
The fact of the matter is, releasing a 2-D, isometric game in 2008 would be financial suicide. Blaming Bethesda for changing the gameplay is like saying Nintendo shouldn't have made Ocarina of Time in 3-D. It's just a ridiculous expectation.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 21 Aug 2007, 12:34
I don't know, if Donkey Kong hadn't strayed away from the "throw barrels down ramps to kill Mario" routine, I would still respect him.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: McTaggart on 21 Aug 2007, 22:04
I'm not blaming anyone, I'm just not expecting anything great.

I bet you could pull off a 2d isometric roleplaying rpg on the ds though.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 21 Aug 2007, 22:07
Actually, I wasn't expecting it to stay 2d, I was hoping it would have more of a Silent Storm style POV and gameplay though. The rest of my concerns simply have to do with it being Bethesda, who makes a VERY different style of RPG that I personally can't stand, rather than one of several other RPG developers that I would have LOVED to have make the game. It really does suck that it's very likely that I will not like the huge change in direction that a series that I have loved and regularly played for the last 10 years because Interplay is run by a bunch of jackasses.

Seriously, I'm just hoping that after the game is released I won't be thinking that I'd rather it had just died at 2.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 22 Aug 2007, 00:07
I bet you could pull off a 2d isometric roleplaying rpg on the ds though.

Yeah but that'd only be your best bet if your target audience was Japan.

Fallout's target audience is not Japan.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 22 Aug 2007, 00:14
I'd like to see them go clear back to the first in these games for ideas; "Wasteland".
Brian Fargo's reportedly shopping the property around. It'd be pretty funny if they came out with a Wasteland game, as it would be both a sequel and a spiritual successor to the spiritual successor to the original game.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 23 Aug 2007, 08:34
Personally, I think it would be hilarious to have a joke reference to Fallout in whatever sequel to Wasteland gets made; something along the lines of the party stumbling across a Vault sealed up nice and tight with everyone inside suffocated and have a descriptor saying something like "They appear to have been locked in a giant safe in the side of the mountain when the bombs fell. Too bad they forgot that whole pesky breathing thing."

Oh, before anyone gets going about the Vault-Tec solution to atmospheric processing, I know already. It's meant as a joke.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Mnementh on 24 Aug 2007, 08:49
The thing about extreme Fallout fanboys is well:

(http://liquidtoast.net/albums/snark/theinternet.png)

Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 07 Jan 2008, 15:37
No real better place to put this, so I'll just drop it in here.

A public version of the Fallout 2 Restoration project (http://www.nma-fallout.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=40443) has been released. Like the KOTOR2 Restoration Project, it adds in a bunch of stuff that was meant to be in the game but the devs didn't have time to implement. Looks like it could warrant another playthrough of the classic game.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 07 Jan 2008, 16:38
Hm, do you know where I could find Fallout 2 at this point, and if it would run on Vista at all? I'd like to play it and see what I missed out on.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: carrotosaurus on 07 Jan 2008, 16:46
It should run on Vista. I mean, Vista has an OS emulator. And there are plenty of Fallout 2s lurking on Amazon.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 07 Jan 2008, 16:49
http://www.amazon.com/Interplay-FALLOUTCOLL-Fallout-Collection-dvd-rom/dp/B000FUD16A/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=videogames&qid=1199753183&sr=8-1

They are seriously the best RPGs I've ever played, and yes it should run perfect on Vista. At least it did for me.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: carrotosaurus on 07 Jan 2008, 16:52
Oh yeah that's a good bundle. Tactics is a marvelous game too.

Holy shit, does anyone else see the prices copies of Arcanum and Planescape: Torment are going for? I mean daaayum
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 07 Jan 2008, 17:00
As games go, they're cult hits.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 07 Jan 2008, 17:05
Torments is still the best novel I've ever played.

Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Narr on 07 Jan 2008, 17:22
Oh yeah that's a good bundle. Tactics is a marvelous game too.

Holy shit, does anyone else see the prices copies of Arcanum and Planescape: Torment are going for? I mean daaayum
I used to own them in the past but as I seem to do with all my god video game purchases of yesteryear, I have completely lost the hard copies.

I do not feel bad about "pirating" them because I still feel like I technically own the rights to play the game, as I payed for it once upon a time and only my own stupidity kept me from reinstalling it.

On a semi-related tangent, I do not feel bad about pirating games that were never released on American soil.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Alex C on 07 Jan 2008, 19:02
I still find it kind of funny though that people expected fallout fans to take things gracefully to begin with or that a reasoned argument will somehow make their lot happier. I mean, really, pointing out to someone all the perfectly logical reasons why the sort of product they enjoy will likely never be made again is more like pissing on their open wounds than offering words of comfort or an olive branch.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 08 Jan 2008, 04:58
>twitch, twitch<
SCREW YOU, PAL! VAN BUREN WILL LIVE!!! LIVE I SAY!one!!
@_@ woah -_-
Head rush there... what were we talking about?
 :wink:
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 11 Jan 2008, 21:57
I wanted to be optimistic about Fallout 3, I really did - even if it wasn't the same as the previous two games, it could have still been a lot of fun.

But then I saw this screenshot.

(http://img174.imageshack.us/img174/161/mandmnb8.jpg)

Farewell optimism, don't let the door hit you on the way out.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 11 Jan 2008, 22:14
Uh, I don't know what the fuck game that's from, but it's sure as hell not Fallout 3. This is Fallout 3:

(http://fallout.bethsoft.com/images/art/fallout3concept/concept04B.jpg)

(http://fallout.bethsoft.com/images/art/fallout3concept/concept03B.jpg)

(http://fallout.bethsoft.com/images/art/fallout3concept/concept02B.jpg)
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 11 Jan 2008, 22:28
That's concept art (good too, craig mullins is awesome) . The above was a screenshot from an interview.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 11 Jan 2008, 22:45
Well, according to Bethesda the trailer (http://www.gametrailers.com/player/usermovies/70733.html) they released was in-engine, which looked a lot like those shots so I assumed they were screens. Point being, it's going to look better than whatever the fuck that is.

I could buy that shot maybe coming from the Van Buren version of Fallout 3, but not Bethesda. How could something they've been developing for almost 4 years now end up looking worse than Oblivion, the game they released almost 2 years ago?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 11 Jan 2008, 23:37
I'm pretty sure that's a zoom in the and the original take was low quality (the pixellation etc.). But my main point with that screenshot was how ridiculous the super mutant looked - he looks like a green duke nukem with ridiculous armor. And a helmet.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 12 Jan 2008, 00:03
The Oblivion engine wasn't terribly stellar to begin with, really. It had a lot of the same niggling little problems that UE3 had, mainly that the environments were more or less static and everything had a hewn-whole-from-plastic feel to it. They've talked up geometry erosion, but they talked that up with Oblivion during development as well (people still ridicule Bethesda for their claims to "real-time soil erosion") and we're left skeptical.

But yeah, from what's out there to read, most people who saw the extended demo footage commented on the almost steampunk-ish visual design philosophy (especially where the vaults were concerned) and the armor actually looking like medieval armor left over from a slightly less ornate Oblivion. The BoS armor is basically full plate mail.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 22 Jan 2008, 13:27
That screenie looks like some sort of Techno-Hulk.
Hulk 2099.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 22 Jan 2008, 20:51
But yeah, from what's out there to read, most people who saw the extended demo footage commented on the almost steampunk-ish visual design philosophy (especially where the vaults were concerned) and the armor actually looking like medieval armor left over from a slightly less ornate Oblivion. The BoS armor is basically full plate mail.
Well, it always has been hasn't it?
Err, no? Fallout's visual aesthetic (created by the great Leonard Boyarski, who's probably hammering away at Starcraft 2 right now) was  retrofuture sci-fi. Lost in Space robots, Buck Rogers rayguns, "aerodynamic" designs ala cadillacs, vacuum tube computers. Circuit boards were bleeding-edge tech at the time of the war. From the sound of it, Fallout 3 seems to be more messes of gears and Goldberg contraptions, which is more steampunk than anything. To be fair to Bethesda, they have nobody nearly as creative as Boyarski working for them, so some regress is to be expected. Still, as different as the gameplay is going to be, it'd be nice if they tried to work in some of the visual themes from the first game, because they were outstanding.

That's not even getting into the Super Mutants. I'm not inclined to say "space orcs" (well, okay, maybe I am), but it's pretty shitty that they didn't at least try and go for the neanderthal Incredible Hulk design of the original.

At least as far back as Fallout Tactics:BoS, and that still used the original engine.
Tactics most definitely did not use the original Fallout engine. It was isometric, but it was had much higher system reqs, with better effects, bigger areas were bigger and multiple levels (climbing ladders and staircases didn't load new areas).

And Tactics, despite having a few BIS people working on it, wasn't very much of a Fallout game. It was a perfectly okay tactical combat game, but the visual design was all wrong (although the robot design could've made it into the original games) and more importantly it was completely lacking in humor, which the original games had in spades, to their credit. The few design details from the aborted second Tactics game, however, sounded pretty good. They learned from their mistakes.

Really, one of the things the first game had over the second is uniformity of visual design. It was 100% consistent in its retro-futureosity, whereas when the Big Three left to found Troika during Fallout 2's development, the game was left in the hands of the rest of BIS, who made a pretty great game, but not the constant eye-candy of the first in the series.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 22 Jan 2008, 21:03
I think when he said that, he was referring to the Power Armor as being essentially full plate, which it kinda was. The suits looked the same as full plate in BG2 did.

The super mutants just annoy me. There were SEVERAL close ups of super mutant faces during dialogue, and yet they just chose to ignore that and go there own bland and cliche way.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Alex C on 22 Jan 2008, 21:12
Kid van Pervert's assessment of Fallout Tactics is spot on. It's a widely villified game that doesn't really deserve a lot of the harsh criticism that has been laid at its door once judged on its own merits. It's basically the Fallout setting meets Jagged Alliance but lacks the charm and humor of either franchise, which is a shame, but not really the mortal sin a lot of people make it out to be either.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 22 Jan 2008, 21:30
I think when he said that, he was referring to the Power Armor as being essentially full plate, which it kinda was. The suits looked the same as full plate in BG2 did.
The Mk II model, maybe, but the original power armor looked to add a foot or two to your character's height. It was powered armor made out of some kind of hardened ceramic, not plate mail with wires underneath.

I remember the learning curve in Tactics getting a little ridiculous at times. Like when you find super mutants for the first time (Bethesda looks to have borrowed the "tumor giant" mutants of Tactics, among other things) and find yourself with small weapons against a large amount of enemies who are incredibly accurate with big weapons and have pretty nasty damage resistance to boot. I had to restart a game with a character who could use thrown weapons, since grenades are the only surefire weapons against the brutes when you first run into them.

When you get down to it, Tactics was a Fallout game that deep, deep down inside, was really a Road Warrior game.

I also found it funny how they allowed you to gain deathclaws onto your team right as they become practically obsolete. Speaking of bad visual design, how about those Tactics deathclaws?

Here's the original:
(http://fallout.rpgplanet.gamespy.com/fallout1/images/deathclaw.jpg)
Which is a pretty straightforward homage to the Tarrasque illustration from the 2nd edition D&D Monstrous Manual, an image of which I can't find at the moment.

Here's the only pic of the Tactics deathclaw I could find:
(http://bisik.webpark.pl/obrazki/postacie/szpon.jpg)
It's not as cool, as you can see, and far less nerdy.

Deathclaws in Fallout 3 will probably resemble the Trolls from Oblivion.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: MusicScribbles on 23 Jan 2008, 22:00
That new bit on the Fallout 3 website about the Brotherhood of Steel is pretty good. It gives me some faith in Bethsoft. I hated Oblivion, so I really hope they don't fuck this up.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Narr on 23 Jan 2008, 23:09
I didn't realize this many people hated Bethesda so much.  I rather enjoyed all their games I've played.  Morrowind's combat was kind of clunky, but they fixed that up with Oblivion and it's a rather solid game to me.  They won't have to make their own stat system this time around, so that shouldn't be a problem.  (Although I always found the Fallout stats to be rather unintuitive.)

I am still looking forward to this game.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 23 Jan 2008, 23:44
Most people don't seem to trust Bethesda with the Fallout franchise, and they're well justified in being skeptical. The Fallouts were on the complete end of the RPG spectrum from the Elder Scrolls in a lot of fundamental ways.
     Fallout places a lot of emphasis on dialogue and provides some dialogues only if certain ability requirements are met, while Morrowind and Oblivion have influence minigames and bribes in place of dialogue outside of rumors and quest-critical lines.
     Fallout had permanent consequences for actions. Kill a child NPC, and your reputation will follow you throughout the game no matter what you do. Kill somebody in Morrowind or Oblivion, and you're slapped with a heavy fine, payment of which will cause the world to forget your actions.
     Fallout had set character limits. You get an unchangeable set of primary stats and three tag skills, and you'll likely never reach proficiency in most all untagged skills. In Oblivion, character class is essentially meaningless, as any character is free to become proficient in anything and everything, and towards the later parts of the game most characters are more alike than different as stats change with each level.
     Fallout was more non-linear than Morrowind or Oblivion. While those games offered a staggering number of quests, they were all linear quests, with a single conclusion. Fallout had fewer sidequests, but the main quests and some of the sidequests had multiple paths to completion. You could either kill Killian Darkwater and allow Gizmo free reign over Junktown, or expose Gizmo as a murderous conspirator. You could help the Regulators maintain their grip on the Boneyard or you could retake it by helping the Blades. You could even join the villain's cause, although it would end the game. The tangible benefits of certain choices were better represented in the second game.
That new bit on the Fallout 3 website about the Brotherhood of Steel is pretty good. It gives me some faith in Bethsoft. I hated Oblivion, so I really hope they don't fuck this up.
It looked alright. I don't want to say it's "not Fallout-y enough", but I do hope when all is said and done things aren't all roses. The Fallout tone is such that heroic men and their efforts, rare as they are, aren't usually rewarded in the end. Case in point would be the Vault Dweller. I'm actually expecting that Bethesda will pay direct homage to Fallout 1 and make the ending to Fallout 3 a pyrrhic victory of some sort. They're smart enough to do that, at least. I'm apprehensive of the idea that Bethsoft might oversimplify things. The BoS in the first Fallout was hardly a benevolent organization, and they were barely in 2.

Part of that tone was the foreboding and dread that came from the idea that things were rapidly decaying in the Fallout universe. All the technology still functioning was very old, and the means to maintain the tech was incredibly difficult to come by. Even the self-sustained Vault was crippled by a single computer chip frying. The Brotherhood of Steel was actually sort of a tragic figure, so to speak, in that it seemed like a band-aid on a bullet wound. Not even they could halt the decline of humanity, even if they wanted to. It sort of fed into the Master's plan to "save humanity" by mutating it, though in true Fallout style, even that plan was futile from the beginning.

Of course, that all went out the window with Fallout 2 and the GECKs, which single-handedly solved all those problems.

Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 24 Jan 2008, 01:25
I've got to agree, the write up didn't exactly fill me with hope. As well as the whole 'brotherhood of steel is a righteous force' thing (Err, they tried to send me to my death in the glow - doesn't seem too righteous to me), the depiction of super mutants as some kind of mindless evil was irritating too. It looks like they've tried to turn them into some kind of cardboard cutout bad guy (daedra?).
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: redd1 on 25 Jan 2008, 07:15
alot of great information about a wonderful series....though i to am very aprehensive about the third one im probably gonna give it a try to see how good/bad it is.....just hope they dont implement the morrowind style ability leveling
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 28 Jan 2008, 16:42
Screenies!
(http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/3958/12147257320080128113959eb3.jpg)
(http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/2776/33431711820080128113958ar4.jpg)
(http://img299.imageshack.us/img299/8544/39126574320080128113958mv5.jpg)
(http://img148.imageshack.us/img148/489/67852857820080128113957iy6.jpg)
(http://img253.imageshack.us/img253/6392/21213594542008012811395nj0.jpg)
(http://img148.imageshack.us/img148/406/screenshot191124op1.jpg)
(http://img181.imageshack.us/img181/5633/screenshot191125tc0.jpg)

Looks like they still haven't gotten over their bloom fetish. Hopefully they'll have that cleaned up by release.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Narr on 28 Jan 2008, 16:45
That last screenshot is discomforting to me, I'll be honest.  It looks like that guy in the power suit (if that's what it is) is a star wars stormtrooper and the first person perspecting seems too much like a gameplay device rather than simply another point of view for dramatic effect.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 28 Jan 2008, 16:57
I'm more annoyed by the fact that the Super Mutants are just Orcs and Cave Trolls.

Meh, I'm gonna end up enjoying it one way or the other.

Oh God please.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 28 Jan 2008, 18:52
first person perspecting seems too much like a gameplay device rather than simply another point of view for dramatic effect.

Heaven forbid, right?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 28 Jan 2008, 18:55
Blegh. It's oblivion meets star wars. Ah well, might be a decent game if I scribble out the word fallout on the box and replace it with 'generic shooter'.

Also, turns out that screenie I posted WAS zoomed in. Fourth one down has him.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 28 Jan 2008, 18:57
I'm sorry, but how does anything about those screenshots evoke Star Wars?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 28 Jan 2008, 19:16
The power armor looks like storm trooper armor, the vault suit is reminiscent of the rebel alliance uniforms, and the whole cheesy feel to it all just makes me think Star Wars.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: pannic on 29 Jan 2008, 01:53
um.  Wait.  Are you implying that Fallout wasn't cheesy? 
When did this happen?
Fallout had to be taken with a glass of red wine, or else the taste of cheese would have been overpowering.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 29 Jan 2008, 10:10
Fallout wasn't cheesy at all. In fact, it was quite dark in tone.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Alex C on 29 Jan 2008, 17:10
I think it depends on if you played Fallout 2 first or if at all. The first one's humor is pitch black, for the most part while the second one has a lot more pop culture references, easter eggs and a lighter tone overall.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 29 Jan 2008, 19:05
Certainly. In most playthroughs you'll get at least one special Monty Python encounter. Plus, talking scorpions / plants and the like. The fanbois have a point in that Black Isle deviated quite a bit from the first game in tone, but overall I thought it stayed consistent enough. Those first few playthroughs it didn't matter. It's still an excellent game in spite of the somewhat frequent bad ideas.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Alex C on 29 Jan 2008, 20:05
Agreed; I've actually played Fallout 2 more than the first. Fallout 1 was an indelible experience, but there was more stuff to goof around with in the second, and I think there was a certain amount of wisdom involved with switching things up. Fallout 1 nailed the mythos perfectly, I think, and I really wasn't sure they had anywhere else to go after its completion; the story already had an excellent ending, the kind that the setting's internal logic demanded, which ironically is something we so rarely get to enjoy due to the kneejerk impulse to staple on a happy ending or artificial sense of closure. I guess I'm saying that Fallout 1 was so satisfying for me that it felt perfectly natural to treat the sequel as more of a highly enjoyable victory lap than a true successor. I wasn't in any way disappointed either; I mean, shit, I got to shoot a pissed off super intelligent mutant rat in the balls with a shotgun. Good times.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 31 Jan 2008, 06:14
The Monty Python references, Mad Max cameos, troll/ogre super mutants, and general lunacy don't matter. They can deviate from the main games in any way they want. First person, third person, 3D, sprites... but there's one thing they can never change.

War. War never changes.


(>sniff, sniff< who left all this CHEESE here?)
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Narr on 01 Feb 2008, 21:49
first person perspecting seems too much like a gameplay device rather than simply another point of view for dramatic effect.

Heaven forbid, right?
Yes.  I want turn-based action-point CRPG action, goddamn it.  There hasn't been many good CRPGs in this millenia, and a throwback to things that were genuinely witty AND difficult AND had good pacing would be awesome.  I'm burnt out on first person shooters what with all the good ones released this last year.  STALKER, Orange Box, Call of Duty 4, Bioshock?  I don't want Fallout: Oblivion.  I want Fallout 3.

Understand where my forboding sense of dread comes from?

Don't get me wrong.  Oblivion was very fun and I enjoyed it.  Repainting it with the Fallout universe (which they've significantly altered from the look of it) would really irk my chain.

Oh and about Star Wars:  Seriously, tell me that guy in the power armor in that photo doesn't look like a Dark Trooper from the old Star Wars: Dark Forces game.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: The extra letter on 02 Feb 2008, 22:34
Hey, at least they still have the little wheel on the back of the power armour.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 02 Feb 2008, 22:45
I don't want Fallout: Oblivion.  I want Fallout 3.


Exactly.  So far it looks like they're just raping the Fallout name and its legend to bolster the sales of Yet Another Sci-Fi First-Person Pseudo-RPG Type Thing.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Ozymandias on 03 Feb 2008, 00:28
Guys.

You're annoying.

Just saying.

I'll be happy to play a good game when it comes out and not give a rat's ass if it's "Fallout".
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 03 Feb 2008, 00:34
Heaven forbid, right?
Yes.  I want turn-based action-point CRPG action, goddamn it.

But why? Why would you want a throwback when we're living in a different decade? Games have come pretty damn far since Fallout, dude. The series is allowed to move with the times, and it's entitled to, whether fans like it (based, by the way, entirely on advance press) or not.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 03 Feb 2008, 01:49
Exactly. That style of game is dead largely because technology and subsequently the market has moved beyond it. Whatever the fuck it's called (and I might be biased here because I've never played the first two), if it's a good game then who cares? As far as I'm concerned, Fallout 3 addresses every problem I had with Oblivion (dull combat, an extremely generic fantasy setting and surrounding fiction, and the totally broken levelling system), and fixes it. So I'm excited.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 03 Feb 2008, 08:49
Fair warning: If I see another word printed about "BUT IT DOESN'T LOOK LIKE THE FIRST TWO GAMES" in this thread, I'll probably just quote you and replace your text with this:

Quote
A BLOO BLA BLOO BLOOO
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 03 Feb 2008, 09:06
So Johnny, you wouldn't mind if the next wacky Will Ferrell movie was Citizen Kane 2?

Just sayin', you know.  Just sayin'.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 03 Feb 2008, 09:14
I didn't mind Aliens, dig?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 03 Feb 2008, 09:26
Ohhh.  Nicely played.  Alright, you win this round, you rogue.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 03 Feb 2008, 11:32
Quote from: 'Johnny C'
first person perspecting seems too much like a gameplay device rather than simply another point of view for dramatic effect.

Heaven forbid, right?
He's actually referring to what was promised by Bethesda, namely that third-person would be a viable perspective for playing the game. What he's saying is, it looks like that's not the case.

I didn't mind Aliens, dig?
This isn't a property passing hands from Ridley Scott to James Cameron. This is a property changing hands from Kubrick to Brett Ratner.

But why? Why would you want a throwback when we're living in a different decade? Games have come pretty damn far since Fallout, dude. The series is allowed to move with the times, and it's entitled to, whether fans like it (based, by the way, entirely on advance press) or not.
That argument only goes so far. What we're taking issue with is Bethsoft fixing what isn't broken, or more accurately, defacing what's perfect. For some, it's isometric perspective or turn-based combat, something that I don't really take issue with, although SPECIAL is built around turn-based gameplay and stands to be significantly altered. I mostly care about the aesthetic laid down by Boyarski that enraptured me so much as a child, which looks like it's being scrapped where all other aspects of the game seem to be getting some sort of Bethsoft attention.

And there's also dialogue and its trees, something integral to Fallout's gameplay, and something that Bethesda hasn't touched in any form for at least 12 years.

I mean, if you want to argue that the type of game that Bethsoft makes is better than the type of game Fallout is, then that's fine.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 03 Feb 2008, 11:54
IN ORDER:

In theory, you could play Metal Gear Solid 3 almost entirely from a third-person perspective. However, it doesn't really look like that's not the case since there's the one shot from a first person perspective.

Yeah, except Ridley Scott -> James Cameron actually happened. We can speculate all we want but the fact is that the franchise changed hands. Rather than bitch and moan about it, we should maybe wait to see what happens? Who knows, one of us could lead a charmed life and as a result we'll all be pleasantly surprised.

The aesthetic does look a bit different, which is basically the biggest thing I'll concede to you - the vaccuum-tube charm of the games is remarkably tough to nail down, though, and frankly I'm willing to give Bethseda credit for simply trying.

And because I promised it,

A BLOO BLOO BLA BLOO
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 03 Feb 2008, 12:18
What I take issue with is that people blame Bethesda for the fact that they aren't getting a 'true' Fallout 3 when they should be blaming Interplay. Basically, aside from their RPG wing, every publishing decision they made was shit. Not just mediocre, but fully shit. (Well, except for Descent if you're into that type of thing.) On top of that, their management had no fucking idea how to run a goddamn business or treat their employees properly. Interplay were the people who put the knife in the old Fallout style, not Bethesda. Nobody was going to make a Fallout game in the style of 1 and 2 when Interplay's festering corpse finally decided to sell the rights off because as we said before, the technology had moved beyond it. The only platform where I think that genre even has a possibility of coming back is the DS, and you know people would have bitched if they had put it there even if the gameplay was fundamentally similar.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 03 Feb 2008, 16:02
Certainly Herve Caen is responsible for the dissolution of Black Isle (along with Westwood and several other studios) but they are a non-entity now, for all intents and purposes. Bethesda is fully in control. What they do with the property is fully their responsibility.

Btw, new version of The Fallout 2 Restoration Project (http://www.nma-fallout.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=464608#464608) is out, adds some new fixes.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 25 Mar 2008, 17:43
Executive Producer Todd Howard's given some updates.

 - Apparently the game is finished, as far as "expanding the borders of the game" go. It still needs to be filled in and polished. They're saying Fall '08 is a "definite".

 - The game is twice as long as they had originally planned. As big as Oblivion, 20 hour main plotline, 100 hours or so all told.

 - 1 NPC companion at any one time, not including Dogmeat.

...
Damn, what a waste of a 1,001th post.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: MusicScribbles on 25 Mar 2008, 18:20
He actually never said that it was as big as Oblivion, he said in the recent OXM podcast that it isn't as big as Oblivion. He said the game is definitely much larger than they originally planned, but it really isn't close to the immense world of Oblivion.
The game is larger because of the over 200 endings that they currently are working with in the game. That is something he did say.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 25 Mar 2008, 18:24
200 endings? Now that's probably the best thing I've hear so far.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 25 Mar 2008, 18:41
You do realize that the 200 endings are probably more along the lines of 200 variations of 8 - 12 (a perfectly solid number of endings as long as they don't suck) endings right? In essence a complete and total bullshit claim?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 25 Mar 2008, 18:51
Still, it shows that they do care, at least somewhat. If they were just in it for the money they could have just given it one ending (and the vault dweller killed them all and lived happily ever after).
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 25 Mar 2008, 18:58
I think the fact they bought a very very niche cult classic franchise and were ecstatic to make a sequel shows that more than making a total bullshit claim.

Making a bullshit claim like that just means he's talking in Peter Molyneux native language, which is never a good thing.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: MusicScribbles on 25 Mar 2008, 19:38
Man, I'm going to post the link to that OXM podcast now.
The guy said there are over 200 endings, but he also says that they are all grown from the 12 endings that they originally had planned.
Here it is. (http://oxmpodcast.com/?p=134)
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scruffy on 26 Mar 2008, 14:38
I'm just here to say this.
I was playing Oblivion the other day and thought, this is a lot like Fallout. 
Don't even ask me why, but somehow I thought, Fallout. 
Free roaming, do your own quests, get to know the people.  Travel from town to town, completely free to go where you want, when you want.
I don't know, to me that was the essence of Fallout.  It was never JUST about ___Punk whatever whatever.  I mean, that stuff just takes a graphics artists.  It was about the atmosphere and the gameplay.

/I know what I've done.  *Cigarette and Blindfold on*
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Narr on 26 Mar 2008, 17:39
Well, there's truth in that.  A lot of Fallout's charm, though, was the setting.  You have to admit it.  Besides being a sound RPG, it simply made you laugh.

I mean, the game gives you a sex skill level.  How awesome is that?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 26 Mar 2008, 18:39
Oblivion was Fallout without the atmosphere, humor, memorable characters or interesting plots.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scruffy on 27 Mar 2008, 12:31
Oblivion was Fallout without the atmosphere, humor, memorable characters or interesting plots.
I'll give you humour and memorable characters, but oblivion really has a cool plot and it's atmosphere is really engrossing in my opinion.  Course, when you accidently get someone killed and loot his body, and rob his house, I can't help but chuckle in a distinctly Fallout way.  Sort of like placing explosives on merchants after robbing them blind.  It's wrong, but funny.

Well, there's truth in that.  A lot of Fallout's charm, though, was the setting.  You have to admit it.  Besides being a sound RPG, it simply made you laugh.

I mean, the game gives you a sex skill level.  How awesome is that?

I definately agree.  The settings, artistry and music were just supurb.  The sex skill was sadening though lol 
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Lord Orange on 27 Mar 2008, 21:43
seeing how I love both fallout and oblivion, I'm going to enjoy fallout3 even with the annoying alterations.  and also because S.T.A.L.K.E.R. was compared to a mix of fallout and oblivion, this only heightens my expectations.  I'm defiantly going to enjoy the ability to customize my character's appearance.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 28 Mar 2008, 16:06
I'm defiantly going to enjoy the ability to customize my character's appearance.

either that's a typo, or you chose to rebel against "the man" in a very subtle way.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Lord Orange on 09 Apr 2008, 18:05
Probably typo. I am not inglesh good
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Fletch on 11 Apr 2008, 04:23
If I recall correctly & they're following the FO2 model, 200 endings means 1-2 endings with a number of quests that toggle "good" or "bad" results for whatever faction...
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Red Peril on 15 Apr 2008, 11:48
The Fallout 3 debate actually reminds me of the debates about Fallout 2, Baldur's Gate 2 or shit even Half Life 2, everyone expected those games to be pathetic pale shadows of their predecessors and it never came true. Everyone just wants Fallout 3 to be abysmal just so they can prove to everyone they loved the original games more and always have done so they can seem smarter than most people. As for Bethesda doing a good job with the story sure I might not be that optimistic, but the main reason why the characterisation in Oblivion was so poor was because they spent all there time making a totally new engine, with more time I doubt it will be quite so feeble, and the main storyline of Morrowind wasn't to bad either. I don't expect the storytelling to be in the same league as Fallout 1 or 2, but I can say that of any game that has been announced in the last year and they weren't mercilessly crucified. And another thing too, the action is going to be better; I don't care if it's shallow, an RPG videogame is still a videogame, not a table top RPG, and I wan't it to play like one. The same goes for people complaining about it being 3D, an extra dimension doesn't make a bad game, bad design does. If it comes out and you think it's just horrible then I'll accept your opinion, but complaining before the fact is just ridiculous.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Evander on 16 Apr 2008, 07:59
Is there any idea how it compares between systems?

I'm still undecided on whether to get it for 360 or PS3.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: est on 16 Apr 2008, 12:16
I don't want Fallout: Oblivion.  I want Fallout 3.

Unfortunately I haven't played either of the first two Fallout games & really enjoyed Oblivion.  From what you guys have been saying in my RPG thread I would love Fallout: Oblivion, so please excuse me if I seem a little chipper about all of this.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 16 Apr 2008, 23:41
From what I've seen the problem isn't that it's Fallout:Oblivion (which would be pretty good), it'd be Oblivion:Generic Post-Apocalyptic Setting.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: JJXB on 19 Apr 2008, 20:42
bethesda don't seem the right people to do a fallout game but they couldn't do any worse in ruining the fallout name than interplay by the end of the line (fallout: POS for PS2 and xbox demonstrate that much). i'll still be pissed if it's crap. *revs up chainsaw and heads for the interplay head office*
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Fletch on 20 Apr 2008, 02:32
Quote
I don't expect the storytelling to be in the same league as Fallout 1 or 2, but [other sub-standard game storylines] weren't mercilessly crucified.
There is a thriving business in crap movies & crap books, too - does that mean we should be happy some people are working to the lowest common denomenator?
I actually think I'm going to enjoy the game, but I won'tfill in the blanks of "200 endings" & other airy promises with blind trust.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 20 Apr 2008, 08:13
For clarification, the way the 200 endings works is based off of the original 9-12.  Minor and major changes happen to those endings based on your choices in the game, and there's a fuckton of choices, so they got up to 204 (I think) before they said 'stop, we've gotten carried away with ourselves'.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 21 Apr 2008, 22:43
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.'s was pretty cool.

In many ways, stalker was pretty damn similar to Fallout.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 08 May 2008, 16:50
This Enon Zool guy is apparently the composer for Fallout 3's music. (http://fallout.bethsoft.com/eng/home/home.php)

Have a listen-see here. (http://fallout.bethsoft.com/eng/downloads/music.html)

Verdict: At the very least, the guy they got to do the music doesn't know what the fuck he's doing. Main theme is still pretty awful. Megaton has a slight Redding-ish vibe, still awful. Into the Wasteland might as well be out of a between-battles portion of Halo. Gets a little Modoc-y towards the end.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 09 May 2008, 00:24
I dunno, it's not all that bad. It's not original fallout, but the main theme reminded me a bit of an epic Baldur's Gate type thing. Megaton was pretty bad, it sounded like something you'd hear in Worms. Into the Wasteland was pretty good, reminded me of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. which is pretty much the best way a Fallout FPS could go.

[EDIT- Into the wasteland also reminds me of Half-life for some reason. ]
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 09 May 2008, 00:35
Jesus, Al, did this guy piss in your Cheerios or something? I don't pay a whole lot of attention to game music, to be honest, since more often than not I am listening to something else while I play games anyway, but I didn't find anything 'awful' about any of the tracks.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Thaes on 01 Jun 2008, 11:19
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1022840/Pictured-Al-Qaedas-terrifying-vision-devastated-America-wake-nuclear-attack.html


Someone tell me Daily Mail is joking.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 01 Jun 2008, 12:20
Nah, the al-Ekhlaas islamist militant forum used the concept art as part of a video they did and a private security firm flagged it down. more coverage here (http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,23775429-2,00.html), or you could check any of the gaming blogs.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 03 Jun 2008, 10:32
Pretty soon here you'll be able to play the Fallouts for free online via ad-supported gametap. (http://www.joystiq.com/2008/06/02/gametap-to-add-fallout-titles-to-its-interplay-library/) So none of you will have excuses.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 03 Jun 2008, 12:56
Holy shit, that's awesome.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 03 Jun 2008, 17:15
I don't know what the status of Tactics is. It might be up there, but it's a more advanced game, engine-wise, than the original Fallouts. We'll see.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KharBevNor on 03 Jun 2008, 20:53
200 endings is not so crazy. Fallout 2 must have had at least that many once you tot up all the possibilities: almost every town/group (apart from Arroyo, Broken Hills, the Deathclaws of Vault 13,  the Tanker Vagrants and Myron, as far as I remember) had at least two possible ending dialogues (New Reno had about 12, depending on which crime family you aided, which crime bosses you killed, whether you impregnated Bishops wife or daughter by having sex with them as a dude without using a condom, whether you infiltrated the Sierra Army Depot for Wright, whether you killed Myron, etc.). When you start totting up combinations, it is pretty clear to see how things happen.

There remains the remote possibility that this game could improve things from Fallout 2. I'll hold out on the design decisions: the first teaser trailer, with the valve radio and Hawaiian figurine, was pure Fallout, though I'll admit the Super Mutants look rather generic. Fallout always had some other elements mixing in with its retro-futurism, there was a heavy dose of 'punk' a la mad max (think of some of the armour designs, and some of the loading pictures, as examples) and we are seeing the Fallout world in much closer detail than we ever have before: they might still make this good. Of course, my concerns are that they will not keep the game open enough. I definitely would like to see the possibility of non-violent play via diplomacy and sneaking (the sneaking aspect could definitely be improved, it was pretty much useless in both the first two games). In fact, there remains the chance of making Fallout even more open. In the first two games, lots of the skills, traits and perks were basically junk, unless you specifically went out your way to roleplay a wierd character. I have a half-way done play of Fallout 2 atm, trying to play as a pyromaniac/explosives expert who favours thrown and heavy weapons, and it's maybe the hardest game of Fallout I've ever played. The roleplaying is great, but how about a game that actually rewards me for tagging Gambling, or Thrown, or Barter (or really any skills apart from Speech, Small Arms and Science). Also, I would love to see it so that being evil is equally as valid as being good. Sure, Fallout and Fallout 2 let you be an utter bastard, but nasty choices would consistently grant less XP, and in Fallout 2 you would even get heavily armed bounty hunters chasing you around if your karma dropped too low. This is fine for inducing extra difficulty on new playthroughs (the hardest way to play either of the first games is probably on hard difficulty, with an ugly, stupid character making evil choices) but come on.

Also, I am very upset about removing targeted groin and eye shots. These were like, the key to the whole fighting mechanic to me. I have fun memories of the boxing and kung-fu matches in Fallout 2, breaking my opponents arms then blinding them with eye shots and pounding them in the groin until they collapsed.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: evernew on 28 Jun 2008, 05:04
I wouldn't say I'm a die-hard Fallout 1 or Fallout 2 fanboy. I have liked the franchise since I got both as part of a gaming compilation. Out of these two, I definitely preferred Fallout 2. It is my favorite RPG (I don't play RPGs much, but if I can decide on one being the favorite, that's saying something coming from 15 years of gaming).

Why Fallout 2 was so great (and what I expect from Fallout 3):
- Huge world (yip)
- Tons and tons of character development (yip) - I hope they include the awards system, karma, ...
- Sweet weaponry (yip)
- Great sense of humour: Bridge of Death, the whale and the potted plant, your first party member having his grandfather's bone stuck in the nose, some redneck forcing you to marry his daughter, ... - I'm not sure yet since humour is hard to read from advance material. If it goes darker in tone, I'd be alright with it, but throw us a bone here and there. Sex humor was also great - anyone else loved that you could become a porn star in New Reno?
- freedom of decision at almost all points (hope so)

I haven't played Oblivion and thus can't judge if there are really eleventy billion things wrong with it. But even if Black Isle was a niche studio with a heart of gold and Bethesda is a greedy corporate pigsty - can they really ruin a game like that? They are not stupid, and I expect them to have some idea (at the very least) of what gamers want from the newest Fallout installment.

The skill system is, as KharBevNor said, something that could go either way. There are more good skills for tagging, though. My character sooner or later almost always had Small Arms, Speech, Steal, Science ... okay, there weren't that many. Which offers much room for improvement.

Final word on targeting: Groin, Eye and Head shots were one of the main reasons I loved this game from the start. Even when I was still a half-naked desert dweller running around the Temple of Trials, I always aimed for the jewels. There is something deeply satisfying in that game telling you "Du hast Skorpion für 11 Trefferpunkte getroffen und kritisch verletzt."
Oh, forgot to mention, I first played the German dubbed version. A whole layer of extra humor in shoddy translation.
I love this game.
And no matter what anyone says, I'm looking forward to Fallout 3.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Alex C on 30 Jun 2008, 13:07
Yeah, targeted groin and eye shots were pretty much half the game for me. I enjoyed the combo of text descriptions and gory criticals. Especially since one play through I created a character with low strength but by sneaking to Chinatown early I managed to boost up his unarmed skill to ungodly levels. Throw in the Better Criticals perk and I was consistently rolling high enough on the critical hit table to blind or kill things instantly despite dealing 0 damage.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 30 Jun 2008, 13:14
The over the top gory critical hits are definitely still in the game.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 02 Jul 2008, 05:20
As far as being able to make evil decisions? Let's not forget the fact that you can NUKE A DAMN TOWN to a glowing crater.

I personally just hope to God that the conversations don't use that ridiculous conversation pie... thing from Oblivion. That has to be the biggest thing I hate about that game. If I know a guy hates when you tell Jokes, why am I forced to try to tell the teabagging bastard a JOKE every damn time?

Okay... deep breaths... this isn't an Oblivion thread....

All in all, though, I get the feeling that they've learned from their mistakes in Oblivion, and I feel good about Fallout 3.

Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Thaes on 02 Jul 2008, 08:19
That damn pie wasn´t only stupid, it was easy as hell to abuse, making Speechcraft even less uselful a skill than Security.

But I doubt they´ll put something like that to Fallout. Or TES V, for that matter. If they, for some reason, put some sort of option to persuade fellers to Fallout, I reckon it´s directly related to some skill, a la TES III (though I doubt that, since I can´t remember you being even able to persuade people in earlier Fallouts).
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: MusicScribbles on 02 Jul 2008, 11:01
I really hope that Bethesda is holding out on us so that they can create a better game, and not for fear of fans decrying them.
If there are any similarities between Oblivion and Fallout 3, let them be the amazing environments.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 02 Jul 2008, 18:32
The environments didn't even look that good. They had the atmosphere of a brick.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 02 Jul 2008, 19:43
The environments are what kept me playing the game.  I've stated this in another thread, I'm sure, but I enjoyed hunting deer quite a bit.  And Shivering Isles was pretty rad.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 02 Jul 2008, 20:41
The environmental design in Oblivion was pretty bland compared to Morrowind's. And they really went crazy with bloom.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 04 Jul 2008, 00:37
Looks like Fallout 3 maybe possibly is banned in Oz. (http://www.kotaku.com.au/games/2008/07/rumour_fallout_3_refused_classification_because_of_drug_use.html)
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 04 Jul 2008, 00:58
Goddamn it, Australia. Sort your shit out.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 04 Jul 2008, 01:04
Australia bans tons of shit, most ridiculously Mark Echo's Getting Up, which was a game about graffiti. However, this does prove that they're not toning down the violence, if that matters to anybody.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Caspian on 04 Jul 2008, 02:30
Quote
Please note that a post on a forum is hardly proof. Red Ant has been contacted, but has failed to provide a comment. We'll just have to wait for the OFLC to add Fallout 3 to the classification database.

Hopefully sense will prevail.

Regardless, there's always torrents if it is banned.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: McTaggart on 04 Jul 2008, 09:51
Yeah I'm not terribly worried. By which I don't mean "I doubt it'll get banned". I mean more that I'll be able to source a copy anyway. I got the idea of writing to the OFLC and asking what grounds they have for generally not having an 18+ rating for games. If I can think of what to add to flesh it out I think I might. I really do want to know what their reasons are.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: MusicScribbles on 04 Jul 2008, 09:53
Now that I'm starting to put video games and Australia together, Aussieville seems like less of a magical place.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: McTaggart on 04 Jul 2008, 09:57
You also get a ping of around 300 to anywhere that isn't on the continent!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 04 Jul 2008, 19:31
Yeah, it makes for some pretty bad multiplayer FPS.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Caspian on 04 Jul 2008, 21:07
Combined with our internet, australia fails pretty hard at computing, really.

Although I daresay that we're pretty much awesome at everything else.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 10 Jul 2008, 10:00
Kotaku has confirmed that Fallout 3 will be illegal to sell in Aussieland.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: est on 10 Jul 2008, 16:54
There are plenty of online stores that will:

a. ship to Australia
b. probably actually save you money anyway
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 10 Jul 2008, 17:58
Bethsoft's going to do some retooling and resubmit the game (actually I'm not even sure if they've reviewed the game yet), which is pretty common practice amongst game developers when it comes to this sort of thing. So in the Aussie version, instead of intravenous Psycho you'll have Vitamin B12, or something. If the problems extend to stimpacks and pills there might be some slight problems.

Really this would all be best resolved if you guys just had an 18+ classification.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 10 Jul 2008, 17:59
From what I've heard, it's actually cheaper to just import an American system and NTSC games than to deal with the massive inflation of games in Australia. Not to mention you'd get games sooner, since everything takes forever to get to PAL territories in general and Australia specifically.

Hell, even some British people I've seen online do that, and the standard 'PAL territories getting the shaft' is much lesser there than just about anywhere else.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 10 Jul 2008, 18:35
From what I've heard, it's actually cheaper to just import an American system and NTSC games than to deal with the massive inflation of games in Australia.

This is correct. Games cost about twice what they should, which means if I buy something I buy it imported anyway.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 10 Jul 2008, 18:45
I would also like to take this opportunity to voice my displeasure with Bethsoft's decision to combine Traits and Perks (and make them an every-level deal) their reasoning is "they're the same". No. No they are not. For one, traits provide a benefit and a drawback and a benefit, whereas perks only give benefits. Second and more importantly, there were a few traits that gave no benefits to you except making amusing shit happen (the obvious example being Bloody Mess) You can do that with Perks, but they're generally shit, because you can only choose "Kama Sutra Master" at the expense of something that's less funny but far, far more useful. Come on Bethesda. Don't make me choose between Awareness and fuckin' Bloody Mess.

Wankers.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Fletch on 11 Jul 2008, 21:46
I would also like to take this opportunity to voice my displeasure with Bethsoft's decision to combine Traits and Perks.

Wankers.
You've got to be sh***ing me. If they're cutting parts of the basic system, what else is being changed / removed?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 14 Jul 2008, 11:33
New site up (http://www.prepareforthefuture.com/), likely to be updated over the course of E3.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: McTaggart on 14 Jul 2008, 12:11
I do so hate these damn flash websites. Because I have javascript blocked nothing is loading. Allow javascript and no luck, it's decided 'I need an upgrade'. I think I'll have to wait until the content hits youtube/forums/friends. That's if there even is content.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Surgoshan on 14 Jul 2008, 12:22
Content?  No.  It's more a series of near-meaningless teaser-bits.  It'll need some serious updates before it's worth visiting.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 14 Jul 2008, 12:38
Gameplay demo (http://www.gametrailers.com/player/36197.html)
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 14 Jul 2008, 14:14
New Trailer (http://www.gametrailers.com/player/36202.html), which I have to admit, is pretty awesome.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 14 Jul 2008, 14:21
that is a really great trailer. i hope someone got a raise for that.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Surgoshan on 14 Jul 2008, 14:46
That is a good trailer.  It looks like they've eliminated the turn-based combat.  I suppose that was inevitable.  At least they kept the "aim at specific body parts" aspect (see 2:15).


Edit:  and the gameplay trailer confirms that it's realtime combat, but you can pause and aim at body parts.  Nice.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Thy Dungeonman on 14 Jul 2008, 15:05
That trailer really is something. Before I was iffy about Fallout 3, because I tried 2 and I couldn't get into it (don't hate me). But now I'm really looking forward to this game.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Alex C on 14 Jul 2008, 21:58
That trailer left me cold. It was too "BOOM, headshot!" for my tastes. I thought it just looked like a mating between a bit of tasteless humor and a generic shooter. Fallout was punctuated by violence, but the atmosphere of the game was based on the idea that getting blown to pieces by chainguns isn't fun and that the future is chilling, not just a gibfest.

I still give them the benefit of the doubt, of course. It's very likely this trailer is structured the way it is simply because they need to throw the community a bone and give them a glimpse of what the combat is like and the grim, hopeless future part of the setting could still be in full force when you're out actually wandering the world between firefights. After all, not every teaser trailer can be expected to be as good as the creepy Ron Perlman narrated intro the game is certain to be shipped with.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 15 Jul 2008, 00:22
I really dig how well they've captured the style of Fallout (on the TV advertisement, and in the music, etc.), but the gameplay doesn't look particularly interesting at all. It looks like it's become an FPS in spirit (A troop drop? A goddamn troop drop? What were you thinking, Bethesda?) focusing on, as Whipstitch said 'boom headshot!' type action where people are charging at you - but it looks like it would be lacking in the fun of those type of FPS games.

But I dunno, if the fights are spread out and only a few people at a time, it could still feel like Fallout.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 15 Jul 2008, 07:34
Apparently calling 1-888-4-VAULTTEC gives you some sort of (coded?) message relating to Fallout 3.

Also, here's another demonstration from G4 (http://e3.g4tv.com/e32008/videos/26939/Hands_On_Fallout_3.html), which shows some new stuff, if you can tolerate the chatter.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: carrotosaurus on 16 Jul 2008, 08:47
bahhh i totally just called it and it was kind of funny. They just told me they were too busy.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 16 Jul 2008, 11:16
That is the message. It's intended as a joke.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 16 Jul 2008, 12:52
Another preview (http://www.gamesradar.com/pc/fallout-3/preview/fallout-3-hands-on/a-20080714133932662026/g-20070327151320531089), which goes into a little more depth about non-combat aspects of the game.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 16 Jul 2008, 13:01
god that sounds amazing.

i'm so fucking excited.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 16 Jul 2008, 14:31
Holy fucking shit does that sound good.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 16 Jul 2008, 20:07
Ohfuckohfuckohfuck.





Ungh.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 16 Jul 2008, 22:44
Was that... was that premature ejaculation?

Because if so, whoa coincidence.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 17 Jul 2008, 06:03
I may need...some kind of paper towel. 
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Fletch on 17 Jul 2008, 22:12
Forget the paper, need towels.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 17 Jul 2008, 23:27
I hate it when NMA is right about things.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 21 Jul 2008, 18:29
Well, it looks like they've at least got the combat down pat.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 22 Jul 2008, 00:29
To be honest, the combat looks to me to be the least appealing aspect, probably because I'm a shooter at heart and this looks like it plays like long-range Oblivion.

Which isn't a bad thing. It just means that we're not going to be looking at A) the bad-assedness of the original or B) the finess of any other modern FPS.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 22 Jul 2008, 14:46
i reserved my copy yesterday.

yay!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: evernew on 24 Jul 2008, 02:56
This could be one of the few PC games that I actually buy the day it comes out.

I'm not worried about the combat at all. As long as there is an Action Point system and I get to take off peoples' heads / robots' CPUs / aliens' brain-holding appendage, I'm satisfied.
Story has traditionally been a strong point of Fallout and I don't think Bethesda can or will screw with it enough to make it bad.
Char development has also traditionally been awesome. Combining perks and traits is a setback but let's see how it works first.

Basically, I get a boner whenever I think about this game. It's very useful for prolonged lovemaking sessions.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 25 Jul 2008, 14:49
Fallout 1 is on Gametap now, but not free. Also, fucking BATTLE CHESS.

Also, Penny Arcade is on the Bethsoft payroll makin' comics (http://fallout.bethsoft.com/eng/vault/pennyarcade-1.html).
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 25 Jul 2008, 14:56
I'm not going to lie, the second I heard about Fallout 3 I torrented the original collection, as my original box got lost long ago.

It still rocks. The original and sequel still rock so hard. It's fantastic.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: RedLion on 29 Jul 2008, 01:35
I'd been hearing a lot of hype about this, but hadn't really looked into it or read anything about it until just now. Holy shit. I can't wait for this to come out! It sounds absolutely brilliant.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 29 Jul 2008, 08:29
I've seen (as have many people) footage of the VATS combat. It seems to reek of that Matrixy/Max Payne-ish slow-mo Bullet-Time effect. Shoot a sniper rifle, and it trails the rifle shot all the way to the head. Toss a grenade, and someone flies slowly through the air in several pieces. The nuke launcher did look nice and sweet following the bomb along its arc, but I'd imagine that this type of slowdown effect will get very old VERY quick. It'll feel like unskippable cutscenes. I hope they make that a toggle, like be able to use VATS, but don't have the slowdown.

I'd like to be able to queue up several pistol headshots on raiders and have it go off rapid fire quickdraw style BAM BAM BAM! three bodies hit the floor. If I have to follow every bullet to the target, it would kill the style.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 29 Jul 2008, 12:20
The developer blog talked about VATS a bit, and I think that slo-mo is only triggered when A) the shot hits and B) the shot is a critical. With Bloody Mess and all the hacked stats that the demo uses, every VATS shot is a critical.

That being said, I kinda agree that it looks annoying. I understand the reasoning for VATS, but if I can help it I'll be playing in 100% real-time.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 29 Jul 2008, 18:07
See, I'll probably play it almost entirely in VATS if I can. Different strokes, I guess.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 29 Jul 2008, 20:05
yeah, me too.

the whole fast-paced, run and gun thing doesn't seem very "Fallout" to me, and besides: blowing limbs off in slow-motion looks absolutely fantastic.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 29 Jul 2008, 22:43
Yeah, I think I'm gonna play a complete psycho character first.  I wonder if I can add enough perks so that when I shoot people, they explode in a shower of blood, like the zombie-splitters in Timesplitters: Future Perfect. 
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 30 Jul 2008, 00:58
Bloody Mess?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Thaes on 30 Jul 2008, 01:04
One of the traits used since Fallout 1. It doesn´t do anything to characters statistics, but it increases the chance of extremely gory deaths to your opponents.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 30 Jul 2008, 01:53
I always hated Bloody Mess. It took the fun out of having a random body explosion once in a while.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 30 Jul 2008, 03:59
Gifted was very handy, but Skilled was a pretty bad trait- the loss of perks didn't make up for the extra skills, especially considering you only need a little bit of skill to get through the game, anyway.

Anyway, bloody mess took the fun out of the game. There was something rewarding about hitting somebody in the eye and blowing them wide open (well, at least until later in the game when you pretty much always did that). If it happens right through the game it's nothing special.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 30 Jul 2008, 08:16
Bloody Mess only de-limbs people.  I'm talking no parts left, only fluid.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 30 Jul 2008, 16:16
Man, Skilled was fantastic. In the end though you only lose 1 perk. Well worth it. Gifted was better mind you... by a lot, but combined they became a God in a box.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Chesire Cat on 30 Jul 2008, 19:11
Never really played Fallout in the past, I gave Fallout 2 a go a few days ago, and well, after creating a character then not saving and getting whooped by the dingus at the end of the first dungeon I can help but think, this game isnt all that good.  I mean maybe its super duper charming once I sink my dick into it, but right off the bat its nothing special, and very unintuitive.  Now I've been playing games for a long time to know how to forgive some of these faults, but ummm, well theres just too much new good stuff to play that Im going to pass. 

That being said, Steam Punk and Cyber Punk and Punk Rawk are all awesome, and Im stoked on the new title, even if I wont get all the in jokes.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Surgoshan on 30 Jul 2008, 19:19
Never really played Fallout in the past, I gave Fallout 2 a go a few days ago, and well, after creating a character then not saving and getting whooped by the dingus at the end of the first dungeon I can help but think, this game isnt all that good.

I played through Fallout, then started Fallout 2 and got whomped.  I really understand the charm in the series, but I'm iffy on F2.  At the beginning, you have to focus on melee weapons because that's all you get, but you only have so many levels and the powerful weapons are the guns, and Fallout has a system that really rewards specialization and punishes generalization.

That is to say, the game forces you to choose melee weapons early and thereby punishes the use of the more powerful weapons in the endgame.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Alex C on 30 Jul 2008, 20:31
Yeah, the NMA guys slag on Fallout 2 all the time for being inferior to the first, and I understand what they're getting at. Fallout 1 was a smaller sandbox to play around in than Fallout 2, but the tradeoff there is that it's a lot more focused. The plot is generally tighter, the humor is black while remaining (mostly) on topic and as Surgoshan pointed out, the difficulty curve is quite manageable. It all adds up to a classic: the game has a satisfying ending that stays true to the setting and I can't imagine a game hitting a better balance of non-linear AND enthralling.

Fallout 2, on the other hand, is more like a triumphant, non-linear victory lap for the hardcore Fallout fanboys than an atmospheric classic. It's a much, MUCH bigger game than Fallout 1-- they seriously gave you a huge sandbox to play around in with Fallout 2. The tradeoff though is that the storyline becomes less focused, the humor is more irreverant than dry and the difficulty curve is ALLLLLL over the place. It's perfectly possible to end up getting your spear carrying ass ripped apart in a space alien ambush in Fallout 2 whereas Fallout 1 didn't even bother giving you any real incentive to quest your way past level 14. I love Fallout 2 and played it more than the first thanks to its sheer breadth, but if you weren't inspired to go beat Fallout 1 more than once just to see what would happen if you made different choices, than you're probably not enough in love with the series to really bother delving into Fallout 2.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 30 Jul 2008, 21:01
Fallout 2 was only really hard the first time through for me (I tagged small guns like you're supposed to do) I just ended up running across a Vault City patrol fighting some hardcore bandits (with miniguns and everything), waited for them to kill one another, grabbed some loot off of some dead bodies and ran.

Of course what you're supposed to do is butcher the two drug / gun dealers in The Den and take their stuff, but somebody has to tell you that beforehand.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Thy Dungeonman on 30 Jul 2008, 21:08
I should try Fallout 2 again. It may have been my video-game-induced ADD, but I found the beginning to be too slow for me, so I got bored of it after a while. I think that if I powered through the beginning I would really enjoy the game after a while. Hopefully my attention span has changed since then.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Caspian on 30 Jul 2008, 21:25
the beginning of fallout 2 (i.e the first dungeon) is quite a boring slog, really. Gets a lot better, though.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 31 Jul 2008, 00:55
Yeah, the first dungeon isn't great (and in general, the combat in fallout was its weakest point anyway, so having to kill things in a dungeon for no reason armed with only a spear is pretty damn tedious). But how you can die in it is beyond me, I don't think I've ever been hit by any of the monsters in there.

Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 31 Jul 2008, 01:41
To the same degree, you only hit a monster 40% of the time, which is utter bullocks. The intro sucked.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 31 Jul 2008, 01:56
The first dungeon doesn't even count as part of the game. That's like the boat area at the beginning of Morrowind, or the prison area (the first time) in Oblivion. It's an "Intro to Gameplay Mechanics 101" course.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Thaes on 31 Jul 2008, 02:33
And yet, there´s a good chance you could die in that bloody dungeon. Happened to me when I first played it.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Chesire Cat on 31 Jul 2008, 10:03
So the consensus is, Fallout 2 was fanfare, and both games, while pretty epic, lacked a certain level of polish that makes in unplayable by my (and current day) standards.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 31 Jul 2008, 10:17
Fuckin' A man.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 31 Jul 2008, 13:33
There's a difference. I got my Fallout fix my playing the original. I played 2 for about an hour and a half recently, and just didn't like it. I loved it when it came out, and I played it RELIGIOUSLY, but that doesn't excuse the fact that we don't have a NEED for that kind of fanfare anymore; we're all big boys with better games to play. Fallout 1 still has a lot of charm, because it isn't built on a pre-existing game. If this was 1999 again, hell yes I'd still be playing it.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Chesire Cat on 31 Jul 2008, 16:04
Melodic gets it
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 31 Jul 2008, 16:17
See
That being said, Steam Punk and Cyber Punk and Punk Rawk are all awesome, and Im stoked on the new title, even if I wont get all the in jokes.
In this case, you don't get an opinion. Just taking Fallout steampunk was, well, it was an awful, awful choice for Bethsoft to make.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Alex C on 31 Jul 2008, 16:55
but that doesn't excuse the fact that we don't have a NEED for that kind of fanfare anymore; we're all big boys with better games to play.

Speak for yourself. I can't think of a game I enjoyed more than Fallout, much less would be willing to call unequivocably better. It's why I haven't gone so far as to actually purchase a game that wasn't in the bargain bin for quite some time now. Since most games don't have any replayability outside of achievement whoring or multiplayer, I'm almost strictly a renter these days.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 31 Jul 2008, 23:55
We're all big boys with better games to play.

Yeah, there are so many greater RPGs out these days. Like, uh... um... oh wait, that's right, there aren't any, there hasn't been a really good RPG for a very long time. My mistake.

So the consensus is, Fallout 2 was fanfare, and both games, while pretty epic, lacked a certain level of polish that makes in unplayable by my (and current day) standards.

What? No.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Ozymandias on 01 Aug 2008, 00:06
^ You are the most arrogantly wrong person ever.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 01 Aug 2008, 00:13
I'd prefer to be called arrogantly opinionated.

[EDIT] Ah, page break, my old friend. How good to see you.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Chesire Cat on 01 Aug 2008, 00:34
Either way, I loled
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 01 Aug 2008, 02:19
Deus Ex was amazing, but other than that, there really hasn't been much in the way of RPG design that's been very interesting, whether it be the thoroughly awful (Bethsoft's assorted works) mediocre (post-BG2 Bioware) or muddled (anything the remnants of Black Isle have come up with so far), since the times of the Fallouts. You could make a case for maybe Vampire: Bloodlines, maybe, but bad programming and lack of resources stunted that 'un, and I'm sure there are some I'm missing. Regardless, games like Fallout aren't being made anymore, at least not in this country. For one, gameplay design has swung decidedly towards the twitch end of the spectrum, even if companies like Bethsoft make tepid gestures to poindexterism via VATS or whatever.

And Fallout wouldn't fly in a post-Halo gaming environment. It's not for enthusiasts anymore. Even a smash hit like Doom could've been considered "cult", and now games shoot for true blockbuster status, and you can't escape that shift, even less than a small-time filmmaker can resist Hollywood. You may have noticed that Mountain Dew released a soda "designed" for (competitive) "gaming". Games cost too much to make (unless you're making rinky-dink casual games or platformers, and good luck to those people) Companies like Bioware saw where the wind was blowing and started making Events. So did Bethsoft, you can witness the stunningly bad design decisions in Oblivion and envision the reasons for them pretty easily. Not that there's inherently anything wrong with trying to make a boom headshot slam dunk, but the more games you make like that the more the customer base grows accustomed to them and the more that happens the less incentive there is for anyone to take risks. Of course Blizzard/Activision's not going to support Brutal Legend. Of course Bioware's not going to let you side with Saren (though that sort of thing has always been pretty rare, I can only think of Fallout 1 letting you do that) Of course Bethsoft won't let you shoot kids or allow hookers in their games. Of course Firaxis is going to take only the least interesting elements of the brilliant Alpha Centauri and implement them in the mind-numbing Civ games. Of course No More Heroes isn't going to sell.

The Fallouts, for all their greatness, were somewhat archaic and often difficult, which is a bad combination for today's gamers. They also lack flash, even when the art design to this day remains fantastic. I know people who won't play them because they predate Half-Life 2. That's the sort of customer that drives the market. The niche that favors craft over viscera is too small to accommodate the Fallouts these days, and that's unfortunate. Fallout 3 is peculiar, because it potentially resembles the original games in significant ways but differs from them radically in the most significant way, because Fallout is not a Brand amongst the general gaming public and it's a game whose greatest strengths are all Bethsoft's greatest weaknesses. The only explanation for its existence is that the designers loved the first two games. But just because a geek loves football doesn't mean he should be made quarterback.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 01 Aug 2008, 03:34
FUCK YOU FOR BEING RIGHT.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Chesire Cat on 01 Aug 2008, 10:05
Fortunately when video games truely do become big enough, when the oldest players dont remember a time when they couldnt play video games perhaps we will see some rejuvenation.  Right now gaming companies, especially big ones have to walk a very fine line between pleasing the platform creators, and not getting taken to court or getting legislated against by people who deem games unfit.  Im sure there will come a time when games are big enough and respected enough not to go anywhere, and can take a fuck-you stance on making whatever they want.  But as of right now, theres only so much money to go around and frankly the little guys lack the resources or ability to make a high end game unbeholden to investors.

I think truly what hurt the industry the most in terms of new and compelling ideas is the death of PC gaming via Piracy and the rise of Console Gaming.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Surgoshan on 01 Aug 2008, 11:39
Being sued for creating a game people think is immoral just got a swift kick in the pants.

The judge threw out the hot coffee san andreas class action suit (http://www.gamepolitics.com/2008/07/31/judge-pops-cap-hot-coffee-class-action-settlement) because there was no class to take action for.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 01 Aug 2008, 11:40
Clearly no one is thinking of the children. When Hot Coffee was raging I had been cutting kids in half with lasers and using drugs on them for years.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 01 Aug 2008, 12:59
I'm really sick of people calling PC gaming "dead". Really am.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 01 Aug 2008, 13:28
It depends on what you mean by "dead". The gravitational pull of consoles and their design philosophy is pretty strong. Certain elements of PC gaming are dying on the vine. TB combat is the most obvious example.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Chesire Cat on 01 Aug 2008, 14:03
Come on, the 2 strongest PC gaming genres, American RPGs and FPS are virtually gone from the PC.  RTS and TB Strategies are being targeted (Halo Wars), frankly the last major holdouts is casual games like Bejeweled or Peggle and MMORPGs, and in this day an age of subscription based online play (Xbox live for instance) and DLC, how much longer do you thing that will last.  Call me wrong all you want, but I was there when PC gaming peaked, frankly I was a diehard, but Ive seen the writing on the wall.  As in a few years ago, you know, when PC gaming still had 2 legs to wobble on.  Now its hopping along a peg leg going through its death-roes.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Ozymandias on 01 Aug 2008, 14:41
Man, even at the peak of PC gaming, it didn't compete with consoles.

Right now the only things keeping it alive are Steam, MMOs, and people with too much money for expensive rigs.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: RedLion on 01 Aug 2008, 20:37
"PC gaming" always seemed like an oxymoron to me, even though that's where it originated. I'm probably the only person in the world who started out playing FPS's on computers and found myself enjoying playing them with a console controller infinitely more. I don't know why I don't have a problem with sitting in front of a TV playing, but sitting on a chair in front of a computer for hours to play a video game drives me fucking insane. I can't stand it.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 02 Aug 2008, 06:19
Different strokes and all that. I prefer to be able to mod a game. I'm currently (not right this second currently, but you get the picture) playing STALKER with the Oblivion Lost mod. I found a metamod for that that adds a bolt-action rifle, and I'm having more fun with that than the stock game.

I think that mods are simultaneously the biggest draw and biggest killer of PC games for exactly the same reason:. With a good deal of support, you can be happy with the same game for way longer than the actual gameplay would allow. This would let people play just the original Half-Life for five years, and not need to touch anything else. Having one game feel fresh 5 years afterwards because someone made an awesome Total Conversion as a college thesis (Poke646), solid win.

This does jack for new game sales, though.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Thaes on 02 Aug 2008, 07:50
I completely agree with Stryc9Fuego on mods. They add incredible amounts of playability to games, keeping your interest in them far longer than normally. For example, I have found some excellent mods to Oblivion and Civ4, both of which made me once more interested in those games for months.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 02 Aug 2008, 11:33
Different strokes and all that. I prefer to be able to mod a game. I'm currently (not right this second currently, but you get the picture) playing STALKER with the Oblivion Lost mod. I found a metamod for that that adds a bolt-action rifle, and I'm having more fun with that than the stock game.

STALKER REDUX (http://www.z4.invisionfree.com/stalkerre) MOTHERFUCKER, DO YOU PLAY IT

Cause you should play it, y'know.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 17 Aug 2008, 12:22
Around 145 new shakycam screenies, out at NMA (http://www.nma-fallout.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=44246&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0). Who knows if this is covered under an NDA, so look at em while you can.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 17 Aug 2008, 12:41
I admit I pre-ordered this game.  I admit it will probably be "pretty good" at best because, well, Bethesda.  I still hope it will at least be engaging in the ways that the Elder Scrolls games wanted to be and failed badly at.

If it sucks, well, there's always Dragon Age.  From what I've seen, that looks like a truly fucking awesome game (it's the "spiritual successor" to Baldur's Gate).
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Ozymandias on 17 Aug 2008, 13:17
I have to say, I'm not looking forward to this game as "Fallout 3"

I'm looking forward to an Elder Scrolls game with quicker-paced combat and a much, much better mythology and setting than Cyrodiil was.

So, I guess in terms of Fallout nerdery, I'm a heathen.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 17 Aug 2008, 19:01
Like I've said before, I'd find it a lot easier to get excited about Dragon Age if we knew anything at all about how it plays. The only gameplay detail I think I've heard at all about Dragon Age is that the party size is 4 instead of the 6 from Baldur's Gate.

At least Bioware mentioned that it's coming to consoles eventually, so I don't need to worry about not being able to play it if it can't run on my laptop.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jimmy the Squid on 17 Aug 2008, 22:30
I'm just happy that Fallout 3 has finally been approved for Australian release (pending the change of  the drug names to fictional drug names). I really liked Morrowind and I also really enjoy playing Oblivion so I will probably like Fallout 3 as I've got a reasonable amount of respect for Bethesda since they tend to make games I like.

Hooray!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 17 Aug 2008, 22:31
RE: Dragon Age.  This month's Game Informer quotes it as having three "playthrough styles" instead of just "good" or "evil".  They are described as "hero, tyrant, and martyr".  That alone sounds really interesting, especially the martyr option.  And it is a damn good thing it's coming to consoles indeed.

RE: "Fallout 3".  It would be very hard to make a game with a LESS interesting mythology than Oblivion, so.  They have a lot to work with instead of just, how did Yahtzee put it, "re-creating one square mile of English countryside and copy-pasting it a hundred times"?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: McTaggart on 17 Aug 2008, 23:01
Jimmy: I believe they're also changing the effects of the drugs so that they're not as beneficial.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 18 Aug 2008, 12:08
Seriously why is Australia so batshit insane when it comes to video games?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 18 Aug 2008, 13:03
they use an archaic rating system that desperately needs to be updated.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 20 Aug 2008, 13:14
Fallout 3's been dated for October 28, 31 in Europe.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 20 Aug 2008, 19:45
3 days after my birthday! This is one of the games I'm really looking forward to, so I'm glad that they managed to hit their release window, unlike Oblivion. I wonder if they just managed to get enough work done on the game to the point where they were able to give a solid release window when they announced the game a year ago or whenever it was.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 20 Aug 2008, 20:21
Bethesda claimed to have gotten all their content implemented before E3, so all the time since then and all the time up until the first week of October or so has been devoted to polish and QA. I still wouldn't rule out the possibility of more delays, though.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 21 Aug 2008, 00:26
Considering they've already delayed it like 20 christing times, I'll believe the game is out when I am holding it in my hands.

Fuck, it better be good.  I say that not as a Fallout fanboy (though I am, probably due in part to playing Wasteland when it came out and thinking it was THE BEST THING OF ALL TIME) but as someone who has an old computer and wants a good, expansive RPG for my shiny PS3 whose current job is "play movies, GTA4, and look pretty while my owner plays through PS2 games that he missed out on when he didn't own one (holy crap God of War is actually as good as people say, ditto for FF12)".

Plus, there's something inherently appealing about playing an immersive RPG while relaxing in an armchair using just a controller, not sitting at a computer getting carpal tunnel from mouse-clicking.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 21 Aug 2008, 01:12
Except it hasn't been delayed, ever. They announced it for Fall 2008 back... last summer, I think? I'm pretty sure it was an E3 2007 announcement. October is in fact, Fall of 2008.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 21 Aug 2008, 01:17
What I mean is that the release date they have given retailers has changed many times.  I know that Gamestop, at least, had been told August at one point, and when I reserved it was told "September 8", and now it's apparently October 28.  I mean, I hope that an "official" announcement will stick, I'm just sayin'.  I'm skeptical.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 21 Aug 2008, 02:36
I've never trusted a release date until I hear the word "gold" mentioned. Beyond that, it's a crapshoot.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Ozymandias on 21 Aug 2008, 08:52
Why would you be angry at a company because GameStop was guessing at a release date? GameStop does that all the time when companies give general timeframe for release (because they suck ass). Bethesda never gave a release date to anyone ever until now.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 21 Aug 2008, 09:29
Yeah, that date never comes from the company itself, it's just Gamestop guesswork and bullshitting.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 21 Aug 2008, 11:51
Why would you be angry at a company because GameStop was guessing at a release date? GameStop does that all the time when companies give general timeframe for release (because they suck ass).

Really?  This must be a fairly recent practice, because never before this have they told me an incorrect release date.  Then again, it's been a while since I reserved a game, so.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Ozymandias on 21 Aug 2008, 12:11
I assure you, as time goes on, GameStop does nothing but get shadier and shittier.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 21 Aug 2008, 13:51
I assure you, as time goes on, GameStop does nothing but get shadier and shittier.


Seriously.  They were taking Halo 3 pre-orders after the first teaser was out.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Ozymandias on 21 Aug 2008, 15:15
Actually, I was reading an article about how GameStop does so many preorders for games that don't have solid release dates if they have one at all that they end up making lots and lots of money off of unclaimed orders. People put their money down, the game gets delayed (or GameStop didn't have a real release date) and eventually people just forget that they made a pre-order for that game and go buy it elsewhere, ultimately giving GameStop their money for absolutely no reason.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Thy Dungeonman on 21 Aug 2008, 15:34
Is it really worth it though? I thought pre-orders were $5. It all adds up, I guess.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Boro_Bandito on 21 Aug 2008, 15:41
Hell i pre-ordered it today, then realized I had no idea when this goddamn game was coming out. Luckily, I save my muthafuckin' receipts and this is the only place I go to for console games, so they won't be dicking me out of extra money. Now to go pre-order Spore from Amazon...
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 21 Aug 2008, 15:56
Is it really worth it though? I thought pre-orders were $5. It all adds up, I guess.
Man, I pre-ordered Fallout 3 a second time just because I was in desperate need of a bottle opener.

I've got beer, might as well drink it.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 21 Aug 2008, 16:09
i pre-ordered mine quite a while ago, if i'm not mistaken. but then again everyone at my Gamestop knows me by now and they almost always call you the day before your game comes out to remind you.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 26 Aug 2008, 04:52
I'm going the Amazon route when it comes out.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Oli on 26 Aug 2008, 15:57
I recently got myself a 360 and I think this is going to be my first not secondhand purchase. I enjoy the gameplay of oblivion a lot and hopefully the post-apocalyptic setting will be turn out to be really interesting and, fingers crossed, the countryside will have more variety. Plus it'll be nice to be able to use ranged weapons that aren't a huge crock of shit like in oblivion.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 29 Aug 2008, 13:19
5 new videos (http://kotaku.com/5043549/five-new-fallout-3-gameplay-videos) showing off all sorts of really cool shit (sneaking live grenades into someone's pants, a mechanical boxing glove that seperates heads from bodies, the lockpicking/hacking systems, the detonation of Megaton, etc.)
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: evernew on 04 Sep 2008, 13:01
I played F2 before F1 and going "back" was awful.
I love F2, I tolerate F1.

And once you sit through the temple without putting all your skill points and tags on melee weapons, it gets better.
Kill everybody.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 04 Sep 2008, 19:04
(sneaking live grenades into someone's pants)

Game of the Year.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 06 Sep 2008, 00:20
(sneaking live grenades into someone's pants)

Game of the Year.

Fallout 2 was pretty great, yeah.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 06 Sep 2008, 01:20
(sneaking live grenades into someone's pants)

Game of the Year.

Fallout HURF was pretty DURF, yeah.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 21 Sep 2008, 20:52
There's a new site (http://www.prepareforthefuture.com) up that's got some interesting stuff.  My favorite channels are 8 and 10.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 25 Sep 2008, 22:37
hey the original Fallout is now availabe for free on Gametap! i just created a free account and it's downloading now, yay!!!

exclamation point!!!!!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 25 Sep 2008, 23:29
I leeched my copy. I feel bad about it, but I got my just desserts when it infected my PC with a rootkit.

I think I'm looking for some of the same things in Fallout 3 that I am in STALKER Clear Skies: atmosphere, post-apocalyptic wasteland... Russians...
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 26 Sep 2008, 02:33
I tried to play Fallout after first hearing about Fallout 3... I'm way too ADD for turn-based combat anymore. This makes me more than a little sad.

EDIT: I was just watching the demo videos for Fallout 3, and I'd swear that the dude who does the voice for Mister Burke did the voice for Lucien Lachance in Oblivion.

Here's the Megaton video (http://pc.ign.com/dor/objects/568806//videos/fallout3_Gameplay2Megaton_082908.html)... see if you notice it, too.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 01 Oct 2008, 15:27
Interesting tidbit I found out from a recent preview: Malcom McDowell voices the President, and there is a radio station that your Pip Boy can pick up that is essentially just him spouting tons of jingoistic propaganda.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 01 Oct 2008, 15:38
There's a lengthy new preview up on Kotaku (http://kotaku.com/5057227/how-fallout-3-is-different-than-oblivion) about the differences between Fallout 3 and Oblivion.

You whiners.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 01 Oct 2008, 19:29
As a whiner, I feel it is my duty to point out that he has clearly missed the point of Fallout (which makes sense, because by his own admission he has never played it). The things he linked to Fallout were how it's "semi turn based" with AP, and the karma system. Those two things sucked in Fallout. Fallout was great despite these things, not because of it.

(tl;dr A BLOO BLA BLOO)
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 01 Oct 2008, 19:33
I liked the combat in Fallout, douche. Let's have a fight.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Alex C on 01 Oct 2008, 19:39
It'd be a lot easier for me to be rational about these things if I didn't find Oblivion so god damn boring.

Also, yeah, I kinda like turn based combat. I wouldn't want every game to be turn based, but I like to keep a few turn based games in my back pocket.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 01 Oct 2008, 19:41
I liked the combat in Fallout, douche. Let's have a fight.

So did I, you bastard.

But I only really liked the targeting system and the death animations. The rest was dated even when Fallout 2 came out, let alone now. It wasn't unbearable, but it didn't make the game better.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 09 Oct 2008, 13:31
Just a heads up, Fallout 3 has gone gold, and has also hit the internets.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 09 Oct 2008, 13:33
aw jeebus.

oh well, i'm waiting for the 360 version. i hate playing shooters on PC.*




*yeah, i know. weird.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 09 Oct 2008, 13:34
Actually right now the only thing up on Demonoid is the 360 version. Apparently.

Don't expect to get it for a few days, though. 2 seeders, 413 leechers at this point.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: sean on 09 Oct 2008, 13:53
Okay guys. We are going to play a game. It's called give sean money so he can buy a 360 because he will explode if he does not get to play this game.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 09 Oct 2008, 13:57
Buy it for the PC you wanker.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Boro_Bandito on 09 Oct 2008, 14:02
If I had a PC powerful enough to play it, I would. As it stands however, my Xbox360 and 42" Plasma screen TV tell me a different, and far more compelling, story...
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 09 Oct 2008, 15:36
Buy it for the PC you wanker.

Or do whatever the fuck you want and don't act like a jackass when people choose to play it a different way.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 09 Oct 2008, 15:38
Iit probably would have been easier for me to just buy the 360 version. I spent about $700 last month getting my PC outfitted and ready for full Fallout 3 action. I'm certainly looking forward to the 28th.

PS: Bryan you are playing it the wrong way and I am doing the right thing.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Ozymandias on 09 Oct 2008, 19:09
Until you take into account that Bethesda doesn't give a fuck about you PC jerks and they only make it for both 360 and PC because it's expected of them a this point.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: sean on 09 Oct 2008, 19:52
Buy it for the PC you wanker.

My computer is from 2002. I would be surprised if it could play Roller Coaster Tycoon. (severe hyperbole, but you get the point.)
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 09 Oct 2008, 19:55
Just in case this hasn't been brought up, modding will not be out of the box.  This is largely because Fallout 3 has a lot more unique architecture than Oblivion, or something to that effect.  IIRC, they're not entirely sure they'll even be able to release a toolset or work-around to that particular obstacle.


Edit:  Dude, Rollercoaster Tycoon is fucking awesome.  I wish I hadn't lost all my totally bitchin' tracks when I had to reformat.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: sean on 09 Oct 2008, 20:01
I know, Rollercoaster tycoon is ace. I should probalby reinstall it, seeing how I have a lot of room on my harddrive now.

(My computer can run Rollercoaster tycoon. but thats about it.)
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 10 Oct 2008, 16:46
Steel be with you, guys.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 10 Oct 2008, 20:01
I'd like to append the comment that modding will not be available out of the box; they won't immediately release an SDK, but freaks & geeks will figure it out. It just needs to be modded the old fashioned way.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 11 Oct 2008, 01:12
Waaaaaaait a second, I'm not clear if this requires a modded console to play.

Only one way to find out!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 11 Oct 2008, 02:41
What, the leaked version? Yeah, it definitely would.

I'm not interested in modding my console and pulling down a massive torrent just to play the game two weeks early. I don't mind waiting, and I'm staunchly opposed to game piracy in general.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 11 Oct 2008, 07:37
My friend has a habit of modding every console he gets, yeah, it's the only way to get that to work.  It's a software mod, I think...or you have to have a burner identical to the drive in your 360 (besides the one in your 360 not being able to burn).  I'm not sure if it's both or just the second one.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: MusicScribbles on 11 Oct 2008, 10:43
I pre-ordered the special edition, so my bobble head is enough to make me wait for it.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: CamusCanDo on 11 Oct 2008, 21:32
Oh fuck, this game.

In the past hour I've dismembered the body of a woman whose house I broke into, laying her body parts out on the bed so her arms are where her legs were and her legs are where her arms were, massacred more than half of a town in cold blood and now I'm about to go nuke who's ever left in the town which I'm sure is pretty much just the unarmed and a few children.

This game.
 
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Ozymandias on 11 Oct 2008, 21:34
Fucking pirates.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Alex C on 11 Oct 2008, 21:36
Oddly enough, as much as I've played the Fallout series, I've never actually just shot up a random settlement without provocation or otherwise treated the games as a murder simulator. Perhaps this is why I'm so out of touch with other games as far as GTA and other such games are concerned.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 11 Oct 2008, 21:38
I did it once. You get a special "merit badge" perk (that is, one that doesn't really afford you any sort of in-game benefit) for massacring an entire settlement.

This being Bethsoft, I doubt you'll be able to do that in this game. You'll be able to knock important NPCs unconscious, most likely, but nothing beyond that.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Alex C on 11 Oct 2008, 21:42
Yeah, I knew about the perk; my brother got it once. It just never occurs to me to go killing everyone in games, that's all. I guess it kind of explains why people hate turn based combat so much. I'd bet I'd get tired of it too if I actually spent most of my time in games violencing the hell out of people.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 11 Oct 2008, 23:11
I'm going to request that the rest of this thread be absolutely, 100% WITHOUT SPOILERS hence-forth, as this is a game whose plot I know almost nothing about and intend to keep it that way until I discover it for myself.

PS: As said earlier, although the SDK won't be shipping with the game (if at all), there's a significant amount of stuff you can do to the game without tools. For instance, all of the configs, spawns, and general game statistics will be open to modification so long as Bethesda hasn't significantly fucked with the engine. We might not get cool new toys but I, for one, will turn Fallout 3 into STALKER: DC.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 12 Oct 2008, 21:09
From what I've seen from streams of the game, the game definitely needs mods.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 12 Oct 2008, 21:25
I never have considered any game to need mods.  Only patches.  Games only get better with mods, but I have never thought they were required for the game in question to be enjoyable.  This is kind of a blanket, because there are bad games, but most bad games never get mods or can't be saved by mods. 

Just to back up my statement, I still enjoy Oblivion, on the 360, which has only had a few bits of DLC from Bethsoft.  I've played over 220 hours so far.  Most of those before Knights of the Nine or Shivering Isles.

But then again, I don't play a lot of multi-plats on PC, so I guess I'm not as used to having that luxury.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 12 Oct 2008, 21:26
No mod can improve animations or voice acting. One thing I'm hearing universally is that the VA is on the level with Oblivion's, which is to say, it's beyond shit.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 12 Oct 2008, 22:04
To me, Oblivion needed mods to be enjoyable. But yeah, nothing could fix the VA, shitty models or the boring as hell copy pasted landscape and dungeons.

I still have a pretty strong belief that Fallout 3 will be a much much better game in almost every respect though and I fully expect to enjoy it despite the very likely shitty voice acting.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 12 Oct 2008, 22:35
No mod can improve animations or voice acting. One thing I'm hearing universally is that the VA is on the level with Oblivion's, which is to say, it's beyond shit.

What the HELL, Bethsoft.  With the kind of fucking huge budget they had, they couldn't pop down to the local community theater and get people who know how to read lines?  Christ, I've been in exactly two plays/musicals in my life and I'm pretty certain I could out-act anybody in Oblivion (except for the obvious, very briefly-lived character).
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 12 Oct 2008, 22:40
I'm going to be very disappointed if the voice-acting sucks as badly.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 12 Oct 2008, 22:42
It's not all the voice acting, a lot of it seems to be the writing too.

To quote:

Steel be with you.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Boro_Bandito on 12 Oct 2008, 22:51
Yeah, I'm almost half expecting to hear the same four voices in Fallout 3 that were in Oblivion, I had a nightmare about it. Really.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 12 Oct 2008, 22:57
That shit isn't funny, dude. I will kill every talking NPC in the game if this is the case.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 12 Oct 2008, 23:10
Don't you mean knock unconscious?.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 12 Oct 2008, 23:48
FUCKYEW
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 13 Oct 2008, 02:30
Can anyone source this? Is it actually a legit complaint that has thus far not popped up in a single preview on the game, or is it unleashed nerd rage?

e: i used "nascent," naively thinking for a moment that people would only be upset about this game after actually playing it
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 13 Oct 2008, 02:35
I've seen plenty of footage of this game on various gaming sites, and while I wouldn't say the voice acting was particularly good, it was definitely a serious step up from Oblivion's awful, awful voiceover.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 13 Oct 2008, 03:07
They still retained Oblivion's signature "K-Mart family portrait" dialogue style, with whoever it is you're talking to looking straight at you, unblinkingly, while time stops outside of your little bubble. That, along with the generally poor character animations, always bothered me.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: CamusCanDo on 13 Oct 2008, 05:35
The VA and character models are a total step up from Oblivion. No more characters having two different voices, for one!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Boro_Bandito on 13 Oct 2008, 09:37
I only got that from the hobos usually. But so glad to hear that the army of voiceclones aren't going to be in the new game.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Chesire Cat on 13 Oct 2008, 10:24
Im more concerned with the level based nature of Oblivion.  I thought it was balls that you could beat the game at extreme low levels.  Id be much happier if then loot and enemy difficulties were static and you simply couldnt survive certain areas or missions too early in the game.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 13 Oct 2008, 10:48
Er.  You're aware that both Fallout and Fallout 2 can also be beaten at extremely low levels if you know exactly what to do, right?

Wasteland was like that too.  One might even say it's a hallmark of the "series".
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 13 Oct 2008, 10:58
They've already said that only certain areas of the game are leveled to meet you, like raider camps. I like this idea because if you happen to play the game out of order, the places you visited first will always feel like the "beginning" of the game and the places you visit last will always feel tougher.

I'm glad to hear that the voice acting has at least been varied, as that was my major problem with dialogue trees in Oblivion as well. I'm curious to know just how branching the dialogue choices are, too, as that was always a favorite part of the original series to me.

I agree with KvP too in that it was a sincerely irritating way to communicate with NPCs, but I'm almost certain it'll be moddable on the PC... that is, if anyone is actually getting the PC version besides me.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 13 Oct 2008, 11:05
Yeah, I'm very hapy with how they've dealt with the level scaling. It actually sounds like it will make sense adn be fun this time around.

I think I'm going to be waiting till a week or so after it's out to get the game though. Let some post release impressions hit the web, see what some people in the forum say and then i can almost guarantee my first week not being ruined with it by having expectations about certain aspects of the game.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Chesire Cat on 13 Oct 2008, 11:18
So the levels of everything encountered is created dynamically instead of statically? 
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 13 Oct 2008, 11:21
i do seem to remember someone from Bethesda saying they had gotten rid of the adjusting level system from Oblivion for Fallout 3.

may or may not be true.


edit: whoa page 7 eh? i thought we were still on 6. disregard this post.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 13 Oct 2008, 11:26
It's not gotten rid of completely, it just makes sense now.

Certain instanced NPCs, like random raiders or animals, will be initialized appropriately to your level as soon as you enter the area, permanently. That means that if, say, you visit Minefield as a level 12 character, the random NPCs there will be assigned a level suitable for you to combat them, and every time you return to that area they will always be that level. You can come back as level 19 and all of the baddies around there will be easy as piss to kill.

Most key stuff, like instanced dungeons, territories, and factions, are all strictly leveled. There will be areas in the game where you simply can't go at first (downtown DC) because the NPCs there are extremely powerful.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Chesire Cat on 13 Oct 2008, 11:53
Ok, thats good, that was my biggest issue with Oblivion.  I wonder what improvements to the Radiant AI they made this time around.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 13 Oct 2008, 12:19
man, downtown DC. I want to see some gig venues

You know that if Rockstar made this game you'd be able to enter the half-destroyed Dischord Records office.

...and Ian MacKaye would still be there.  With a shotgun.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 13 Oct 2008, 12:31
...and if you gave him six moneys he'd play "Margin Walker".
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: carrotosaurus on 13 Oct 2008, 12:32
If even ONE guy in town shouts out "Well Met" as I run through a town I am going to lose it.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 13 Oct 2008, 12:40
The VA and character models are a total step up from Oblivion. No more characters having two different voices, for one!

You know, you could be a little more subtle about pirating the game, man. Just sayin'.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: CamusCanDo on 13 Oct 2008, 12:51
Oh fuck, this game.

In the past hour I've dismembered the body of a woman whose house I broke into, laying her body parts out on the bed so her arms are where her legs were and her legs are where her arms were, massacred more than half of a town in cold blood and now I'm about to go nuke who's ever left in the town which I'm sure is pretty much just the unarmed and a few children.

This game.
 
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: sean on 13 Oct 2008, 14:24
man, downtown DC. I want to see some gig venues

Man this game is just going to make me so happy anyway.

But if I could go into a half destroyed Black Cat I would be so happy. SO HAPPY!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 13 Oct 2008, 14:28
Given that Fallout takes place on a timeline that diverges somewhere around the late 40's, and given the logistics of replicating any part of the city exactly, I doubt we'll be seeing any venues. Maybe an arena.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 13 Oct 2008, 15:05
So since the first Fallout is free on GameTap I downloaded their player and got the message "You need a modern memory card with 32 megs of memory to run GameTap".

...

...

That's like telling me I need an SVGA card to play an Infocom game you fuckers.

Guess I'll just have to buy it from GOG.  I'd rather not have to use GT's "player" anyway.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Alex C on 13 Oct 2008, 15:18
So, did it give you an option to just play anyway? Because that kind of thing happened to me all the time with gametap until recently and the games worked fine anyway.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 13 Oct 2008, 15:22
Actually I didn't even try after I got that message.  Perhaps I shall try again, thanks.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 13 Oct 2008, 16:09
don't forget to set your colors to 16 bit instead of 32 unless you want Fallout to look like shit!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 13 Oct 2008, 17:58
That might not work with Vista comps. Vista causes some weird and severe color distortions.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 14 Oct 2008, 10:20
it worked fine on my computer running Vista.

in Fallout, all the pixels that should have been white ended up being neon green until i changed it to 16 bit color; then it looked fine.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 14 Oct 2008, 12:33
Gametrailers have a mess of gameplay trailers (http://www.gametrailers.com/game/4758.html?show=Gameplay#Content), likely in response to (deleted?) youtube leak vids. Looks like it's mostly combat.

Looks like Fallout 3 includes one of my major FPS pet peeves, which is lack of hit response. Doom had it, shit, Morrowind had it, all FPS and FPS variants should have it. It really sucks to see that the only time a character will act as though they've been hit in combat is when he or she dies.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 14 Oct 2008, 12:41
Well, dismemberment seems to also provoke a hit response, but maybe that's just me.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 14 Oct 2008, 12:42
the only time a character will act as though they've been hit in combat is when he or she dies.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 15 Oct 2008, 05:51
Biggest issue I have with the people I've seen so far is that everyone seems relatively calm for living in a post-apocalyptic nightmare hellscape. I want to see the guy with the thousand-yard stare that just sits on a pole muttering "ghouls... ghouls... don't eat my baby..." while cradling a laser rifle and occasionally shooting at rabbits and shit.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 15 Oct 2008, 07:35
To be fair, people didn't really act that much differently in Oblivion when Big Things were ostensibly happening. They didn't even seem mildly concerned. They seemed slightly bemused, like instead of their emperor getting murdered and the forces of Hell charging through another dimension and demolishing cities, their daughter got her ears pierced.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 15 Oct 2008, 08:50
The one reaction in Oblivion I loved is when you would meet up with that guard captain (I can't remember his name) at the Kvatch barricade for the first time and ask him about Kvatch. that "My home! My GOD DAMNED HOME!" speech just has some good emotion in it. He sounds enraged and frustrated.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: CamusCanDo on 17 Oct 2008, 13:02
So apparently as of yesterday Farcry 2 and Fable 2 have been leaked as well onto torrent sites. Well shit.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 17 Oct 2008, 14:04
Fucking and Dicks are two adjectives I would use in this situation.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Surgoshan on 17 Oct 2008, 14:25
Those aren't adjectives.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 17 Oct 2008, 14:26
rage knows no syntax
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 17 Oct 2008, 15:30
Well technically "Fucking" in this syntax would be an adjective, being used to describe the noun "Dicks"...

but regardless of lit-fu... they're still a pack of galloping cockjockeys.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 17 Oct 2008, 15:58
agreed
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Ozymandias on 17 Oct 2008, 20:27
Why is this happening so much recently?

It's epic crap. I fucking hate pirates.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: CamusCanDo on 21 Oct 2008, 12:52
Guys, Gears of War 2 leaked yesterday. This is just getting silly now.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 21 Oct 2008, 13:14
CTHULU PHTAGN R'LYEH
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 21 Oct 2008, 21:09
The funny thing is, not one of these games leaked for PC.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 27 Oct 2008, 12:31
Got the email that my Amazon order for Fallout 3 CE has shipped and will be here tomorrow.

What? I want my damn bobblehead and lunch pail.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 27 Oct 2008, 15:01
I fucking hate Gamestop's automated phone calls.

"HI!  THIS IS ASHLEY WITH GAMESTOP!  JUST TO LET YOU KNOW, FABLE 2 WILL BE IN STORES ON TUESDAY!"

Yeah, Ashley?  I didn't pre-order that.  I pre-ordered Fallout 3 you CUNT.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: carrotosaurus on 27 Oct 2008, 15:26
Ashley called me too!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 27 Oct 2008, 15:50
What the damn, I just got ANOTHER call from "Ashley" telling me about Fallout.

That's right, Fallout.  Not "Fallout 3".  She told me that Fallout will be in tomorrow.

God why do I shop there.  Oh, because Best Buy doesn't sell used games.   :|
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: snalin on 27 Oct 2008, 15:50
I haven't read the thread up till now because I'd never played any fallout game and Fallout 3 didn't really mean anything to me. But I decided to check out the hype and got Fallout. Number one. And it's fun. Ohmygod is so much fucking fun. It's the best I've played this year (maybe except BGII. Which was made and published by the same studios that made and published Fallout). And since Bethesda is made out of own and Fallout is made out of win, I'm starting to get eager to play this game. But for now, I'll go bash in skulls with my super sledge.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 27 Oct 2008, 15:56
I've been replaying the original too.

However, I am not convinced that Fallout 3 will actually be more fun than 1 or 2.  There's pretty much no part of 1 or 2 that isn't "fun", and Morrowind/Oblivion were packed with endless stretches of "I just know there's something fun to do around here SOMEWHERE".
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 27 Oct 2008, 17:03
It'll probably be fun if you liked vanilla Oblivion.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 27 Oct 2008, 17:25
what if you LOVED vanilla Oblivion???

i might be the only person who actually enjoyed roaming the empty countryside picking mushrooms, killing bears, and exploring random, boring ruins.

so i'm probably going to enjoy Fallout 3 just as well.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: sean on 27 Oct 2008, 17:44
no no that was me too. along with most people i know in meatlife.

oh well, i guess i'll just have to have fun.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 27 Oct 2008, 17:57
you know...i never actually beat Oblivion, now that i think about it.

i got to like the the second to last mission without realizing it, realized i was about to beat the game, and then proceeded to do every single possible thing available to me EXCEPT finish the story.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 27 Oct 2008, 19:09
i might be the only person who actually enjoyed roaming the empty countryside picking mushrooms, killing bears, and exploring random, boring ruins.

Actually, I like the IDEA behind that, but I thought the actual execution was horrid.

If you're going to do a sandbox game, be like GTA4 and have there always be something interesting you can notice or do while just randomly wandering around.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 27 Oct 2008, 20:01
I also spend lots of time doing whatever the fuck I please in open-world games.  It's not just you.  The execution, from where I see it, was just fine, otherwise I wouldn't have played it so goddamn much.  I can see where other people would disagree, but their quibbles are just non-issues for me.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 27 Oct 2008, 20:04
Vanilla Oblivion is the Korn of video games - if you like it, there's not much to tell you.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 27 Oct 2008, 20:24
I quite enjoyed the wandering around doing whatever I wanted part of Oblivion, it's just that other things got in the way.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 27 Oct 2008, 20:35
I mean, I acknowledge that it has lots of faults, but somehow they don't seem important to me.  It's not like liking Korn, though....I would say more like Muse or Daft Punk, a band that is pretty divisive.  Radiohead, maybe?

I think it's because when I play, I don't care about how you can break the system because I'm roleplaying.  It's hard to explain.  I just get into this state where I feel I'm playing the game the designers wanted me to play and I enjoy the fuck out of it.  Happened with Too Human, and several others. 
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 27 Oct 2008, 20:45
I could get no enjoyment out of vanilla Oblivion at all. Everything from the boring as hell copy pasted dungeons to the shitty models to the terrible dialogue and voice acting was just shit to me. That made immersion pretty much impossible for me

Then, to top it off, the level scaling pretty much ruined the gameplay aspect of it for me. It was seriously the OoO mod that saved the game for me and even with it that it had some glaring issues.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 27 Oct 2008, 21:15
I dunno, maybe I just got stoned once and it all clicked in place.  Like, the first time I played, I regretted the repetitious dungeons.  But now, I look forward to them, not because of their architecture, but what I might find in them.  Also, some of them are pretty cool even if there's a lot of copy-pasting (although I really wouldn't call it that, they just use a similar style of interior decor a lot, the actual layouts are different).  I jumped to the top of an Ayleid ruin once and found a single gold coin, which I thought was the neatest thing.  Well, whatever.  I just picked up Fallout 3 and need to make a character and then go to bed.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 27 Oct 2008, 21:20
Picking up the CE tomorrow.  Vault-Boy is going on my dash, and I am packing my lunched in the lunchbox.

This game is going to murder my free-time.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 27 Oct 2008, 22:01
Steam version unlocks at midnight, and I'm expecting a 10-hour download. Will be ready for me after work.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 27 Oct 2008, 22:41
Gerstmann gives it 4/5 (http://www.giantbomb.com/fallout-3/61-20504/reviews/), despite not making the game sound particularly good ("VATS...turned combat into more of a chore than any sort of exciting gameplay element", "The game does a good job of making you feel like your dialogue choices are meaningful, even if they're just different tones of voice that ultimately lead to the same conclusion.")

I like Gerstmann, generally, but with games like this, and Oblivion, and every Lionhead game ever made, I think a good 2 weeks should be put into the game before a verdict is rendered, and from the sound of it 2 weeks would drop the 4 to a 3 or even a 2.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 27 Oct 2008, 23:27
Video game reviewers don't have the luxury of playing a game for an ample amount of time to get the right feel. Unlike movies or music, it can take a game 30 or 40 hours to really come into its own. This symptom is particularly obvious with weekly reviews like Zero Punctuation, where it's absolutely necessary to understand the core aspects of the game within a handful of hours of play-time. Since review popularity is based almost exclusively on the speed at which it's printed, reviewers are certainly more prone than the average gamer to speedrun a game and get a poorly-worded review out the door.

Oh, and is this Gerstmann's new site? I haven't seen anything from him since that little fiasco.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Trollstormur on 27 Oct 2008, 23:28
INSTALLING NOW OH GOD
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 27 Oct 2008, 23:31
PS: "Across the three platforms, the PC version of Fallout 3 is the best, provided you have hardware that can handle it."

Fuck youuu console gamers, I got the best one!

PPS: I FUCKIN' HATE STEAM. Just found out that Fallout 3 will unlock at 10AM PST. When I'm at work. I will arrive home at 6PM, and click the download button. At 4 in the morning of the 29th, I will play this game.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 28 Oct 2008, 06:47
I did the starting area, got out of the vault, and had to go to bed because I had work in 6.5 hours.  It is a pretty strong start, a lot less annoying than the dungeon in Oblivion (see, I really do think Oblivion has problems!), even if it's a little long.  It's only a little long because I refused to skip through any dialogue or movies, you can rush through it in about 30 minutes if you want.  The 'K-Mart framed' dialogue is still K-Mart framed (look, another problem!), but the facial animation and voices of the characters are noticeably better.  Not Mass Effect, mind you, but they're not as bad as Oblivion's.  When you finally do leave the vault and get out into the open air, it's pretty amazing.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 28 Oct 2008, 10:46
picking this up on my lunch break in 2 hours. so excited.

except it's just going to sit in my car, mocking me, until i get off work when i can actually play it.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 28 Oct 2008, 13:01
i guess i preordered the special edition
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Trollstormur on 28 Oct 2008, 14:38
my first impressions:


1. I'm using VATS way more often than I thought I would. Mostly because if you've got a pretty good small arms skill, it saves you a shitload of ammo/stims.

2. i can't wait to nuke megaton, trying to find my way around that town is annoying as hell.

3. AGH SO LITTLE CARRYING SPACE WHERE IS THE POWER ARMOR
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 28 Oct 2008, 14:43
I'm currently crawling through an elementary school boiler room.  I've decapitated 3 raiders using just bullets. Yes.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Trollstormur on 28 Oct 2008, 16:50
i don't think you can unload weapons. this is very frustrating.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 28 Oct 2008, 17:04
How do you mean?  Take the bullets out?  Or just unequip so you're not holding one out?  I know you have to hold X down to put weapons away, if that's what you're talking about.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spike on 28 Oct 2008, 20:05
I think he does mean unload them, not just holster them.  It's a little annoying, I don't want to switch to a severely degraded pistol just so that I can get the two rounds out of it. 

I'm currently wrestling with ctd issues right now.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 28 Oct 2008, 20:12
There should be an easy fix for PC users, assuming that the engine isn't notably altered from Oblivion. the all.SPAWN + class headers carried info for weapon drops, and there's got to be a roller for ammo dropped on weapon. Take that code out of the weapon method and you should have the ammo drop on-person instead of in-hand, the same way Oblivion had different methods to drop weapons currently equipped versus stored.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 28 Oct 2008, 20:23
Well, I have successfully made a Mad Max look alike and I plan to roleplay as Max of course. Question though...

Tagged Skills. Small Guns, Repair are definites. What should i take as the 3rd tagged skill? Speech? Explosives?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 28 Oct 2008, 20:41
I never saw Max as much of a Speech guy. Explosives I can see fit more.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 28 Oct 2008, 20:59
Yeah, i agree.

hmm, Perhaps Big Guns, Explosives or Medicine? I mean, max likes to blow shit up and he was pretty self sufficient in caring for himself.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: CamusCanDo on 28 Oct 2008, 21:34
2. i can't wait to nuke megaton, trying to find my way around that town is annoying as hell.

If you are going to blow Megaton to shit I highly recommend killing everyone in the town before you do, you can pick up some really handy guns and a fuck load of ammo early on if you do. That is unless you're playing through as a good-aligned character.

Something I wish I had discovered early on is the effectiveness of melee combat, especially with super mutants. It's crazy how easy it is to just circle the bastards while beating the fuck out of them with a sword/any melee weapon.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 28 Oct 2008, 21:44
If you are going to blow Megaton to shit... that is unless you're playing through as a good-aligned character.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: CamusCanDo on 28 Oct 2008, 22:08
It took me a full 10 minutes to figure out what you were saying.

I guess in my mind beating people to red mush is a lot less evil than nuking their asses.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 28 Oct 2008, 23:01
I knew the quote didn't make sense, but I can't be arsed to actually edit the syntax.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 29 Oct 2008, 00:46
I named my guy Mays and made him look like baseball hero Willy Mays.

This is going to own.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 29 Oct 2008, 07:41
So, admittedly, I haven't read the manual, and the only thing I can't figure out is how hacking works.  When it says x/x correct, do they mean continuous letters, or just letters?  The reason I ask is because I got confronted with one that didn't seem to apply to the latter.  I chose OASIS, It said I had 3/5, and seeing as there were only two other words that had O and S, but not A or I, I tried words with AIS, but none of those worked. 

Anyways, I looked over at CtrlAltDel, apparently Tim Buckley hasn't figured out that Fallout 3 uses a hotkey system just like Oblivion's.


But that just meant I couldn't get the sentry bot out of the tube in SuperDuperMart.  I was able to find parts for the railroad gun, a mini-nuke (but no launcher), and a laser pistol (which sucks for me because I didn't put any points in Energy).  And then tons of small/big gun ammo and the shotgun, and frag grenades....


That place is loaded.  Be sure to go there at some point.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 29 Oct 2008, 10:28
god damn it is this game great.

only quibble: i pretty much broke my game and lost two hours of exploring/killing/questing/collecting/etc. because i didn't save my game before i turned Mr. Burke into Simms for the destroy/save Megaton quest and when i killed him someone walked in front of me, got shot a little bit, and then the whole town turned against me and no matter where i went, i would get killed by an angry mob. they followed me into every building i went in, and even outside the city itself.

really fucking annoying.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 29 Oct 2008, 10:47
Early in the game, I was trying to rescue someone while being pursued by a po-po dude, and while attacking the po-po I accidentally delivered a critical blow to her. Wasn't happy about that.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 29 Oct 2008, 11:51
SPOILERS FOR MEGATON:








I'm trying to arrest Burke without getting Lucius killed. Is there an easy way to do this? I might reroll with more explosive points, because I can't find a stim that increases that skill around Megaton to defuse the bomb.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 29 Oct 2008, 12:00
maybe diffuse the bomb, kill Burke, then talk to Simms? i dunno.

and yeah, my explosive skill wasn't high enough either so i just did some of the other Megaton quests and did a little exploring until i leveled up so i could put points into Explosives.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 29 Oct 2008, 12:13
I would say help Lucas kill Burke, so you're not killing him before it happens.  Anyways, I just used some Mentats...I think there were a few in Springvale, and I know there was at least one in the SuperDuperMart.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spike on 29 Oct 2008, 12:15
So I found a sawed off shotgun.  HAHA PEG FACES FOR EVERYONE!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 29 Oct 2008, 12:59
How did you get Lucas to kill Burke? All I can get him to do is arrest him, and then he's shot in the back.

On the subject of Mentats, I know they increase perception, which is indirectly related to the Explosives skill, but I downed 7 of them and still couldn't crack the bomb. If you talk to Doc Church and pass a speech test, you'll find out about some dude's drug habit. It's easy enough to make him quit, and he'll give you the keys to his drug stash: 7 mentats, a handful of other drugs and 130 caps.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 29 Oct 2008, 14:23
As far as I can tell the benefits of Mentats don't stack. They add 5 to your explosives skill. An unaltered explosives skill with a perception of 7 and a intelligence of 6 should be around 19, so you'll need to invest at least a single skill point into it. Although, I think there's a book you can get in the course of one of the quests that start in Megaton that increases your explosives skill by 1.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 29 Oct 2008, 15:34
I rerolled and sunk enough on level 2 to disarm the bomb. I got around Burke by killing him immediately before he pulls out his pistol to kill Simms, but, funnily enough, you can kill Burke ANY time after he accosts you and the rest of the patrons don't mind. Guess they didn't like his clothes.

Does anyone else think that the default male character looks an awful lot like Back To The Future-era Michael J. Fox?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 29 Oct 2008, 16:10
How did you get Lucas to kill Burke? All I can get him to do is arrest him, and then he's shot in the back.

I just did that part.  I wanted to turn Burke in but don't know if I will be able to disarm the bomb, so I just shot Burke before the "Come with me" part.  It didn't trigger as me shooting someone good, gave me a Karma boost when he died, but the sheriff just stood there while I kept hitting "VATS, headshot, VATS, headshot".

I'm starting to think that the constant VATS slow-mo attacks are going to get very annoying very soon because there is absolutely no reason I can see to ever NOT use VATS (unless you're just beating on Radroaches).

Anyway, the game seems pretty good, I guess, but I hope to fuck that Megaton is the most complicated location because the ingame map sucks enormously.  In fact it's usually totally useless.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 29 Oct 2008, 17:59
Yeah, the dark green on black is kind of hard to see.  But for the most part I don't even use the map unless I'm inside something.

Times you don't want to use VATS: when you're out of ammo and have to resort to melee attacks.  It's a lot less interesting to watch you beat on a dog with a baseball bat.

I still think it's awesome, I managed to get a guy's head to go straight-up about 30 feet before it plopped down next to me.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 29 Oct 2008, 18:46
You can adjust VATS color (PC) via the options > video menu. I chose white.

On my third attempt on a character, I remembered to check the security room before leaving the Vault: there's about 400 rounds of 10mm and some armor which is worth some caps. I got a free house, and the robo-butler there can produce pure water: great for helping out the bum on the outskirts of Megaton.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 30 Oct 2008, 10:17
so last night i was exploring the Tepid Sewers looking for mole-rats when i came upon an exit that wasn't how i got in. so naturally i went outside to see where it led. i ended up right in the middle of a pretty urban area but there wasn't much going on that i could tell. that is, until i walked into the nearest ruined building to suddenly find myself staring down four super-mutants and a centaur.
i definitely would have been mutant food if i hadn't just found a combat shotgun, a bunch of frag grenades, and some stimpacks minutes before in the sewer.

also, is anyone else addicted to any drugs yet? i'm addicted to Mentats because i keep using them so i can pick locks and hack computers and shit.

i love this game.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 30 Oct 2008, 10:41
So I played a whole lot last night.  Did a bunch of Megaton quests, disarmed the bomb (which was really easy, all I had to do was take a Mentat and suddenly I knew all about pre-war nuclear munitions  :-D ), blasted my way through the S-Mart (that was really fun), and am already carrying around an assault rifle, a dozen frag grenades, a laser pistol and my trusty unbreakable pistol you get at the start of the game.  I have a feeling it is entirely possible to win the game using just that pistol alone.

I still get lost in Megaton.  Half the time I'm like "Where the FUCK is my house?", I get lost, reload my last auto-save and it ends up being right next to me.  Christ on a pogo stick.

Apparently they just decided that every single character gets the "Bloody Mess" perk because I have seen more heads flying off in slow-motion than the 17th century.

Speaking of VATS, I'm really glad I figured out that you can queue up multiple shots.  It makes the bullet-time combat less annoying and more cool, especially when you shoot some guy twice, he starts to run away backwards, and you land the killing blow causing his body to fly back.

The reviews that say "There's no reason to not shoot someone in the head" seem a bit off.  I have gotten the message "Raider head crippled!" plenty of times, and apparently having a crippled head has absolutely no bearing on your ability to, you know, move and shoot.  What the hell, Beth?  Also, when I was trying to save the Sheriff from Burke, before I did it the easy way, I tried shooting him in the arm so he couldn't use his gun.  I crippled his arm.  He still shot the sheriff.  Again, poor game design, shame.

And while the game is, no doubt, drop dead gorgeous, why in fuck are they still using the same exact engine that makes first-person feel like you're playing a low-budget Quake 2 clone and your third-person character model look and move like EverQuest?  Seriously?

In fact, I think the game would be improved to near perfection if they actually dropped VATS and used a GTA4-type engine - realistic movement, targeted combat, taking cover in a meaningful way, etc.  Playing the game on a console without VATS is just annoying, unless, as has been pointed out, your doing melee, but even melee LOOKS cooler with VATS.  Seriously, beat up a dog with a baseball bat using VATS and tell me it isn't bad-ass.

The characters and voice-acting are actually fine so far, but I'm assuming I'm not very far.  The only quests I have now are "Find the GNC (or whatever, in DC)" which seems like something I should hold off on doing, and "Deliver a message to my family", which I sort of did but can't totally complete because there are a couple of Super Mutants hanging around somewhere I need to get to and I'm real low on healing items.

Oh wait, I also have a quest to get radiation poisoning, but that seems like it'll take forever, or just patiently standing in the radiated water in Megaton for an hour or two.

I am kind of disappointed that the game is so PG-13.  Oh, sure, there are token cuss words and body parts flying and drug use, but so far the game is really low on sex and rock and roll.  Yeah, I know you can "rent" that hooker but all she does is sleep in your bed.

Oh, but the radio stations are an awesome touch.  They really got the feel of Fallout down, even down to the "OH HAY I JUST SPENT MY WHOLE LIFE IN A VAULT AND YET I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT".
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: thehollow on 30 Oct 2008, 10:47
So, my comp meets the minimum specs just about exactly. I've got a 2.8 ghz p4, a gig of memory, and a ATI x850 card. I ran oblivion fine, and haven't had many problems running most games these days except for the pixel shader 3.0 ones like BioShock that simply won't run with my graphics card. Can anyone tell me how shitty this'll look for me? Will it be playable at the very least?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 30 Oct 2008, 10:51
Quote from: Jackie
Oh wait, I also have a quest to get radiation poisoning, but that seems like it'll take forever, or just patiently standing in the radiated water in Megaton for an hour or two.

for the radiation quest just go to the bomb in the center of town, stand in the puddle, and drink the water out of the puddle over and over again. do it all the way up to 600 rads (or whatever the optional one is) because you don't die till 1000 and she heals you as soon as you talk to her, so there's no reason NOT to go balls deep with it.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 30 Oct 2008, 11:16
Plus there's an awesome benefit to getting the 600 rads.

Trust me when I say that the pistol stops being your best friend as soon as you head out to Minefield, or anywhere near it. Boosting your Small Guns skill just simply isn't enough to deal with raiders shooting at you from half a klick away, and you'll have to do a lot of weapon juggling to preserve ammo and range. I've found that it's extremely important to have at least one of most types of small arms, and to ditch the rest as soon as you can. For a while, I was carrying five different pistols, two different ARs, and two different shotguns.

I have absolutely no problem moving around Megaton, oddly enough. I'll sometimes walk up to the Clinic instead of Craterside Supplies, but it's not bad.

I've seen a bunch of heads fly off, too, but critical hits are a lot more common than they were in the originals, too. For what it's worth, Bloody Mess makes things a LOT more bloody. 5% more damage, too!

The crippling system doesn't work as wonderfully as I would have thought, and only by getting limbs crippled myself have I realized how to use it effectively. Targeting legs on any target will make them limp, but it doesn't effect weapon accuracy: don't bother on armed targets. Targeting arms REDUCES accuracy, but doesn't stop them from using the gun. If you wanted to take Burke out simply, shoot his pistol, not his arm. Crippling torso doesn't seem to do much besides a momentary flinch.

I was absolutely surprised by how good Fallout looks. It's head-and-shoulders above Oblivion, which I wasn't expecting. The third-person model has been greatly improved, you can't argue that. The strafing-while-moving still looks lame, but the model is (checked) actually a virtual object instead of a hologram as in Oblivion.

I think the voice acting is fantastic. Liam Neelson is great, and I've heard only one repeated voice (on two different Megaton Settlers).

You're going to hate the FUCK out of the Families quest. Take my advise, head to the metro station first, because the other two locations are swarmed with radscorpions that take forever to kill and don't drop any good loot. The Families quest turned out sort of like the Brotherhood quests in Oblivion, and it's nice to see that Bethesda took that depth into the Fallout universe.

I love the swearing. Maybe I'm just not fantasy-nerd enough to get into Oblivion, but the way some people greet me makes me feel a lot more involved and immersed in the game. "So I'm a junkie, so fucking what" is a much more relevant line, to me, than something like "I'm an old fisher who needs you to catch gills".



OH, and to thehollow: you can't play this game. You might physically be able to get it to run, but it will play at such an abysmal framerate that you'll hate it within minutes. Trust me on this.

Speaking of performance, I've been getting CTDs out the ass. I've crashed on entering locations, while saving, while opening Pipboy or the main menu, and randomly. It's pathetic.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 30 Oct 2008, 11:31
Funniest moment so far: When I killed Burke (and his head flew off, natch) his body landed right next to the chair he was sitting in.  Mere seconds later, a random Megaton citizen walked up and sat down next to his headless corpse.

And yes, fuck radscorpions.  There has to be an easy way to kill them.  I'm going to try using the laser on them, maybe it ignores their armor.

Or I'll just go buy the rocket launcher schematics.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 30 Oct 2008, 11:58
Grenades and mines are pretty effective.  Like I said, I found quite a few in the SuperDuperMart.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 30 Oct 2008, 12:05
Fuck.  I think I'm going to restart because of the stupid "you should hang on to every random piece of crap you find because 20 hours later you'll need it to build a railgun" game design.  See, the first games I played where you could pick up EVERYTHING were Ultima 6 and, much later, Divine Divinity and in those games all that useless shit really was just useless shit.

Maybe this time I'll blow Megaton up and be an evil bitch to everyone.  I ALWAYS play "generally good but self-serving" in games where you have a choice, and NEVER get around to playing the "evil" path, so fuck it, time to get Mad Max on some asses.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 30 Oct 2008, 13:03
in response to Melodic's post below this one:

if you do the Minefield quest for the chick from the general store in Megaton, she gives you the schematic for the bottle cap mine. but honestly, i've found so many land mines just wandering around that i shouldn't have to make any of my own for quite some time now. and that's after having sold off like 30 or so of the damned, heavy things.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 30 Oct 2008, 14:17
Junk is scattered everywhere. I know there are schematics out there for lunchbox landmines, and I also know that I should keep these 5 or 10 sensor modules so that I can build these mines later in the game. But fuck it, if I need to drop some items, those modules are heavy.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 30 Oct 2008, 18:07
Radscorpions are a bit of a bitch, but FUCK.  FUCKING.  MIRELURKS.  YOU HORSESHOE-CRAB DESCENDED SONSABITCHES.

Ahem.

Also, if you're still wondering about how to kill Burke, nobody in the bar really cares if he's iced.  I heard somebody say "Thank god" when I capped him after I disarmed the bomb.  That's a nice fedora and suit for me!

And man, the Family stuff was cool.  I managed to get Ian out, no bloodshed, and Vance gave me the Shsihkebab specs!  I HAVE A FLAMING SWORD.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Chesire Cat on 30 Oct 2008, 20:07
Not going to read this thread.

Not going to read this thread.


Not going to read this thread.

Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 30 Oct 2008, 21:59
That's a nice fedora and suit for me!

I restarted playing a female and when you equip it, it changes to a jacket and skirt with high heels... even if it didn't give a bonus to Speech I'd wear it around town constantly.

OK, checklist of what I have done:

- Disarmed bomb, killed Burke
- Did all of Chapter 1 of the Wasteland Survival Guide (I lied about going to the Minefield)
- Got rid of the Fire Ants
- Various killing around Megaton
- Various minor quests (pipes, drug problem, etc.)

What it seems I have open right now are the GNC station, delivering the letter to start the Family quest, and going to Rivet Town to find a home for the kid.

Here's the problem.  I am really low on ammo.  I used a TON of it dealing with the Fire Ants and I can't find anyone to sell me any more.  I have lots of Energy Cells but the laser pistol basically sucks.  I have almost no ammo for the Chinese Assault Rifle and very little for the 10mm Submachine Gun, and a little bit for the Combat Shotgun.  Got 10 frag grenades and 10 mines.

Where should I go that will either A) give me access to lots more ammo or B) not require me to use up tons of it?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 30 Oct 2008, 23:52
If you're not low on funds, wait a few days outside of Megaton for a caravan to come by. They're usually packing ammo...

If that fails, work on the Family. If you don't spend too much time in the wastes, and are moderately gifted in speech, you can find a ton of ammo in the subway system. Ignore both of the "possible locations" and head for the metro, since the other two WILL burn your ammo to hell.

I'm in the same boat, actually. I swapped off my SMG as soon as I ran down the 10mm rounds, and now I'm wandering towards Rivet City so I can rearm.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Nodaisho on 31 Oct 2008, 00:24
Dang. I just realized I will be at an Okkervil River gig when Fallout 3 is opened for download.

I am not sure if this is really bad or really awesome.
Can you set it to auto-download as soon as it is ready? Then you either come back and play, or come back and pass out and then play. Either way, you win.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 31 Oct 2008, 01:04
Let me tell you about my trip to Minefield.

A small house lies on its outskirts. Ducking inside, I found the place abandoned and empty. I moved methodically through the rooms and stripped them of valuables and, girding myself, ventured out of the house towards the centre of town. About ten steps in I hit a mine. Crippled, I moved towards the shelter of a nearby ruin to heal myself. While I did this, someone fired a portable nuclear bomb about twenty yards to my right. Stunned, I walked right onto another landmine and exploded.

i kept looking for enemies and i think that they are seriously just ghosts

heavily armed ghosts
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Trollstormur on 31 Oct 2008, 04:36
I just finished the main quest. Spoilers ahoy






liberty prime is a pretty cool guy. eh shoots chinese communists and doesn't afraid of anything.


Double spoiler: (This one's important.) The quest to get the G.E.C.K. is the 'point of no return' as far as the main quest goes. If you're actively pursuing the main quest like i did and for the most part ignored everything else, I would really recommend stopping before this portion and go out and do some of the side quests, as many as you can or want to before you beat the game, because after the end you can't go back to the world.


The build I went with was PE/AG with some luck with small guns, big guns and speech as tag skills. Using vats, I had more than enough ammo for any gun. Using the crappy guns you find up on poop fights save ammo immensely. My early perks went into boosting luck/agi for more crits and AP for VATS headshots. You don't get Sniper until level 12 but it's really nice if you combine with finesse and then later, better criticals.

now if you'll excuse me, I'm rolling a stealth character next.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 31 Oct 2008, 09:45
Let me tell you about my trip to Minefield.

A small house lies on its outskirts. Ducking inside, I found the place abandoned and empty. I moved methodically through the rooms and stripped them of valuables and, girding myself, ventured out of the house towards the centre of town. About ten steps in I hit a mine. Crippled, I moved towards the shelter of a nearby ruin to heal myself. While I did this, someone fired a portable nuclear bomb about twenty yards to my right. Stunned, I walked right onto another landmine and exploded.

i kept looking for enemies and i think that they are seriously just ghosts

heavily armed ghosts

Make sure you stealth thru Minefield, and actually have enough in explosives to disarm and grab the mines.  If a mine near a car goes off, the car's reactor/engine touches off, causing the small nuclear explosion.

And watch the big ruined concrete building near the center.  Some crazy named fuck with a rifle is there.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 31 Oct 2008, 09:58
Using vats, I had more than enough ammo for any gun.

That's what I thought, until I started running into fucking millions of Fire Ants.

I guess maybe I could have/should have held out on that quest (I was only in the area to raid the S-Mart and the little kid ran up to me and triggered the quest) and I have a horrible tendency to be "realistic" in RPGs so I refused to fast-travel back to Megaton, get more ammo, then fast-travel back, because I kept thinking "that poor kid will be in that port-a-potty for DAYS".  So I just soldiered on, unaware that the entirety of the Fire Ant quest would require SO MUCH GOD DAMN BUG SPRAY.

Are there any ramifications to not killing the Queen, or anything good you get for doing so?  I checked her health from around the corner and there was no way I could take her out without using all my grenades/mines.

Fuck, I knew I should have bought that cheap-ass missile launcher or whatever it is that Moira has (not the Rock-It plans, the other thing).  Are mini-nukes conisidered ammo for that?

Also, I'm really glad I started over because I missed a metric fuckton of shit in the Vault, including the first Bobblehead and all that ammo.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 31 Oct 2008, 10:11
the missile launcher fires missiles and missiles only (works wonders on Super Mutants, by the way).
i think the Rock-it Launcher can fire mini-nukes but i don't know for sure since i can never afford the damn blueprints for the thing.


edit:
man, i hate it when it when i go out of my way to do something for someone and the only reward is good karma. Or, conversely, when i do something that seems innocent enough ends up giving negative karma; like when i visited Rivet City for the first time last night, one of the first people i talked to happened to be addicted to psycho. naturally, i tried to talk him out of it and be the "good guy" but he wouldn't bite so i gave him a Psycho thinking he might repay me somehow or another but then he dropped dead on the spot and i lost karma. oh well, he had some decent stuff on him so it wasn't a total loss.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 31 Oct 2008, 11:13
I'm not worried about that in this game because apparently having your Karma be too high or too low causes random badguys to spawn out of nowhere and attack you.  So I do the occasional "morally grey" thing to try and stay in-character and not a total wide-eyed Heroine.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 31 Oct 2008, 13:33
Let me tell you about my trip to Minefield.

A small house lies on its outskirts. Ducking inside, I found the place abandoned and empty. I moved methodically through the rooms and stripped them of valuables and, girding myself, ventured out of the house towards the centre of town. About ten steps in I hit a mine. Crippled, I moved towards the shelter of a nearby ruin to heal myself. While I did this, someone fired a portable nuclear bomb about twenty yards to my right. Stunned, I walked right onto another landmine and exploded.

i kept looking for enemies and i think that they are seriously just ghosts

heavily armed ghosts
It's a sniper. The cars' engines are, in effect, explosive barrels.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 01 Nov 2008, 09:52
I found a guy hiding in a comic shop with a MINIGUN.  FUCK YEAH.  Also, there's a text-based adventure on one of the terminals there.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 01 Nov 2008, 10:11
All the Fallout fanboys who were poised over their keyboards ready to pick this game apart must feel pretty stupid.  There's no doubt this is just an excellent game.  I predict even Yahtzee will like it.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 01 Nov 2008, 12:29
All the Fallout fanboys who were poised over their keyboards ready to pick this game apart must feel pretty stupid.  There's no doubt this is just an excellent game.  I predict even Yahtzee will like it.
If you're comparing the game to its predecessors, it's not half as good. And if you didn't really enjoy the 70 percent or so of Oblivion that's been retained through to Fallout 3, the shitty animation, the awful VA, the bland dialog (though there's so much more of it now, yay!), the simplistic and confused combat, the engine in general, you won't like it.

Thus far, I'm getting the same vibe from it I got from Oblivion, which is to say, this has a single playthrough before it gets dreadfully boring. Like Oblivion, it's only real strength is its combat, and unlike Oblivion, Fallout 3's combat is predicated on a gimmick. It's got a lot of razzmatazz that's fairly engaging for the first time through, but good lord, going through 95% of this game's content more than once is going to be a fucking chore.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 01 Nov 2008, 17:31
Abe Lincoln's Repeater Rifle,
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Alex C on 01 Nov 2008, 18:01
I gotta agree with KvP here. I've played some Fallout 3, and so far, I haven't particularly liked it all that much. The writing is OK, but it's not as funny and irreverent as Fallout 2 nor as engrossing as Fallout 1. I'm picky about my voice acting and animations; if you can't avoid Uncanny Valleyville, I don't give a shit about how pretty the rest of your game is, I just plain start to lose interest. I know it sounds unfair, but I don't mind filling in the blanks mentally thanks to years of playing text based games as much as I mind poor voice acting (this is one of the many reasons why you rarely hear me singing Capcom's praises). So unless your voice acting is as good as that as in say, Mass Effect or PoP:TSOT, you're doing naught but introducing another potential point of failure into my gaming experience. Luckily, I don't think Fallout 3 is as bad as Oblivion in that respect, so I'm comfortable in saying it's a fairly decent game. I just doubt like hell that it'll hold my attention as long as either of the originals.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 01 Nov 2008, 20:28
Fuck you, I'm fucked!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 02 Nov 2008, 00:11
I stand by what I said.  I just got to Rivet City last night and everything is just done so well.

Granted, I'm willing to accept that it's just because I prefer the story/vibe/dialogue to the Elder Scrolls games, but honestly this just FEELS like Fallout 1/2 to me, in the dialogue and quests and so forth.  Sure, the combat is very simplistic, but it was just as simplistic in Fallout 1/2, really.  All I ever did in those games was "target: head" and that's at least somewhat diffferentiated here by, for example, being able to fire a missile launcher at some snipers.

I hope the game doesn't bug because, on the way to the GNC station, I found Dukov's place and agree'd to take Cherry Darling to Rivet Town, and once I got there and talked to Ms. Li it automatically assumed I had found GNC.

I don't know, all I can say is that I hated Morrowind and Oblivion for various niggling reasons but I honestly can't complain about anything in this game yet.

Oh and after I "saved" Cherry I went back and blew Dukov's fucking head off.  Man, that felt good.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 02 Nov 2008, 11:19
How did you get the option to take Cherry? I visited Dukov but was never able to do anything particularly exciting besides looting his booze cabinet.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: TheFuriousWombat on 02 Nov 2008, 12:12
Damn it I wish I could play this! My computer is definitely not up to snuff and I don't own a 360. I'm more and more tempted to get one but I know the downsides i.e. I would get very little work done and be much poorer. Still, this game sounds really awesome and I know I'm missing out. Tis sad.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 02 Nov 2008, 12:27
Good news for you degenerate PC gamers out there, in spite of a lack of SDK support there are some minor modifications already released by the online community. Some of which are predictable ("better underwear", "pearl-handled sword" etc. etc.) and some of which are pretty damn good (bettering the music (http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=39), removing waypoints from the map (http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=20))
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 02 Nov 2008, 12:40
Not exactly, Mark Morgan just blatantly ripped off the Aphex Twin :P

But I don't know. I'm sure with an SDK you could definitely implement alternative radio stations.

That's a really good idea, actually.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 02 Nov 2008, 13:26
It's easy enough to substitute music. Rip out the sounds.bsa archive, recode and rename your music to replace any of the music in the archive, then repack. The problem is creating new radio stations, which, while I'm sure I can do it without an SDK, it'll be a whole lot harder.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 02 Nov 2008, 14:17
I hope the game doesn't bug because, on the way to the GNC station, I found Dukov's place and agree'd to take Cherry Darling to Rivet Town, and once I got there and talked to Ms. Li it automatically assumed I had found GNC.

same thing happened to me.

Oh and after I "saved" Cherry I went back and blew Dukov's fucking head off.  Man, that felt good.

i hope you waited till you got the "You Gotta Shoot 'Em in the Head" quest.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 03 Nov 2008, 10:36
How did you get the option to take Cherry?

I'm not sure.  I'm playing a female character with Black Widow and high Charisma and Speech, but I don't see why those should have mattered, because IIRC the dialogue wasn't me convincing her to leave, she said something like "This place is safe, but I'd rather be in Rivet Town".  Maybe it's because I was already on my way there to find a home for the little kid.  Maybe Rivet Town has to be on your map before she asks you to escort her there?

I don't even think I got much XP or Karma for doing it, and she doesn't really do anything fun once she settles in to Rivet, either.  Kind of a letdown, I thought she'd open up a shop there or something, but you can't even talk to her afterwards, she just says "Yeah yeah, you're my hero... seriously though, thanks for getting me out of there."

And no, I don't think Dukov gives any quests.  Fantasia gets mad if you kill him, though, so I had to take her out, too.  I found a key on his body that doesn't appear to open anything in his house.   :?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spike on 03 Nov 2008, 11:36
I'm pretty sure that key is for a quest you get from a ghoul in Underworld.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 03 Nov 2008, 11:38
Found out what I was doing wrong with Cherry. I'm playing a good character, so instead of calling her a whore to trigger the Rivet City dialog, I was nice to her.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 03 Nov 2008, 11:59
So I finally figured out how to hack effectively.  And the rewards are totally worth it.  I found my Power Fist this way!  Unfortunately I have shitty unarmed damage.  I will have to make another character for unarmed, melee, and big guns.  But I just love wondering around to fuck knows where. 

Also, I'm fairly certain enemies aren't leveled in the same way they used to be.  I am giving noticeably more damage out to Super Mutants (like, 3 shotgun blasts to the face and they're done, whereas before I had to empty my entire assault rifle), and Radroaches don't attack me unless I'm within 5 feet, and they go down in one from whatever I have.  And the Bloody Mess perk makes things significantly gorier.  I threw a grenade and it delimbed a Super Mutant entirely.  There was his torso and forelegs and forearms, and bits of him spread out in a 20 foot radius.  I also love that you can search their eyeballs and still access the rest of their inventory.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 03 Nov 2008, 12:05
How DO you hack effectively? I can't figure them out worth shit.

Also, for those that don't know, any storage items you own specifically (like lockers inside your Megaton house) will not refresh or empty contents, so you can store all of your shit inside your house with no problem. I'm carrying about 500lbs of weapons, apparel, food, meds, and ammo inside my refrigerator!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 03 Nov 2008, 12:30
Say you pick STATUES as a first word.  It says you got 3/7 correct, which means that 3 of those letters are in the right place.  So there's probably a word out there using STA as the first three letters.  Kinda like Password, except with words instead of colors.  Also, if you find any bracket pair "(,{, or [" that's closed on the same line, you can use those to get rid of dud words or replenish the amount of tries you have.  The short ones (3 or 4 characters) replenish, the others remove incorrect answers.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 03 Nov 2008, 12:43
yeah, i was so happy when i actually read the manual and it told me everything i needed to know about hacking. i couldn't hack worth shit before i figured out the stuff about the brackets.

also, in case anyone was doing what i did,  if you only have one attempt left and can't find anymore brackets JUST GIVE UP AND TRY AGAIN SO YOU DON'T GET LOCKED OUT FOREVER NO MATTER HOW SURE YOU ARE THAT YOU KNOW THE ANSWER.
oh man, there's so much good stuff to be had by hacking shit.

and speaking of good stuff, has anyone else found Abe Lincoln's rifle? it fucking slays; one or two shots to the head on a super mutant and they are done. also, if you prefer other weapons, it's worth 100-300 caps depending on who you talk to about it, so there's that too.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spike on 03 Nov 2008, 12:45
Sometimes the short hidden characters in hacking replenish my tries, which is kind of frustrating when I haven't even used any.  Yeah, hacking can be totally worth it, I found a ripper thanks to hacking.  I generally just pick random words until I'm one try away from being locked out, then start over and hope that I pick the right one.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 03 Nov 2008, 13:12
I've tried to avoid too many spoilers (except this thread) but damn it, I just found out there's an entire town you can't access unless you're Evil, and while it would be simple to just steal a bunch of coffee mugs to get down to Evil status, it seems like it would be really hard (or expensive, donating to churches) to get my Good karma status back.

Well, I'm off to find Dogmeat and do some random exploring now that I finally have a lot of ammo again (though I'm pretty broke).
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 03 Nov 2008, 14:34
so i finally was able to afford the schematics for the Railway Rifle (or whatever it's called) and holy shit is it satisfying to pin people's limbs to walls. espescially if you can manage to pin their head to the wall perfectly upright and facing outwards.

it's like a hunting trophy: the most dangerous game, fallout style.


...while it would be simple to just steal a bunch of coffee mugs to get down to Evil status, it seems like it would be really hard (or expensive, donating to churches) to get my Good karma status back.

did you save Megaton? if so, just get a bunch of purified water from Wadsworth, go to sleep for a day or two, repeat, then when you've built up a good reserve of the stuff just give it to the bum outside (rinse and repeat as necessary). yeah, it's time-consuming, but it's simple and free.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 03 Nov 2008, 19:40
Can someone give me a more detailed explanation of hacking? What you're saying still doesn't make a lick of sense. Or better yet, scan the manual for me. I'm using the Steam version and can't find a pdf anywhere.

I understood the x/x system for right/wrong, but there are so many choices I usually get borked anyways. Out of four tries, the first is a wildcard, the second is to see which (if any) of the original characters were actually right, and the third and fourth are to narrow those guesses. This bracket shit makes no sense.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 03 Nov 2008, 20:23
Right, so after aquiring The Shocker and having the Bloody Mess perk (I have literally never played a Fallout character without it when available) I quickly decided to start over again as a mean as hell, uncharismatic melee character, who is really agile and really strong. Is it doable?

Honestly, Agility is not necessary at all if you go melee since VATs doesn't let you target anything specific with melee weapons.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 03 Nov 2008, 20:31
@Melodic

i assume you understand the password part right? it's pretty simple, you just guess a password and it tells you how many letters are correct (that includes the location within the word) so, by using process of elimination, you should be able to figure out the correct password.*

the part that's actually weird is the secret bracket bonuses or whatever you want to call them.
these are the brackets in question:
<>
{}
[]
()

they have to be facing each other, like above, and they have to be on the same line (i think). the tricky part, is that they can have any number of random characters in between them, including more brackets. sometimes you can even get the same brackets used for two different Bracket Bonuses, for example: {df=}*/} OR <<> etc. etc.
the important thing to remember is that you can't just put your cursor anywhere within the Bonus Brackets to claim your prize, it has to be on the left side bracket (you'll know because it will highlight the whole sequence, just like for the passwords).
also, it doesn't count against your number of attempts to use these so use all you can find. the most i've found on one screen was three or four, the least was zero (there may have been one, but i sure as shit couldn't find it).

i find the most effective way to use them is use up two password guesses before you use any brackets you've found since there's a chance it could replenish your attempts and you wouldn't want to waste it. also, like i said before, if you get down to one attempt left and no brackets, just exit the screen and try again from the beginning.


*in theory anyway. most of my succesful hacks have been alot of luck.



P.S. damnit i broke the "You Gotta Shoot 'Em in the Head" quest. i can't even fail it now because it keeps telling me to deliver all these keys to a guy who i personally vaporized. i fucking hate loose ends. espescially when they are a glitch and undeserved.

Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 03 Nov 2008, 21:08
Typically 4 characters or less (including the brackets) is a replenish-your-attempts.  More than that is usually remove an incorrect password.  So far that's been completely true for me.  For me, guessing the password goes something like this:

Find all the dud-removers (1-3, usually)
MELTING 3/7 (probably a word ending in ING, but it could be something like MEATWAD)
FISHING 4/7 (definitely ending in ING, one of the first four letters is in place, so I go looking for choices with that set up)
NICKING 6/7 (by now there is usually only one or two choices left that only have a one letter difference)
If you haven't had as much luck with these guesses, find a replenisher or back out and start over.
PICKING *correct*


It's also kind of like those word puzzles where you have to get from COLD to BOAT by changing one letter at a time while still making an actual word:
COLD
COLT
COAT
BOAT

You just have to try and store the correct letters in their places in your head.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 03 Nov 2008, 21:53
did you save Megaton? if so, just get a bunch of purified water from Wadsworth, go to sleep for a day or two, repeat, then when you've built up a good reserve of the stuff just give it to the bum outside (rinse and repeat as necessary). yeah, it's time-consuming, but it's simple and free.

I got I think 4 waters from him a long time ago and he keeps saying he needs to "replenish his condensors" or whatever.  It's definitely been many in-game days and he still won't give me any more clean water.   :x

That said, I just got Dogmeat and I think I shall try to get to the Citadel to get the paladin chick to join me.

Also, what's up with this?  The suit from Burke boosts your Speech by 5, and the Sexy Sleepwear boosts your Charisma by 1, which should result in a +2 Speech bonus, but every time I've tried both, the Sexy Sleepwear makes my chance of a successful Speech check better than the suit does.  That doesn't make sense.   :?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 04 Nov 2008, 07:47
I believe the SPECIAL stats influence your skills by a factor of about 10; at least that's what it feels like to me. So someone who is very strong will be a much better melee fighter or pugilist than someone who is very skilled in those areas, or as in this example, someone who is naturally charismatic is going to be better at speaking than someone who is well trained in speechcraft.

At least that's my observation.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 04 Nov 2008, 09:43
What does the CHR bonus bump your CHR to?  You get a higher bonus depending on how many points you have already.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 04 Nov 2008, 12:13
Plus let's not forget how fun it is to plant a live grenade/landmine onto somebody! Any sneaky crap can be done nicely with a Stealth Boy, though. I have about 5 spare at this point, and I haven't even been to the radio station yet.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: snalin on 04 Nov 2008, 13:01
Does this game just throw around the goodies? I was just through Fallout 1, and god damn, the Stealth boys were available in the last fucking place you ever went, ever.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 04 Nov 2008, 13:28
I am rolling up my Unarmed, Explosive Speaker.  I will punch a supermutant to fucking death.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: TheFuriousWombat on 04 Nov 2008, 13:37
Out of curiosity, who is playing this on xbox 360, who on PS3, and who on PC? I always lean towards PC games when something is multi-platform b/c of the far richer mod community that exists and often makes a game infinitely better than its console counterparts but as far as control and graphics and that sort of thing go, what are people leaning towards?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 04 Nov 2008, 14:13
Playing on PC. Definitely looks better, I get to mod what I want. I understand why most people are playing the console versions, though.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 04 Nov 2008, 14:16
360, due to lack of a decent PC.  I've noticed some graphical hiccups (RANDOM SKIN HICCUPS AHOY), but nothing that wasn;t solved by a quick reload of the auto-save.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 04 Nov 2008, 14:25
PS3, because my computer is ancient.  I've heard there are slightly more bugs in the PC version than the consoles, which will undoubtedly be fixed at some point but from what I understand the PS3 version only bugs if you're signed in to the PSN, which obviously isn't necessary.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 04 Nov 2008, 14:30
The PC version has issues with memory leaks and a nasty refusal to cooperate with codecs. Beyond that, it runs fairly well.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 04 Nov 2008, 14:45
i play on 360 because i hate playing shooters on PC, and plus i work on a PC all day long (like right now) so the last thing i wanna do when i get home is get on another computer to play games.

also; achievements!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 04 Nov 2008, 14:48
Fallout 3 is only a shooter if you hate fun and want to make things hard for yourself.

VATS uses so much less ammo and is just more fun.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 04 Nov 2008, 14:55
well, by "shooter" i mean "something that has me walking around in first person." of course i'm all about VATS for combat but i'd still have to walk around.

the whole keyboard/mouse thing is just not for me, i guess.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 04 Nov 2008, 15:18
Yeah I agree, I would hate to do all that walking with keyboard/mouse.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 04 Nov 2008, 15:52
Weirdos.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 04 Nov 2008, 15:59
Just say that again after you get carpal tunnel. 


There are no Orthopedic surgeons in the Wasteland!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 04 Nov 2008, 16:03
yet, somehow, there is cosmetic surgeon holed up in a sinking ship who can change your entire face flawlessly and even change your skin color and bone structure.

amazing!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 04 Nov 2008, 16:28
Am I the only one who uses third person most of the time, unless I have to look closely at a desk or whatever?  Having all those cool clothes in the game and not seeing it seems a bit of a waste.

I just kind of hate first-person in general really.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 04 Nov 2008, 16:33
i actually like being surprised by what my character looks like when i see him in VATS since it's not hard for me to forget, wandering around in first-person all the time.

it's like a special treat.


plus, it just doesn't feel as immersive or whatever in third person because the animations aren't that great. i get way more into it when i'm always in first person. it's like i'm really there.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 04 Nov 2008, 22:15
I can't find an answer to this anywhere:

If I become Evil to access Paradise Falls and buy Clover, will she leave if I revert to Good?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Surgoshan on 04 Nov 2008, 22:27
Paradise Falls would be an excellent stripper name.

And it would make the verb phrase "access Paradise Falls" one hell of an entendre.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: OneoftheLost on 05 Nov 2008, 08:45
Ok, Ok. So who picked the game up several days ago? Yeah... that would be me. You all can't comprehend how long I have been waiting for this silly video game.

I havn't made it too far and have honestly spent more time exploring then actually doing missions. My thing with the game is that its....thoughtful? What I mean to say, is that lets say you come play this game after spending an astonishing amount of hours playing Oblivion. There I had journal entries and the like to lead me on. In fallout 3, there is very little hand holding. For instance, I'm on the mission labeled "Blood Ties" Sure they give me location, but they fail to include the part where everyone and their mother is nothing short of six levels above me. So I tend to go through stims like crazy.

Anyway, I really like it. My question to you PC using fellows, is what would you like to see come out of the whole modding scene? I myself use a 360, however I was part of the Oblivion, Morrowind modding scene for a while, and a huge variety of great mods came out, I'm just curious to see what people would like.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 05 Nov 2008, 09:01
I think it would be cool to see random family-sized bunkers around with a handful of supplies or something, or one that you could even inhabit.  Also a few more enemy types and home-made weapons.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 05 Nov 2008, 09:37
Assuming that an SDK is eventually released that is en-par with Oblivion's Creation Set, it wouldn't be a stretch to see new settlements pop up across the wasteland, albeit without any particularly interesting characters to accompany them.

I've already started work making the PC version more hardcore, since I found vanilla was a little too easy. I can only do very limited work on the all.SPAWN right now, but I've already added constant radiation to the wasteland, made all food much more unhealthy, increased the likelihood of weapon reloads to "jam", decreased the condition of all found weapons, and made both alcohol and power armor behave a little more like STALKER.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 05 Nov 2008, 10:22
i just released a gang of feral ghouls into Tenpenny Tower.

it was a blood bath.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 05 Nov 2008, 10:30
I like the ghouls in this game.  They're so misunderstood it's kind of... weirdly cute.  I hear the ghoul ally you can get is almost as good as the Super Mutant or Clover, so I may go with him if my "Operation: liberate all females" ends with Clover saying "Hey, since you're not Evil anymore, you shouldn't want me, since I'm technically your slave".

Also, damn this game for making the vampires SYMPATHETIC.  Christ!  I was all ready to get Blade on their asses and steal the leader's cool trenchcoat, but after convincing the kid to leave their cult, I ended up "learning their ways" (since there's no downside to the perk and they're not real vampires anyway) and forging a pact between them and Arefu that made everyone all jolly.

12 hours in and the game keeps getting better.  What the hell, Bethesda?  Did you fire all your shitty writers?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 05 Nov 2008, 10:39
yeah, the ghouls have been some of my favorite characters so far.

well, the ghouls and then the Republic of Dave because those guys are just so delusional that it's kind of endearing.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 05 Nov 2008, 10:46
Don't get me wrong, i really really like this game a lot, but man i can't help but agree with KvP in thinking that this is gonna have very little replay value.

I am also of the belief that not allowing you to target in VATs with melee was a huge mistake. It would just be so much more fun with it.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 05 Nov 2008, 10:49
I definitely think I'll want to play this all the way through at least twice, which is what, 100 hours of gameplay or so?

Definitely worth 60 of my American dollars.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 05 Nov 2008, 10:54
Worth the money? l'd agree with that as I'm thouroughly enjoying myself. But I doubt it will be like the earlier games where i still enjoy playing through them 10 - 12 years after release. It does give me a lot of hope concerning the direction they are taking with the franchise though and I am looking forward to seeing what they do with it.

Also, just to give an opinion about an earlier point, i see no reason why I would feel stupid for doubting Bethesda's ability to make this game decent considering my opinion about Oblivion.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 05 Nov 2008, 10:58
For me it was never about "will this game be decent" - with such high production value, it had to end up at least moderately entertaining - but "will it justify being Fallout 3 instead of some other name" and the answer is a most definite "yes".  I almost wonder if they secretly consulted with Brian Fargo.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: est on 05 Nov 2008, 19:25
That was one of my chief beefs in Oblivion.  How the fuck do they know it was you?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 05 Nov 2008, 19:33
The gods were watching o_0.  That's the way I explained it to myself.  If the gods can see me, then they can probably also tell people what I did.  The reason I know they saw me is cuz they wouldn't let me heal at their shrines if I killed too many people.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 05 Nov 2008, 23:27
Just finished my first play-through, and I found the ending to be a mix of a lot of things. It was both climactic and anticlimactic, a fitting end and an absolutely terrible cut-off point for the game.

Major spoilers below!








I'm a little disappointed that, after having invested a whole fuckton of work into my character, I'm killed off at the end. I didn't really expect to be able to keep playing after the final mission, but everything leading up activating Purity was so awesome in scale that I was really expecting something cool to happen inside instead of "kill colonel, make a good/evil decision, die". I had it all: a house, a fucking wardrobe, and a metric ton of caps. My dude got fucked every which way for the last hour or two of gaming! First my dad dies, then I get captured by the Enclave, escape only to find out that the vault is fucked up. Save everyone there, and they lock me out forever as a thank-you, then I go and off myself to save the fucking world.

I suppose it's a compliment in saying that I was so invested in my character that I didn't want the game to end, but... dammit.


Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 06 Nov 2008, 05:04
IMO I think it's less that the Gods told them and more that it's a community consisting of 12 assholes and a sack of cans. You walk into town and do a murder act, they can do the math: 12+1-1=THE NEW GUY'S A MURDERING BASTARD!

Anyone try Oblivion cheats in the PC version? The lockpicks and gold cheat codes will net you bobby pins and caps.

What's your favorite clothes? I kinda like the Merc Adventurer Outfit (red suit with a sash of pouches across the front).
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 06 Nov 2008, 07:21
Maybe he's just quick to jump to conclusions?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 06 Nov 2008, 10:26
Maybe there's blood on your clothes, or guilt in your eyes. Who knows.

The technical way it works is obvious; you killed a member of that faction, tagging the entire faction as hostile.

What would really bake your noodle is that given a couple of days, they're supposed to stop being hostile to you. Guess they are too busy to remember a little thing like murder...
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 06 Nov 2008, 12:04
Oh man, fuck the entire DC ruins areas.  I fucking hate tunnel-mazes, even if they're mostly linear.  I'm glad I did so much other stuff before trying to find GNC; granted, I made a lot of money - enough to buy the home Med Station, which is awesome for saving money on rad poisoning - but still, God I just kept being all "OH COME ON WHEN WILL THIS SHIT BE OVER", especially when there was a damn Super Mutant with a missile launcher around pretty much every corner.  I think Dogmeat is way more of a pain to keep alive than an asset, at least in that scenario.  Does he level up with you, or should I just leave him in my house whenever I'm doing something major like that?

Also, FUCK that boss fight.  Seriously.  When I got there, for some reason all the Brotherhood of Steel guys were already dead and I didn't have the time or brains to look for the dead one that has the free Fat Boy and 6 Mini-Nukes, so I had to take him out by plinking away at his face with the .44 Magnum (which seems to do the most damage for how fast it fires) and then ducking into the building, shooting his kneecaps a couple times, rinse, repeat, and it took me around 20 fucking tries because of getting stuck against the wall and whoops, I'm splatted.  I'm HOPING he was so tough because I did it at level 8 instead of earlier and that scaled his level higher than it should be (I mean, Christ, it's the first real story mission in the game, surely a lot of people did it at really low levels).

So yeah, I finally found something to complain about.  Now I can't decide if I want to bother with the radio dish right now.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Seductivpancakes on 06 Nov 2008, 12:28
I don't think Dogmeat levels up with you, but you can let him die or go to your house and tell him stay put. I told him stay at the house for a couple of quests where I thought it would be a hassle to bring him along.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: messeduplilkid on 06 Nov 2008, 12:30
^^^^^^


Jackie I can definitely relate. To be honest, once you finish up that part just spend some time north and west exploring to cool off, then fast travel back. Don't spend to much time doing it otherwise you end up crazy and frustrated.

I spent a LONG time trying to find the pentagon before I was allowed in. I used google maps in conjunction to the map in game and it was really difficult process of trying to find routes around the devastation. It got to the point where it was more frustrating then exciting to go explore... esspecially when those god damn ghouls dimensional door right behind you and your radar doesn't so much as wink at the idea that something is approaching... Next time I play through I'm maxing out my agility and perception, I can fast travel to megaton and sell things I don't need a high strength.


Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 06 Nov 2008, 12:38
The radio dish is pretty easy. Reall,y it just sounds like you had bad luck with a bug on the BoS dudes being dead. Even when the giant motherfucker "kills" them they're only knocked unconcious and wake up after a few seconds to fight on.

Nope, these guys are dead and stayed that way.  I even looted their bodies for Power Armor so I can repair it easier when I finally get my own.

As far as I can tell, in fact, they were dead way before I got there, because when I got there there was a gang of Supers with a Master Mutant waiting.  If I triggered the Big Guy, they'd fight him a little and die, depriving me of XP.

I assume all of this is because I found Ms. Li on my own and therefore "completed" the quest before actually going there.

Oh, and I tried the Mirelurk nest and JESUS FUCK THAT NOISE.  It seems like it will take either reading spoilers or a ton of experimenting to finish it without killing any of them, and I'm really trying for 100% (or close to it) on the Wasteland Survival Guide.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 06 Nov 2008, 12:42
Nah, if you use a Stealth Boy, you can get almost to the sacs without it wearing off.  When it does, just run like hell.  That's how I did it.  Then I went back afterwards and slaughtered them all, including the King.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: CamusCanDo on 06 Nov 2008, 12:44
I don't think Dogmeat levels up with you, but you can let him die or go to your house and tell him stay put. I told him stay at the house for a couple of quests where I thought it would be a hassle to bring him along.

I ended up having to fire Charon from his services because he kept taking my kills/exp. I didn't realize you could get other companions, how many more are there and can you have more than one at a time?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 06 Nov 2008, 12:54
There are 8 companions.  Some care if you're Evil or Good.  You can have Dogmeat and one of the others, max.  I hear there's also a sidequest where you get 2 "temp" companions that you can keep as long as you don't go back and finish the quest, so I suppose the max "party" limit is 5, including yourself.

In my experience it's more useful than not to have Dogmeat around so he can take out things like Radroaches and Molerats, and maybe I'm on drugs (actually I'm not at the moment) but I'm pretty sure you get XP for things they kill for you.  I was wandering around DC at one point and Dogmeat was off fighting something, and all of a sudden I leveled up.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 06 Nov 2008, 13:03
man i never even went to the radio station.

i didn't think doing sidequests and exploring would effect the main quest so i tried do as much other stuff as i could before tackling the main story line but at some point i accidentally got some information that rendered going to the radio station pointless and moved me on to the next part of the story. oh well.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Harun on 06 Nov 2008, 20:05
should I be playing this game?

yes/no
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 06 Nov 2008, 21:58
y
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Vidya on 06 Nov 2008, 22:06
should I be playing this game?

yes/no

That really depends. It's in a completely different vein than Fallout 1 and 2, so if you played those and want the same gameplay style, you'll be disappointed.
It's really more along the lines of a better version of Oblivion. It's better because of all the little stuff.

For instance, if you go into Minefield, that one sniper who shoots at you and has a name? When you kill him, and go to his spot there are crutches and a brace. In the same town there's a house and inside you'll find two adult skeletons, but in the child's room there's no skeleton, only crutches and a brace.

Another instance is when I was exploring and came across a radio tower. After I repaired it I got a signal and man's voice came over the radio begging for help, that his son was sick and he was located in a drainage ditch nearby. I go expecting some sidequest where I have to find medicine for his son and instead find two skeletons, one adult sized, and one child sized, huddled together on a bed. ;_;

And in Springvale Elementary School, there's a cage in one of the rooms with child sized skeletons and bloody handprints on the wall.

Oh yeah, the game's fuckin' sad.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 07 Nov 2008, 16:14
Eh, I don't really find it that sad, no more than the first two or Wasteland.  There are just about as many little touches and dialogues that are funny as there are that are sad, which is one reason it's very true to the Fallout universe in tone.

And the gameplay isn't completely different, it's just that the combat sort of is.  The freedom to explore, use of most skills, types of quests, etc. are all pretty much like the first two.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 07 Nov 2008, 16:23
speaking of funny vs. sad:

anybody else read the 911 trasnscripts on the computers in the Police Station? one is scary/sad, one is sort of heartwarming, and the third is fucking hilarious.

good stuff.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 07 Nov 2008, 16:24
Yeah, Moira is a compelling reason to blow the whole town up.

But she gives you nice things.

Bitch never has any good ammo, though.   :x
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Be My Head on 07 Nov 2008, 16:36
A cool way to get lots of free stuff is to go into the slaver town (I for get what its called) and kill all of them, you get XP for freeing the slaves too.

Also, I agree about DC, too many fucking mutants with chainguns.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 07 Nov 2008, 17:51
Man, I feel really stupid.  Remember my earlier FUCK THE MIRELURK QUEST?  Turns out that the time I tried it, I went very far in the completely wrong way and found some refigerator with a door behind it that said "the switch is somewhere else" and loaded my save because this one Mirelurk was on my ass.

So I tried it again with the one Sneak Boy I had (I hadn't been to the Museum yet) and this time found out that the place you need to go is like ten feet from the entrance.   :-D
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Vidya on 07 Nov 2008, 21:03
Am I the only one who wants to falcon punch Moira with a power fist? mother fucker, she is so unfunny and the voice acting is so bad and AARRGH SMASH YER FUCKIN' FACE IN, LADY.

I blew the town up because of her.

So guess what happened? That's right! She survives!

Then later I do that second quest for vault 101. Try to kick me out bitch? not gonna happen.

http://i453.photobucket.com/albums/qq252/brofist/1226130927826.jpg (http://i453.photobucket.com/albums/qq252/brofist/1226130927826.jpg)

what the hell are you even talking about -JC
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spike on 08 Nov 2008, 00:34
Man, I feel really stupid.  Remember my earlier FUCK THE MIRELURK QUEST?  Turns out that the time I tried it, I went very far in the completely wrong way and found some refigerator with a door behind it that said "the switch is somewhere else" and loaded my save because this one Mirelurk was on my ass.

So I tried it again with the one Sneak Boy I had (I hadn't been to the Museum yet) and this time found out that the place you need to go is like ten feet from the entrance.   :-D


I pretty much did the same thing. Which entrance did you use to get into the memorial, the unlocked door or the locked door?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 08 Nov 2008, 08:17
GAH DID YOU HAVE TO POST A PICTURE GODDAMMIT  NOW I KNOW MY HIGH SCHOOL CRUSH IS A CORPSE BESIDES THAT WASN'T MOIRA ANYWAYS
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 08 Nov 2008, 09:37
I pretty much did the same thing. Which entrance did you use to get into the memorial, the unlocked door or the locked door?

Both times I used the unlocked side door, down by the water.  I didn't even notice a second door.

How far along the main story quest do I have to go to get Star Cross or whatever her name is?  Jericho won't join me because I'm not Evil and I have decided against my plan to "pretend" to be Evil so I can infiltrate Paradise Falls and liberate Clover.  I guess I could just get Charon, but I haven't been to Ghoultown yet.

Also, this is stupid.  I went to Arefu after resolving their little vampire problem.  I went in the house of the crazy lady and the repairman, looking for the Repair bobblehead because I knew it was in one of those houses.  Anyway, when I left their house suddenly they were outside of it and the whole town started shooting at me!  Well, I won't stand for that, so I killed them.  Next time I went to Arefu, the woman that first gave me the quest was all "I heard about your little killing spree in Arefu, dirtbag".  WHAT?  IT WAS SELF DEFENSE!  I didn't even get "you have lost Karma" when I shot the people who were shooting at me.

Stupid glitches.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 08 Nov 2008, 10:14
Don't be an idiot about spoilers. And for the love of god don't post pictures the size of the page about one of the key parts of the game.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 08 Nov 2008, 10:48
Text spoilers I can take, especially seeing as this is a game that does not give everyone the same experience.  It's usually pretty easy to tell if they're talking about the story quest, so I can skip to the next post. 

Man, I expected that to happen, but I didn't want to find out like this.  At least say above the picture that it is a spoiler picture.  I assumed it was just a dead vault dweller, went ahead and looked, and punched myself in the nuts out of anger.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: OneoftheLost on 08 Nov 2008, 11:25
Honestly, Ive stopped playing. Not out of anything wrong with the game per se' (is that even how the word goes?) Mainly, the more I play, the more I wish I was playing S.T.A.L.K.E.R. (With the proper mods of course.) I just found the latter more interesting. After playing the first two games, and the Brotherhood of Steel (xbox) I'm getting real sick of the kill mutants, work for the Brotherhood, and the like. Don't get me wrong, its an amazing game.... but when I spend the majority of my time exploring with the radio on... the hook is pretty much gone. Speaking of the Radio, Fallout 3 has pretty much made me hunt down the songs on Galaxy Radio.

Butcher Pete, Maybe, Way Back Home, Anything Goes.

Classics. (Yes, my exposure to 40's-50's music is ....limited.)
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 08 Nov 2008, 11:26
Man, I feel really stupid.  Remember my earlier FUCK THE MIRELURK QUEST?  Turns out that the time I tried it, I went very far in the completely wrong way and found some refigerator with a door behind it that said "the switch is somewhere else" and loaded my save because this one Mirelurk was on my ass.

So I tried it again with the one Sneak Boy I had (I hadn't been to the Museum yet) and this time found out that the place you need to go is like ten feet from the entrance.   :-D

Since there don't seem to be random respawns, another thing you can do (if you're replaying the game, of course) is go in and kill all the mirelurks before you take the quest, that way you get all their XP and still complete the bonus objective without using any special tactics. Just walk in and plant it.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 08 Nov 2008, 14:20
My Unarmed character is going well.  I noticed that Endurance boosts both Unarmed and Big Guns, so I'm now lugging around the minigun from the Hubris Comics place (anybody short on caps, go there now.  The Beta Testing area is loaded with the things.  And it also has a Grognak Text-based game.) 

I specced into explosives as well, in case I ran into some stuff that I couldn't A) Punch to death or B) Fill with 5mm rounds.  And for disarming traps.  Actually, alot of my focuses seem to revolve around breaking down traps and locked stuff and selling it.  Playing unarmed nets you so much cash.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 08 Nov 2008, 14:25
I've rerolled with a more streamlined character. Low STR, END, LUC, med PER, high INT, CHAR, AG. Spec'd into Small Guns, Repair, and Speech with high Lockpick and Science for traps. Taking (more of) my time.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 08 Nov 2008, 14:35
I'm going to put a lot more thought into my perks this time around.  I mean, Mysteriosu Stranger is cool and all, does he really show up enough to be worth it?

I am definitely putting a point into Animal Friend, though.  Should make traveling the Wastes a bit easier.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spike on 08 Nov 2008, 15:24
I'm not impressed with mysterious stranger.  I kind of wish I had a save from before when I picked it up, but I don't.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 08 Nov 2008, 18:37
I've rerolled with a more streamlined character. Low STR, END, LUC, med PER, high INT, CHAR, AG. Spec'd into Small Guns, Repair, and Speech with high Lockpick and Science for traps. Taking (more of) my time.

That's basically exactly my character.  I used a few Intense Trainings to get INT max'd early and Strength to where I could carry more than my pitiful 3 Str had let me, but Endurance doesn't seem to be very necessary for a non-melee character.

And even with a  in Luck I get tons of criticals, so I think that stat is pretty much bunk.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 08 Nov 2008, 18:42
Luck is definitely the throw-away trait of Fallout 3. It wasn't so useless in 1 & 2, but it certainly doesn't do much now. A 1 in END and LUCK seems like it wouldn't be terrible.

A 5 in STR nets you 200 lb. carry weight, which isn't terrible. Add the Strong Back perk (+50 lb.) and the standard Brotherhood Power Armor (+30) and you can carry a shit-ton of guns and armor. Keeping in mind you can dump any useless merch at your house in Megaton, 5 seems plenty.



PS: I took one look at that control panel and figured it out. If you needed a hint, there is a special note in the DATA section of the Pip-Boy for Revelations.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 12 Nov 2008, 08:33
ENDGAME SPOILERS:

My favorite part of the endgame was Liberty Prime. He's got some great quotes:

OBSTRUCTION DETECTED
Composition:
Titanium alloy supplemented by photonic resonance barrier.
Probability of mission hindrance:
ZERO PERCENT

EDIT: I forgot to put a spoiler tag on that.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 13 Nov 2008, 15:10
I just got the Finesse perk.  It says it is "equivalent to 5 points of Luck" for scoring criticals.

Every single shot I make is a critical now.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 14 Nov 2008, 05:30
Yeah. Finesse is a nice perk. It's one of the more useful ones.

A CHALLENGE!
Find a more useless perk than Fast Learner. Yeah, it gives you a few more XP so you level faster, but once you reach 20, you'll wish you had one that gave a stat boost.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 14 Nov 2008, 11:31
I'm nearly level 11 and haven't even explored outside the lower right-hand corner of the map.

Reilly's Rangers is a really fun quest.

This has got to be the game of the year.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 14 Nov 2008, 14:43
lower-right? psshhh pansy.

just wait till you get to the upper-left. that's where the real action's at.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 14 Nov 2008, 17:02
A CHALLENGE!
Find a more useless perk than Fast Learner.

The one that gives you +5 to Speech and Barter.  All the other "+5 to two skills" perks are useful because they give +5 to skills that aren't governed by the same stat, but Speech and Barter are both based on Charisma so there's no point at all to not just take Intense Training for Charisma.

There are so many "meh" perks I think I've taken four Intense Trainings and two Daddy's Girl's already.  That's one of the only complaints I have, perks are either insanely useful (Finesse, etc.) or nearly useless (Fast Learner, Child at Heart, Animal Friend, etc.)
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spike on 14 Nov 2008, 17:41
Well, I finished the game as a goody two shoes who rocks small guns and energy weapons.  I am now going to start over and make it a point to be a monumental asshole. 

I've also going to try to max out every single skill.  I've read somewhere that there are 25 skill books for each skill, and with the comprehension perk that means that it is possible to get 50 skill points for every skill from books alone.  Add in +10 from bobbleheads and you can get 60 points.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 14 Nov 2008, 21:07
A CHALLENGE!
Find a more useless perk than Fast Learner.

The one that gives you +5 to Speech and Barter.  All the other "+5 to two skills" perks are useful because they give +5 to skills that aren't governed by the same stat, but Speech and Barter are both based on Charisma so there's no point at all to not just take Intense Training for Charisma.

There are so many "meh" perks I think I've taken four Intense Trainings and two Daddy's Girl's already.  That's one of the only complaints I have, perks are either insanely useful (Finesse, etc.) or nearly useless (Fast Learner, Child at Heart, Animal Friend, etc.)



Child at heart helps a whole hell of a lot in Little Lamplight, trust me.
Like, getting a unique named laser rifle for free (Otherwise about 500 caps), and making it much easier to get discounts and quests.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 14 Nov 2008, 21:10
to be fair, i got that Laser Rifle without Child At Heart just by having a high enough speech skill.

my energy weapons skill is so pathetic though that i just sold it because it's worth a good bit of money.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 15 Nov 2008, 11:13
Is it better than the plasma rifle you get from the android?

Are there that many quests in the kiddytown?  I haven't been there yet.  I just now finished the Wasteland Survival Guide and am on my way to Vault 112.

I have enough caps to buy Charon, but I'm waiting to get Star Cross Paladin and giving her a flaming sword.  v :-) v
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spike on 15 Nov 2008, 13:35
If I remember correctly, damage wise it is not.  IMO, the edge it has over the unique plasma rifle is the availability of laser rifles for repairs.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 15 Nov 2008, 21:21
HOLY SHIT SPOILERS OMGOMGOMG

Well, that ending was kind of disappointing.

"Alright, go in there, punch that in, and die of radiation."
Fawkes : "Hurp durp im not doin it"

Not to mention, when I got in there?  9 rads per second.  Oh my god, the horrifying ravages of radiation.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: CursedMortivore on 15 Nov 2008, 21:42
Agreed on weaksauce ending. Hopefully they'll just trim that part out if/when they deliver more game content.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spike on 16 Nov 2008, 02:03
I though the same thing, I sat there thinking "WTF I've survived much stronger radiation than this."
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 16 Nov 2008, 10:58
Also, Animal Friend is an awesome perk. Because you know what sucks? Wasting ammo on Mole Rats.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 16 Nov 2008, 11:21
I actually haven't run into any Mole Rats since that quest...
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 16 Nov 2008, 11:24
I thought Animal Friend was awesome. It would be more awesome if it applied to all critters, but it's still a totally worthwhile perk.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 16 Nov 2008, 11:37
Eh, ever since I got My First Infirmary I never get even close to the first level of Rad Sickness.

Also, why use ammo on critters?  Just whip out the old Shishkebob (or a lead pipe for that matter, but flaming swords are made of win).
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: notselfcreated on 16 Nov 2008, 15:37
The PC version has issues with memory leaks and a nasty refusal to cooperate with codecs. Beyond that, it runs fairly well.
Really? Cuz I played a couple of days without too many problems, besides abusing my prefontal cortex with harmful dosages of adrenaline. On the other hand, I do recall certain areas being really choppy after long play-times, like abandoned railway tunnels, or looking out at the broken portion of Rivet City's aircraft carrier.

My first character was sucko and died. Frequently. It's hard when you spec for energy weapons because they aren't easy to stock with ammo in the beginning (I didn't know about RobCo yet, note to self).

My second has 9's in each attribute except for Str (1), Luck (1), and End (2). I was also trying to max every skill using skillbooks, but it's hard to keep track of which ones I've found. There is a pretty accurate list of skillbook locations on Wikicheat's FO3 page (don't bother with the Flash map, it's not totally accurate yet). But for the time it takes to find the buggers, you'll be waiting forever to get every skill to 100 if you try to do them all at the same time. "Hard" (75 req) locks, computers, etc. will be out of reach for a while.

One solution for bookhunters is to max out Sneak and Agility right from the start, travel the wastes at night to avoid battles, and pickpocket keys. It will still be terrifically time consuming (that's a lot of traveling to do!) but it would work.

I would prefer to create a more focused character that was super-good at one combat skill and two or three non-combat skills. Then you can actually play the game and get the bonuses when they come.

Quote
I hate hacking and the fact that you have to be a certain skill level to even attempt lockpicking

Trust me on this one, that is a saving grace.

One of Oblivion's biggest problems is that many skills were absolutely broken, worthless, and dumb, especially lockpicking and speech. Why? Because your skill level in either of them was completely irrelevant; all you needed was to play a couple easy and boring mini-games, and your level -2 peon could persuade anybody and unlock the hardest locks.

In Fallout 3, skill levels actually mean something. Yay.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 16 Nov 2008, 20:26
Yeah, given that you can just save and then re-load if you use too many Bobby Pins or get locked out of a computer, it only makes sense that you have to be at a certain level to even attempt them.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 16 Nov 2008, 20:42
I don't even break that many pins, even on Very Hard locks.  They're easy enough to come by, as well.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 16 Nov 2008, 21:09
I don't think I've dropped below 20 pins so far.  Lockpicking is easy, which is good because I hate needing a high skill level AND having to play a minigame to unlock something.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 16 Nov 2008, 21:38
Like hacking? : )
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 16 Nov 2008, 22:10
Correction, an unfun minigame.  Hacking is sort of fun.

EDIT: THANK GOD A PAGEBREAK SO I DON'T HAVE TO SCROLL PAST ENDGAME SPOILERS
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 16 Nov 2008, 22:14
Man, hacking is so not fun. There is a reason only the socially-inept do it.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 16 Nov 2008, 23:04
I dunno, it's sort of satisfying to be able to figure out what the password is (Or get it on the first try).
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 17 Nov 2008, 05:38
Hacking is a lot of fun once you get it down pat. My biggest issue was figuring out that 3/9 meant that 3 characters were not only correct, but in their correct place. After you get that, it's easy. Plus, the 4 tries thing is a bit misleading. You'd really get 7 tries with "bracket tricks" (3 tries to get to 1 remaining, plus the replenishment to get back up to max). How many words are there to guess from? I'd have to check, but I believe you could just go word-by-word guessing and not get locked.

If nothing else, it's worth it for the experience you get. 5 for killing a mole rat, but 30 for opening an average lock? Nice.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: notselfcreated on 17 Nov 2008, 08:19
Actually, I believe the number of replenishments and "dud removed" bonuses in hacking are random.

Yeah, I don't like hacking all that very much. Saved my butt in RobCo though.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 17 Nov 2008, 08:47
I've gotten 6 dud removers and two replenishers once.  And I still messed it up because I accidentally got the replenishers before making any guesses.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: notselfcreated on 18 Nov 2008, 08:39
Funny how things came to a halt in this thread. You know, you kind of notice that about Bethesda games: they arrive on the scene with a lot of anticipation, then a big bang, and almost as quickly they retreat into the sanctuaries of the smaller group of dedicated enthusiasts.

Not really a criticism, I still love the game, but just noticing.

Anyway, a few more random observations:

Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 18 Nov 2008, 08:45
I personally try to get my primaries to 75 and stop. Level increases and bobble heads will take care of the rest. To answer your question on bobble heads, once a skill is maxed, you can still pick up the bobble head, but that would be only in a Pokemon-esque "Gotta catch 'em all" thing. It won't increase your stats. Same thing with skill books. Once your small guns skill is 100, you might as well sell the issues of Guns 'n Ammo you'd find.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 18 Nov 2008, 15:02
What the hell.  Simms spawned on a railing in Megaton, and fell.  I had already disarmed the bomb, but still.  What the christ.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 18 Nov 2008, 15:20
hahaha what.

that sucks.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 18 Nov 2008, 15:42
I think that's happened to me a few times. Not with Simms, but with Walter, the guy who you sell scrap metal to. He just up and disappears.

I also ran into a few more bugs, the first one presented itself when I was headed north on the map to do the Agatha's Song quest. I found some Brotherhood Outcasts fighting a deathclaw. All of a sudden, the Deathclaw rockets into the air, and flies upward into the sky, until it disappeared. The soldiers proceeded to look and fire upwards. Then the soldiers started getting sucked into the sky as well, and one of them started violently twirling and gyrating up and down, like a doll being swung around by a child.
(http://img511.imageshack.us/img511/5810/screenshot3ms3.jpg)
Presuming the danger had passed, I moved forward. The deathclaw then materialized behind me and killed me.

Also I've been getting a lot of weird texture loading errors.
(http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/5885/screenshot5yt0.jpg)
(http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/9459/screenshot7cm5.jpg)
(http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/4923/screenshot4yc3.jpg)

All of these heralded an imminent CTD.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 18 Nov 2008, 15:45
yeah, i've had Walter disapper for days at time (game time) for me.

i thought maybe died for some reason but he'd always show up again eventually.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 18 Nov 2008, 16:33
I've found Walter swimming face down in the A-Bomb pond before. I even had a couple dozen pieces of scrap for the bastard to buy.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 18 Nov 2008, 19:17
I did the pipe fixing quest accidentally before talking to him and he never appeared as a result.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: notselfcreated on 18 Nov 2008, 19:20
That happens pretty frequently. NPCs are spawning high above the ground. Makes sense that this happens in Megaton because the AI has to randomnly spawn NPCs at all different altitudes. Kind of reminds you of that wizard in Elder Scrolls 3 Morrowind that falls from the sky and dies when you find him.

PC users can "Revive [NPC number]" in the console to bring back dead characters. I'll never understand why the console isn't accessible to XBox/PS3 players. I mean, yeah, it would give you easy Live! points, but you get those in the PC version, too. Discrimination!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 18 Nov 2008, 19:25
You could still prevent people from getting Achievements if you wanted to.  Two Worlds, an Oblivion clone based on the same engine had a console in the console versions and it disallowed achievements when you had cheats activated.  To my knowledge, that still hasn't been circumvented yet.  Or maybe that's just cause Two Worlds was a pretty shitty game.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 18 Nov 2008, 20:28
Hell, you can FORCE Achievements in the PC version. There is quite literally a console command "awardAchievement x".
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 21 Nov 2008, 07:14
I just want to say that IMHO the Dart Gun is the best constructed weapon. The difference in fighting Yao Guai and Deathclaws with the Dart Gun versus without is night and day. Plus, a lot of Raiders the poison can DoT with 1 dart.

It's awesome.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 21 Nov 2008, 10:27
what?!

what about the Nuka-grenade? that thing fucking slays. it will literally kill any enemy in the entire game in one shot (as long as you actually hit them) and that's with an explosives skill less than 40.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 21 Nov 2008, 10:41
I'm sorry, I can't hear you over my Rock-It Launcher and the Wasteland Forced Literacy Program (Books to head).
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 21 Nov 2008, 10:58
One of my friends managed to slay a field of Brahmin using cigarette cartons.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 21 Nov 2008, 11:57
...the Rock-It Launcher fires BOOKS?

And I was wondering why I kept picking up all those darts.  Where the hell are the schematics for the dart gun?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 21 Nov 2008, 12:14
Tenpenny Tower.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 21 Nov 2008, 14:01
did anybody else let the ghouls into Tenpenny Tower?

hell, i was playing as a good character and even i couldn't resist watching those snobby fuckers get ripped apart.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spike on 21 Nov 2008, 14:36
First time I did that quest, I talked the residents into letting the ghouls move in.  Now, I kill him every time whether I'm good or evil.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 21 Nov 2008, 15:28
nah, the Tenpenny Tower merchant has the dart gun schematic, at least, she did when I played, and I'm pretty sure schematics aren't randomly placed.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 21 Nov 2008, 15:38
man, the only schematic i don't have is the Deathclaw Gauntlet.

anyone know where/how to get it?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 21 Nov 2008, 16:21
Is this game still playable if you pretty much try to avoid the main quest and big towns? I was having great fun wandering around, until I decided I probably should go into Megaton. Within ten minute, I wanted to nuke the damn place for the awful voice acting alone, let alone the frustrating AI problems and bugs.

So essentially what I want to know is can you play it like Oblivion and stay the fuck away from the main town(s?) for the whole game, pretty much?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spike on 21 Nov 2008, 17:12
nah, the Tenpenny Tower merchant has the dart gun schematic, at least, she did when I played, and I'm pretty sure schematics aren't randomly placed.


I know that you can find the deathclaw gauntlet schematic in a random encounter where some wanderers fight a deathclaw.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: AcesWalkin on 21 Nov 2008, 18:03
I can't find an answer to this anywhere:

If I become Evil to access Paradise Falls and buy Clover, will she leave if I revert to Good?


Nope, clovers's a good kid and sticks by you good or evil. Ya might wanna deck her out in power armor and helmet if you take her out to the wastelands. Otherwise she dies. I can't get her to use different weapons, like an assault rifle etc.

An easy way to get evil is in 10cent towers, crack the robo bartenders console, once done, just keep entering it as each is a loss of karma. 100 times or so and you'll be a crime lord. You'll get in to paradise on Karma and Eulogy will let her go for half (Karma) or 500 caps instead of 1,000. Then pop over to megaton and donate to the church of the Atom a bunch of 10's, four 50's, and a couple 100's till you're back to good. When you hit Very Good people will bring you stuff every day.  If megaton is *gone* Rivet City has a church too. Course if it's gone you may already be evil  :evil:.

Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 21 Nov 2008, 18:23
Is this game still playable if you pretty much try to avoid the main quest and big towns? I was having great fun wandering around, until I decided I probably should go into Megaton. Within ten minute, I wanted to nuke the damn place for the awful voice acting alone, let alone the frustrating AI problems and bugs.

So essentially what I want to know is can you play it like Oblivion and stay the fuck away from the main town(s?) for the whole game, pretty much?

Probably, but the Scrounger perk would then be kind of necessary.  Gives you more ammo/bottlecaps on pickup, I don't know if that also affects stimpaks.  That's the main reason I go into shops, really, is stimpaks.  I find most of the stuff I use.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 21 Nov 2008, 22:22
By the by, if you're playing on PC you should really install a Fallout 1/2 music mod. It makes the game soooooo much better.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 24 Nov 2008, 04:54
what about the Nuka-grenade? that thing fucking slays. it will literally kill any enemy in the entire game in one shot (as long as you actually hit them) and that's with an explosives skill less than 40.
Yes, it's hellaciously powerful, but it's also a one-shot. Once you toss that grenade, you don't have it any more. The darts I've been firing pretty judiciously, and I still have over 800 from finding so many.
I'm sorry, I can't hear you over my Rock-It Launcher and the Wasteland Forced Literacy Program (Books to head).
The Rock-It Launcher is extremely fun and entertaining until you realize that it's the only gun in the game where the ammunition has weight. I'll stick with the dart gun, Ol' Painless, and Eugene.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 24 Nov 2008, 05:51
The best that I did... and I now wish I had a screenshot as proof, is where I was near Girdershade and a Deathclaw was attacking me. As he was about to swipe me to death, I VATS'd his head with the Railway Rifle, and stapled it under the bridge.

Railway is insane amounts of fun... In retrospect, I'd have to tie it with the Dart Gun for "best". Railway for fun, and Dart for usefulness.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 24 Nov 2008, 15:18
The Deathclaws that you find accompanying random Enclave troops seem to be way tougher than the ones you find in the wild. I dunno if anyone else has noticed this.

i hate deathclaws so much
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 24 Nov 2008, 15:23
protip:
disable their legs before they reach you (if possible) because their jumping attack is fucking devastating but they're basically pussy cats without it.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: notselfcreated on 24 Nov 2008, 17:34
Indeed, deathclaws are scary. I've only run into three in the wild so far. One I killed. One killed me. One I hid from.

Anybody build the deathclaw knuckles or whatever they are?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 24 Nov 2008, 18:16
Can't find the specs for them.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 25 Nov 2008, 09:03
I made it. It's probably awesome if you're spec'd in unarmed, but I put all my points in "kill shit from far away".
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 25 Nov 2008, 09:40
In other news, Bethsoft announced 3 DLC packs starting in January, plus mod tools sometime in December.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 25 Nov 2008, 11:23
YESSSSSSS.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 25 Nov 2008, 16:55
Fuck yes.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 25 Nov 2008, 19:14
"The content packs will be available to both Xbox 360 and PC gamers—though PlayStation 3 owners will be left out—and will be released during the first three months of next year. January will see the release of Operation: Anchorage, which will see gamers join in the liberation of Anchorage, Alaska from Chinese Communist Invaders. Meanwhile, in February, players can venture to what is left of Pittsburgh in The Pitt, and March will see the release of Broken Steel, which allows gamers to join the ranks of the Brotherhood of Steel."

Oh shit yes.  Anchorage.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 25 Nov 2008, 19:46
"The content packs will be available to both Xbox 360 and PC gamers—though PlayStation 3 owners will be left out

That is so much absolute fucking bullshit.  SERIOUSLY.  What the FUCK is their problem.

Seriously, fuck them.  Never buying one of their games again.  If they were going to pull that shit they should have not even released it for PS3 in the first place.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 25 Nov 2008, 19:50
What? Many games do that. Exclusive content comes out a lot.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 25 Nov 2008, 19:51
The PS3 is a bitch to code on. The only reason anyone does it these days is because their publisher forces it on them.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Alex C on 25 Nov 2008, 19:54
Yeah, see, I would be mad at the developers if it weren't for the fact that sony basically gave designers everywhere a vigorous round of surprise butt sex when they designed the PS3 the way they did. I find it all pretty ironic; part of the reason the PS1 felled the Sega Saturn was due to how easy it was to design a game around. The Sega Saturn was actually the more powerful platform in many ways, but developers never really got a handle on it until near the end of its life cycle.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 25 Nov 2008, 19:58
Yeah, I'm not buying that excuse.  If they already have the engine, I don't think it would take too much extra effort to code the expansions for the PS3.

We're not talking about "exclusive content", we're talking about what sound like fairly large expansions.  They bothered to release a PS3 version of Oblivion with all the extra shit, so I see no reason other than MicroSatan slipping them a bribe or something.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Alex C on 25 Nov 2008, 19:59
Oh, I'm not saying it's all for purely practical reasons; part of it could be simple spite and backroom dealing. Developers have a vested interest in supporting the platforms and companies that make their jobs easier. Personally though, I'd support microsoft before I'd support sony. Of the two companies, sony has been quicker to screw me over the years.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 25 Nov 2008, 20:11
Ever since my first CD player (a Sony boombox) I have had nothing but good luck with their products.  Hell, that boombox worked perfectly well for 11 YEARS, during which it was put through Hell, without me ever once so much as cleaning the lens.  And when it "stopped working", the only problem was with one of the speaker wires, not even the CD player itself.

Microsoft, on the other hand, has consistently had metric fucktons of problems with just about everything they ever touch.  Windows XP is on their very short list of achievments; there is no excuse at all for why Internet Explorer has sucked so thoroughly for so long.  When I briefly had an XBox (not 360) it fucked up on me consistently for months until I said "Fuck it" and traded it in.

I can see myself getting a Wii at some point, but I hate basically everything about the 360, especially its controller.

But now we're derailing.  I'm just rather pissed at this big honking Dick Move they're pulling.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Alex C on 25 Nov 2008, 20:13
Their products are fine. I have issues with the way their customer support staff have treated me in the past.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Blademan on 26 Nov 2008, 02:45
On a side note, who else has heard about the new DLC?  Supposedly they're releasing a recreation of the Anchorage campaign in January, the city of Pittsburgh in February, and an expansion onto the Brotherhood's war with the Enclave in March.  Opinions?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 26 Nov 2008, 03:51
That's, uh, kinda what was being discussed already.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Blademan on 26 Nov 2008, 04:35
Hmmm, perhaps I should read farther back than the current page...my bad.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 26 Nov 2008, 06:29
Peope are missing the important part of the Broken Steel DLC:

Quote
Broken Steel. Join the ranks of the Brotherhood of Steel and rid the Capital Wasteland of the Enclave remnants once and for all. Continues the adventure past the main quest. Scheduled for release in March.

Quote
Continues the adventure past the main quest.

Quote
past the main quest.

If you die from an overdose of Nuke-U-Larrrz, does that mean you wake up as a ghoul?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: MadassAlex on 26 Nov 2008, 06:35
As someone who owns this on PS3, I feel pretty fucking shafted.

EDIT:

Also, I heard that another way of getting power armour training is to just give the Outcasts a whole fuckton of stuff. Apparently, they eventually let you into their little clubhouse, including access to their armoury.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 26 Nov 2008, 11:04
I am going to just go ahead and assume that the "no expansions for PS3" thing is temporary and that content will eventually show up, much the same as the "Oblivion Game of the Year Edition".

It might mean I have to buy the game twice, but it would be better than nothing.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 26 Nov 2008, 11:50
Maybe. It could happen, but Bethsoft has been saying for a long time that the PS3 will not receive DLC. Irrational said that about Bioshock, but we can reasonably assume Sony paid quite a bit to entice Irrational away from that stance. Who knows how hard Sony will push just to get in on the DLC pie.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 26 Nov 2008, 12:17
I'm beginning to suspect that 2K was pressuring Bethsoft to release a PS3 version due to their falling stocks and profits, and that it was a bit rushed so as to make the same street date.  It probably wouldn't have as many bugs with as little as a month extra before release, but that would mean lost sales for 2K.  I don't know if 2K has any bearing over DLC, but I'm fairly certain that if they did, the PS3 would also be getting the DLC around the same time.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 26 Nov 2008, 12:47
I ain't getting one until it's free.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 26 Nov 2008, 12:51
Seriously people what is wrong with a god damn 360.

1.  I hate the controller.

2.  Red Ring.

3.  I don't play online.

4.  PS3 has blu-ray and slightly better graphics and in some games better load times.

5.  I really, really hate the controller.

6.  Little Big Planet.

7.  I'm not too fond of the 360's controller.

EDIT: Did I mention the controller?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 26 Nov 2008, 13:05
Yeah, I just get sick of the "why would anyone ever buy a PS3 instead of a 360" stuff on the webbernets.  The PS3 isn't a "doomed system", it has plenty of support in Japan (where a lot of the best games are made).  I mean, I remember a time when anyone with a lick of sense owned a Dreamcast because it was so much "better" than a PS2, but look how THAT ended up.

Basically what I'm saying is that the PS3 will be a viable system for a good while, it will have enough games on it to keep me happy since I honestly don't play video games more than maybe 10 hours a week, and I absolutely love the controller, which for me is a very big deal.  When I play a 360 game at a friend's house, I just totally lose interest because the controller is so absolutely horrific.

Also, Siren: Blood Curse is more the kind of exclusive game I want than, say, Gears of War, which I have literally zero interest in.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 27 Nov 2008, 13:48
I expect we'll see more stuff like this once the SDK comes out (http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Pbyhpsv-6sM).
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: schimmy on 27 Nov 2008, 15:16
Yeah, I just get sick of the "why would anyone ever buy a PS3 instead of a 360" stuff on the webbernets.  The PS3 isn't a "doomed system", it has plenty of support in Japan (where a lot of the best games are made).  I mean, I remember a time when anyone with a lick of sense owned a Dreamcast because it was so much "better" than a PS2, but look how THAT ended up.

I'm not sure I understand this analogy... wouldn't the PS3 be equivalent to the Dreamcast, in that it is technically superior, but doesn't have the fan-base and thus support from developers for it to be as successful as the technically inferior, but more popular system?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Chesire Cat on 27 Nov 2008, 16:12
That is so much absolute fucking bullshit.  SERIOUSLY.  What the FUCK is their problem.

Seriously, fuck them.  Never buying one of their games again.  If they were going to pull that shit they should have not even released it for PS3 in the first place.


HAHAHHahahahahAHaPS3hahahHAHAHahahahaaaaahah
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: notselfcreated on 27 Nov 2008, 17:52
Wow, I'm a bit surprised that this forum of all places spawned a PS3 vs 360 battle. *shrugs* Bethesda has never given more than half-hearted support for the PS3; Oblivion was originally slated to be an XBox exclusive (I believe). People who bought a PS3 probably didn't do so with Bethesda games primarily in mind. Not that they don't have right to feel disappointed. But hey, go play a Sony exclusive and feel the love.

I didn't like the fact that the XBox 360 version of Oblivion couldn't use any user-created mods, so I sold it and all of the accessories and put that money towards a $500 homebuilt PC that plays Bethesda games beautifully.

Speaking of which, boy, would I love an Oblivion mod that back-ported a lot of FO3's features into Oblivion, including:

Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 27 Nov 2008, 21:33
Oblivion's physics and animation aren't nearly good enough to be shown off in slo-mo. And if Fallout 3 showed us anything, it's that gameworlds of this size don't lend themselves well to experience-based leveling systems. You only get through 10% of the game before you hit the level 20 ceiling (and that's not playing on higher difficulties to net more xp)

I'm running a mod currently that about halves xp for kills and increases xp for discovering locations, which seems to make the 10% ceiling into 30% or 40%. Fallout 3's like Oblivion (or most games, for that matter) in that it's made much better by mods, but it's considerably less essential here. Adding the original games' music increases enjoyment substantially. Less shitty Inon Zur orchestral schlock, more droney ambience.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: notselfcreated on 27 Nov 2008, 23:42
Oblivion's physics and animation aren't nearly good enough to be shown off in slo-mo. And if Fallout 3 showed us anything, it's that gameworlds of this size don't lend themselves well to experience-based leveling systems. You only get through 10% of the game before you hit the level 20 ceiling (and that's not playing on higher difficulties to net more xp)

I'm running a mod currently that about halves xp for kills and increases xp for discovering locations, which seems to make the 10% ceiling into 30% or 40%. Fallout 3's like Oblivion (or most games, for that matter) in that it's made much better by mods, but it's considerably less essential here. Adding the original games' music increases enjoyment substantially. Less shitty Inon Zur orchestral schlock, more droney ambience.

Good points, though there are already mods for Oblivion for bloody dismemberment and XP-based leveling, so there is at least some demand there. And I didn't think Fallout 3's graphics were much better than Oblivion's, technologically speaking. Artistically, perhaps.

And on that point, people keep writing in reviews that the Wasteland is drab and dreary, but I've found it to be remarkably colorful, with beautiful sky effects and varied types of destruction. Where Cyrodiil left me bored with it's blah-European-fantasy-pretty-forests-and-oh-look-another-aedric-ruin, the Wastes are always keeping me guessing.

I will say this though. You would think people in settlements could do a little better job of tidying up after 200 years. I mean really, does everything have to look as shitty as possible? There are boxes of detergent and Abraxo cleaner everywhere!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 28 Nov 2008, 00:43
I make it a habit to take all of the old crap around towns and replace it with cool stuff (ruined books for pre-war books, detergent for Sugar Bombs, etc).

Also, Fallout's graphics are a marked improvement over Oblivion. I booted up TES IV yesterday for comparison, and I think we've all forgotten just how ugly Cyrodill was. Of particular note is draw distance and LOD textures, which are significantly improved.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Jackie Blue on 28 Nov 2008, 17:21
You only get through 10% of the game before you hit the level 20 ceiling (and that's not playing on higher difficulties to net more xp)

I don't think that's accurate, I finished the game last night at level 17 and had done a whole lot of the sidequests.  I'm pretty sure I did around 75% of the game, and that was using a lockpick/science/speech character so I got tons of experience from things that someone playing as, say, a big dumb ox wouldn't get.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 28 Nov 2008, 17:24
I've probably covered about 15% of the map and I'm level 16.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 28 Nov 2008, 17:59
You only get through 10% of the game before you hit the level 20 ceiling (and that's not playing on higher difficulties to net more xp)

I don't think that's accurate, I finished the game last night at level 17 and had done a whole lot of the sidequests.  I'm pretty sure I did around 75% of the game, and that was using a lockpick/science/speech character so I got tons of experience from things that someone playing as, say, a big dumb ox wouldn't get.

Just going through the main quest I finished the game at level 17 (on easy, so no xp inflation) and that's without doing any quests in Big Town, only going through maybe 20% of the DC ruins, not doing any of the heavy and long quests like Agatha's Song or Reilly's Rangers. The sheer number of combat encounters you have in any given game is worth at least 12 levels, and that's not including any quest experience.

I think the best scheme would be one similar to Vampire The Masquerade: Bloodlines or Deus Ex's - you only get experience for goal completion, not for kills. It would make things like full-on stealth character more feasible as well as opening up the possibility of covering a majority of the map before hitting the level cap. But you'd have to rebalance the game somewhat so that your combat prowess doesn't lag too far behind the escalating difficulty of encounters. I'm sure someone's already figuring out how to implement it.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Oli on 29 Nov 2008, 06:52
I'm at level 17 now (I'm not particularly far through the main quest, but I've explored a pretty reasonable amount) and really the level cap is not an issue. I've got the small guns, repair, lockpick and science skills at 100, medicine at ~90 and speech at ~60. I'm not using most of the other skills, but with books and perks they are all relatively decent. The only trouble I've had is my explosion skill being too low to allow me to interact with grenade clusters, but that is a virtually non-existent issue.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 29 Nov 2008, 09:39
Hurr hurr repost Jens hurr hurr.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 30 Nov 2008, 01:35
There's nothing wrong with the 360 controller. I personally like the triggers better over the PS2's controller, although the bumpers are a little too small.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 30 Nov 2008, 01:47
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y66/Spluff/fallout3user.jpg)
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: MadassAlex on 30 Nov 2008, 03:09
One of the many reasons why I absolutely adore this game.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 30 Nov 2008, 03:29
I'll admit, I was surprised as hell when I started playing this game. I thought the worst, I expected it to be Oblivion with guns. I was partly right - it turned out to be Oblivion with fun. By fixing up the bland environments and copypasta, and many of the other problems that turned me off Oblivion, they created a ridiculously fun game.

If you go in expecting a game similar to Fallout 1 & 2, you will be disappointed, because the game excels in entirely different areas to the original. The exploration and sandbox elements make the game what it is (features that weren't even present in the original two), whilst the excellent writing, dialogue, and moral ambiguity found within the first two are pretty much gone.

I think the best part of Fallout 3 is that it shows that Bethesda haven't stopped progressing as a company. Morrowind was a massive step up from Daggerfall, but Oblivion was just a rehash of Morrowind. Showing that they can still improve makes me really want to see what is coming next from them - if they got some good writers the games they make could be legendary.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 30 Nov 2008, 08:10
With a lot of luck I could be working for them in 8 months, but I'm getting ahead of myself.

I found a small convenience store with several traps in it, including a domino setup using Abraxo, Sugar Bombs, and Detergent.  There was a pressure pad you could stand on to let a battering ram start the reaction.  It's that kind of thing that makes me love this game.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 30 Nov 2008, 12:18
Good luck working at Bethesda. What are you applying under?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 30 Nov 2008, 14:44
If you're using the PC version, there's an easy fix. Open console and type "save fred 1". Search the list for "Sonora Cruz" from Notepad. Open console again. Type "prid x", where x is the ID code for the NPC. Make sure you're in the area where the NPC usually spawns, and type "resurrect", then "moveto player", then "enable".
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 30 Nov 2008, 14:46
Easy!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 30 Nov 2008, 17:50
I don't understand your question :\ in the same section of the pipboy as the quests/map there's a radio receiver. If the game says you're in the range of a signal you should be able to pick it up.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Oli on 30 Nov 2008, 18:15
Are you sure it's not GNR? For a portion of the game there is no GNR signal on (roughly) the Western side of the map and I'm pretty sure the cut off point for the signal is around about vault 101.

Although I can't begin to fathom why anyone would mistake GNR for Chinese Army radio, and the Communist Chinese are mentioned as a faction within the game so this is maybe a crazy exciting side quest I've not found. Oh my!

Edit: So a quick google confirms the latter, but I've intentionally not read up on specific details other than the signal is apparently randomly placed so going to vault 101 isn't going to help anyone find it. Awesome.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 30 Nov 2008, 18:19
There are a few Chinese radio beacons around (two I think). Not going to spoil anything, but if you look around for a while in the area, you'll eventually find the source.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 30 Nov 2008, 18:43
Alright so I went in vault 106 after getting very high and the screen started changing colors and people from Vault 101 were attacking me and people were vanishing into thin air.  My brain cannot process this right now.  I think I know what's going on but I don't know what I'm supposed to do.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Surgoshan on 30 Nov 2008, 18:46
High IRL or in the game?  It makes a difference.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 30 Nov 2008, 18:47
      IRL.  I'M PRETTY TOASTED.
    /
 :-D
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 30 Nov 2008, 19:46
Actually it's both.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 30 Nov 2008, 21:09
Anyways, Melodic; I'm hoping to maybe get an internship or something at Zenimax Online doing interface scripting or something in that vein.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 30 Nov 2008, 21:16
      IRL.  I'M PRETTY TOASTED.
    /
 :-D

You picked the worst Vault to explore while stoned.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 01 Dec 2008, 10:26
You picked the best Vault to explore while stoned.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 01 Dec 2008, 10:49
Man, that was not cool...I was seriously confused for about an hour and a half.  Thank god my game froze from playing it for 7 hours.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 01 Dec 2008, 11:50
Man, I'd think the worst one while high would be the Gary vault. If you've seen it, you know what I mean, if not, I don't think that vague description spoils anything, but you WILL know what I mean when you see it.

That just sounds like it would be a special kind of Hell.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 01 Dec 2008, 12:14
Well, I have the locations of all the vaults, so I'm headed there after I finish up Reilly's Rangers.  In a span of 4 hours, I've managed to get the Rock-It Launcher, Railway Rifle, Fisto, Deathclaw Gauntlet, and Super Sledge.  YUSS.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 01 Dec 2008, 12:21
Well, I have the locations of all the vaults, so I'm headed there after I finish up Reilly's Rangers.  In a span of 4 hours, I've managed to get the Rock-It Launcher, Railway Rifle, Fisto, Deathclaw Gauntlet, and Super Sledge.  YUSS.
Man, I love that Fisto!, but you have to love the Deathclaw Gauntlet and its "Armor? What armor?" properties.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: PizzaSHARK on 01 Dec 2008, 22:50
Do super sledges still punt people halfway across the map on a crit like they did in FO2?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 02 Dec 2008, 01:18
By the time you get a Super Sledge your melee will probably be good enough to just turn someone into mush within a couple of hits. So I guess kind of, in the sense that you will send their limbless torso careening in slow-motion across the Wastes.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: PizzaSHARK on 02 Dec 2008, 01:28
Well, they did that in FO and FO2 (well, you could get one in FO2 at like, lvl 3.)  You could tell had badly you hurt them by how far they skidded along the ground.  If they skidded for more than a second or two, they were usually very dead.  I remember getting eye crits on deathclaws for 350+.  Fun stuff.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 02 Dec 2008, 01:32
Super sledge in this one was pretty weak, I saw no real reason to use it over any of the things I was currently carrying.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: PizzaSHARK on 02 Dec 2008, 04:18
I heard they don't even let you target melee attacks.  Pretty lame, IMO.  The super sledge, ripper, and mega power fist are really good against unarmored and lightly armored targets, but pretty weak against power armor and super enemies like aliens, floaters, some super mutants, and other endgame enemies.  But then again, after you get the Slayer perk, you pretty much wade through anything like it wasn't there; 80%+ crit with Improved Criticals means you'll be lopping off heads and limbs all the time, anyway.  But they may have removed that kinda fun stuff in FO3 :(
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Oli on 02 Dec 2008, 10:02
So I hit the level cap today, I took the perk that recharges you AP if you kill someone in VATS because my only other option was the explorer one (I didn't have the endurance or the sneak for the other 2) and I can just do that myself.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 03 Dec 2008, 05:04
Started over as well. First character was a White Knight. Now I'm gonna try for Total Asshole. It's tough to be an asshole without potentially cutting off quests! It's also ironic that as a White Knight, my Regulator coat would get torn to shit in no time, but as an Asshole, it's like new constantly.

"Hey, look! I'm getting ambushed by Regulators! Great! Now I can patch this bullet hole in my coat. Oh, and they've got laser rifles? Excellent! That'll be good for more stimpaks."
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: PizzaSHARK on 03 Dec 2008, 05:36
The Regulators are still around?  I coulda sworn you wiped those assholes out as part of The Den quest chains in FO2  :x
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 03 Dec 2008, 05:58
welcome to a different part of the country mate
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 03 Dec 2008, 05:59
if you're upset about the regulators returning then let me tell you about a returning faction you're going to REALLY be upset about,
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 03 Dec 2008, 19:24
That's the kind of thing that helps me forget any problems I have with Bethesda games, they spend so much time making the world itself interesting.  I don't care if they reuse a lot of the same architecture, they can still make dungeons unique with histories of the locations, clues to locations of other cool things, references to things in real life, or just having assets positioned in an amusing way.  Not actually knowing anything about their design process, I imagine a lot of the writing, even of the main story, is spawned from the level design itself.  Sort of Tolkien-esque, in that the world itself is a major character.

Jens: I missed two audio logs in that building somehow. But I know what you're talking about.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: PizzaSHARK on 03 Dec 2008, 20:43
if you're upset about the regulators returning then let me tell you about a returning faction you're going to REALLY be upset about,

Yeah, I've already seen that those Brotherhood of Steel types are STILL around.  Do they make you go rooting around in a giant horrifically radioactive crater for information you didn't need this time?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 03 Dec 2008, 21:15
Nah, they kill super mutants.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: PizzaSHARK on 03 Dec 2008, 23:24
Oh, you mean they actually kill them instead of sending you in alone to a base full of the freaks?  I suppose that means you won't have as much fun squaring off against miniguns and rocket launchers that do 5 damage one round and 560 the next, though :(
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spike on 04 Dec 2008, 01:28
@Jeans: I assume you made it to the basement.

I am pleased that despite the lack of a CS, there are still a few mods that add pretty nice weapons into the game.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: notselfcreated on 12 Dec 2008, 07:56
HAI GAIYS! THE GECK IS OUT!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 12 Dec 2008, 08:01
Plus later DLC is raising the level cap. 
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 12 Dec 2008, 10:09
Fuck, really? Yessss.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 12 Dec 2008, 16:40
I already had it raised, but I'm guessing their way will implement new perks, etc, which would be good.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 12 Dec 2008, 20:54
Well, the GECK sucks compared to pretty much every other SDK ever. I have fond memories of the CryEngine 2 SDK, which I'm comparing to this frequently, and was head-over-heels better. Oh well, this one still works, and it feels great to be modding Gamebryo again.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Oli on 13 Dec 2008, 06:42
I have a stalwart ghoul manservant and a dog following me around now; they took out a room of Talon Mercs and super mutants without any assistance from me. It's pretty bitchin'.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dollface on 13 Dec 2008, 06:46
thats why there is fatman.

it can do this "BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM"
                   /
               :-D
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Oli on 13 Dec 2008, 06:50
The Fatman is boring. Dogs ripping out throats is a blast.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 14 Dec 2008, 15:16
The Fatman is boring. Dogs jumping in front of Combat Shotgun blasts is FUCKING ANNOYING


Fixed.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 14 Dec 2008, 16:54
Yeah, that was pretty bad. It seemed to me like it was a 'i can has pop culture reference' type of thing, where they put it in just for a reference, without actually thinking about it.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Chesire Cat on 14 Dec 2008, 17:04
I was up at the Washington Monument fixing the dish when I spied the White House, so I figured, what the heck Ill check it out.  As I got closer Talon Mercs were fighting Super Mutes in this big epic-ass battle, it was a 3 way if you include the lonely Protectron, 4 way if you include me.  But I was mostly just running and hiding.  Now Im wandering through the halls of the White House shooting anything that isnt me that has the gall to move.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 14 Dec 2008, 17:12
Didn't the White House get blown up?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 14 Dec 2008, 18:13
That would be the Senate.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Chesire Cat on 14 Dec 2008, 19:03
So did I just miss a door that had all the important shit in it?  Or was there really nothing there but some ammo and a Behemoth?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 14 Dec 2008, 20:34
Oh, you were in the Capitol Building, not the white house. It's pretty much the same as every other place in the game - some ammo and some bad guys.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 14 Dec 2008, 20:45
And the skill books.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Surgoshan on 14 Dec 2008, 21:29
I visited DC with my students on a class trip a few weeks back.  The level of detail ... when I first visited the Washington Monument, it was kind of intense.

Forget mutants and BoS and all of it.  Ride the Washington Monument elevator for real, then do so in the game.  If you have a sense of history, it's... intense.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: PizzaSHARK on 15 Dec 2008, 22:18
Man I found it slightly tasteless that they named a nuclear weapon after a bomb that killed over a hundred thousand people in total.

Wouldn't that make the name more appropriate?  Especially since the first Fat Man was a nuclear weapon as well?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 15 Dec 2008, 23:20
You're confusing "inappropriate" and "tasteless".
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: PizzaSHARK on 16 Dec 2008, 03:46
I think it makes perfect sense, given the Fallout universe.  Hell, we got to watch a soldier execute a POW in cold blood and then smile and wave to the camera in the opening cinematic for Fallout.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: MadassAlex on 16 Dec 2008, 03:58
I think the dead people are going to have a hard time being offended.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 16 Dec 2008, 04:09
It doesn't make sense anyway - the Fallout series is based around fear of nuclear power. A miniature nuclear missile launcher contradicts half of the Fallout history.

I think Bethesda confused 'hey this killed a lot of people' with being cool.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: MadassAlex on 16 Dec 2008, 04:14
How is this any more tasteless than HK-47, who is a letter off being named after the world's most efficient killing implement? Or Fat Man from Metal Gear Solid?

There's plenty of instances, in video games and other forms of art, where the exact same naming convention is used. I think it's a tad narrow to consider this tasteless while ignoring other instances.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 16 Dec 2008, 06:49
I think it would be a good idea to clearly spell out the point:

When you take a catastrophic weapon like the Fat Man atomic bomb and convert it into some fun, kiddie version of itself, it belittles the original horror. It would be like an anime of The Holocaust, except it's a super-deformed Adolf Hitler giving wedgies to Jews. Yes, it may be funny and entertaining, but it's also incredibly tasteless and belittling to the initial suffering that was caused.

Am I hitting close here, Jeans?

As far as HK-47, that's a bit of a stretch. Yes, the AK-47 assault rifle and all of its offshoots are the most efficient assault rifles ever produced, but I feel the weapon itself is completely separate from the damage and suffering it caused outside of its initial scope. That would be like being upset at Jack Daniels for all the battered spouses.

And before someone calls out on the two-faced nature of damning the Fat Man bomb on one hand and praising the AK-47 with the other, I would remind them that the AK-47 was designed for the purpose of being used by soldiers in a war against other soldiers. Both sides know that death is on the menu. The Fat Man, however, was designed to kill indiscriminately over a very wide area and was targeted against a city ful of innocent civilians.

Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: MadassAlex on 16 Dec 2008, 07:08
When you take a catastrophic weapon like the Fat Man atomic bomb and convert it into some fun, kiddie version of itself, it belittles the original horror. It would be like an anime of The Holocaust, except it's a super-deformed Adolf Hitler giving wedgies to Jews. Yes, it may be funny and entertaining, but it's also incredibly tasteless and belittling to the initial suffering that was caused.

I had a whole paragraph typed up about this. I think I'll just agree that I can certainly see why many people would be offended, but my values tell me that being offended at a fictional entity due to an apt name isn't worth the frustration.

As far as HK-47, that's a bit of a stretch. Yes, the AK-47 assault rifle and all of its offshoots are the most efficient assault rifles ever produced, but I feel the weapon itself is completely separate from the damage and suffering it caused outside of its initial scope. That would be like being upset at Jack Daniels for all the battered spouses.

Not quite. The purpose of the AK-47 is to kill, and it's the most prolific and successful implement I can think of at that task. Jack Daniels isn't meant to batter spouses (or so I hope), it's meant to knock you senseless. In addition, HK-47's entire nature was violent and brutal - his idea of "love" being some kind of orgasmic sniper shot in bad weather or somesuch. He is one of KotoR's most celebrated characters.

And before someone calls out on the two-faced nature of damning the Fat Man bomb on one hand and praising the AK-47 with the other, I would remind them that the AK-47 was designed for the purpose of being used by soldiers in a war against other soldiers. Both sides know that death is on the menu. The Fat Man, however, was designed to kill indiscriminately over a very wide area and was targeted against a city ful of innocent civilians.

Again, this is a difference in personal values. I think a killing machine, no matter the context, is largely the same thing. The intent of the designer shouldn't come into it, as it is very, very rarely the bottom line when it comes to weapons. The AK-47 is a perfect example.

As for the Fatman itself, I think the name is not only apt, but accurate to what Wastelanders might call such a weapon in post-apocalyptica. Does anyone think the Wastelanders, Raiders, Slavers and assorted inhabitants are going to give half a damn about political correctness? I am pretty sure that they will call things what they like.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 16 Dec 2008, 08:33
Personally, I think the Wastelanders would have used a generic term for that weapon. We have .32 revolver, Assault Rifle, Chinese Assault Rifle, Missile Launcher, etc... Every other weapoin has a generic name. It would have not only been closer to the concept set forth everywhere else, but more tactful to call it a Nuclear Catapult, and maybe make a "special" Nuclear Catapult called a "Fat Man".

Of course, all of this is just arguing opinions. If it irritates someone bad enough that they did this, that's what the GECK is for. Gotta love being able to spontaneously make your own reality!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 16 Dec 2008, 12:49
I don't know why people are getting into such a tizzy over the Fat Man. It's no less dumb a naming scheme than Mr. Handy and Mr. Gutsy.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Chesire Cat on 16 Dec 2008, 16:25
Well if we are going to get all bitchy about it.  In theory the Fat Man (the real one) effectively ended war in the pacific theatre as well as a tool of deterrent for future wars that could have ended lives many times over.  I think Iron Man said it best "They say the best weapon is one you never have to fire. I prefer the weapon you only need to fire once."

And frankly having a weapon that shoots bullets should be just as offensive, after all, weren't they designed to kill as well?  Bottom line is, it's in a video game based in post nuclear-holocaust America with the definitely intent on having a little bit of a sense of humour about itself.  Shouldn't you share in that humour as well?

Edited for sensitive ears and sensitive egos
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: RedLion on 16 Dec 2008, 17:59
I for one found the voice acting quite good!

So there.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 16 Dec 2008, 18:03
I for one found the voice acting quite good!

THIS IS THREEEE DAAWWWGGGG
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: RedLion on 16 Dec 2008, 18:12
Eh. It was better than Oblivion! And I played that game endlessly.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 16 Dec 2008, 20:59
Man, I agree with Jens. Just tasteless.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: PizzaSHARK on 16 Dec 2008, 21:11
If you, in the game, were ordered to demolish a city full of Jews, with a joking reference to the holocaust thrown in, would you have found it amusing?

Only if you get to beat them to death with candlesticks.

Or you get a good reward for it.  Genocide in games is always fun.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 17 Dec 2008, 06:14
Did you ever meet Moira?
Aww man dude I liked Moira. She's so upbeat about everything, including {SPOILERS} being turned into a ghoul. It doesn't matter to her that everyone she's known is dead, now she gets to see what it's like to be a ghoul first-hand.

It's especially great when you shatter that upbeat attitude of hers.

I love her response when you give the snide reply on the repellant stick test:
You "It's like an explosive game of whack-a-mole!"
Moira "That's awful! You're awful! Everything's awful!"
ha ha ha.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 17 Dec 2008, 08:53
If you, in the game, were ordered to demolish a city full of Jews, with a joking reference to the holocaust thrown in, would you have found it amusing?

Only if you get to beat them to death with candlesticks.

Or you get a good reward for it.  Genocide in games is always fun.

I do not like you for posting this. There's a point, y'know.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: PizzaSHARK on 17 Dec 2008, 20:45
If you, in the game, were ordered to demolish a city full of Jews, with a joking reference to the holocaust thrown in, would you have found it amusing?

Only if you get to beat them to death with candlesticks.

Or you get a good reward for it.  Genocide in games is always fun.

I do not like you for posting this. There's a point, y'know.

I believe we acknowledged this many posts ago.

People are too uptight and need to learn to be able to laugh at anything.  What's the point if you can't?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 17 Dec 2008, 21:13
We are not a very uptight community.  While I am not against the name they used (I don't see it as a joke, I thought it fell in line with the uber-patriotism.  Fat Boy would have made more sense, though), there are still lines that you shouldn't cross.  Genocide is not something to joke about.  It's just not funny.  There's a reason you never see 'edgy', politically incorrect comedians make any jokes about it.



Look.  It's hard to laugh at genocide when you understand the weight behind that word.  You would have to be almost completely apathetic or ridiculously racist to find something funny about the Holocaust or Darfur or the actions of Milosevic, Pol Pot and Idi Amin. 
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 17 Dec 2008, 21:34
To be fair, Mel Brooks would disagree.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Ozymandias on 17 Dec 2008, 21:41
Eddie Izzard would too.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 17 Dec 2008, 21:43
Monty Python as well.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 17 Dec 2008, 21:45
You know who else would disagree?

Hitler.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 17 Dec 2008, 21:49
That was a typo, I meant to say 'many'.  There are a few people who can make this work.  One is a crossdresser, so people know not to take him seriously.  Another is a group of men who dress up as old ladies for fun.

I guess a better way of saying it is that if you are going to make a joke about it, you have to be really obvious that you're not serious, otherwise offhand comments like shark's will be misconstrued as just mean.  Or you better be dead serious and have people who will fight for you.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Nodaisho on 17 Dec 2008, 21:51
You know who else would disagree?

Hitler.
Yes, but he's a dick.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 17 Dec 2008, 22:48
People are too uptight and need to learn to be able to laugh at anything.  What's the point if you can't?

You're a dick and I hope somebody kills your family! Hahaha, good joke, right guys?


Guys?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Alex C on 17 Dec 2008, 23:06
I used to run into this problem before in meatlife about all manner of minor issues. I have this knack for being taken seriously only at the worst possible times. A lot of my attempts at humor subscribe to the Mark Twain school of satire in which it is assumed the audience will realize that the argument being made is patently ridiculous. Problem is, thanks to the internet, television, radio and all the other ways just about anyone can disemminate their views, no matter how crazy, it is harder than ever for people to just throw out what someone is saying as a joke out of hand. After all, there is one thing the media loves, it's giving some dude who fervently believes his own ridiculous bullshit airtime. I myself have this problem as well, since finding a crazy person on the internet is like looking for saltwater in the Dead Sea. There's an easy fix for all these misunderstandings though; you just have to accept that you're not very funny and that trying to convince everyone otherwise is a fool's errand. I don't really find any of these jokes that offensive, but the intimation that there's something wrong with the rest of us for not being amused is definitely one of my pet peeves.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: PizzaSHARK on 17 Dec 2008, 23:07
You know who else would disagree?

Hitler.

Actually, Hitler didn't have a sense of humor that anyone was aware of, near as I can tell.  But he was a strange little man, anyway.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Alex C on 18 Dec 2008, 00:13
I've heard that he was actually fairly sarcastic at times and had a definite sense of humor, even if it wasn't a particularly pleasant one. Definitely a tough guy to work with though; he was so dead set against retreating that his generals would complain about only being able to speak of tactics and weaponry to him, not of overall strategy.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 18 Dec 2008, 00:35
Am I the only one in this thread who literally does not give a shit about the name of the mini-nuke launcher? And now that we've brought Godwin's Law into it can we put this unremarkable puppy to bed?

How long was everyone's first playthrough? I managed to log like eighty hours and I didn't even explore any of the vaults outside of 101 and 87.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 18 Dec 2008, 00:45
I just powered through the main quest, took me around 9 or 10 hours.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 18 Dec 2008, 01:36
why would you do that
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 18 Dec 2008, 07:06
Here's a challenge: Try to get through the main quest at the lowest level possible. There are, of course, two unique challenges to this. The first would, of course, have to do with the difficulty of the quest itself. The second would be with how fast you level. How much sequence breaking can be done to accomplish this?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 18 Dec 2008, 09:11
How'd you get into 87?  It's surrounded by radiation!  I went there, got up to the door, and died instantly because I was getting 500 rads/sec even with the Advanced Radiation Suit and some Rad-X.

Anyway, I think I've probably got about 36 hours.  I've been in most of the vaults and visited most of the locations in the southern half besides the ones in DC.  Most of the rest I haven't seen yet, and I still haven't finished Head of State.  I can't find Hannibal or anymore Lincoln artifacts.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 18 Dec 2008, 11:27
The top entrance will not work. I cheated my way up there to see how hot it would go ([tgm] in the console on PC). The highest I saw was up to 2700/sec. High enough to kill you twice over each second. EDIT: I checked on The Vault websit and found that the radiation peaks at 3695 rad/sec.

[SPOILERS!]
When you get the task to go to this vault (Picking Up The Trail), you are told about a second entrance, through Little Lamplight.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 18 Dec 2008, 14:13
Technically three entrances, two of which are through Little Lamplight.

My fastest run-through has been 20 minutes, not including the time spent in Vault 101. I've gotten bogged down with the GECK recently, so I won't be playing more until I've packed up some mods.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 19 Dec 2008, 12:26
Technically three entrances, two of which are through Little Lamplight.

My fastest run-through has been 20 minutes, not including the time spent in Vault 101. I've gotten bogged down with the GECK recently, so I won't be playing more until I've packed up some mods.

20 minutes?

Explanation, please.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Surgoshan on 19 Dec 2008, 15:02
You might be able to go right to 86, get the geck, and then run straight to the Jefferson monument...  I dunno.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 19 Dec 2008, 22:42
SPOILERS








Run to Little Lamplight, get the GECK, fight your way out of Raven Rock. Run to the Pentagon, storm the memorial, activate the purifier, win the game.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 19 Dec 2008, 23:46
Nice. What level were you at the end?

Gotta love it though... first objective: Find your dad
Melodic: "To Hell with my dad."
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 20 Dec 2008, 00:14
The lowest level I've beaten the game at is 2, from a really handy mod that assigns disguises based on the clothing you're wearing, like Hitman games. I breezed by Raven Rock without a scratch.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 20 Dec 2008, 00:17
It's peculiar that Bethsoft didn't take any measures to prevent plot leap-frogging. Morrowind was buggy as all balls upon release but you still couldn't track down one of the plot-critical Dunmer tribesmen and circumvent 60% of the story. I've known many people (some of them here) who trekked to Rivet City before Bethsoft apparently anticipated and ended up cutting out the entire downtown DC portion of the main storyline by talking to Dr. Linn.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Surgoshan on 20 Dec 2008, 03:09
Yeah, my first playthrough I inadvertently did that and reloaded from the autosave.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 20 Dec 2008, 04:00
I'm pretty sure that's intentional. There's no reason why she (I'm going to presume you meant Li) wouldn't tell you what you needed to know before doing Three Dog's quest (or just bluffing your way through). In fact, there is even an alternate reward for fixing the tower for Three Dog if you've already spoken to her (obviously you don't need to know where the doctor is anymore).
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Oli on 20 Dec 2008, 06:25
Yeah I did three dawg's quest but then went to rivet city for moira before speaking to three dawg again and got the alternate reward (still haven't followed through on the information he gave me though.) I've always thought that the entire point of open world games like fallout is that the world exists with or without you so there's no reason you shouldn't be able to stumble upon the end of the game as soon as you step foot into the wasteland. Honestly I think the fact you can skip huge chunks of the story, or do it in a different order, is one of the game's strengths.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 20 Dec 2008, 11:29
If Fallout 3 didn't do it, it wouldn't be a Fallout game.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spike on 20 Dec 2008, 16:33
It's peculiar that Bethsoft didn't take any measures to prevent plot leap-frogging. Morrowind was buggy as all balls upon release but you still couldn't track down one of the plot-critical Dunmer tribesmen and circumvent 60% of the story. I've known many people (some of them here) who trekked to Rivet City before Bethsoft apparently anticipated and ended up cutting out the entire downtown DC portion of the main storyline by talking to Dr. Linn.

First time I played I even cut that portion out by stumbling across the place where Dad was. I think they did start putting in measures to prevent plot leap-frogging closer to the end, but then again I didn't really test it so I may be wrong.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 20 Dec 2008, 20:24
Nah, there was definitely some band-aids, now that I think about it. If you go to the Jefferson Memorial before completing the rest of the main quest there's a point at which it stops you and tells you that you haven't done everything required to continue in the area.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Stryc9Fuego on 22 Dec 2008, 05:15
<snip>Morrowind was buggy as all balls upon release but you still couldn't track down one of the plot-critical Dunmer tribesmen and circumvent 60% of the story. <snip>
{Morrowind Spoilers}You must not have seen the SpeedRuns. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tpsy__V8YHU) All you really need in Morrowind is Sunder, Keening, and the gauntlet (I can't remember the name of it). Then you can go straight to the Heart, smack it up, then kill Dagoth Ur.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: JD on 31 Dec 2008, 01:53
DLC Details! sorta (http://au.xboxlive.ign.com/articles/937/937202p1.html)
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: NotAFanOfFenders on 10 Jan 2009, 09:46
I can't even fucking do all the evil stuff in fallout 3 'cause im such an incredibly nice human being.

those poor, poor pixels.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Darke on 10 Jan 2009, 13:22
I play almost every "choice" game as an evil character the first time through, so nothing much bothers me.

Although, when I shot Agatha's head off with my shotgun... that was a bad moment.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Boro_Bandito on 10 Jan 2009, 14:05
Yo, I finally got Fallout 3, AND Left 4 Dead, so I am going through them both now and having a fuckin' ball!!! hooray.

Its funny, I always play through games as a good character first, then if I feel like replaying I play as a bad character.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: JD on 10 Jan 2009, 16:30
I killed all the adults in Republic of Dave, i didnt get any "bad moments". Trying to hit the level cap at the moment, i'm level 18
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scarychips on 12 Jan 2009, 20:59
So, I finally picked it up and Wow. I just got out of the Vault 101 and really it's impressive. Can't wait to continue tomorrow.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: snalin on 13 Jan 2009, 05:37
I played through it. Just recently. It was awesome. I'm not going to bother to explore everything yet, I'll wait for the last expansion pack. It's supposed to add stuff to the MQ, and I want to have a play-through were I don't sell off the 20 first bottles of Nuka-Cola Quantum I find. And pick up all pre-war books.


*spoiler*
Was I the only one that thought that the  President has a bit too short story line? I was able to tell him that he ought to perform suicide because he wasn't built to be self-conscious, although nobody had ever told me that. It was like, meet the leader of the enclave, talk for two secs, and leave the exploding place behind. I never understood why the enclave guys started fighting each other in the beginning anyways. Somebody that knows?
*spoiler*
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Boro_Bandito on 13 Jan 2009, 11:04
I killed all the adults in Republic of Dave, i didnt get any "bad moments". Trying to hit the level cap at the moment, i'm level 18


I killed all of the adults in the Republic of Dave because he wouldn't give me the goddamn quest item that he has. that was my only real killing spree so far.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 13 Jan 2009, 11:08
that quest where you have to collect all those keys is pretty hard not to fuck up.

i was playing as a good guy so after i colllected all the keys without killing anyone, i killed the ghoul who wanted them but for some reason it didn't count it, so that quest is totally borked and unfinishable. which sucks because i hate loose ends like that.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: AngelofShadows on 13 Jan 2009, 11:24
I hate the ending. Also, I beat the game and never got a dog.


I wanted the fucking dog. Where did I mess up?

Also, I accidently opened the door to the armory in Megaton, and all hell broke loose. I didn't take anything, I just opened the door, went in, then went out. The entire fucking town went on a "Fuck him with bullets" spree. And I was a fucking good character.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 13 Jan 2009, 11:30
You may have accidentally killed him, not saved him, or just missed him completely.  I did one of the first two.  Still don't know which one.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Boro_Bandito on 13 Jan 2009, 11:43
that quest where you have to collect all those keys is pretty hard not to fuck up.

i was playing as a good guy so after i colllected all the keys without killing anyone, i killed the ghoul who wanted them but for some reason it didn't count it, so that quest is totally borked and unfinishable. which sucks because i hate loose ends like that.

I finished that quest, then stole the keys from him afterwards and didn't lose Karma. But that quest was so morally gray along with the tenpenny tower quest (I did the keys quest before it and so tenpenny was dead and I couldn't choose the nonviolent option to finish it) brought me from like the ultimate good character to a nearly exactly neutral one. Took me a bit to work my way up to good again before level 14 (I'm trying to get the good/neutral/evil achievements in groups rather than get one here, the other there, etc.)
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spike on 13 Jan 2009, 14:27
that quest where you have to collect all those keys is pretty hard not to fuck up.

i was playing as a good guy so after i colllected all the keys without killing anyone, i killed the ghoul who wanted them but for some reason it didn't count it, so that quest is totally borked and unfinishable. which sucks because i hate loose ends like that.

You can still finish it, those keys belong to certain doors.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 13 Jan 2009, 14:31
oh yeah!

i totally did finish that quest eventually. it was just frozen in my quest log at a certain point for a long time until i got that armor or whatever it was.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 13 Jan 2009, 15:41
It was certainly one of the more broken quests in the game. The Republic of Dave election is borked, as well. And the Tenpenny Tower zombification never goes over too well.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: JD on 13 Jan 2009, 17:39
Really? I've never had a problem with it.  Doing the nuka-cola collection is really annoying.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: RedLion on 13 Jan 2009, 20:32
I've replayed this, and...nuking Megaton was actually a hell of a lot of fun. Of course, after I did that and got my reward, I blew off the heads of Burke and Tenpenny.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 13 Jan 2009, 23:08
ATTENTION: BUG FIXES

Bug Fixes
Friends notification no longer causes the game to pause. (Playstation 3)
Fixed occasional crashes during loading and waiting.
Friendly or neutral NPC health bars, when taking damage, no longer flicker repeatedly.
Fixed issue where certain NPCs would occasionally disappear from the game.
Fixed issue where dead NPCs would occasionally come back to life.
Fixed rendering issue with the Gatling Laser gun's tracers.
Fixed issue where the haircut menu would occasionally not appear properly.
Added ability to remap your VATS and pip boy buttons.
Fixed rare load/save issues that would cause NPCs to behave incorrectly.
Fixed issue where quest objectives would occasionally not update properly due to talking activators,intercoms and conversations.
Using Radaway from the Pip-Boy's Status Menu repeatedly no longer crashes the game.
Player no longer gets stuck in level up menu if their skills are maxed out.
Fixed issue where multiple followers would occasionally not load into an interior.
Fixed rare issue with getting stuck in VATS mode.
Fixed rare crash with fighting NPCs with corrupted data.
In game radios will now play properly if player was listening to the radio in the Pip-Boy first. (Playstation 3)
Fixed rare crashes while loading and saving games.
Fixed rare issue where player would fall through the floor while in VATS.
Fixed occasional crash after scoring a critical hit in the head with a Railway Rifle.
Prevent NPCs from inadvertently dying from falling.
Fixed occasional issue where the controller would stop working properly.
Fixed crashes related to repeatedly equipping and dropping clothing and armor into the world.

Quest Fixes
Fixed several instances where quest item stayed in inventory permanently after completing quests.
Fixed an issue where the distress message would occasionally not play in Trouble on the Homefront.
In The Waters of Life quest, the Citadel gate will open properly if the player fast travels away after exiting the Taft Tunnels but before reaching the Citadel gate with Doctor Li.
For the Home Sweet Home quest, the broken protectrons in Big Town become active at the proper time.
In The American Dream quest, fixed specific issue which prevented the player from accessing their belongings in the locker by the door if they left the room first.
Fixed infinite caps exploit in Strictly Business quest.
Fixed rare instance where Dad would have no valid dialogue during The Waters of Life quest.
Prevent issue during the Finding the Garden of Eden quest where player would fade to black, instead of traveling to Raven Rock, while in combat with a follower.
Fixed several XP speech exploits with certain NPCs.
Fixed XP exploit with a robot in Fort Bannister.
Fixed issue where player's controls can become locked permanently during The American Dream.

Still To Be Fixed
Character AI occasionally switches over to AI from Goldeneye 64, which was used as a placeholder during development.
Remove references to "hydraulics" and "subs," as the ability to drive was cut from the final product.
Characters with non-white skin tones told they "aren't allowed" in Moriarty's, making the quest to blow up Megaton inaccessible.
Subtitles read "that no-good whore" whenever your father references your mother. (Playstation 3)
Certain NPCs can detach limbs at will.
Player controls are locked whenever a Mirelurk or Giant Radscorpion attacks. (Playstation 3)
You can drink all the Nuka-Cola you want and not get diabetes.
Remove references to post-game events since you can't play after the completion of the main quest.
Remove sudden musical number welcoming you to Little Lamplight.
Whenever the game decides you died in a really fucked up and lame way this plays (http://www.sadtrombone.com/).
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: deadplayer on 14 Jan 2009, 00:45
I have tried it, a cool game.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 14 Jan 2009, 08:57
What patch is this buglist from, JC?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 14 Jan 2009, 09:23
I think they just released it, at least for consoles.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Boro_Bandito on 14 Jan 2009, 18:05
Still To Be Fixed
Character AI occasionally switches over to AI from Goldeneye 64, which was used as a placeholder during development.
Remove references to "hydraulics" and "subs," as the ability to drive was cut from the final product.
Characters with non-white skin tones told they "aren't allowed" in Moriarty's, making the quest to blow up Megaton inaccessible.
Subtitles read "that no-good whore" whenever your father references your mother. (Playstation 3)
Certain NPCs can detach limbs at will.
Player controls are locked whenever a Mirelurk or Giant Radscorpion attacks. (Playstation 3)
You can drink all the Nuka-Cola you want and not get diabetes.
Remove references to post-game events since you can't play after the completion of the main quest.
Remove sudden musical number welcoming you to Little Lamplight.
Whenever the game decides you died in a really fucked up and lame way this plays (http://www.sadtrombone.com/).

Okay, this section, you wrote that didn't you Johnny?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: RedLion on 14 Jan 2009, 19:39
Could be!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Darke on 16 Jan 2009, 20:08
I've replayed this, and...nuking Megaton was actually a hell of a lot of fun.
Hell yes. That was probably my favourite game moment of 2008.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 28 Jan 2009, 15:00
anybody played the new content yet? hmm?

i haven't gotten it yet because i'm going to be moving into a new house on the first and need the money for rent but i intend to get it as soon as possible.

so who's played it? thoughts?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 28 Jan 2009, 15:42
It's out already? What the fuuuckkkkk
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 28 Jan 2009, 15:43
The word around is that it is not terribly good, there's not a lot of self-aware humor ala Tranquility Lane, and it's fairly linear in the way it's mapped out.

We'll see once I actually find time to play video games again.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 28 Jan 2009, 16:03
hahaha oh man how is that already your sig.

you, sir, are a quick one.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: MadassAlex on 28 Jan 2009, 16:34
Basically, it's Call of Duty with Fallout 3 graphics. Ridiculously linear and squad-based. The setting is very cool, and the visual aspect is very, very good, but the gameplay, well, it sucks.

You say that like Call of Duty sucks.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: JD on 28 Jan 2009, 16:53
Oh hell, I actually have to use my Windows Live.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: MadassAlex on 28 Jan 2009, 17:41
When you want Fallout, then yeah, the CoD gameplay does suck. CoD is good in its own aspects, but it is really really linear, which isn't what I want from Fallout games.

Well, that's map design and not gameplay, isn't it?

Imagine the design and options of FO3 with the combat flexibility of CoD4. Delicious.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: MadassAlex on 28 Jan 2009, 22:05
That's correct. Ergo, if you gave a game with the movement and combat flexibility of CoD4 and the map design of FO3, you'd have a very interesting game indeed.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Chesire Cat on 28 Jan 2009, 22:12
Yes but I think you have them reversed.  It will be the combat 'flexibility' of FO3 and the map design of CoD4.  Sounds to me to be the weaker halves of both wholes.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: MadassAlex on 28 Jan 2009, 22:17
Yeah, I was talking hypothetically. I can see why this set up in the expansion is a weak one.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 30 Jan 2009, 00:23
WHY IS MY XBOX STILL BROKEN I WANT TO FIGHT IN A FUTURISTIC ALASKA >:( >:( >:(
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: snalin on 30 Jan 2009, 01:16
How can it be anything close to a good idea to buy this now, instead of in half a year when all the expansion packs are out and we get a pack with all of them for half the price?

I played through the game rather roughly, and now I'm content to sit on my ass and wait until all the packs are out, and roll a new character. Which will be great, since that'll allow me to pick up all nuka cola, scrap metal, pre-war books and so on. And I will use the custom weapons, because the other ones just got boring. And I can roll a character with a maxed intelligence that can get me all skills to full.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 30 Jan 2009, 06:29
I will say that despite being pretty linear, I'm still having quite a bit of fun with it.  Some of the character animations they made for this I didn't think were really possible given the stiffness of the models in all of their other games.  Like, a few of them were on par with some of Valve's stuff.  And I'm only an hour and a half or so in to it.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: NotAFanOfFenders on 30 Jan 2009, 09:34
Will the expansion change anything in the Capital Wasteland?
just wondering.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 30 Jan 2009, 10:10
It may have added something in inner DC, where the quest starts, but I hadn't been there before the DLC, so I don't know.  A few new characters are there, but I don't know how much sway they have over events outside of the DLC.


Also, has anyone summoned down a tactical strike from one of the SATCOM arrays?  That was pretty cool.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 30 Jan 2009, 10:13
yeah, i did.

but it was kind of a waste since i didn't know what i was doing so i just dropped it randomly. it was definitely badass though.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 19 Feb 2009, 23:14
New images from "The Pitt", the new Pittsburgh-centric xpac due next month.

(http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2009/02/welcome.jpg)
(http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2009/02/steelyard.jpg)
(http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2009/02/autoaxe.jpg)

I'm liking it.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Surgoshan on 20 Feb 2009, 17:28
Wait, is that a wheel turned into a buzzsaw of death?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spluff on 20 Feb 2009, 18:04
Looks very Hellgate London-esque.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: JD on 20 Feb 2009, 20:31
I hope they make it easier to get for PC players.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 20 Feb 2009, 20:35
Wait, is that a wheel turned into a buzzsaw of death?

Looks like a former industrial circular saw, turned into a wheel of death.

And I cannot WAIT to use it.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: JD on 20 Feb 2009, 20:44
It's called the AutoAxe. Will it be as linear as Anchorage though? probably
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ledhendrix on 20 Feb 2009, 20:48
I hope not, I really didn't like the way they basically made anchorage into another smaller game. I didn't like it that you could hardly react with the environment either, quite a disappointment really.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 20 Feb 2009, 21:01
You're supposedly able to choose between factions in The Pitt, raiders and... some other group.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Felrender on 20 Feb 2009, 21:54
You're supposedly able to choose between factions in The Pitt, raiders and... some other group.

Know the avearge "Choose your path" thing, it will be some sort of white-knighter-than-thou goup, if not the BoS themselves.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 21 Feb 2009, 00:00
I'm not sure if that Hyper Axe or whatever is a Raider weapon. It looks like the main choice you get will be between "ugly" and "uglier."
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Fluxuation on 23 Feb 2009, 10:49
So, I just got fallout3 a few days ago and have been playing it. It's pretty great. I'm still fairly in the beginning I believe... I blew up megaton, I killed the ghouls in the train station, and now I am currently looking for my dad in the news radio place (I forgot the name..) anyways, I cant seem to reach the location. I've been wandering around the general area for some time and have discovered a few locations but cant reach my destination. is there some other quests I should have done before? is there a certain path I should be taking?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 23 Feb 2009, 10:58
You have to head into one of the subway stations and take a walk through some old tunnels to get there first.  It should be marked on your map/Pipboy.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 23 Feb 2009, 11:56
Well, my 60 hour save got overwritten so I am going to be rushing through the main quest.  However, by the time that actually happens, the Broken Steel DLC should be out and I won't have to worry about being finished there.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: JD on 23 Feb 2009, 12:45
You guys know there is a mod that allows you to continue to play after the end, right? Can't find it for the life of me.

Edit: here it is (http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=586)

You can also become a pirate (http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=4274),pimp (http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=2273) or a cyborg (http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=3707)
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ledhendrix on 24 Feb 2009, 11:29
Also, lots of other cool mods on this (http://hellforge.gameriot.com/blogs/Caveat-Emptor/50-Mods-You-Should-Be-Playing-For-Fallout-3) list.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: snalin on 24 Feb 2009, 13:24
I'm just so looking forward to all the mods made now that totally fucks up the game when you install the last DLC.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: JD on 12 Mar 2009, 13:13
more screenies (http://kotaku.com/photogallery/thepitt312/1007553589)

Look at this thing
(http://cache.kotaku.com/assets/images/gallery/9/2009/03/medium_3349373002_3f8f486f0b_o.jpg)

Edit:

Apparently it's a Trog, who are hillbillies that hid in caves when the bombs struck.

(http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/kotaku/2009/03/trogs.jpg)

I hope you do not need the first DLC to get this one. This one looks a bit more interesting.

Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 12 Mar 2009, 13:44
i started a new character yesterday (the first since i beat it the first time around) and man, this game is fun. i'm playing evil this time around (hard as that may be for me) and it is pretty sweet.

Take that, Megaton! Eat lead, Roy Phillips! MWAHAHAA
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: AngelofShadows on 12 Mar 2009, 21:35
It seems like I'm the only one who didn't blow up megaton.

I did let the sheriff die though. Didn't expect it. Oops.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Avec on 14 Mar 2009, 14:15
One of my friends recently loaned me this game. Took me a week to get into the whole solitary style of game play, but it's well worth the money.

I'm mostly a good character, I think that all started after I invaded the slave trade town ( Not sure of the name ) in the earlier stages of the game. I ended up doing all the extra side quests before getting through the story.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: lolwut on 17 Mar 2009, 03:46
It seems like I'm the only one who didn't blow up megaton.

I did let the sheriff die though. Didn't expect it. Oops.

likewise

the second time i went through it with the black widow perk and nixed that little problem
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: J-cob9000 on 17 Mar 2009, 15:40
Okay, so I read some of this thread and mostly skimmed over the rest but see how all of you love this game to death.
A while back, I rented it and was expecting something amazing. I liked it but didn't get past the first mission because I got so bored of wandering about and getting lost even with a guide.
Should I try it again? I really want to like this game, because it sounds so amazing but I just couldn't get into it.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 17 Mar 2009, 16:01
if you don't like wandering around and picking through rubble, then it's probably just not for you.

like i said, i just started my second playthrough the other day and i've spent most of my time just wandering around in silly outfits and hitting things with a baseball bat.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Surgoshan on 17 Mar 2009, 17:06
if you don't like wandering around and picking through rubble, then it's probably just not for you.

like i said, i just started my second playthrough the other day and i've spent most of my time just wandering around in silly outfits and hitting things with a baseball bat.

You had to buy a game to do that?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 17 Mar 2009, 18:03
To do it in slow-motion, yes.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Cire27 on 17 Mar 2009, 23:17
Sometimes everything starts going in slow-motion when I'm beating people with baseball bats in real li...wait, disregard that.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Surgoshan on 18 Mar 2009, 18:53
That's what shrooms are for, man.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 18 Mar 2009, 22:02
As an aside, one of the bigwigs on Fallouts 1 and 2 (and Troika's games, as long as that lasted) has signed on with some studio and the rumor is they're working on a new Wasteland.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: onewheelwizzard on 21 Mar 2009, 20:16
I haven't played the game myself, but my friend just showed me a mod in which your character can take a wide variety of drugs, and I was impressed.

I recommend it.  Killing shit while tripping on 2C-B is sweet as hell.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: snalin on 22 Mar 2009, 06:55
As in other drugs than the original game offers? Jet and buffout is awesome enough by itself (mutant head+sledgehammer!), but if there's any cool drug effects in this mod, like hallucinations, then I'd like to see that.

Remember the name of the mod? googling fallout 3+mod+drugs doesn't give any good results - obviously.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: lolwut on 22 Mar 2009, 10:00
Google "where can I get drugs to enhance my gameplay".

that just gives me links for steroids though
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: onewheelwizzard on 22 Mar 2009, 10:45
All I know is that you could take cocaine, PCP, 2C-B, MDMA, amphetamines, DXM, Thorazine, and a couple others ... and the visual effects, as well as the impact on your character's gameplay, actually made a fair amount of sense.  They're called "Chems" in game, so that might help.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: RallyMonkey on 22 Mar 2009, 11:28
A simple Google found this http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=1745
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 23 Mar 2009, 14:06
why do you need your virtual character to take virtual hallucinogens
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: snalin on 23 Mar 2009, 14:14
Law and stuff. I dunno if you heard, but you know, there's this law and all that kinda... Dislikes dope. Oh man.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 23 Mar 2009, 15:49
fallout 3 is so good without the colours bein all funny and everthing gettin hella gaussian blur on it
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 20 Apr 2009, 06:37
oh my god (http://kotaku.com/5219584/new-fallout-announced)
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: LTK on 20 Apr 2009, 07:03
oh my god (http://kotaku.com/5219584/new-fallout-announced)

...Hooray?

But really, you'd think they would wait until all of Fallout 3's DLC has been done before announcing this. After The Pitt and Broken Steel I'm fairly sure I had enough Fallout for a while.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 20 Apr 2009, 07:06
FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 20 Apr 2009, 07:10
I mean
FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFUCK ME
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 20 Apr 2009, 07:18
It will be on the Fallout 3 engine (http://www.mcvuk.com/news/33990/Fallout-New-Vegas-in-surprise-reveal).
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 20 Apr 2009, 07:32
Hey, man, Obsidian's working on it, so that at least means your friend still has work, right?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Ozymandias on 20 Apr 2009, 07:35
Fallout 3 gameplay + Fallout 2 humor and writing?

That is for the yes.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 20 Apr 2009, 08:04
Hey, man, Obsidian's working on it, so that at least means your friend still has work, right?
Yeah, Obsidz officially signed the contract last week. My friend told me they were making "something for the superfans", but I had assumed he meant Baldur's Gate 3 or, less likely, KOTOR 3. I did not consider another Fallout game.

And this means a lot to me, considering how crushed I was when Van Buren came through and I read the design docs. I have 2 niggling fears - 1, Bethesda won't be lax enough with its property and they'll have effective control over the game. 2, Obsidz won't have enough time to make the game they're capable of. Apparently it's supposed to come out next year.

Fuck, it's been a very weird 12 hours. First my best friend turns out to be a quasi-con artist, and now a dead dream is revived. I feel like a cosmic entity is playing pranks on me.

You guys have no idea how nuts the Obsidz forum is right now. I wonder in which domain they'll put the official forums - Obsidz or Bethsoft. Either way, there's going to be crossover and a lot of hilarious clashing between Fallout old-tymers and neophytes.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 20 Apr 2009, 08:44
http://msnuktech.spaces.live.com/blog/cns&...!7385.entry (http://"http://msnuktech.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!4C05256AF4EFCF9C!7385.entry")

Quote
New Fallout game announced, set in Vegas
Posted by: Nik Taylor

When we get told a story that’s under embargo, we tend to play by the rules.

Actually we don’t ‘tend to’ play by the rules, we make damn sure we don’t let on until the embargo has passed. Fair play and all that. However, it seems not everyone is as even-handed as us folks at T&G.

This afternoon, Bethesda announced to a roomful of journalists that it is working on a new Fallout game, set in Las Vegas. The revelation was to stay under wraps until tomorrow, but in the end it took less than three minutes for the news to appear on the web. While its impossible to rule out psychic bloggers being behind the leak, my own suspicions are on that shady-looking journo who was hiding behind his laptop at the back of the room.

Anyway, the story’s out in the open now, so we can give you all the details without fear of a thunderbolt from the heavens. Such details are pretty sparse at the moment, but here’s what there is so far.

Fallout: New Vegas will come out some time next year. It’s not a sequel to Fallout 3, in terms of storyline, but will take place within the Fallout game universe.

It’s going to be developed not by Bethesda (who developed Fallout 3) but by Obsidian (who developed Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic II, among other things). Several of the team at Obsidian worked on the original Fallout games. New Vegas, however, will be an RPG in the same vein as Fallout 3.

It’s going to come out on Xbox 360, PS3 and PC… and that’s about all we know. We were promised a full reveal later this year, quite possibly at E3.

And as for that embargo, yes, there were other things covered by it and, no, we can’t talk about those ones yet. But keep an eye on this blog this time tomorrow for more.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 20 Apr 2009, 09:22
I have 2 niggling fears - 1, Bethesda won't be lax enough with its property and they'll have effective control over the game. 2, Obsidz won't have enough time to make the game they're capable of. Apparently it's supposed to come out next year.

If they're using the same engine, they're probably not gonna have to worry about nearly as much QA and can just focus on the content. 
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 20 Apr 2009, 10:58
Oh, oh fuck yeah. oh fuck yes.

If using the same engine, then I think we can expect a Fallout with, at the very least, writing quality much closer to the level of the first 2 games and actual voice actors. I've got a pretty good amount of faith in Obisidian for this as long as Bethesda doesn't try to smother it out of them.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 20 Apr 2009, 11:37
Pete Hines speaks (http://www.shacknews.com/featuredarticle.x?id=1113).
Quote
Shack: What has Bethesda's attitude been in terms of allowing Obsidian freedom to create their own Fallout game?

Pete Hines: I think we tried very hard not to put much in the way of parameters on them. To let them kind of come up with the idea. So we didn't go to them and say, we want a game that is set here, and--we didn't do that. We said, "What would you do with it? If we were going to do this, what would you guys like to do?"

Shack: So you asked them for a pitch, as opposed to pitching them a project.

Pete Hines: Correct, correct. And honestly, generally speaking, that's how it works best, which is: you've gotta have people who are really vested in the idea that it's their creation. "This is what makes us excited. If we could do this, this is what we would want to do."

You may help them mold or frame that, but if that's what they're excited about, then that's what you should do. As opposed to, I come up with something that would be cool, and you go to them and they go, "Oh, okay. Well, sure." You're just not necessarily going to get the same passion or excitement from the team. And those are the guys who need to be the most excited about it, because that's what they're going to go into the office and be creative on and make for the foreseeable future.

But it was good. I think we were all on the same page in terms of the kinds of things that we wanted to do, and what it could be. And yeah, so now I want to play it.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Ozymandias on 20 Apr 2009, 12:21
That's really good news that it's basically a project Obsidian wanted to do and Bethesda was just totally on board with.

I have faith that Bethesda's tools for Fallout 3 will be robust enough that they can crank out a really good game pretty fast without it ending up unfinished and buggy like some of Obsidian's other projects ended up being.

C'mongogogo.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 20 Apr 2009, 12:32
Oh hay that acquaintance of mine is actually the Project Director for this game. I've heard him talk a lot about F3's limitation (he just all of a sudden started playing lots of Fallout 3 and talking about it, we probably should have guessed) and I do hope he can get around some of the bad design of that engine.

Interview with yon Chris Avellone (http://www.edge-online.com/magazine/chris-avellone-dark-knight)
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 20 Apr 2009, 14:39
I do hope he can get around some of the bad design of that engine.

seriously hope you're talking about like AI and possibly facial animation cause otherwise suck a dick it ran smoothly and looked damn good
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 20 Apr 2009, 15:17
Quote from: J.E. Sawyer
VATS gives an enormous advantage to the player, since attacks occur in "magic time". Even against a large group, it's not uncommon for the PC to get off five or six attacks vs. a total of one or two from the enemy. Also, there's no penalty for VATSing with a firearm in close quarters, so the preferred tactic is to rush forward with a combat shotgun and VATS them at point blank range.

...

Sure, it's fair game. I used VATS head constantly, all through F3. It was not challenging at all and I certainly wouldn't take offense to anyone telling me that it was the easy way through the game. Because it was. There was no problem I could not solve through the application of VATS head and the use of a bunch of stimpaks.

If you don't think there's a design flaw in having two combat mechanics (VATS head + unlimited stim use in inventory) that allows you to bulldoze everything in the game, fair enough. I don't agree.
I agree with this guy.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 20 Apr 2009, 16:17
i'm glad but in no way did it make the game any less fun
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 20 Apr 2009, 16:18
in the year 2009, i definitely want a game to penalize me on a regular basis
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 20 Apr 2009, 16:19
i can't even figure out what you guys are agreeing/disagreeing with anymore.

it has something to do with Oblivion, right?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 20 Apr 2009, 16:36
kveep wants the engine to be modified for difficulty and i'm actually fine with the design of the best game i played last year
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 20 Apr 2009, 16:54
ah, i see.

well, my two cents is this: i don't care one way or the other. it will probably be awesome either way.

i just hope they include selective VATS targeting for melee weapons this time (seriously, how was that not included the first time?), and furthermore, what the fuck happened to crotch-shots goddamnit?!

beyond that, i'm good.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Ozymandias on 20 Apr 2009, 17:00
I think melee combat could be more robust. Some sort of abilities, perks and such, that allow you to use AP to quickly move up to your opponent for a strike.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 20 Apr 2009, 17:01
in the year 2009, i definitely want a game to penalize me on a regular basis
See I don't get this straw man, it's come up a number of times when I've discussed this with people. People have this idea of a false dichotomy between retarded easy (games with easily found "win buttons" like Fallout 3's VATS and Soul Caliber IV's throws) and retarded hard (Syobon Action (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLrWwmnt2po), the bosses in Ninja Gaiden Black). There are many mushy middles that are preferable to the both of them. You can have games that are frustrating and difficult but surmountable given practice and timing (old platformers come to mind, Mega Man, etc) or games that are difficult but reward creative thinking / playing (Half-Life does this very well, and tactical combat games practically require forethought when fighting, fucking Braid) Overcoming challenges is ultimately more rewarding. Somehow gamers (most of whom don't seem to have had much experience prior to Halo, for some reason) got it into their heads that not being able to Rambo all the way through an FPS with no hiccups in one sitting indicates a "penalizing" design philosophy. It doesn't. A penalizing design philosophy makes winning practically impossible outside of very specific and arbitrary circumstances. Some JRPGs reportedly have this problem, although I've never played any.

It would be difficult, I think, to alter VATS and in doing so really harm the gameplay of Fallout 3 irrevocably. In Lucasarts' Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis there were fistfights in which you could use a "sucker punch" that would effectively bypass combat. VATS is like that. It increases damage (and accuracy, in most cases) and makes the player impervious to harm during its duration, even from explosives. In a puzzle game like Indy it's useful and even necessary. In a dungeon hack game like F3 it's hilariously overpowered.

Which isn't to say that every game ought to be hard. A lot of times my first throughs of games are on easy, so that I can absorb narrative in the least amount of time possible. But unless your game is a kids game you gotta challenge the people, somehow.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 20 Apr 2009, 17:04
i'm pretty sure you can still get hurt in VATS.

damage might be reduced or something but you're not invincible.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 20 Apr 2009, 17:06
not like it matters since you can just pause the game at any time and inject yourself with as many Stimpaks as possible.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 20 Apr 2009, 17:06
It's not a straw man, you literally just wrote "I agree with this" in reference to someone bemoaning the lack of penalties for playing the game a certain way.

I didn't have any of the problems you're describing with VATS and while I used it a lot it didn't actually guarantee wins at any point and I still died on a regular enough basis?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 20 Apr 2009, 17:11
next one needs more Super Mutant Behemoths.

those guys were fuckin sweet.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Avec on 20 Apr 2009, 17:16
Or online multiplayer.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 20 Apr 2009, 17:20
It's not a straw man, you literally just wrote "I agree with this" in reference to someone bemoaning the lack of penalties for playing the game a certain way.
The use of the word "penalty" reminds me of the hubbub over the defense spending bill that Obama is trying to pass. The congressional Republicans wanted to increase spending by 6%. Obama wants to increase it by 4%. The Repubs have been pushing the idea that Obama is "cutting" defense spending, when in actuality he's just spending less than the Repubs would like. The guy's being criticized for promoting "penalties", when in actuality he's not advocating for putting more obstacles in front of the player so much as giving the player less ridiculous superpower to overcome any and every combat in the game. There is a distinction between "take away" and "give less".

I didn't have any of the problems you're describing with VATS and while I used it a lot it didn't actually guarantee wins at any point and I still died on a regular enough basis?
Did you make a point to charge and headshot any enemy who proved difficult? It really was a "win button", provided you had good AG and weren't using the sniper rifle. That some people didn't use it doesn't make it any less of a design flaw.

By no means should VATS be actually removed from the game in any measurable way. Combat without VATS is like ranged combat in Oblivion which is to say, it is completely unexciting. It just needs to be tempered.

But I suppose we'll see how it goes. JE Sawyer's in charge of the project, and unless Bethsoft decrees otherwise I'm sure he'll fiddle with VATS until he's satisfied with it. He was always a consummate Systems Man.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Ozymandias on 20 Apr 2009, 17:26
I have to sit and agree with John here.

I think VATS is a really good starting point, but not nearly enough thought went into the actual mechanics of the system. I think there's a lot of tweaking for balance that needs to be done to it before it can be great. As of now, it's a great idea with an alright execution.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: JD on 20 Apr 2009, 17:32
Or online multiplayer.

Nah, I don't think that will work well.

also, make the DLC's easier to access for PC players.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 20 Apr 2009, 17:34
Hell, make them work when they're released period would be nice.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 20 Apr 2009, 17:35
I wonder if F:NV will even have DLC. And as far as I know the F3 DLC ends with Broken Steel.

Last time I heard the Fallout MMO rights are being taken back from Interplay, so the MMO will happen sometime, probably many years in the future.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Avec on 20 Apr 2009, 17:40
Specifically, is the dispute over the lack of difficulty while using VATS? If so, I'm pretty sure you could adjust the level of difficulty for a more enjoyable game play. I saw nothing wrong with VATS, so much so that when I completed approximately a quarter of the game I picked up Lincoln's repeater and played the game for that feeling of storming through towns, and delivering genocide on a plate. This feels like one of those situations where you're disagreeing just to disagree.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 20 Apr 2009, 17:43
That's not something I do. There isn't a single game in existence that cannot be improved upon in some way. VATS is one of several things in Fallout 3 that were good but flawed.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: JD on 02 May 2009, 15:56
Broken Steel Preview (http://www.shacknews.com/featuredarticle.x?id=1114)

tl;dr Broken steel will remove Fallout 3's stupid ending, and add shitload of new weapons and some new enemies.

I might actually get this DLC.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: LTK on 02 May 2009, 17:09
What? May fifth? Is it possible to throw those DLCs out even faster?

I must have been playing and waiting too much Half-Life 2, with their year-long release intervals. I hope the three DLCs will be available in one pack somewhere. And by 'somewhere' I mean 'anywhere but GFWL'.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Avec on 02 May 2009, 19:11
FUCK YEAH, I borrowed my copy of the game. This time I do have intentions of buying the upgraded version though.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 09 May 2009, 00:11
So.

I reinstalled Fallout 3 and am probably going to buy some content. Broken Steel sounds like a given, but are The Pitt or Operation Anchorage any good? Don't fail me now, internet.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: scarred on 09 May 2009, 01:26
Historical notice: this all happened months ago.

So my roommate got Fallout 3 and after a while his 360 glitched it out, and he got a new copy but it still glitched and he got frustrated and put it on the shelf. In his absence I took up the reins on my own 360 and played for about 20ish hours over the course of a couple weeks.

Then one day I put it down and haven't gone back to it since.

I think about it now and there's just no desire to go back to it. On paper, it's brilliant and should entertain me for hundreds of hours. But these days, whenever I feel compelled to play an action-RPG, my mind jumps immediately to either Fable II, Mass Effect, or Oblivion.

Did anyone feel similarly, or should I go incarcerate myself?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 09 May 2009, 03:03
So.

I reinstalled Fallout 3 and am probably going to buy some content. Broken Steel sounds like a given, but are The Pitt or Operation Anchorage any good? Don't fail me now, internet.

From what I understand the Pitt is pretty alright and Anchorage is a bit of a non-starter.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 10 May 2009, 18:58
Actually, VATS was something that most Fallout nerds probably appreciated. The main thing that most Fallout nerds miss is the quality of writing from the earlier games.

Personally I'm hoping Las Vegas does get pushed back as I'm rather looking forward to seeing some of the original Fallout writers get ahold of the franchise again and I'd prefer the chances of problems being minimized.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 10 May 2009, 19:11
New Vegas isn't being developed by Bethesda, only published by them. I'd put money on it sucking, one way or another.

Also Tommy I don't know what you're saying about VATS, because it was basically to make the game more like Fallout 1 & 2 and less like Oblivion.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 10 May 2009, 19:17
Obsidian getting it at least guarantees that the writing will be much improved.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 10 May 2009, 19:39
It's not really a choice, though! I mean have you played Fallout 3 without VATS? Goddamn it's dull. VATS is Fallout 3's appeal, in combat at least.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 10 May 2009, 20:11
It's not that dull.  It ends up being like a really gory FPS if you go into combat without VATS.  Which is totally fine by me, it gives me a break from the slo-mo stuff.  I just got Broken Steel and have been shooting bunches of dudes into pieces without VATS.  It feels a lot more like a firefight this way (because I'm now typically encountering 2-3 Enclave Soldiers/Deathclaws at once), and I'm less pissed off when my shots miss because I'm not worried about accuracy percentages.  I go back and forth between the two and just in general have a blast. 
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 10 May 2009, 21:02
Broken Steel is pretty cool. I finished the main quest line yesterday, but there are a couple sidequests I haven't started yet so I don't know how good they are. The reason I bought it (and why I didn't buy either of the previous two) was the increased level cap. Some of the new perks are pretty cool, although I haven't gotten to 30 yet so I can't grab either of the crazy max level ones.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 10 May 2009, 22:00
I bought Broken Steel for the PC, and am almost regretting it. On one hand, it's nice playing Fallout again. On the other, holy shit it is still a buggy mess. I crash every other minute.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 10 May 2009, 22:32
Bethesda is kind of terrible at this.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 10 May 2009, 23:56
Well, the 360 version is fine!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 11 May 2009, 00:08
New Vegas isn't being developed by Bethesda, only published by them. I'd put money on it sucking, one way or another.

You're aware it's Black Isle developing, right?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 11 May 2009, 00:44
Obsidian. Black Isle hasn't existed since 2003.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 11 May 2009, 01:17
Close enough.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: look out! Ninjas! on 11 May 2009, 03:11
Sniping, for example, is balls in VATS.
And yet so incredibly rewarding when you blow off a mutant's head from hundreds of meters away.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: snalin on 11 May 2009, 13:42
Has there been any news on a all-in-one DLC pack? Is there already one out?

Anyways
I know absolutely nothing about game design but I'm curious as to how you could create a game as rich and rewarding as the one I just played for literally 120 hours over the last few months (being Fallout 3, my first and only Fallout game) in a year. I

Have you ever played around with Morrowind's or Oblivion's construction sets? I'm guessing that they made something similar for Fallout 3, and once you have that set down, development becomes piss easy. Everyone and his mother can make some reasonably interesting missions for Morrowind, or Oblivion if they know any voice actors. So 1 year will be hard, but as long as they don't have to change that much, they should be able to do it.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 11 May 2009, 17:39
Has there been any news on a all-in-one DLC pack? Is there already one out?
There will be a retail release similar to the DVD of Shivering Isles in Oblivion day.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 19 May 2009, 12:46
Two new DLCs announced for later Summer, PS3 to receive the 3 already out there (http://xboxlive.ign.com/articles/983/983990p1.html)
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: LTK on 19 May 2009, 14:56
They're selling the DLCs by retail in packs of two? That sucks. Why can't they put all of the new content in one pack? If they keep this assery up I might as well pirate the GOTY edition.

But...

Quote
IGN: Once again, we must ask: will any of these downloads offer up Dogmeat Armor?

Todd Howard: How much would you pay for one that uses Liberty Prime's voice chip and makes Dogmeat talk like a giant robot while blasting people to chunky soup?

BLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRGGHHAHAHAHAHA
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Blue Kitty on 19 May 2009, 14:59
They're also going to be selling a Game of the Year addition around October that has all the packs in it, including Point Lookout and Mothership Zeta, or at least that's what Kotaku says.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Alex C on 19 May 2009, 15:00
Combatting assery by pirating is basically entering yourself into the world's biggest douchebag competition.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: LTK on 19 May 2009, 15:08
They're also going to be selling a Game of the Year addition around October that has all the packs in it, including Point Lookout and Mothership Zeta, or at least that's what Kotaku says.

The interview said the same, but that edition (not addition, right?) includes Fallout 3. I have Fallout 3, I just want the damn DLCs without having to go through too much trouble. I'm looking at you, GFWL. If that makes me world's biggest douche, hell if I care.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Scandanavian War Machine on 19 May 2009, 15:23
i haven't downloaded any of the content and i don't plan to. i'll trade in Fallout 3 some time in the next couple of months and then buy the GOTY edition when it comes out with all of them. it's much simpler and cheaper that way, plus they'll have resolved most/all of the issues by then anyway.

then again, i don't even have the internet so i couldn't download these if i wanted to. meh.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Josefbugman on 21 May 2009, 13:19
I have the PS3 version, do all the new content patches come out in October that will enable me to play all of them? Or is there something more going on?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Dimmukane on 21 May 2009, 13:59
You're getting them sometime in the summer, at least the first 3, but there's going to be a DLC disk/GOTY edition (I'm not sure if this is for the 360 only, though) in September/October.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Josefbugman on 21 May 2009, 14:45
I'll wait till september then.

Though I am looking forward to becoming a fully paid up member of the brotherhood of steel.

Its odd reading about how different people play things my characters are always good, I can't really play the evil game very well, I don't like hurting people who haven't hurt me. I don't see the attraction of playing the badie unless you can make it so hammy it tastes like pork loin or getting a sympathetic reason behind it, as is in most RPG's you don't get a reason to be evil, you get an excuse instead.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: est on 11 Jun 2009, 22:58
No, you combat it by not buying their shit.  By taking it one step further and pirating it you are in the wrong.

Don't get me wrong, I used to do it and sometimes still do, but I don't hide behind some kind of moral bullshit shield, I know what I do is wrong and accept that.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 11 Jun 2009, 23:01
That's not really how it works, no. The response of the gaming industry to piracy has been to move its business towards outlets that at least make pirates work harder for their freeloading, ie consoles. This has been the trend over the last console cycle. Piracy is a short-term solution to consumer dissatisfaction, but the fact that people are pirating PC games means that people want to play PC games. The more people dislike gaming publishers, the more piracy occurs, and the more piracy occurs the more the publishers will take their business elsewhere. Consumers will ultimately lose. Thieves always think they've got it made until the merchants skip town.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Ozymandias on 11 Jun 2009, 23:08
Exactly.

Piracy is not "how economics works". That's pretty much the worst, dumbest lie I've ever read.

Not buying it and not playing it is how economics works. You don't get to say "Well, I disagree with your methods but I still want your product so I'm stealing it now what nanny nanny boo boo". If you want to make a statement you just don't buy it or pirate it period. That is how capitalism works.

Piracy just means more consumers suffer.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Ozymandias on 11 Jun 2009, 23:15
You're like 12 right?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: est on 11 Jun 2009, 23:17
Seriously.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: est on 11 Jun 2009, 23:26
Sing it, brother.  Blow the lid off the whole capitalist conspiracy.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: est on 11 Jun 2009, 23:34
and I still think that it is a rationalisation on your behalf to think that anything other than boycotting a product is proper in such a situation.

Think outside the immediate monetary exchange.  If you play the game you are contributing to the community surrounding the game, enhancing the game's desirability to others.  A person wanting to buy and play a game online may think twice about buying it if they know no-one else will be online to play against, but they may consider it if there is a thriving community, whether the people in the community are paying members or not.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Ozymandias on 11 Jun 2009, 23:37
Oh man.

Fuck yeah.

Fight the power. You are a fuckin' rebel sitting there behind your computer clicking "download torrent". You are the motherfuckin' front lines in the revolution.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: est on 11 Jun 2009, 23:39
also, the makers of these games don't owe you anything.  If you like their product and you want their product then you either pay what they are asking for it or if you disagree with the pricing you do what I do and wait a couple months for it to no longer be a new release and buy it second hand/on sale or when it just naturally becomes less expensive due to not being brand new.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: est on 11 Jun 2009, 23:44
Ok I am no longer interested in talking to you about this because you're pretty ridiculous.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Ozymandias on 11 Jun 2009, 23:50
Oh my gosh now I'm curious what are your free games that are going to bring down EA please tell me
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Ozymandias on 11 Jun 2009, 23:54
Epic burn.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: est on 12 Jun 2009, 00:03
You know I can see that you're both the same person, right?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: est on 12 Jun 2009, 00:19
Oh hey, he deleted all his posts.

Gimme a show of hands, should I move everything after say, my post starting "No, you combat it by not buying their shit." into the trash or leave it how it stands?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Delirium on 12 Jun 2009, 00:20
I truly apologize for my idiocy, not only to you all, but to myself. I was not exactly lucid, but still have only myself to blame. I embaressed not only myself, but also your forum, in the full view of the internet. I would be remiss to ask for forgiveness, but only submit myself to your judgement. You were right to say I was acting like a 12-year-old, because I was, in spirit. For this, again, I apologize. I have no further opinions to submit on the subject of torrents, corporations, capitalism, or otherwise. Except Fallout 3. It rocks, and was worth every cent.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: snalin on 12 Jun 2009, 00:27
Win.

Uh Fallout 3, yeah. Go you, game.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Surgoshan on 12 Jun 2009, 08:24
I have to say, with the majority of the posts in that argument deleted, this thread became very surreal.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 12 Jun 2009, 15:14
This thread has become awesome now.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: est on 12 Jun 2009, 15:18
It's now the "est and ozy badger an invisible man" thread.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: est on 12 Jun 2009, 15:21
Or perhaps "est and ozy yell at each other for no discernible reason because hey, aren't they essentially saying the same thing?"
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Yayniall on 12 Jun 2009, 16:50
Oh my gosh now I'm curious what are your free games that are going to bring down EA please tell me
Epic burn.
You know I can see that you're both the same person, right?

This was my favourite part, it looked like Ozymandias made fun of est with his cutting remark and then backed himself up.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Delirium on 12 Jun 2009, 19:31
Holy shit I am so embaressed. Let this thread stand as an object lesson not to post whilst intoxicated. nothing good can come of it.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Ozymandias on 12 Jun 2009, 20:36
Oh my gosh now I'm curious what are your free games that are going to bring down EA please tell me
Epic burn.
You know I can see that you're both the same person, right?

This was my favourite part, it looked like Ozymandias made fun of est with his cutting remark and then backed himself up.

Yes this is awesome, don't balete anything.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 13 Jun 2009, 14:40
Holy shit I am so embaressed. Let this thread stand as an object lesson not to post whilst intoxicated. nothing good can come of it.

Unless you're posting in the drunk thread!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Boro_Bandito on 13 Jun 2009, 16:47
So I was in Target yesterday and I saw that they are now selling the first 3 fallout games for PC in a package together, Fallout, Fallout 2 and Fallout tactics. Worthy purchase?
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 13 Jun 2009, 16:53
Hell yes. Though I think Good old Games has them all as well.

http://www.gog.com/en/gamecard/fallout

http://www.gog.com/en/gamecard/fallout

http://www.gog.com/en/gamecard/fallout_tactics
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Delirium on 13 Jun 2009, 22:51
So I was in Target yesterday and I saw that they are now selling the first 3 fallout games for PC in a package together, Fallout, Fallout 2 and Fallout tactics. Worthy purchase?
Only if you take Tactics and toss it in the garbage disposal. I'd rather shove my arm up a dead rhino's ass while giving Godzilla a blowjob than suffer one more second of it.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: ackblom12 on 13 Jun 2009, 22:53
Meh, Tactics is a good game. It was disappointing if you are looking for the same things you can get from the first, but it was a good tactical squad game overall.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 13 Jun 2009, 22:54
Seriously though, if you like tactical combat games, like Jagged Alliance and the like, you could do worse, provided you keep turn-based combat on.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 14 Jun 2009, 11:47
"Real Time Settler" mod (http://fo3settler.webs.com/apps/blog/). Basically this allows you to build and run a small town, and govern it, protect it from raiders, etc. It looks pretty impressive given how far afield it is from normal F3 gameplay. There do seem to be some insurmountable issues with the engine though (for example, navmeshes can't be altered so villagers will attempt to walk through walls because they don't know there are walls)
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 15 Dec 2009, 20:49
Not long now. (http://twitter.com/jesawyer/status/6701333314)
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 22 Dec 2009, 22:29
So I'm playing this FO3 PC mod called Wanderer's Edition (http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=2761) and despite my skepticism at its ambition it actually works surprisingly well and fundamentally changes the way you play Fallout 3 (for the better in my estimation, but it's definitely a matter of taste). Pistols become useful, shotgun shells become precious resources, most of the skills become more useful and you can't specialize in more than a few, you're no longer invincible (you have to run and use tactics with most of the battles, and the dart gun becomes 1000x more useful), healing becomes tougher (there's an optional "triage" mod that requires you to have surgical tubing in order to apply stims to limbs), sprint and slo-mo add some tactical elements, and there's even a bit of variety added in PC backgrounds (I'm playing as a ghoul, which means feral ghouls are neutral to me and environmental radiation slowly heals me and reduces my rad count drastically, but there are other backgrounds that change up where you start, your starting equipment, bonus perks and modifiers to your skills, etc.) that really add something to the game up until the point at which you start the main questline and all of a sudden you're from Vault 101 (F3 being what it is, however, you can delay that for a long, long time)

It's actually one of the more successful full-game conversions I've played. There's a lot but most of it is actually optional. Most of you pricks probably play on consoles but there have to be a few of you who are sporting the PC plumage (Steve?)
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: JD on 22 Dec 2009, 22:33
Looks awesome
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Melodic on 22 Dec 2009, 23:46
Me, bitch. I play PC.

But Fallout 3 is sooo last year.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: satsugaikaze on 23 Dec 2009, 06:31
Most of that sounds interesting, except I raised an eyebrow at the mention of weapon rebalances. As far as I'm concerned aside from the late-game occurrence of laser rifles being as common as Empty Soda Bottles the frequency of weaponry and ammo was pretty balanced. (and tbh I would think the Dart Gun is fine as it is, it only really had 2 purposes, both of which weren't really for killing)

I do like the idea of the character customisation opportunities, that sounds ace.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 23 Dec 2009, 08:24
Most of that sounds interesting, except I raised an eyebrow at the mention of weapon rebalances. As far as I'm concerned aside from the late-game occurrence of laser rifles being as common as Empty Soda Bottles the frequency of weaponry and ammo was pretty balanced. (and tbh I would think the Dart Gun is fine as it is, it only really had 2 purposes, both of which weren't really for killing)
That part is probably down to taste, to be honest. Mainly what the rebalancing does is make keep you using pistols for significantly longer than you would in the vanilla game, since ammo becomes scarce enough that you have to build a reserve of ammo before breaking out automatic weapons. In general it just makes you switch between weapons more readily, as you have to assess whether an enemy is worth a shotgun shell, or if it's worth risking a melee attack (there's an optional mod that alters how much damage you can take in VATS).
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Caleb on 23 Dec 2009, 10:33
Fallout 3 Game of the Year edition is on sale for 29.99 at Best Buy now...

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Fallout+3%3A+Game+of+the+Year+Edition+-+Windows/9554154.p?id=1218123464257&skuId=9554154&st=fallout%203

I feel kinda stupid that I bought all the add-ons separately now...

I never finished that game...I really need to.  Oh God I still haven't finished Dragon Age either...

Dammit.  I should just go back to reading books for awhile.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 23 Dec 2009, 17:01
Little tidbit about New Vegas:
Quote
Chris Avellone: I'd been working on Van Buren for a few years on-and-off at Black Isle, but Icewind Dale and Baldur's Gate III (canceled) drafted me at various points so I wasn't able to devote my time fully to F3. It didn't really expand the team beyond just myself until BG3 got canceled and we had an entire team to roll onto it. I got to work with Josh on it as Creative Lead, which was great (and now we get to do it again, except I work as a senior designer reporting to Josh). Josh and I had been playing a pen-and-paper version of the actual game for a while along with other potential team members to test out locations and new turn-based mechanics we thought might be cool for the title...

Chris Avellone: I'm all done with Alpha Protocol now, it's in good shape. While I work on almost all the projects at Obsidian in some capacity as a Creative Director, Fallout New Vegas is my current focus now. It's great to be working directly on one of my favorite franchises, and it's great to be working with Josh again - he's got great stuff planned, and I think players are going to have a lot of fun in New Vegas...
Note that Avellone references a possible turn-based system. I knew they were overhauling a number of Fallout 3's systems but I don't think anybody really seriously considered the possibility of a return to turn-based combat. That ought to cause a few aneurysms out there in internet-land (particularly in the Bethsoft camp)

*On second reading they might just be talking about VB, as they definitely played a pen & paper version of that based on Sawyer's SIMPLE stystem (http://falloutpnp.wikia.com/wiki/Simple:_Main_Page). Still, MCA on Fallout again should be great.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 23 Dec 2009, 18:07
it's probably going to cause me to not buy it
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 23 Dec 2009, 18:10
like really what i was most excited for was the prospect of these dudes writing another fallout game and basically feeling as excited for every mission as i did about oasis, not taking the systems which made a hundred hours feel like ten and turn it into a pretty version of a game originally made for twenty-five year-olds with unix knowledge
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 23 Dec 2009, 18:17
As always, the quality of a product is entirely incidental to its success in the marketplace.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Johnny C on 23 Dec 2009, 18:35
i'm saying that there is a thing they should be fuckin with and a thing they should not be fuckin with and guess what i am reading that they are fuckin with
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 24 Dec 2009, 10:30
The whole interview's up here (http://trzynasty-schron.net/dzial,wywiad_obsidian_en.htm) and most of it is retrospective stuff w/r/t Van Buren and the like, but of particular interest is Sawyer's take on armor stats, which I'm 95% sure is what will end up in New Vegas.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Storm Rider on 24 Dec 2009, 13:37
I'm pretty sure all the turn-based stuff was specifically referring to Van Buren. It's still running on Bethesda tech, as far as I know, so I'd be pretty surprised if they reworked it entirely into a turn-based game.

What would be really funny to me is if Bethesda bought Obsidian after this. They've been on an acquisition kick lately, it wouldn't surprise me. That would create some really good internet rage.

Also, the 'quality is entirely incidental to success' claim has been proven to be bullshit. NPD research has shown that universal critical acclaim nearly always correlates with increased sales. It's just when you miss the 90+ Metacritic mark and hit the 70-85 range where it essentially becomes a dice roll.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: satsugaikaze on 30 Dec 2009, 04:50
Fallout 3 Game of the Year edition is on sale for 29.99 at Best Buy now

Australia makes us Australians pay 100 AUD for that shit goddamnit

I wouldn't mind turn-based stuff again. Old as dirt, still plays fine.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Boro_Bandito on 30 Dec 2009, 13:18
I just picked the game of the year edition up along with my brand spankin new 60gb hard drive. I had borrowed the game originally from an acquaintance for a couple months but then had to give it back so I never beat it, and now I have all the DLC, so still plenty of adventures to be had. I'm working on a neutral scientist character with lasers, in addition to my ol' sharpshootin' gunslinger good guy. Eventually I'll make an evil ass mofo, just haven't decided yet what I'm going to have 'em do. Maybe heavy weapons.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: LTK on 07 Jan 2010, 09:04
I was planning on replaying Fallout 3 with some mods installed to make it more of a challenge, but I might have been installing them too haphazardly. Is there anyone who can give me a hand with installing and managing them? Previously I just dumped seven different mods in that Data folder, but then the game did something funky on startup, and when I did play it, I didn't notice anything different. Now I've got the new Win 7 and everything's reformatted, so I'll try it again with some restraint, and I would appreciate some tips on how to use that mod manager.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: snalin on 07 Jan 2010, 12:09
First of all you have to activate the mods, you do that through the launch menu. If you've done that, and still have problems, search around for the mod manager, it'll help a bunch. It's download site or the bethesda forums will probably help out with all details if you still can't get it to work.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 07 Jan 2010, 13:25
I was planning on replaying Fallout 3 with some mods installed to make it more of a challenge, but I might have been installing them too haphazardly. Is there anyone who can give me a hand with installing and managing them? Previously I just dumped seven different mods in that Data folder, but then the game did something funky on startup, and when I did play it, I didn't notice anything different. Now I've got the new Win 7 and everything's reformatted, so I'll try it again with some restraint, and I would appreciate some tips on how to use that mod manager.
I hear that maybe Win 7 is causing some friction with F3. No official word that I've heard.

First of all, do not use the vanilla game launcher. Use FOMM (http://sourceforge.net/projects/fomm/), it is essential for a good number of mods. I don't know if that's the latest version. Check Fallout3nexus (http://www.fallout3nexus.com/) when it comes back up, it looks to be dead at the moment. But that's where all the mods are, many of them require FOMM.

There are a lot of different mods. The one that I'd recommend is Wanderer's Edition but it changes the game quite a bit and makes the game MUCH harder (going toe-to-toe with a guy with an assault rifle becomes suicide) other things you might want to check out are custom radio stations, Enhance Weather, Fellout, etc. There's a pretty impressive creature mod called Mart's Mutant Mod but it doesn't seem to work for me - the textures don't load right. But if you can get it to work it's pretty damn cool.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 07 Jan 2010, 14:41
Here's some -

Fallout Mod Manager (http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=640), use in place of regular game launcher. Mods should come with instructions on what order to put mods in. Remember - if a mod comes with an .esm and .esp's put the .esm first. If you put in mods and your game crashes to desktop when you're going from one area to another, it's probably due to the order of your mods.

Fellout (http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=2672). Removes Matrix-y green tint from the game world.

Wanderer's Edition (http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=2761). An amalgam of various game mechanic-changing mods. Requires some doing, but it changes the game a LOT. Video! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a7b0mjp1wRA&feature=player_embedded)

iPip custom radio station (http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=1559). An extra radio station (listenable anywhere) that you can put your own stuff in, if you want. Also comes in extended capacity version (http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=1832).

Enhanced Weather mod (http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=6170). Adds rain and snow and a number of new skyboxes (some of which are quite impressive) Optionally, you can make rain and snow radioactive, though this has been known to cause some weirdness.

Mart's Mutant Mod (http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=3211). A big and complicated mod but if you can get it to work, it adds new creatures and a lot of variety to existing creatures, and improvements to AI.

Ultimate Perk Pack (http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=1409). Adds new perks. Some of them are actually traits in Fallout 1/2 style (you can get them when you reach level 2).

MTUI (http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=43). Expands the User Interface so it can hold more stuff (more conversation choices, more items in lists, etc.)

Also if you're like me and you prefer Mark Morgan's original ambient scores to Inon Zur's bombastic F3 score you can replace it using this mod (http://www.megaupload.com/?d=Y6L1M3EB).
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: LTK on 08 Jan 2010, 04:53
Got all of those except the Wanderer's Edition, perk pack and custom radio. I do have extra songs for Galaxy News Radio, though. I'm not sure if Wanderer's Edition would be fun to play, it looks a bit hard. I've also installed Better Living Through Chems, which adds a lot of cool drugs and FOOK, Fallout 3 Overhaul Kit, which adds a lot of new weapons and apparel and changes their stats and behaviour.

Now I've got most of them working. Just wandered into Megaton and made fun of the Sheriff's hat, and I noticed the bomb is on a scaffolding. That wasn't there before. The mods appear to work; I stepped out of the Vault into the rain, the item names have been improved, just as their behaviour. I didn't know that the order in which mods are listed mattered, but I haven't had any problems yet.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: Spike on 08 Jan 2010, 14:27
I never really used FWE until just now, yes it is harder.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: LTK on 09 Jan 2010, 08:05
I also installed a radiation mod (http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=776) that adds more to radiation sickness, at intervals of 100 rads starting with 200, and adding effects like the inability to walk straight or aim, stumbling, passing out, migraines and health loss at high levels.

After some time FOOK started causing a lot of crashes when starting up or loading a game. I've put the mods in the order that the FOMM suggested, and it appeared to fix some things, but it seems that FOOK is causing the crashes. I'll try installing the compatibility mod, see if that helps... But no. Just gonna reinstall it in case I mucked something up in the files.

But it's safe to say that mods ruined Fallout 3 for me. I probably won't be able to enjoy the un-modded game after this.  :roll:
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: KvP on 09 Jan 2010, 12:39
Welcome to Bethsoft games!
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: snalin on 09 Jan 2010, 14:37
I had one mod that allowed me to see the whole Vvardenfell from the top of Dagoth Ur. I can't find it again, and I'm not playing the game again without that view.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: carrotosaurus on 13 Jan 2010, 09:37
Hey I had that mod too.
Title: Re: Fallout 3
Post by: johnny5 on 15 Jan 2010, 17:02
I have dreams about sitting around in the wastelands, not doing shit.