Fallout New Vegas

Introduction

“Fallout: New Vegas” is not, I repeat, not the second coming of “Fallout 3” nor a true sequel. Yes, it uses the same engine and the game play is relatively unchanged, but backbone removed, “Fallout: New Vegas” is a game worthy of your time, taking what you likely loved about “Fallout 3” improving in many ways and only failing to impress in a few instances. Kiss the Capital Wasteland goodbye, forget about journeying from birth to your life defining moment, instead, head West young one, as the Mojave Wasteland awaits, and on the horizon, The New Vegas Strip looms, watching humanity cling to hope outside it’s imposing stone and steel walls.

The Game Itself: Our Reviewer's Take

In “Fallout: New Vegas” you sort of do begin with a birth, a re-birth specifically as you are rescued from the grave (literally) and patched up, from a bullet to the brainpan that thankfully missed it’s mark, by the wise and haggard Doc Mitchell. Regaining your lease on life, the good doctor takes you through a few standard, fairly cleverly disguised character creation segments before you’re off and running, hot on the heels of the man who prevented you, the lonely Courier, from delivering a Platinum Poker chip to The Strip. Like your brothers and sisters in postage before you, you will see your delivery through…or at the very least track down your assailant and give him his bullet back.

For those familiar with “Oblivion” or “Fallout 3,” the basic game play should be familiar ground. On the surface, “New Vegas” looks like a standard shooter and generally things are unchanged. You can manually shoot the various weapons you encounter, but being as this is an RPG after all, if your skills are lacking, your weapon of choice might not be the most effective. Item selection and world map navigation are all clearly accessible from the press of a button through the returning Pip Boy interface. However, fans of the series will see improvements in combat through the addition of weapon perks and customizable ammo. If all this on top of a FPS experience sounds imposing, fear not, as VATS is back and just as good as before. If real-time fighting isn’t your forte, you can go into the VATS system yet again and depending on how many action points you have built up, set up a queue of attacks before being forced into a little real-time excursion as your action points build back up. As a “Fallout 3” veteran coming into “New Vegas” I’ll say the real-time combat feels a little more polished and balanced, and so far, my time in VATS feels like a fraction of the time I put into the previous game in the series.

Combat isn’t what has you coming to “New Vegas” though; no, you’re here for the story and the character interactions, all of which remain unchanged from “Fallout 3.” Temporary skill boosts however are a much beloved addition, offering players a temporary 10-point boost to a given skill, or 20-points should they choose the appropriate perk upon leveling. The game writers definitely put some thought into interactions with NPCs, allowing a character with poor charisma and likely poor speech skills to assist or bluff an NPC with a medically related issue, should the player have a high enough medical skill. While speech is an arguably valuable skill to have in “New Vegas,” there are some appreciated alternatives.

Story wise, “New Vegas” will seem deceptively simple and linear upon first playthrough. I clocked 12 hours into my first run, which all but ignored the plethora of side quests and ultimately a great deal of dramatic depth. Compared to “Fallout 3’s” search-for-dad plot line, “New Vegas” seems hackneyed and a letdown, but like any good treasure, additional digging is required, and upon a second playthrough, the subtle intricacy of “New Vegas’” Mojave Wasteland began to reveal itself. Gone are the simple options of being good, neutral, or evil. Yes, the Karma system is back, but supplementing it and eventually becoming more important, are the New Vegas factions. The Wasteland and The Strip itself are populated by groups of colorful characters ranging from wayward gangs such as the Powder Gangers or Great Khans to the bigger threats, specifically the NCR (the game world’s unified military) and Caesar’s Legion, an eerie roving force with a strong central outpost, headed by Caesar, an arguably insane fascist fighting against all opposition, brining back a Roman themed rule that is simply put, orderly and barbaric. When the player eventually arrives on The Strip itself, they’ll encounter the “upper class” factions or the Fallout universe’s equivalent of mob families running the remaining casinos.

As you take the time from your main quest line to get to know these factions dozens upon dozens of side-quests ranging from basic fetch missions to multi-tiered recon and strike missions will open up, each having their plusses and minutes, namely you please one faction and the cost of angering another. As with any “realistic” game world, you can choose to double cross your employer, making for a number of end game differences that will have you wanting to come back at least a few times. To put it in perspective, my second playthrough was clocking in around 20 hours and I hadn’t even reached the final act of the main quest, nor had I begun to fully explore all of the Mojave. To summarize as efficiently as possible, “New Vegas” isn’t a clear cut, three forms of Karma story. The people and groups you encounter will build on one another and come end game when tasked with important decisions, there will be emotional weight to your decisions and even the good Karma player will be presented a “lesser of two evils” scenario.

Adding to both story and game play, the more solidly integrated companion system is a bit of a double-edged sword. The simplest benefit companions provide are unique perks and support in fights, however, the AI which is designed almost solely for enemies, doesn’t translate the best to an NPC ally. I’ve had companions get stuck on objects as well as run headfirst into combat, resulting in some frustrating consequences, specifically permanent death in Hardcore mode. Yet, each companion has his or her own unique side story that the player can explore and in some cases, the outcomes affect the main story.

Also new to the Fallout series is Hardcore mode, an option offered at the start. The only benefits it has are an added level of realism to game play and a nice 100-point achievement should the player leave it turned on from start to finish. In a nutshell, Hardcore requires you to manage food, water, and sleep meters, making food and water more critical items to have on hand. Neglect any or all three and temporary (until dealt with) debuffs are applied to your stats. Hardcore also gives ammo a negligible but noticeable weight value, causes med packs to work over time rather than instantly, and require limb damage to be attended to by a doctor, by using a doctor’s bag or by risking drug addiction and taking a dose of the wonder drug, Hydra.

While not as outwardly original as “Fallout 3,” “Fallout: New Vegas” should prove a rewarding gaming experience for fans and newbies alike. Personally, I wasn’t impressed on my first run-through, but on a second go-around, I realized the obvious fact, that the side quests aren’t just filler; they’re vital to full enjoyment of “New Vegas’” tale of revenge and control. To reiterate, “Fallout: New Vegas” isn’t a rehashed “Fallout 3” story, careful planning was put into offering gamers a unique, new saga in a familiar game setting and in an RPG, story is everything. “New Vegas” isn’t a gaming masterpiece, but it’s still a top tier title and a must own.