Fallout: New Vegas

[TinCow]

I played it to death over the weekend; I think my current in-game clock is over 30 hours now. I am very, very pleased with the game. The RPS review is probably the most inaccurate review I've ever read on that website (and I love RPS). The game is head-and-shoulders above Fallout 3. The world feels much larger, more rich, and far more interesting. Characters are unique, well rounded, and there are a large number of surprisingly 'adult' issues tackled head-on in this game. The loot is fabulous, with a truly staggering number of weapons to play around with. It also seems very true to the original FO1/2 canon and background, and feels like the 'real' sequel to those games that FO3 never was.

Yes, it is also buggy. There are bugs, you will see them regularly. That's a shame and I hope they fix it. However, it's still an awesome game. As far as Bethsoft-style open-world RPGs go, I put this way, way above FO3 and Oblivion, and currently on-par with Morrowind. Final judgment on how it measures up to Morrowind will have to come after I've finished the game. I'm already eager for my second playthrough and I haven't even finished the first. So many different factions to ally with, so many options... looks incredibly replayable.

[Kekvit Irae]

It takes all of about 10 minutes to get your character sorted and be awarded your freedom to explore the wasteland.

You must be playing a different game than I. Either that or your definition of "freedom to explore" is skewed. No sooner than I got out of Tutorialsprings, I was jumped by no less than three cazadars and several giant radscorpions on one path, a deathclaw on another, and SO MANY invisible barriers. Countless reloads later, I finally figured out that New Vegas forces you along a linear path using the age-old method of obstruction through difficulty and invisible barriers.

[LeftEyeNine]

Oh I forgot to mention about my verdict.

It's Fallout Old Skool again. My tastebuds are tingling with the anticipation of a double-click right now.

Heaven yeah !

[Kekvit Irae]

Oh I forgot to mention about my verdict.

It's Fallout Old Skool again. My tastebuds are tingling with the anticipation of a double-click right now.

Heaven yeah !

I got that impression five minutes into the game. Traits are back! Wild Wilderness gives you F1/2 silly random encounters! F1/2 characters or descendants of said characters are in the game! Skill-based dialogue other than Speech!

[al Roumi]

You must be playing a different game than I. Either that or your definition of "freedom to explore" is skewed. No sooner than I got out of Tutorialsprings, I was jumped by no less than three cazadars and several giant radscorpions on one path, a deathclaw on another, and SO MANY invisible barriers. Countless reloads later, I finally figured out that New Vegas forces you along a linear path using the age-old method of obstruction through difficulty and invisible barriers.

With the exception of invisible barriers, I'd rather face a badass monster that I know I can return to than being locked into an extended "origin" story.

Although I've yet to feel it, I can see how the trek down the road might be predictable in subsequent playthroughs. So far I've just felt there have been so many things pulling me off the track, be it

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

a bunch of ghouls mobbing a prospector, a request to rescue a girlfriend or a crashed superfortress.

I also find the legion to be much "better" at being bad guys than the enclave were in FO3.

...and I still wish i could buy/hire/train/recruit a pack animal to carry my stuff - followers just aren't enough!

[Kekvit Irae]

...and I still wish i could buy/hire/train/recruit a pack animal to carry my stuff - followers just aren't enough!

You can nab two followers at a time. One humanoid, one non-human. It lessens the burden.

[PanzerJaeger]

So what's the verdict guys? I want to buy this game but the RPS review has me worried. Is exploration pretty barren as described, and compared to FO3? I can't stand wondering around forever to come across something interesting in these types of games...

[Fragony]

If sandbox rpg isn't your thing.. haven't played Vegas mind you but I like it when nothing happens, it's a wasteland it's supposed to be desolate and lonely place.

[LeftEyeNine]

Simple if clause out here:

If you like Fallout 1/2, you'll like Fallout NV.

If you like Fallout 3, you'd better run for your life for I got Bloody Mess perk picked.

[Fragony]

You are doing it all wrong it's impossible to like Fallout and Fallout 2 at the same time AND acknowledge that there is such a thing such as Fallout 3, and you even failed to mention Fallout:Tactics. Which is an awesome game, better than Fallout but not as good as Fallout 2. Fail.

[LeftEyeNine]

Your universality has always awed us, Frag. Next up, how the cute puppy is being mothered by a Siamese.

[Fragony]

It's called branching you nOOb not universitality. Geez I am starting to doubt that you even want to live in a post-apocalypse wasteland in the first place.

[LeftEyeNine]

Nuke it up already, it's over.

[al Roumi]

... failed to mention Fallout:Tactics. Which is an awesome game

I think, quite surprisingly, that I might agree with you on something Frags! My iontroduction to Fallout was through 'Tactics, I must to confess to never playing FO1 or 2. FO3 consequently wasn't such a heinous crime to me, I have to say that I quite liked it actually.

I do think the writing in New Vegas is much much better than FO3...

[TinCow]

So what's the verdict guys? I want to buy this game but the RPS review has me worried. Is exploration pretty barren as described, and compared to FO3? I can't stand wondering around forever to come across something interesting in these types of games...

Exploration is far, far from barren. There are a ton of places to exploration (feels like about the same as in FO3), the difference is that the map is a bit bigger. IMO, that's a good thing because FO3 felt way too cluttered. There was no sense of 'region' in the game, beyond DC and not-DC. If you don't like spending a few minutes walking, just fast travel.

New Vegas is my personal Game of the Year.

[Kekvit Irae]

45 hours in, I finally won the game.
Satisfying ending, but I wish I could have continued playing after the credits rolled. I still had a crapload of quests to finish up, and I didn't even hit level 30 yet.

[PanzerJaeger]

Exploration is far, far from barren. There are a ton of places to exploration (feels like about the same as in FO3), the difference is that the map is a bit bigger. IMO, that's a good thing because FO3 felt way too cluttered. There was no sense of 'region' in the game, beyond DC and not-DC. If you don't like spending a few minutes walking, just fast travel.

New Vegas is my personal Game of the Year.

Thanks! I bought it and have played a few hours.... very fun!

[Veho Nex]

Im level 18 with my upgraded cowboy repeater Ede and Boone, and I still have trouble killing those darn cazadors... Ill get maybe 1 or 2 down before i get overwhelmed and 2 shot to death. Very Hard - Hardcore is what im playing on.

[LeftEyeNine]

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Black Mountain is one hard place to be.

[Kekvit Irae]

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Black Mountain is one hard place to be.

I play a sniper, and found that area to be quite easy. Once you reach the summit, you don't even need to fight

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Tabitha.

All you need to do is

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

repair her broken down robot in another building up there, and she will leave quietly without a fight. And you get a warm fuzzy ending cutscene for it when you win the game.

[Prussian to the Iron]

Fallout:Tactics. Which is an awesome game, better than Fallout but not as good as Fallout 2. Fail.

thats illogical and completely impossible. it would have to have been better than Fallout 2 and nto as good as Fallout 1. simple error on your part in the order of it :P

[LeftEyeNine]

@Kek

Where did you get a sniper ? Or mods to enhance rifles ?

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

By the way, I found two brotherhood armors and holodisk in a radioactive crater there, if you missed them.

[naut]

I played it to death over the weekend; I think my current in-game clock is over 30 hours now. I am very, very pleased with the game. The RPS review is probably the most inaccurate review I've ever read on that website (and I love RPS). The game is head-and-shoulders above Fallout 3. The world feels much larger, more rich, and far more interesting. Characters are unique, well rounded, and there are a large number of surprisingly 'adult' issues tackled head-on in this game. The loot is fabulous, with a truly staggering number of weapons to play around with. It also seems very true to the original FO1/2 canon and background, and feels like the 'real' sequel to those games that FO3 never was.

Yes, it is also buggy. There are bugs, you will see them regularly. That's a shame and I hope they fix it. However, it's still an awesome game. As far as Bethsoft-style open-world RPGs go, I put this way, way above FO3 and Oblivion, and currently on-par with Morrowind. Final judgment on how it measures up to Morrowind will have to come after I've finished the game. I'm already eager for my second playthrough and I haven't even finished the first. So many different factions to ally with, so many options... looks incredibly replayable.

GRRRGRRRGRRRGRRR. Why must the reviews be so schizophrenic! First it's the best thing since sliced bread, then the next moment it's a bug riddled heroin addict, then the next it's a diamond plated platinum Lexus!

Ok. I loved FO1 and 2. Hated Tactics. Loved Morrowind. Didn't mind Oblivion, I had fun with it at the time. Hated FO3. I guess, I should just take the plunge, but.... will my PC run it. Probably not. I guess I'll wait until then. =(

[Crandaeolon]

VATS mode is now pretty much useless at medium and long range - range penalties are huge. I became a teensy bet suspicious when a Guns - 100 character with Commando and Sniper perks can't hit anything in the head at 50 yards with a unique Sniper Rifle in perfect condition. I loaded up the G.E.C.K. and yup, range spread values were very different from FO3. Also, damage against player is now reduced to 75% instead of the original 10% while in VATS.

The damage change is good IMO, the old VATS was pretty much an "I win" -button. The accuracy change is more iffy IMO. I solved the problem temporarily by creating a mini-mod that restores original accuracy values to VATS while waiting for a "proper" gameplay mod.

[TinCow]

VATS mode is now pretty much useless at medium and long range - range penalties are huge. I became a teensy bet suspicious when a Guns - 100 character with Commando and Sniper perks can't hit anything in the head at 50 yards with a unique Sniper Rifle in perfect condition. I loaded up the G.E.C.K. and yup, range spread values were very different from FO3. Also, damage against player is now reduced to 75% instead of the original 10% while in VATS.

The damage change is good IMO, the old VATS was pretty much an "I win" -button. The accuracy change is more iffy IMO. I solved the problem temporarily by creating a mini-mod that restores original accuracy values to VATS while waiting for a "proper" gameplay mod.

I agree. VATS' main use in New Vegas seems to be in allowing accurate targetting of limbs for tactical purposes while in close combat. I do not use it for anything else.

[al Roumi]

VATS mode is now pretty much useless at medium and long range - range penalties are huge. I became a teensy bet suspicious when a Guns - 100 character with Commando and Sniper perks can't hit anything in the head at 50 yards with a unique Sniper Rifle in perfect condition. I loaded up the G.E.C.K. and yup, range spread values were very different from FO3. Also, damage against player is now reduced to 75% instead of the original 10% while in VATS.

The damage change is good IMO, the old VATS was pretty much an "I win" -button. The accuracy change is more iffy IMO. I solved the problem temporarily by creating a mini-mod that restores original accuracy values to VATS while waiting for a "proper" gameplay mod.

Yar, it's annoying alright. Especially as Ibuilt a high AG character for the Action points & "VATS lulz". At least I still get the guns and sneak points...

[Kekvit Irae]

@Kek

Where did you get a sniper ? Or mods to enhance rifles ?

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

By the way, I found two brotherhood armors and holodisk in a radioactive crater there, if you missed them.

You can usually find mods on merchants all around the wasteland. New Vegas is a good place to look, especially the Gunrunners shop just outside the main gate or the salvage/gun store in Freeside just inside the NV main gate (you'll need a speech check to get the good weapons, if I remember).

As far as sniper rifles go, NCR troops have plenty of them, if you're not adverse to doing a little killing. Other than that, look around gun stores. Until you get an Anti-Material Rifle, the Sniper Rifle will be your primary sneak attack weapon. I compliment this with a Cowboy Repeater (modded, of couorse) when the enemy I want to kill gets in short range (level-action weapons have a very low AP usage). Oh, and FYI, the Anti-Material Rifle has a strength requirement of 8, so unless you take the Weapons Handling perk and have 6 strength, your accuracy will be crap. Give it to Boone, and he'll kill anything. ANYTHING.

Until you get a Sniper Rifle, grab yourself Ratslayer, the unique Varment Rifle that comes with its own scope and silencer. You can find it at

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

the Broc Flower Cave, just east of the Legion Raid Camp between Nipton and Novac. If you've already been to New Vegas Freeside, head to the Atomic Wrangler and pick up the quest to ask Lady Jane about her debt. She'll mark the location of the cave on your map.

I used the Ratslayer all the way up to the end game when I needed to be stealthy with my kills (ie: indoor shooting).

GRRRGRRRGRRRGRRR. Why must the reviews be so schizophrenic! First it's the best thing since sliced bread, then the next moment it's a bug riddled heroin addict, then the next it's a diamond plated platinum Lexus!

Bribes.

[TinCow]

As far as sniper rifles go, NCR troops have plenty of them, if you're not adverse to doing a little killing. Other than that, look around gun stores. Until you get an Anti-Material Rifle, the Sniper Rifle will be your primary sneak attack weapon. I compliment this with a Cowboy Repeater (modded, of couorse) when the enemy I want to kill gets in short range (level-action weapons have a very low AP usage). Oh, and FYI, the Anti-Material Rifle has a strength requirement of 8, so unless you take the Weapons Handling perk and have 6 strength, your accuracy will be crap. Give it to Boone, and he'll kill anything. ANYTHING.

I've seen the Anti-Material Rifle on sale a few times, but always for nearly $8k. I've been reluctant to spend that much money on a new sniper rifle, since I have two I really like already. I use a regular Sniper Rifle with silencer and weight mods on all humanoids. I can pop heads from extreme range with that thing, and I'm very pleased with it. For serious enemies, like Deathclaws, I use a Gauss Rifle (I have both Guns and Energy Weapon skills in the 90s), which is ungodly accurate and powerful at range. I've recently acquired a modded Light Machine Gun, a Minigun, and a Heavy Incinerator. I am probably going to drop the Sniper Rifle in favor of one of those for more close-range firepower. So, how does the Anti-Material Rifle hold up against the Gauss Rifle?

[Kekvit Irae]

I've seen the Anti-Material Rifle on sale a few times, but always for nearly $8k. I've been reluctant to spend that much money on a new sniper rifle, since I have two I really like already. I use a regular Sniper Rifle with silencer and weight mods on all humanoids. I can pop heads from extreme range with that thing, and I'm very pleased with it. For serious enemies, like Deathclaws, I use a Gauss Rifle (I have both Guns and Energy Weapon skills in the 90s), which is ungodly accurate and powerful at range. I've recently acquired a modded Light Machine Gun, a Minigun, and a Heavy Incinerator. I am probably going to drop the Sniper Rifle in favor of one of those for more close-range firepower. So, how does the Anti-Material Rifle hold up against the Gauss Rifle?

I've actually never used the Gauss Rifle before. My first playthrough was Guns only. However, the AMR is almost double the damage of a Sniper Rifle (110 damage with the AMR compared to 63 damage with the SR), and can use Armor Piercing rounds for quick and easy takedowns of Deathclaws. The only drawbacks are its 8 strength requirement and that it's bolt action. If you don't have the strength, just pop it on Boone. The weapon may cost 8k on some vendors, but it's worth every cap. I got mine for free, since some enemies I came across had it. Fully repaired and with 8 (or 6 with Weapons Handling) strength, you can kill most super mutants in one shot without needing a critical or a sneak attack. Even the final boss is pathetically easy if you use .50 AP ammo.

[TinCow]

I've actually never used the Gauss Rifle before. My first playthrough was Guns only. However, the AMR is almost double the damage of a Sniper Rifle (110 damage with the AMR compared to 63 damage with the SR), and can use Armor Piercing rounds for quick and easy takedowns of Deathclaws. The only drawbacks are its 8 strength requirement and that it's bolt action. If you don't have the strength, just pop it on Boone. The weapon may cost 8k on some vendors, but it's worth every cap. I got mine for free, since some enemies I came across had it. Fully repaired and with 8 (or 6 with Weapons Handling) strength, you can kill most super mutants in one shot without needing a critical or a sneak attack. Even the final boss is pathetically easy if you use .50 AP ammo.

I'll give it a try then. I've maxed out on Implants anyway, so not much left to spend my cash on. Strength isn't an issue either, as I've taken the STR implant and use power armor for another boost. I'm very curious about the AMR because it could impact my second playthrough. I took Guns up to the mid-50s early on, then took Energy Weapons into the 80s and started using those. However, I really haven't been very impressed with the energy weapons. Lasers seem too weak and plasma is too slow, even on the unique versions. There's one unique energy weapon that is designed to mow down power armor, but since I've only ever had a single fight with people in power armor (and that could have been avoided if I'd wanted to) it's not much use. The Gauss Rifle is really the only energy weapon I have found that does a better job than my existing guns (I was actually surprised when I bought it that it was energy, in all previous games it has been a gun/small gun with its own unique ammo). In addition, energy weapon ammo, particularly MF Cells (which all the powerful energy weapons use), are pretty heavy. Lugging around 500 MF Cells will put a serious dent in your weight limit, and a long trip with a Gauss Rifle will certainly eat up 500 MF Cells. So, if the AMR can take the place of the Gauss, I would likely forget all about energy weapons in my next playthrough and just go exclusively Guns.