Fallout 3 may be playable as a full-on, real time, first-person shooter, but I’m starting to think that utilizing V.A.T.S. (Vault-tec Assisted Targeting System) will make for a far more enjoyable -- and more importantly, bloody -- experience. In the post-jump footage Bethesda's Todd Howard shows some of the amazing kills you can get using V.A.T.S., and while the sniper rifle headshots are nothing short of beautiful, I find myself most impressed by the sequence that shows him killing someone with stuffed animals fired out of a leaf blower-turned-rocket launcher.
Let me repeat that. YOU CAN KILL PEOPLE WITH STUFFED ANIMALS FIRED FROM A MAKESHIFT ROCKET LAUNCHER. The resulting laughter nearly brought a tear to my eye.
Aside from the bear blaster, Todd gives us another look at the Fatman, the short range mini-nuke launcher. I can’t wait to get my hands on one of those in-game. He also talks about a perk called "Mysterious Stranger" which causes some guy wearing a fedora to show up and help you kill stuff every now and then. Sure, why not.
Have these impressive kill scenes got you wishing that Fallout 3’s October 7 release date was a bit closer?
No. No it is not, especially when you can use that same system to pummel the crap out of people with teddy bears fired from a make shift rocket launcher.
I CANNOT wait for this game. Interested in how conversations are gonna work, and how one might go about being stealthy.
I loved how in Fallout 1 and 2 when you had the bloody mess perk or got critical hits you would blow off an arm or a chunk of their rib cage. Thank goodness technology has gotten to the point that you can totally dismember someone. I hope the Gauss Rifle or the Power Hammer is in this...mmm... Power Hammer.
I can't wait for this to come out, and my jaw dropped a good five times watching that video. I also think I just screamed "DO WANT" loud enough to wake up the neighbors.
wot??? no one complaining that fallout 3 will be nothing like fallout 1 or 2 and that bethesda is bringing the franchise to ruin and yata, yata, yata...what a relief, this game looks sweet.
I found Fallout 2 at Goodwill a few months ago and have it installed on this computer but have yet to give it a good run through (no time!) Fallout tactics was my first fallout game which was given to me by a friend (I know that game is pretty shunned in the Fallout community.) I am a huge fan of Bethesda and the Elder Scrolls an dfeel, quite frankly, their games are perfectly suited to my tastes. This is going to be a smash hit, at least for me ^^
Alright so it looks promising, nice graphic, open ended shooter with a well done cinematic autoaim...but it really is Oblivion with Guns, not Fallout.
Now I know, almost nobody but rabid fans want a 2d turn based game or a very old school game but still the game has very little resemblance to the other 2 fallout games and they should have avoided the "3" and half this criticism would go away.
But alas, they are shamelessly trying to put some elements of the old games into their own formula ( oblivion with guns ) and I don't think is for any other reason that to have the pedigree tied up. And potentially this game can turn to be very sandbox in the bad way more than oblivion: there is no reason to most players to level up the skills other than to get those cool mini cutscene deaths and those will get old after a while. Im thinking the design choice is a bit weird, what exactly will the game offer to encourage me to use that percentage system if I can just rambo my way through like any regular shooter?
@Misanthrope
I would say you make a good point, but then I remember that the whole reason I love Fallout as a franchise is because of its story, not its (former) gameplay.
As for Fallout 3 - yes, the teddies are freaking awesome, but I'm excited more at the idea of being able to explore a bombed out Washington D.C. more than anything else.
I love the story too but to you then another question: Do you really think much of Bethesda in terms of storytelling? I mean not only does sandbox doesn't usually lends itself easily to a story because of pacing issues but both Oblivion and Morrowind were jokes to me when it comes to story.
You might wanna give Bethesda the benefit of the doubt there, but I do not: Their philosophy seems to be get a rich back-story and then any tired cliche like "the chosen one" or "evil from another world" will play itself out interestingly enough cause of the rich setting.
This clearly does not work for anybody but the most dedicated fans that take the time to read endless random books for example. Honestly Ive heard of endless crazy and highly creative things people do on Oblivion and Morrowind and not once do I see people saying "Oh yea the FIRST thing I did on Morrowind was getting to Balmora's Mages Guild and ready every single book there!"
They can improve, and certainly while maybe less detailed the Fallout universe is a lot more interesting and potentially awesome than the elder scrolls generic fantasy world. But I do think Bethesda could end up focusing soley on teddy bear kills and just toss in a lot of "files" for you to read on the clockwatch as the "setting" and follow a random "you are the chosen one...emm....for your vault!" story.
In sort I will be getting this yes, but because of my interest in Morrowind ( and to a lesser extend, Oblivion ) and sandbox games, not because of I think this will be anything like a true RPG experience like Fallout and Fallout 2.
Never really got into Fallout 2. I played it and all and got about halfway done, but just... never checked in... now this? Oh man. I'm in. Bethesda is amazing in terms of broad story-telling and broad gameplay so it should turn out great.
That....that was full of so much win. I am speechless. Saying this game is going to be awesome or own just doesn't quite seem grand enough. I want this game. No! Correction, I need this game!
I think you're missing the point of Bethesda's RPGs. If you want a rich story full of teen angst and relationship issues, go play a jrpg. To me, the point of Bethesda's RPGs is to make up your own story, not to follow someone else's.
@Leathersoup: No. You are just flat out wrong here, there are some westerns RPGs that destroy every single JRPG story put together and I will prove it to you: Planescape Torment. Game set and match right there.
And if you want to make up your own story go play Tabletop RPGs.
As a longtime Fallout fan, I have mixed emotions. Yes, it looks awesome. The setting looks phenominal, and the open-endedness is something I'm really looking forward to.
The combat though...I anticipate I'll be playing a lot in VATS. The run n' gun thing just isn't Fallout. At all. And granted, this clip doesn't represent the entire game, but it seems like there is a TON of combat. Fallout 1/2 weren't soaked in combat. There was enough of it to enjoy, but not so much that it became a combat-only kind of game.
And in the originals, if you killed someone, you knew who/what they were. A band of raiders, or slvaers, or Enclave, or whatever. This seems to be random folks in the street who just start shooting you. This has me worried. Then again, I could be wrong.
Regardless, as a fan of the series, this looks really in-epth and I'm really looking forward to it.
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Contest:
9:46 PM on 07.14.2008
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No. No it is not, especially when you can use that same system to pummel the crap out of people with teddy bears fired from a make shift rocket launcher.
I CANNOT wait for this game. Interested in how conversations are gonna work, and how one might go about being stealthy.
I NEED THIS GAME. I'm gonna preorder tomorrow -.-
I don't care if I lack a 360 when the game comes out. First. Day. Purchase.
HO MAI GAH!
I can't wait for this to come out, and my jaw dropped a good five times watching that video. I also think I just screamed "DO WANT" loud enough to wake up the neighbors.
also mini-nuclear-bomb-catapult FTW!
Now I know, almost nobody but rabid fans want a 2d turn based game or a very old school game but still the game has very little resemblance to the other 2 fallout games and they should have avoided the "3" and half this criticism would go away.
But alas, they are shamelessly trying to put some elements of the old games into their own formula ( oblivion with guns ) and I don't think is for any other reason that to have the pedigree tied up. And potentially this game can turn to be very sandbox in the bad way more than oblivion: there is no reason to most players to level up the skills other than to get those cool mini cutscene deaths and those will get old after a while. Im thinking the design choice is a bit weird, what exactly will the game offer to encourage me to use that percentage system if I can just rambo my way through like any regular shooter?
[/wet blanket]
I would say you make a good point, but then I remember that the whole reason I love Fallout as a franchise is because of its story, not its (former) gameplay.
As for Fallout 3 - yes, the teddies are freaking awesome, but I'm excited more at the idea of being able to explore a bombed out Washington D.C. more than anything else.
You might wanna give Bethesda the benefit of the doubt there, but I do not: Their philosophy seems to be get a rich back-story and then any tired cliche like "the chosen one" or "evil from another world" will play itself out interestingly enough cause of the rich setting.
This clearly does not work for anybody but the most dedicated fans that take the time to read endless random books for example. Honestly Ive heard of endless crazy and highly creative things people do on Oblivion and Morrowind and not once do I see people saying "Oh yea the FIRST thing I did on Morrowind was getting to Balmora's Mages Guild and ready every single book there!"
They can improve, and certainly while maybe less detailed the Fallout universe is a lot more interesting and potentially awesome than the elder scrolls generic fantasy world. But I do think Bethesda could end up focusing soley on teddy bear kills and just toss in a lot of "files" for you to read on the clockwatch as the "setting" and follow a random "you are the chosen one...emm....for your vault!" story.
In sort I will be getting this yes, but because of my interest in Morrowind ( and to a lesser extend, Oblivion ) and sandbox games, not because of I think this will be anything like a true RPG experience like Fallout and Fallout 2.
I don't care what any of you naysayers are naysaying, that totally felt like Fallout. Looking forward to seeing some dialogue parts.
Also you whingers are fecking annoying. Seriously. Go away.
I think you're missing the point of Bethesda's RPGs. If you want a rich story full of teen angst and relationship issues, go play a jrpg. To me, the point of Bethesda's RPGs is to make up your own story, not to follow someone else's.
And if you want to make up your own story go play Tabletop RPGs.
The combat though...I anticipate I'll be playing a lot in VATS. The run n' gun thing just isn't Fallout. At all. And granted, this clip doesn't represent the entire game, but it seems like there is a TON of combat. Fallout 1/2 weren't soaked in combat. There was enough of it to enjoy, but not so much that it became a combat-only kind of game.
And in the originals, if you killed someone, you knew who/what they were. A band of raiders, or slvaers, or Enclave, or whatever. This seems to be random folks in the street who just start shooting you. This has me worried. Then again, I could be wrong.
Regardless, as a fan of the series, this looks really in-epth and I'm really looking forward to it.