A Capitol Achievement
Disclaimer: I have never played Oblivion, therefor did not hold any pre-assumptions or correlation to previous Bethesda developed games.
Fallout 3 is an epic adventure of monumental proportions. In the year 2277, you are living underground in a "vault" built for human habitation away from the hazardous and dangerous realities of the world above. When your father, a respected scientist, flees the vault unannounced, your character chooses to follow him into the wasteland. What follows is a series of open ended choices that ultimately decide the length of the game, the missions you embark on, and the good or evil that you will unleash on the world in a quest to find your father.
i was immediately floored by the shear size of the game - both the map and the storylines. Once having emerged from the vault somewhere on the outskirts of Washington DC, you can faintly make out buildings on the distant horizon. But the map stretches much further. Characters across the wasteland range from friendly to cruel to downright deadly. This variance was much more realistic than many videogames (ie Far Cry 2) where every person you come in contact with wants to kill you. The dialogue and interaction with others is varied and well done.
While the size of the quest can sometimes be overwhelming, much of the game is comprised of side quests. That said, a gamer with a healthy interest in the game could easily spend 70-100 hours playing through a majority of the missions...
My biggest gripe with the game is "traveling". I did not find the travel through the urban areas of post-apocalyptic D.C. fun at all. A few times I had a clear objective on where to go, but could not get there easily, being sent on a goose chase that took me all over the map through subway systems and dead end streets. The blockaded streets caused a good amount of frustration, to say the least. Not always the best level design...
The weapons a lot of fun to use in Fallout 3. Everything from a pistol to Mini-Nuke launcher are offered to the player - but you will have to search them out. Trading and bartering with people can be done throughout the game, and seems like a balanced way to acquire new weapons and ammo. The option to build your own weapons and repair them also allows for a lot of versatility.
The VATS system allows players to essentially "freeze" a moment during a fight and choose how to attack the opponent. It is a creative mechanism, and works pretty well. Once an attack is placed, the following is presented in slow motion with varying camera angles. It really breaks up the monotony of fighting and allows the fantastic graphics to shine. Props to Bethesda on the VATS system.
Overall, Fallout 3 is a great experience. Gameplay, Graphics, Sound and Story all work fairly seamlessly, with plenty of easter eggs for those who want to search and invest a lot of time into the game. I don't favor most RPG's, but this is a must-play for 2009.
