FALLOUT 3 - discussion thread

[dragunzng]

Actually I've found that your stuff stays wherever you leave it, even in the wastes. So do bodies for that matter.

If you stash items in the wastelands they can get looted by other folk. I killed the shady "want to blow up Megaton" character in the bar near the beginning of the game, just before he killed the sheriff. Both bodies are still in the bar, right by the door, it's sort of a painful reminder because I think I should have killed shady man faster.

The other day I wandered into the middle of a deserted car park, heard a "WOOOOOSH!" and turned just in time to see a mini-nuke whiz by, slam into a nearby car and set off a chain reaction that killed EVERYONE in the car park, including me. The explosion sent me flying into the air and my body landed on top of one of the nearby buildings.

 

[Reverend]

I encountered a weird and rather amusing physics engine glitch the other day. After just spending a good hour wandering the dark, claustrophobic and maddening hallways of the Dunwich building (Lovecraft fans take note) I come out into the blessed daylight and open space of the wasteland, only to come literally face to face with a deathclaw! Before I can even press V (which dosen't always respond anyway, I might add) the thing take one swipe and takes my head clean off. *reloads* This time I'm ready and dash behind a nearby parked car to gain a little ground before I pump some rounds into the wreck then cheese it as fast as I can hoping the explosion with weaken the deathclaw enough so I can get in some fatal shots (I swear these things are tougher than most super mutants!) So I turn around, just in time to see the car explode and to my surprise, the Dclaw is sent flying skywards. Thinking it's been killed I wait for it to come back down so I can loot the corpse...but it keeps on going into the glare of the sun and dosen't come down. Thinking it's gone forever I wander off and get ambushed by a brainbot and then a bloatfly. Not a huge deal and I take them both out in VATS, but then I turn around and the bloody deathclaw is right on top of me again! I know it's the same one because it's health is at 75% but with my AP depleted from the bot and fly I can only get in a single non-fatal headshot with the sniper rifle. I hit it, but woulnd't you know it the bloody thing flys skyward again! Not wanting to get ambushed a third time, I stick around and about two minutes later it comes zipping past me out of the ground and up once again into the wide brown yonder. Another two minutes and this time I hit 'V' just in time and get in two headshots, the second of which was a fatal one, blowing it's head off and apparantly telling it's body to start behaving itself because gravity takes over again and drops it on my head.

I've played allot of HL2 and TF2 so I'm not stranger to comical physics glitches, but that has to be one of the more surprising ones I've seen in a good while.

 

[IDIC]

There is some really weird stuff in the game. Head north of the minefield and follow the powerlines for a bizarre surprise.

It is a good game but I find that it doesnt have the same level of detail that Oblivion had. This may in part be due to the fact that the Oblivion world was heavily populated with many memorable characters and there are fewer in Fallout. I would have hoped that fewer characters would have translated into more dialogue. But it is like things happen and no one comments on it. For example, I killed Tennpenny and none of the residents except the Chief commented on it. And his comment was brief.

The atmosphere of the world is great though just wish there was more in it. Here are some screenshots:

Big Weapons:

Crappy Home:

Should have taken more Rad-X: ;p

 

[firehawk12]

Put your guy into "sexy sleepwear" for kicks.

 

[Capt. Vulcan]

If anyone else is like me, searching every nook and cranny for bobble heads, don't bother. Every single bobblehead I've found was sitting out in the open on a desk or on the floor.

Just started my evil campaign because the good one was becoming a chore. Actually felt bad for what I did to megaton.

 

[firehawk12]

Yeah, they're pretty easy to find. It's just a matter of getting to each location on the map.

 

[PKerr]

Well I have to say, after hitting level 20 the game doesn't seem as fun.

I like hearing the little "cha-ching" after I do something good and there are soooo many perks left and now I can't get anymore?
That's dumb.

And now the only way I can upgrade my skill is by finding a book or Bobble head here and there?
Again Dumb.

Why have 3 times as many perks as the ability to upgrade to them?

Don't get me wrong, the game is still fun to play but now I have nothing to look forward to in bettering my character.

I can also say I'm getting very, very tired of 2 words.
key required.

So I just spent the last 1 1/2 clearing a building, killing every enemy, looking in every nook and cranny and the key is someplace else, God knows where?

And I'm supposed to remember all the doors and such that I couldn't unlock in 100 different areas when i finally get a key in 30 hrs of game play later?
I've got my lock picking ability to 100+ and my hacking skills to 100+
why the fuck do I need a key?

Ugggh! frustrating.

 

[firehawk12]

You've never played a PC RPG I take it?

I too hate the fact that there's no way to re-spec, especially since you could do it so easily in Fable 2, but WRPGs are basically min/max adventures. You have to choose which stats to maximize and screw the rest. Also, you have to choose what perks will be the most use to you. In hindsight, I would not have taken any of the early perks that give you stat bonuses since you can find books all over the place.

The level 20 cap limit is kind of annoying, but that's the only way that they can make your choices when you level up meaningful.

What I wished was that they did the Mass Effect thing where you level up but aren't FORCED to put points into stats. You couldn't respec your character, but you could choose when to upgrade your character.

 

[PKerr]

You've never played a PC RPG I take it?

Fallout 3 is my first official RPG.

I bought Mass Effect but the game just couldn't hold my interest.
Maybe I'll go back and revisit it but with my stack of un-opened games it won't be anytime soon.

 

[firehawk12]

Pretty much all WRPGs come from the old D&D model of doing things, so leveling is probably more strategic than the actual game play.
Some people like crunching the numbers, but I can't be bothered. I'm close to the point where I can just walk through enemies without worry and I'm perfectly fine with that.

 

[Reverend]

I'm at Level 20 now and I agree it's not as satisfying any more without that little "cha-ching" sound and some XP points, but I understand the need to limit the character modifiers so you don't end up with an "uber jack of all trades". Now THAT would be just boring. The challenge for me now is in finding better weapons since I have about 10,000 caps, mountains of ammo and enough spare weapons and armour to outfit an army. Thing is the so called heavy weapons seam to be next to useless as even with my HW skill at 100, it takes two missiles to kill a single super mutant, the minigun seams next to useless (especially given it's weight) at any sensible range while I can get five shots off with the android's plasma rifle, the second usually being a killing shot, and with the perk that replenishes AP after a kill in VATS, I wonder why I should bother carrying anything else?
It really takes the fun out of it, especially with the minigun when the big expensive weapons don't even seam to irritate the enemy. Hell, I had a bunch of raiders rush in with a melee attack and they bloody well nearly killed be, depite the fact I emptied two magazines from the at them! They should have been cut in half before they even got within 10 feet of me! Or, you know, ran away.

 

[The Evil Dead]

Lincoln Repeater 1 shot kills for the win!

 

[Reverend]

I have the gun, but can't get a good kill rate with the bloody thing, at least not at a decent range. My Perception is 8, plus the boost from the shady cap so it can't be the stats...at least I don't think so. Still, I decided not to sell it and instead have it on display at my house. Which reminds me, anyone else think the inclusion of a gun rack to show off one's arsenal would have been a great idea for the house add-ons?

 

[IDIC]

I have the gun, but can't get a good kill rate with the bloody thing, at least not at a decent range. My Perception is 8, plus the boost from the shady cap so it can't be the stats...at least I don't think so. Still, I decided not to sell it and instead have it on display at my house. Which reminds me, anyone else think the inclusion of a gun rack to show off one's arsenal would have been a great idea for the house add-ons?

That is a nice idea but where would it go? The two houses available to the player are both pretty poor and tightly packed especially compared to the housing that could be obtained in Oblivion. I can barely walk without running into something in the house in Megaton.

I am figuring that the DLC will be like Oblivion and have a series of different houses.

I really do think the game is great but it just doesnt have the same level of detail that Oblivion had. Character interaction is a step down in my opinion. In Oblivion, there was that little minigame where you could compliment, brag, insult, etc... a character and change their opinion of you. In this game, it is just point and click assuming that your stats are high enough as far as speech checks. I do like that sometimes different perks and high skills make new choices available.

 

[Capt. Vulcan]

player.setlevel ## < among the many reasons why the pc version is better. (2 second load times are pretty nice too.) Just wish it didn't crash so much. This code will allow you to set your level back to whatever you want without taking a hit to anything outside of perk requirements. So you can just keep leveling up and taking perks as you go till you get all of them if you want.

There is a seperate code for adjusting the level cap, but you have to input it every time you play which is annoying.

Not sure why the hard time with the lincoln repeater. Whats your weapons skill with that weapon? Also what's the repair rate. you should get a damage of 50 on the gun. On my character it pretty much 1 hits any humanoid if you aim for the head.

Spoiler: anyone find this?

Anyone else find that abandoned hillside community near the grisly diner with the one working computer? The one with irrigation and the windmill? I was really curious to find out what happened to them after reading their computer logs. Are they the victims from the grisly diner? Also curious about the underground room near minefield that is transmitting the morse code. I'm guessing it's supposed to be left to your imagination, but who knows.

 

[IDIC]

Spoiler: Spoilers: Truth is Out there

My favorite weapon in the game is the alien blaster that you find on the alien corpse at the ufo crash site north of minefield. It really freaked me out when I started receiving the broadcast from the alien recon ship. The only problem with the blaster is the ammo which I have not found anywhere else. But the weapon basically one shots and vaporizes just about everything. I use it in emergency situations.

 

[Reverend]

I've found the ammo but not the gun. Try the war memorial, that's where I found them. They glow in the dark so at night would be the best time to look.

 

[Jimilu]

I think the game is really good. Its been years since i switched gaming PC to console, mi xbox 360 has crashed like 3 times and i am at level 17.
Did someones find the Bethsada offices? i though that was funny.

 

[Capt. Vulcan]

I like the gun too. It's so powerful that it would be a game breaker if the ammo wasn't so scarce. I found a bunch in the back of a destroyed military transport in an irradiated crater btw.

It kind of irritates me that the hot keys for items haven't been optimized for the PC. There's no reason on the PC to only let you use up to number 8 on the hotkeys. Would have been nice to get 9 and 0 to use for weapons.

 

[LutherSloan]

Yes, the alien weapon is great. It will take out a deathclaw in 1-2 shots.

Just FYI, I found a Gatling Laser called the 'Vengeance' in the Deathclaw Sanctuary, in a bloody pool of water. It's pretty sweet.

I have been stalling with finishing the game in favor of exploring all of the unexplored locations on my map (I used the Explorer perk to show all of the Wasteland's locations). I am going to finish the last part tonight, so that I can start CoD5.