Fallout 3

When I first heard about Fallout 3 coming to the consoles at last E3, I didn’t have much of a clue what Fallout was. I was later informed that  it was from the same developers who brought us Elder Scrolls Oblivion, Bethesda. A game which I fell in love with. There were many reasons for loving Oblivion, with a massive free world and pick your own adventure storyline, it was a game that the player had total control over. With over 50+ hours of playtime in Oblivion, I was expected to do the same in Fallout 3. Which I did.

It’s fair to say that Fallout 3 is quite similar to Oblivion, hence the same developers. It had the same mechanics and similar artwork but it did not follow along with the same vibe Oblivion brought with. Fallout 3 takes place in post-apocalyptic Washington DC. Don’t expect it to bring the same medieval/fantasy vibe. It’s quite the opposite, really. The story starts off with the player creating the main character. Quite similar to Oblivion. As you advance through the early storyline, you will have opportunities to interact with other characters. While socializing with them, you have different options to choose during the dialogue. Many of which depends on what kind of character you will become; good, evil.  The main storyline in Fallout 3 is you finding your father who has escaped from Vault 101. You escape ,also, and you venture to find him through the wastelands of DC.

The combat system in Fallout is the same as Oblivion, but with guns. I tried not to bring up the “same but with guns” statement, but that really is the only difference. However, there is one significant and innovative system that Fallout brings with its combat, which is the VATS system. VATS is Vault-Tec Assisted Targeting System. This is triggered by pressing RB(xbox 360), and once it is in affect, time will be stopped in-game and the player will have the option to where he wants to shoot/attack his weapon at a specific body part. Depending on your range, each body part will have a certain percentage that tells you your chance of success rate of hitting that target. VATS is a unique and innovative system that Bethesda did a well job on presenting. I like the exploding heads.

Bethesda truly did an amazing job with bringing Fallout 3 to the consoles. With an innovative combat system and breath-taking storyline, Fallout 3 is a sure contender for GoTY. I’ll be looking forward to future DLC. MAYBERAISELEVELCAP? THX.