Fallout: New Vegas Game Review

Two years after the phenomenal success Bethesda had with Fallout 3, we are blessed with the latest juggernaut of the franchise, Fallout New Vegas. Obsidian didn't feel the need to make any major changes to the successful formula and at times New Vegas can feel like a huge expansion to it's predecessor. This is certainly not a bad thing though considering Fallout 3 was one of the greatest open world RPG's we have seen in modern gaming.

The Fallout franchise takes places after a war which leaves the U.S desecrated, Humanity emerges from the tragedy just as selfish and power-hungry as before. Unlike most other areas in the U.S, Vegas managed to survive the bombardment of nuclear warheads fairly untouched. In the aftermath a group of people formed, touting the values of the old government system and called themselves The New California Republic, or NCR.

Vegas has a different look and feel to the rest of the post-apocalyptic wasteland. While other areas feel lifeless and dead, Vegas is thriving thank's to the Hoover Damn which provides the citizens of New Vegas with clean water and power, something most other areas lack.

The NCR are not alone though, they are at odds with a group called the Legion. The Legion is a dictatorship lead by a man who has renamed himself Caesar. Based on the Roman methodology of conquering other civilisations, the Legion conquers near by tribes and absorbs a portion of their population. Tensions between the two groups are high as they fight for control of the area and create a dramatic division surrounding the centrepiece of their battle, the Hoover Damn.

Both factions seem to project both sides of morality which creates a less black and white type game. However when you kill a member of the Legion you gain karma, but when you do the same to a NCR member you loose karma. This was disappointing as it creates the good and bad type choices again rather than choosing what you believe in and encouraging the player to listen to the reasons and motivation each fraction gives before making any decision. The New California Republic is bloated and ineffective at protecting it's own people. The Legion on the other hand while more organized seems morally wrong with it's slave labour and tight ship.

You begin your journey in New Vegas as courier during these troubled times without any real indication of your background. All you know is your mission is to deliver a package to the New Vegas strip, but thing's don't quite work out like that. The story is interesting and provides enough twists and tales to keep the players amusement for hours, it's just too predictable in some areas. The game also ends similar to Fallout 3 before Bethesda released downloadable content, each of the three endings will be a definitive end leaving players with the option to either start a new game, or re-load an earlier saved point to continue with the journey through the wasteland. This is disappointing considering that was one of the biggest complaints with it's predecessor.

When you enter the Mojave Desert for the first time you will notice a striking resemblance to the previous wastelands, however there is vegetation here now which can be harvested to create such things as healing powder or stimpaks. Fresh fruit, seeds, and herbs are the building blocks you will use to create the concoctions which could be the difference between life or death in this harsh environment. The game is still difficult when your inexperienced but the main missions will keep you safe as they lead you down a relatively safe route to the New Vegas strip.

Outside of the main storyline there is an enormous amount of side missions, this is the reason to buy this game. There are few limits to exploration in this game and the vast open areas you have to explore are outstanding. There is an overwhelming amount of places to explore and sometimes i found myself scanning a small location up to 20 times, constantly finding something i missed the last time around. The game is huge and while the main storyline is short, the vast explorable wastelands offer hours of interesting missions most of which are better than the main campaign. You will find the traditional "Go fetch" side missions were you will be asked to retrieve something, before returning it to it's rightful place but there is also the type of mission which makes the main campaign look like a walk in the park. Deception, cannibalism, space travel, and drug use are all themes you will find through exploring this mega sandbox. There is over 100 hours of fun to be had, much like Fallout 3, so expect to spend many day's and night's in search of whatever the wastelands have to offer you.

Your actions define you in the wasteland, if you are nice to small town folk and help defend their village from attackers they will idolise you. Of course this will make you an enemy to the opposing groups who are attacking the village though. These opinions are important as they determine how aggressive the opposing groups are towards you and create a sense of emotion when deciding if you should help someone or let them die. This kind of emotional choice is what drove Fallout 3's success and it's just as important in New Vegas.

The wasteland can be a lonely place so the option to travel with companions, one of the robot or animal variety and one of the person (or former person) means your travels will feel less isolated. This is good and bad, the feeling of isolation in the first game added to the sense of danger when exploring the wasteland however with companions it feels less dangerous which is not something you want to feel in a game like this. Seeing an enemy in the distance and knowing you are low on ammo was the type of situation which made Fallout 3 so thrilling and caused panic, but with 2 companions you just feel a little less threatened by anything out there. Each companion does offer you an extra boos and their kills reward you with experience points but i found them to be more of a nuisance than helpful at times. The AI of your companions can be terribly frustrating at times. When i would climb up a hill, sometimes having to manoeuvre a rock or two in the way, my companions would walk for miles and go the long way around the mountain and the same can be said for hopping a fence or taking any type of short-cut in the game.

The radio is back and this time we have Mr New Vegas as the prime DJ. I was a big fan of Three Dog in Fallout 3 however he could get a little annoying at times. Mr New Vegas is less annoying as a host but still seems to replay the same songs and stories too much so it's not going to be something you want on for your entire play-through. I found that i would play the radio when exploring smaller less important areas of the wastelands and turn it off when anything worthy of my attention was on screen.

Not much has changed with the gameplay mechanics and the transition from Fallout 3 to New Vegas should be fairly simple for the veterans. Wonder the desert, kill the monsters and thugs, rescue and befriend the good guys, or perhaps you could help the thugs do naughty things to the good guys, it's all your decision so be as good or bad as you like. The game does host an impressive variety of creative new animals and monsters to hunt or be hunted by, such as the Nightstalkers (a scary crossbreed of a Rattlesnake and a Coyote) or my personal favourite the Giant Praying Mantises (exactly what the name suggests). All these creatures are colourful and imaginative and help add to this unique post-apocalyptic world. There is nothing more satisfying than taking down a monster in the middle of nowhere when you are low on health with your last few rounds of ammo. There is frantic chases, thrilling battles, and moments of pure pressure and panic when you walk these wastelands but it never feels like a chore and always makes the player feel rewarded.

In New Vegas you will be doing allot of shooting and much like the first game you will have the option to shoot in either first, or third-person. Third-person has goofy animations and is impractical, it's really just for when you are wondering the wasteland to make sure nothing creeps up behind you. First-Person feels great and now you can aim down sights and play much more like a traditional first-person shooter while your V.A.T.S. are recharging which is a great addition to the gameplay.

V.A.T.S. stands for (Vault-Tec Assisted Targeting System) and it is the star of the game yet again. I don't think there has ever been a more satisfying tool used to end the life of an enemy in a game. V.A.T.S. works by pausing the action on screen and allowing the player to select specific body parts on the target such as a head, arm, foot, or even a tail if you are fighting something which is not human of course. When you spot a Wolf or Coyote running towards you and you manage to shoot it's leg off from a distance, the joy on your face can be matched by nothing in any other game. The great thing is the V.A.T.S system can't be overused and create an unfair game because it uses action points, and the more powerful weapons use up more action points so this encourages players to think smart and select when and where is the correct time to use this secret weapon.

Fallout New Vegas uses the same character levelling-up system as Fallout 3 did which is great considering Fallout 3 perfected that system. The S.P.E.C.I.A.L. acronym stands for Strength, Perception, Endurance, Charisma, Intelligence, Agility, and Luck, all of which you will need to survive. At the beginning of the game you will have a certain amount of skill points to allocate as you choose to each of the previous sections which will then determine how you evolve and advance throughout the game. After you build out your skills you may choose a perk just as in Fallout 3. Make sure you choose wisely because the type of character you evolve into will be vital for how you will need to approach the game. It might be easier in the beginning to focus on strength allowing you to hit harder and carry much more however a lack of intelligence will force you to level up much slower later in the game.

Every so often after levelling up you will have an option to select a perk, these were some of the most enjoyable aspects about Fallout 3 providing such crazy, bloody, and helpful options to combat and your characters development. They are just as fun to collect in New Vegas and the depth and range in character building is immense.

When i found out we were going to be travelling to Vegas for out next Fallout experience the first thing that i thought about was, gambling. I was worried we would be flooded with gambling mini games in order to gain caps (Fallout's Currency) that would just frustrate, and cause more of an annoyance than any kind of fun. I was correct, we do have these mini games across the Vegas strip and they are not really necessary to gain caps and if you are like me you will just scavenge every area of the wasteland to find what you need. There is one unique card game you can play with drifters across the wasteland called Caravan. Caravan is a card game which you can build up your own particular set of cards for but other than this there really isn't much other than traditional slot machines and blackjack.

The biggest new addition to the game is the introduction of a Hardcore mode, which is seriously Hardcore. The game even recommends you NOT! to select this mode which i found quite amusing. This game mode will make everything you pick up, including ammo, count as weight and force you to choose very wisely. This alone makes the game difficult but on top of this you will need to feed, drink, and rest regularly. You will also not be able to fast travel to locations without any water or food within a distance which would be realistically too far for a human. This degree of strict difficulty will test even Fallout veterans and make for a much longer experience. This realistic mode is a nice touch and allows players to choose which way the want to experience this fantastic game.

The game uses the same engine as Fallout 3 and has allot of the same problems. animations look stiff and lip syncing seems almost non-existent with some people. The loading times are frustrating and ridiculously long on the console versions. The frame-rate can sometimes be poor and overall there doesn't seem to be any real improvements from Fallout 3 in this area. The setting of Fallout 3 suited the graphical approach but in New Vegas the city which is the focal point of the game really doesn't do enough to impress with it's visuals. The game is still great looking out in the wasteland though.

Fallout New Vegas retains all that was great about Fallout 3, and all that was bad about it. The bugs and problems from the first game all seem to have been shifted over into this game which can make it feel like all the creators did was lift the game up and move it to a new location at times. However Fallout New Vegas is just as great as Fallout 3 when it comes to combat and gameplay, it even improves the shooting aspect of the game and provides hours of addictive side missions alongside a solid main storyline. The game may look a few years behind the time but with such a vast open world to explore this can be forgiven.

If you have completed all Fallout 3 has to offer, including downloadable content, then this is going to be just what you have been waiting for. If you didn't experience Fallout 3, or you did but just missed out on all the downloadable content in hopes that this game would be a huge improvement over the first then this is not for you. It might just be worth downloading all the extensions to Fallout 3 rather than spending money on New Vegas.

New Vegas is Fallout 3 with a different setting, which is not a bad thing at all 9/10