Since Fallout 3 has been out for a while and I’ve had ample time to reflect upon my feelings of the game. I thought it was time I finally published a full on review for it.

The memorable Fallout 3 introductory cinematic paints a grim portrait for the apocalyptic future the player is intended to investigate. The gritty, “War never changes” preface, which has since long ago become a Fallout staple conveys the significance to the player that they are not being thrust into a gracious world, but a universe that, given the chance, is always trying to kill them. Opening with the birth of the player-controller character in Vault 101 the game immediately sets the player to work customizing the character. As you grow older, you are introduced to other residents of the Vault prior to your father escaping, which inevitably spurs your character to desire departing as well to endeavor into the Capital Wasteland. A main quest line, side quests as well as unmarked or repeatable quests see to it that the player will be significantly busy for sometime. Moreover, the player can leave the main quest at any given time and pursue alternate objectives, leaving a vast, open world that invites exploration. While the narrative of the main quest is strong enough to stand on its own, the side quests do at times feel arduous. However, during the course of exploring I noticed I was completing objectives for quests I had not even accepted yet. The main mission remained solid throughout and several of the side quests were enough of a pleasure that the prospect of downloadable content to expand upon Fallout 3 even further is enticing enough to aspire for playing through the title a second time.

The introduction level of the title, being in Vault 101 was remarkably well done by Bethesda. Allocating points to various traits by reading a children’s book, telling the player how special they are or taking a test to determine what job they’re destined for in the vault are just a couple of ways the immersion takes hold. Additionally, starting the game through the eyes of a child, whose birth causes your mother to lose her life and being raised by your father James (Impeccably voiced by Liam Neeson), impresses a connection to the character. As you grow up and are given the chance to wander the vault, the sterile environment feels both eerie and welcoming at the same time. However, this is before the player has ever set foot in the wasteland. Eventually, James makes his escape for reasons unknown and when the answers you receive are not enough, you leave as well. Prior to doing so, the game affords the player one final opportunity to change any specification about their character before opening the door leading into the bright, hostile world. As the player takes their first steps into the world, the pivotal moment is defined by the characters eyes seeing sunlight for the first time as the player’s screen fills with lens flare. Checking your Pip-Boy 3000, you realize as a player that you really have no idea where to go, and ultimately head towards the first settlement you see.

Upon entering Megaton, you’re faced with the opportunity to experience the first of many relative moral choices. Ambiguous or not, you are either tasked with destroying the city via the unexploded atomic weapon at the center of town, disarming it or simply ignoring it. Each choice sways the karmic standing of the player’s character towards the good, neutral or bad. Karma, in essence, relates what kind of person you are to the rest of the world and serving as a prime factor in whether you can activate certain perks, group with certain followers or how certain wastelanders acknowledge your presence. Furthermore, karma choices ultimately are illustrated during the final cutscene and contribute towards what ending the player obtains. While at times, it may seem beneficial to lean towards moral ambiguity, sometimes it’s just better to play through and be the good guy.

Moving from Megaton to Rivet City, and on to Arefu and The Brotherhood of Steel Citadel built inside what remains of the Pentagon, the entirety of the Capital Wasteland is worth exploring. Before I do that though, I will caution that this title is not for everyone, and I’ve stated that before. However, Bethesda is notorious for being adaptable at creating immersive games that have overall been fun to play and Fallout 3 is no exception. While taking the reins of the Fallout series, there have been mixed feelings in regards to the reception. Where Fallout was traditionally a dungeon crawler series, Fallout 3 has taken a page out of Oblivion and it shows. Being able to play the game from first or third person in addition to being able to shoot in either V.A.T.S utilizing action points or shooting without any assistance and hoping for the best, this is just scratching the surface. What really kept me playing though were the various narratives. The main quest was interesting, however, the side quests kept me coming back for more as they took a life of their own, giving the game a distinct Pulp Fiction feeling as all the stories in one way or another tie together giving way to a satisfying conclusion. But with the massive amount of downloadable content made available by Bethesda, the game doesn’t end there. Five different episodes, each capable of four to five hours of additional gameplay see to it that Fallout 3 maintains its longevity and keeps the players who really love the game coming back. Operation: Anchorage, The Pitt, Broken Steel, Point Lookout and Mothership Zeta all offer up a different unique flavor relative to the universe in which they exist, and I can’t wait to explore them.

Ultimately though, as with any game, what it boils down to is whether or not the title was fun. I can assure you, that the game was fun and at times you’ll forget why because you are having so much fun. Ideally, it’s the exploration, combat and narrative that at the very basic level continued to intrigue me throughout the entire title, never making me feel like any of my fifty hours of gameplay were being wasted. The controls were tight and solid as I only found myself very occasionally fumbling with the controller enough where I would be forced to reload a save as a result of my error. The graphics are spot on, with very minute glitching, also easily fixed by loading a save. Sounds were ambient and created an atmosphere that put me in the Capital Wasteland and didn’t let go, while the overall playability offered a title that would welcome many gamers, but would be slightly off putting to any newcomers to the genre. Finally, with the ability to play through the game as good, evil and neutral and still not having explored every single location on my Pip Boy’s world map, I’m convinced that Fallout 3’s replay value is assured.

In the meantime, I would suggest anyone curious to checking out the original Fallout and Fallout 2 and see just how interesting these predecessors are in addition to the current iteration because while “War never changes”, exceptional games do to adapt to the times and I’m satisfied to keep Fallout 3 in my collection for a very long time to come.