Fallout 3

For 200 years, Vault 101, a fallout shelter, has served the surviving residents of Washington DC and its environs, now known as the Capital Wasteland. Though the global atomic war of 2077 left the US all but destroyed, the residents of Vault 101 enjoy a life free from Giant Insects, Raiders, Slavers, and yes, even Super Mutants. Yet one morning, you awake to find that your father has left the comfort and security afforded by Vault 101 for reasons unknown. Leaving the only home you've ever known, you emerge from the Vault into the harsh Wasteland sun to search for your father. Fallout 3 is a singleplayer action role-playing game (RPG) that combines the horrific insanity of the Cold War era theory of mutually assured destruction gone terribly wrong with the kitschy naivety of American 1950s nuclear propaganda.

Mind-Blowing Artificial Intelligence - Radiant AI, America's First Choice in Human Interaction Simulation. Facial expressions, gestures, unique dialog, and lifelike behavior are brought together with stunning results Eye-Popping Prettiness - Witness the harsh realities of nuclear fallout rendered like never before in modern super-deluxe HD graphics

The third game in the Fallout series, Fallout 3 is a singleplayer action role-playing game (RPG) set in a post-apocalyptic Washington DC. Combining the horrific insanity of the Cold War era theory of mutually assured destruction gone terribly wrong, with the kitschy naivety of American 1950s nuclear propaganda, Fallout 3 will satisfy both players familiar with the popular first two games in its series as well as those coming to the franchise for the first time.

The Cold War goes Next-Gen

Welcome to the nation's capital. View larger.

The Brotherhood of Steel is a powerful ally. View larger.

Customize characters with your Pip-Boy. View larger.

The Story: Vault 101 - Jewel of the Wastes
For 200 years, Vault 101 , a fallout shelter, has faithfully served the surviving residents of Washington DC and its environs, now known as the Capital Wasteland. Though the global atomic war of 2077 left the US all but destroyed, the residents of Vault 101 enjoy a life free from the constant stress of the outside world. Giant Insects, Raiders, Slavers, and yes, even Super Mutants are all no match for superior Vault-Tec engineering. Yet one fateful morning, you awake to find that your father has defied the Overseer and left the comfort and security afforded by Vault 101 for reasons unknown. Leaving the only home you've ever known, you emerge from the Vault into the harsh Wasteland sun to search for your father, and the truth.

Key Features:

• Limitless Freedom! - Take in the sights and sounds of the vast Capital Wasteland! See the great monuments of the United States lying in post-apocalyptic ruin! You make the choices that define you and change the world. Just keep an eye on your Rad Meter!
• Experience S.P.E.C.I.A.L.! - Vault-Tec engineers bring you the latest in human ability simulation - the SPECIAL Character System! Utilizing new breakthroughs in points-based ability representation, SPECIAL affords unlimited customization of your character. Also included are dozens of unique skills and perks to choose from, each with a dazzling variety of effects!
• Fantastic New Views! - The wizards at Vault-Tec have done it again! No longer constrained to just one view, experience the world from 1st or 3rd person perspective. Customize your view with the touch of a button!
• The Power of Choice! - Feeling like a dastardly villain today, or a Good Samaritan? Pick a side or walk the line, as every situation can be dealt with in many different ways. Talk out your problems in a civilized fashion, or just flash your Plasma Rifle.
• Blast 'Em Away With V.A.T.S.! -Even the odds in combat with the Vault-Tec Assisted Targeting System for your Pip-Boy Model 3000! V.A.T.S. allows you to pause time in combat, target specific body parts on your target, queue up attacks, and let Vault-Tec take out your aggression for you. Rain death and destruction in an all-new cinematic presentation featuring gory dismemberments and spectacular explosions.
• Mind-Blowing Artificial Intelligence! - At Vault-Tec, we realize that the key to reviving civilization after a global nuclear war is people. Our best minds pooled their efforts to produce an advanced version of Radiant AI, America's First Choice in Human Interaction Simulation. Facial expressions, gestures, unique dialog, and lifelike behavior are brought together with stunning results by the latest in Vault-Tec technology.
• Eye-Popping Prettiness! - Witness the harsh realities of nuclear fallout rendered like never before in modern super-deluxe HD graphics. From the barren Wasteland, to the danger-filled offices and metro tunnels of DC, to the hideous rotten flesh of a mutant's face.

System Requirements:

	Minimum Specifications:	Recommended Specifications:
OS:	Windows XP/Vista
Processor:	2.4 Ghz Intel Pentium 4 or equivalent processor	Intel Core 2 Duo processor
RAM:	XP: 1GB System RAM Vista: 2GB System RAM	2 GB System RAM
Video Card:	Direct X 9.0c compliant video card with 256MB RAM (NVIDIA 6800 or better/ATI X850 or better)	NvidiaDirect X 9.0c compliant video card with 512MB RAM (NVIDIA 8800 series, ATI 3800 series)
Supported Video Card Chipsets:	NVIDIA GeForce Series 200, 9800, 9600, 8800, 8600, 8500, 8400, 7900, 7800, 7600, 7300, 6800; ATI HD Series 4800, 4600, 3800, 3600, 3400, 2900, 2600, 2400; ATI Series X1900, X1800, X1600, X1300, and X850

Perhaps I built this game up too much in my head, given that I've been a big fan of Fallout 1, 2, and Tactics, but this game just barely failed to live up to the hype in my head. Don't get me wrong, its an amazing game with way more space than I could ever care to explore. The wasteland is HUGE and beautifully rendered (for a post-apocalyptic wasteland), the combat system is innovative and easy to figure out, and the characters look amazing. But after all the 95-100% ratings I saw for this game, I was expecting something that would completely engulf me for days, permanently redefine my gaming experience; this is not that game. After a while many aspects of the game, from combat to dialogue, become rather formulaic, and the main story line involves a surprisingly small range and number of stops considering the size of the map. An expansion might help, but I'm not sure how they could work it in.

So by all means, if you enjoy the Fallout series or other RPG/FPS games, then buy this game immediately, it's amazing, and well worth the money. But if you're expecting it to change your life after you've played it, you're headed toward disappointment.

It seemed like it was based on the Oblivion engine, so it had Havok physics. However, if you played other games by Bethesda, such as Morrowind, the game feels a bit more limited due to invisible barriers (like climbing over rubble and finding you can't go any further). It has a very similar speaking style to the original Fallout where you can choose from many different options, i.e. where you can be a jerk or nice to someone. Sometimes the VATS (the targeting program) can be useful because bullets are a bit random, unlike other first person shooters. Many of the original weapons and armor make an appearance, only in 3D.

Good mechanics, story line is out of place but has depth. Game uses same engine as Oblivion, but is overall smaller.

I know this review will probably be the shortest one but I just wanted to say something:

As a fan of both Fallout and Fallout 2 when they first came out (heck, still today), Fallout 3 delivers in every possible way.

Graphics, sound, gameplay, art, everything is top notch.

It is a must buy.

I was expecting more of a 3rd-person strategy setup based on previous titles, but really like the hybrid first-person shooter with option to tap into slow-mo "action points." Destroyed landscape is well done graphically, although a little repetitive. Likewise the enemies--a bit repetitive, without terrific AE even on "hard" (they're harder to kill, but not any smarter!). Plenty of gameplay if you like sneaking around, exploring, and collecting stuff.

Biggest frustration is game stutters--freezes up for a few seconds on a regular basis. Read forums for solutions. Un-oc'ing my computer helped a lot, but it still happens sometimes. Also not running the fastest hardware--3.0 SATA hard drive, XP 4200+, 2 gb DDR ram, Geforce 8800gt. Working on my wish list on NewE** :-)