Fallout 3:

And Yet I'm Loving It ??

Okay, So my last post might of been a little harsh. For those who may not have read it it was a review of Fallout based on my first 16 hours of play time (what looks like it may have been the first third of the game)
The majority of the complaints fell into the category of -
1- This is a First Person Shooter with RPG elements. With most of those elements liberally stolen from other better games (Fable is a prime candidate) And-
2- because this is a RPG-Action Hybrid, it makes many compromises between the two genres, leaving it as neither a great RPG or a great FPS.
3- This was designed for console, not PC, and the interface is VERY limited as a result.

Or in short, this was a game that has an OUTSTANDING Pedigree, and Bethesda managed to Gimp it.

I'm now prepared to say that SOME of this might have been a bit harsh.
firstly, some of those bad points.

See, I'm now at approximately the 2/3 mark, having explored a good chunk of the available map, and having unlocked the Mark 2 power-armor. And have therefore experienced a fair sight more of what the game has to offer.

The main issue I had, having picked up this game hoping for a brilliant RPG comparable to Fallout 2, was that the quests you are offered, were inevitably bland and banal. Often limited to "fetch X", "defeat X", and "Visit X" while offering a choice between a "Good" path and a "Bad" path.
It really does feel like Bethesda has spent to much time capturing the "Look" of the Fallout Universe, and not enough to write decent scripts (be they the quests themselves, or the dialogue options)
In fact this element of the game, the RPG elements, were rather disappointing.

I'm pleased to say that this does start to give way to a few inspired moments. Oh sure, a lot of the quests feel like little more than a reason to get you to go to another-generic-dungeon-to-fight-nasties-before-claiming-prize, but there are at least a few quests that offer a pleasant change of pace (the dream-like Tranquility lane is a wonderful example) and the oppurtunity to explore non-violent options to resolve quests (such as Arefu's vampire situation) become more abundant.
And yet niggles remain, the dialogue trees frequently fell stilted and your conversational responses limited. Saying "I've got to go now" when you've just found your father who've you've chased halfway across the wastelands to find, And will be travelling with to your next destination, just feels WRONG, even a simple "let's go dad" would have been a massive improvement.

Oh sure, The voice work is done by some wonderful pedigree, Liam Neeson, Malcolm Mcdowell, but the scripts continue to hurt, or just be plain out of misstep. Why am I offered the chance to ask guards for help clearing the Ghoul problem when I flatly turned down the quest?

So yeah, after the beauty that was Fallout 2's quests and scripting (and yes, I loved it's black humour) and recent gems such as Neverwinter Nights or Star Wars:KOTOR setting some pretty high benchmarks for RPGs this still feels like it fall short.

And yes, the world can be a frustrating thing to navigate, but it does slowly get easier. It is just unfortunate that this again means clearing the dungeon instances that are the local subway tunnels in order to do this. (Why weren't vehicle options included to make this less painful?)

Yes, the combat system doesn't get any less clunky. I understand the decision to hide the stats and numbers to make the RPG elements less "Nerdy" but this really does confuse a lot of issues. Even if you line up your crosshairs perfectly for a headshot, you can miss because of, what one can only assume, is insufficient points in the corresponding skill.
And details such as different damage types and resistances are barely hinted at, and certainly not transparent enough to be easily utilised.

And lastly, it feels naff to complain about the game being a Console-Port, especially when Bethesda has tried so hard to make it a clean port. But that "Games for Windows" moniker isn't fooling anyone, this was first and foremost a game designed for consoles.
And this means that all those nice trimming I'm used to in my PC games just aren’t there. The foremost example?
The Inventory system also remains clunky, and no, you will never get past the consistent lack of ammunition, which combined by the weapons knack of deteriorating at just the wrong moment, forces you to keep numerous backup weapons. The end result is the afore-mentioned, difficult to navigate inventory. This will only further frustrate you as the game continues and would have been so easily solved via a quick hot-bar menu. So why didn't they?

And yet, I find myself getting drawn up in this world's charm, It becomes an addictive little thing offering moments of brilliance, a truly guilty little pleasure.
And I've got no idea why.

Yep, the thing is, that I've found myself really loving this peculiar beast. It is deeply immersive, a credit to that effort on it's visual design.
The combat becomes, surprisingly, equally engaging.
And I find myself going out of my way to explore the world, to unlock it's wonders.

So yeah, I'm downright loving it.

So while this remains a game I doubt I will ever reinstall after the initial playthrough (as I have with both Neverwinter Nights) It is still a thoroughly enjoyable game, And I find myself heartily recommending it?

Don't ask me why, I don't know, just get out there and enjoy it.