Fallout Fallout 4 Thread

[Zeronet]

I know the Brotherhood is in this police station, so I show up in my customized power armor that's made up of 4/6 of a T-51, with an arm and a leg from a T-45. Flame Red, all at their Type D upgrade points. Clear out the opposing forces, do a milk run with Paladin Danse and at the end he tries to recruit me.


"You'd be entitled to your very own suit of power armor."

I look over at Preston, who still resembles a Handyman in his Minuteman T-45 without the helmet. And think of the other two suits just sitting around back at Sanctuary.


"You don't say."

I was suprised when PReston reacted to the fact i was already in power armor when i showed up.

 

[Genma:TheDestroyer]

And yet people who should, don't.

 

[Infinitron]

https://extralives.wordpress.com/2015/11/20/fallout-4-its-a-familiar-radioactive-wonderland/

FALLOUT 4 – IT’S A FAMILIAR RADIOACTIVE WONDERLAND
November 20, 2015 · by Reggie C. · in On Gaming, Start Screen. ·


I’ve played a lot of Fallout 4 in the last week or so, perhaps an abnormally high amount of it. I’m a big fan of the first two games by Black Isle. Fallout 3 grew on me, New Vegas felt better storied (despite the bugs which I was apparently lucky to have largely dodged), and now we’re here at Fallout 4.

As to whether it is really super good depends a lot on what your expectations on how much Fallout you want in the game. On one hand, I love sandbox RPGs where you can run wild and dive into “dungeons” for loot, kill monsters, and craft your character with an involved skill system. If leveling and skill points are the bolts and nails that you look forward into hammering out your avatar in any RPG, Fallout 4 provides a lot of outlets to satisfy those particular needs.

On the other hand, it’s scary in how safe it plays. On the most basic of its principles, it’s literally the same approach that Bethesda has used in its “new gen” era of RPGs starting from Oblivion and its expansions on through Skyrim and Fallout 3 with a number of mechanical tweaks made to refresh and polish the underlying tools.

I haven’t finished the main campaign yet (I left it behind once I was free to leave the starting area) but one thing I do know is that despite the Sherman’s March of devastation my lone wanderer has wrought on Boston and its environs, not a whole lot has really changed. And that’s a bit disappointing, especially if you look back on what was possible in the first two Fallouts. Even the destruction of Megaton in Fallout 3 was a small, but interesting, tip of the hat to that kind of effective permanency that you could inflict on the wastes. I still smile at remembering all of the times I reloaded to try out different approaches in Fallout 2’s New Reno with the mafia families running the show there, sometimes going in just to shoot things up, or trying out different options to see what I could get away with. But once you set your course, you had to live with the consequences.

The partners in the game add some nice color. They will also spill their guts to you before you know it. It’s just a bit unnerving when they choose to do that without a lot of prodding. It just kind of happened with three of the partners that I happened across as I did my thing and suddenly they were ready to change their lives after a few hours (not that their lives were ever at risk — they’re immortal like many key characters in the game).

Even your character, who admittedly is a blank slate, doesn’t seem to react overly much to how much the world has changed. She/he is just an impersonal power fist ramming through combat and bludgeoning their way through the story — at least that’s what mine feels like. It’s not so much role playing as it is doing what a protagonist does in Diablo or Grim Dawn, and part of that blame lies with the dialogue…or lack thereof. They have interesting personal stories, but it’s not a very deep system to get them to share that with you.

On a technical level, they did away with freezing the NPC and giving the player a locked dialogue box to hash through a variety of decisions (use medicine, INT, etc.. from New Vegas). Now it “floats” so it has this annoying tendency to sometimes “lose focus” if the NPC doesn’t stop in the right area. Aesthetically, I can see what they were trying to do — they want the dialogue system to be more personable and cinematic, breaking it out of the previous design trope. But in practice, it’s still a bit rough around the edges.

Visually, the game looks great on the PC (after a few tweaks). Signature locations, weapons, etc.. look great though some of the animations still look a bit stiff.

You almost always have four choices, one of which is “sarcastic” which was interesting to use from time to time. You can also save in the midst of a convo so if you miss a charisma roll, well, F9 is only a stroke away if you want to do that. I maxed out the INT on my character, but after tens of hours of play, I have yet to find someone to impress with it. So far, it’s just good for unlocking higher tier perks and giving me a bit more XP in every encounter. But it doesn’t seem as colorful as it could be in terms of choices that focus more on your character than on how many caps you have or whether you want to be sarcastic.



Perhaps the biggest change is the perk system which I do like. Many of the usual suspects are still there like Bloody Mess but each one now has different levels that you can increase by spending the point you earn by leveling. Early on, your choices will shape how your character will react to the wastes, but it’s also one of those systems where given enough time, you can be a walking grave digger and capzillionaire which is something of a trademark with Bethesda’s work — creating the tools and letting players be as powerful as they want to be. There are still benefits to focusing on specific disciplines with the first ten or twenty levels as opposed to spreading everything out but players are still given a lot of leeway. F4 just slows the powergaming aspect down as opposed to curbing it.

The VATS system is still relatively the same one used in the previous games, but now you have a “crit” gauge that builds with hits to deal a guaranteed strike of heavy damage.

Statistics can also be improved instead of picking a new perk on a per-level basis in order to reach those higher tier perks encouraging a lot of grinding to get there. On the plus side (or minus if you’re not a fan of this next feature), encounters scale up to your level with tougher monsters. The scaling isn’t too obnoxious — there are still areas populated with cannon fodder — but on certain jobs, you’ll definitely notice more powerful version of the usual suspects. Super Mutants suddenly find themselves promoted to Super Mutant Masters or Primuses, for example.

But on the other hand, the basic questing structure hasn’t changed a whole lot from “find this object, and kill a lot of things near it” bag that the Elder Scroll series has done outside of a small handful of specific quests that do rely on dialogue choices.

You can set up defenses or even build shop stalls — but you’ll need to decide on whether spending perk points on the skills you need to do so or focus more on your character build. And as far as I can tell, settlers don’t actually “die” which might rub some of the more hardcore survivalist players the wrong way. They just go down for a few moments and then get back up like your partners do.

Bethesda’s Radiant quest generator returns with NPC assigned “jobs” that you can do that populate certain areas with new encounters and a particular task hearkening once more to what the Elder Scrolls Arena and Daggerfall had used with randomized dungeons to keep the hack ‘n slash crowd busy.

A new build and resource system allows you to do things such as craft mods for your weapons, armor, and even grow crops and build turrets to protect settlements that you find and free along the way. This isn’t hardcore survival, either — you can make heavy laser turrets with enough ‘ingredients’ from scrapping things like microscopes and typewriters — but it is fun for those that like to tinker. Or you can opt to just completely ignore it.

Right now, since I haven’t yet seen everything, the choice still seems to be binary — kill everything, or find something (after killing everything). It’s unfortunately limited to this despite the huge opportunity teased throughout the sandbox for much more, but on the ground level in terms of its quest content, Fallout 4 hearkens back to Bethesda’s earliest hack ‘n slash days. Only with atomic weapons.

Just a few thoughts on what I hoped to see — hired help for a caravan, actual trading (ferrying supplies from one place to the next), reconstruction efforts making an impact on the local economy, low level enemies running in fear of you based on your reputation (i.e. Shadow of Mordor), and better PC controls…particularly the last since some of the new features make poor use of the platform without a few tweaks.

For example, refining items for use in the crafting system (to improve your settlements by building things from beds to gun emplacements) requires a lot of raw resources that you can get by breaking down junk like office fans or even boxes of 200 year old cigarettes. But if you’re hoping for a “break all junk down” command, think again.

On the technical side of things, despite how pretty Fallout 4 can look, it still has a number of legacy issues. You might find yourself unable to go through certain holes in walls or beneath objects regardless of whether your eyes are telling you that they have enough clearance to be the local Arc de Triomphe. It’s a problem that’s plagued Bethesda’s engine tech for years and it hasn’t improved.

One day, Bethesda’s tech will allow everyone to mantle over this counter for 200 year old cakes instead of being blocked by an invisible collision box.

Lockpicking is still the same after two iterations (Fallout 3 and New Vegas) and the inventory system, though even with categories, still relies on the same linear list system that makes it a chore to use with a mouse and keyboard. After experiencing other systems ranging from Witcher 3’s inventory system to that in Shadowrun Returns or Grim Dawn, I kind of expected a more PC-centric approach here.At least there will be mods, but I shouldn’t have to expect fans to fix things shouldn’t even be a problem.

The next issue I have is a bit nitpicky but taking place 220 years after the bombs fell, it’s really stretching out certain elements to the point where it feels as if they just have to let some things finally go. I get that America, in this universe, became a hyper-civilization based on atomic energy and the promises of a super future. But after 220 years, it’s really pushing the disbelief bungie to the breaking point.

I’m walking into a ruined supermarket and there is still food in there along with bottles of Nuka Quantum cola. Or Fancy Lads Snack Cakes and Mentats. After two centuries, you’d think that animals, raiders, your next door neighbor who became a ghoul, or whatever, would have cleaned every possible place out. And just how does brahmin meat get stored in a lunch pail inside a location that no one has been in for 200 years? Or a crude pipe rifle hidden in a safe deep inside a bunker that was supposedly sealed for centuries? Then again, F4 doesn’t take itself too seriously when it has an alien blaster and even more bizarre encounters later in the game. Finding the occasionally sealed bunker or irradiated mega-ruin still tickles my inner explorer.

Can’t deny that Fallout 4 is still a ton of fun, but I’m enjoying it more for the reasons that aren’t quite so much Fallout as they are a game closer to S.T.A.L.K.E.R. (the combat mechanics were improved to be a lot more FPS-like but it’s not anywhere as hostile environmentally). Now S.T.A.L.K.E.R. is a great game…but I was wishing for a bit more Fallout, too.

 

[dextermorgan]

despite the bugs which I was apparently lucky to have largely dodged

Despite something that never really happened to me, something something.

 

[GloomFrost]

Despite something that never really happened to me, something something.

I know right. I dont think that guy even played the original fallouts despite what he says.

 

[Monad]

Correct me if I'm wrong but fallout 4 has to have the most number of buildings you can't actually enter of any bethesda rpg.

 

[cvv]

Goody-goody dialogues, (attempting to) solve quests peacefully and the infinite settlement quests. You're doing everything right, Preston just takes a while to 'level up' with. Or at least thats the way it seemed to me. I maxed out Piper and Hancock pretty easily. Strong and Preston take a lot more time.

Yeah, finally got it. But it really takes around 10 of those infinite quests to max out Preston. What a retarded design, most players would give up before the third one.

 

[MadMaxHellfire]

Correct me if I'm wrong but fallout 4 has to have the most number of buildings you can't actually enter of any bethesda rpg.

in daggerfall you could explore every single one.

heh, evolution...

 

[Lemming42]

Correct me if I'm wrong but fallout 4 has to have the most number of buildings you can't actually enter of any bethesda rpg.

Sounds right to me. Also note that none of the buildings you can enter have any cool gimmicks, like these:


etc. In Skyrim especially they liked to put easter eggs or creative touches to dungeons which helped keep the player invested in wanting to explore the next dungeon, never saw anything of the sort in Fo4.

 

[Zerginfestor]

There's one other variant of mutt that's a rottweiler mix, and that's it. German Shepherd and Rottweiler mixes are the only dogs left.

It's not even a good rottweiler mix, Seems like Dogmeat is somehow eating or looks healthier than every other mutt I notice. The Rottweilers look odd for naturally thick dogs, might be a mix of Labrador .

 

[Curious_Tongue]

Correct me if I'm wrong but fallout 4 has to have the most number of buildings you can't actually enter of any bethesda rpg.

Yeah, but it probably has the most number of buildings you can enter of any modern Bethesda gme.

I've been wandering around and finding heaps of unmarked buildings with their own interiors.

 

[Curious_Tongue]

I'm really impressed with the amount of (semi) unique buildings and locations in the game.

 

[Monad]

I'm really impressed with the amount of (semi) unique buildings and locations in the game.

Hmm strange didn't really see much that was noteworthy.

 

[MadMaxHellfire]

it's official: in italy "game x" topics are not really place where you can discuss that said game but only where you can suck its dick. praise is the only thing you can do, otherwise you're wrong.
one of the latest answers i got could be summarized briefly as "f4 is a better game than skyrim, stalker, gta5 and tw3 and beats them on their grounds too", and i'm the bad person who spreads falsehoods if i say otherwise.

i suffer from depression and i'm supposed to desire my own death, but damn, i've never wished i could kill as much as lately.


how's the situation in the rest of the world?

 

[DavidBVal]

how's the situation in the rest of the world?

If you dare to criticize FO4 in a spanish forum, you'll be insulted and lnched. the more they know deep in that their game is not that good, the more they go fanatic.

Don't burn yourself over a shitty game bro. Not worth it. Not over this.

 

[Zerginfestor]

And people say Americans are bad. I mean, they fucking are, sheeple are sheeple, though to not have a sinlge person in those forums state differently from the blob of shite that is 'the fans' is just wow.

And to think, my definition of a true fan was someone who loves the lore and critiques the developer's future game titles focused upon that franchise and have concern for mistakes and notify any developer who isn't a stuck-up cunt of said mistakes. Looks like it's now just: If you suck the most dicks, you're a FAN!

 

[UndetectedButthurt]

I'm surprised there isn't such a mod...

 

[Bradylama]

And people say Americans are bad. I mean, they fucking are, sheeple are sheeple, though to not have a sinlge person in those forums state differently from the blob of shite that is 'the fans' is just wow.

And to think, my definition of a true fan was someone who loves the lore and critiques the developer's future game titles focused upon that franchise and have concern for mistakes and notify any developer who isn't a stuck-up cunt of said mistakes. Looks like it's now just: If you suck the most dicks, you're a FAN!

Fandoms are all retarded and people who tie their identities to an art work need Jesus, or Mohammed, or Marxist-Leninism.

 

[Zerginfestor]

And people say Americans are bad. I mean, they fucking are, sheeple are sheeple, though to not have a sinlge person in those forums state differently from the blob of shite that is 'the fans' is just wow.

And to think, my definition of a true fan was someone who loves the lore and critiques the developer's future game titles focused upon that franchise and have concern for mistakes and notify any developer who isn't a stuck-up cunt of said mistakes. Looks like it's now just: If you suck the most dicks, you're a FAN!

Fandoms are all retarded and people who tie their identities to an art work need Jesus, or Mohammed, or Marxist-Leninism.

Or a new hobby, whatever the fuck works.

 

[Kazuki]

Heh, in my native forum even people who's the most fanatic Bethesda fan admit the game is dumbed down in every possible way.

Guess there's still hope in here

 

[Clockwork Knight]

"YOU HAVE TO FEED ME"

 

[Commissar Draco]

[Intelligence/Perception] So Komrades FO4 is trash? Downloaded it from morbid curiosity, played maybe 2-3 hours and removed from promises... Aside from Fallout Tactics inspired color pallet which makes the game not puke green/shit brown it was even more derp and bland than Oblibion* was. Reinstalled Skyrim with Requiem and other mods and Komrades its great game in comparison with intelligent dialogues and Lovers labs mods clever game word in comparison.

P.S. must admit some bugs and glitches were unintentionally funny to watch and PA was interesting change...

*until started to encounter Raiders clad in them.

 

[MadMaxHellfire]

how's the situation in the rest of the world?

If you dare to criticize FO4 in a spanish forum, you'll be insulted and lnched. the more they know deep in that their game is not that good, the more they go fanatic.

Don't burn yourself over a shitty game bro. Not worth it. Not over this.

i don't give a rat's ass about the shitty game. what pisses me off is this "preserve the retards" mentality, i'd be as pissed off if somebody tried to sell me witcher 3's itemization as the best thing since sliced bread.
i'm not the sharpest tool in the box, i know, but i just cannot stand anymore being insulted by self-righteous hordes of retards.

 

[Machocruz]

Deus Ex is my favorite game of all time, easily. But I could, and have, ripped the game a new one on its flaws, easily.

It's about ethics in fandom, you see.

 

[Sykar]

Deus Ex is my favorite game of all time, easily. But I could, and have, ripped the game a new one on its flaws, easily.

It's about ethics in fandom, you see.

That's what smart fans do. They know what they love but they also know what they hate about their favorite games.