Fallout 3 (In review)

First off, Fallout 3 is awesome. It has it's shortcomings, but the longgoings definitely make up for it (and yes, I said longgoings). The weapons are remarkably fun, the graphics are great, and Anything Goes (except child killing, but that's another story).

So I beat the game awhile ago actually, but I've still been playing it trying to get all the quests and exploration done, and I have to say those that just play through the main story missed a lot.

But lets face it, you don't CARE about my temporary addiction, so we'll get right down to me rating the game:

Graphics: 8.5
The graphics in Fallout 3 are pretty good, but like some other people have pointed out, it has some tweaky npcs, and a couple graphical glitches I ran into. The locations are memorable, and the little things (and big things) really add a lot to the game.

Sound: 9
This game can get pretty freaky if you play through without the radio...mutants make creepy sounds, and even without their sounds the dark atmosphere can get pretty creepy. It's not "scary" in most instances, but not all. Also, the classic music throughout the game is great, even if some is repeated too much.

Gameplay:9
There's no hiding how fun this game has been to me, it's just really fun to play. Choices actually play out in the game, and that makes it replayable and fun. Combat is great, even if V.A.T.S. can find some weird camera angles and disorient you.

When I played the game I played through as a morally complicated player, openly gaining fame and respect for my great deeds, but in the shadows I was a cannibal and a slaver. It feels great to be able to pull that off in a game, maintain an illusion to one image, while having hidden aspects the world wouldn't be so receptive of if I let the witnesses live. :P


Couple gripes:
1. The level cap of 20. I don't want to stop leveling, why should I have to? (most people will beat the game before reaching the cap)
2. No option to continue once the main story is over, but depending on how you play it I might understand.
3. Relatively few (but good) quests when compared to Oblivion -
4. The game shakes off a lot of "Oblivion with guns" stigma, but not all of it. If you've ever played Oblivion (I have, extensively), you'll see a lot of similarities, although most of them are actually useful.

Why is (nerd) Jacob writing a Fallout 3 review? Well, I'm waiting for Tony to get back to play Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory with him, but he's taking too long. Maybe I should just do some homework.