Fallout3's Problems
Posted: Wed Aug 22, 2007 10:18 pm
The big problems are PERSPECTIVE and COMBAT. (We all knew that when Bethesda announced that they were going to use the Oblivion engine in FO3)
The God view or isometric view of the Fallout world is something that we were quite happy with, I mean who didn’t like to see the world the way Zeus, Thor and Jehovah did?
The Isometric view has a very direct link to the old table top RPG games like D&D and its many clones. Because of the perspective, character generation system, skill based combat and maneuver system players found it easy to forget about themselves and play their characters. For those of us that played those old RPG’s it was easy to ‘play in character’, and it was a very important component of the game. In my opinion no other computer RPG game emulated the old table top RPG games better than fallout 1 and 2. The games were addicting, reasonably open ended, fostered character identification and allowed us to jump into the wasteland and become completely immersed in the game.
Fallout 1&2 were home runs in my book.
The question is can a game that looks and feels a lot like a 3D shooter and requires the player to immerse himself in the mechanics of real time combat (let’s not talk about V.A.T.S) foster the same degree of character immersion and identification that Fallout 1 and 2 did? The answer is in my book a resounding NO! And the reasons for that are many. I’ll list a few:
1) With fallout 1 & 2 and even Fallout tactics the game playing pieces (characters + NPC’s) were small enough not look plastic or grossly faceted the way the critters in Oblivion and every other 3D shooter do. That plastic, faceted look is an impediment to character identification and hence game immersion. The pixel art critters in FO1 & 2 and the small heavily reworked 3D model critters in Fallout Tactics did not look real, they were simply electronic analogs of the lead miniatures that people used to play with in D & D. Those miniatures (real or virtual) seemed to have fostered character Identification for some reason. The large scale 3D models used in first person games do not seem to have that effect on most of us.�
2) In a good RPG combat is an enjoyable side task but it is not intended to dominate the game completely. I don’t like a 3D shooting combat system or any thing like it in an RPG because it’s too much damn work. During combat the world becomes a blur of Forward---Left---Right---zoom in---Select Weapon---Fire---reload---change weapon---repeat action. I can accept and even like games like Return To Wolfenstein, Doom3 etc because shooting is the game but not in an RPG. Bethesda is attempting to put a Band-Aid on the game with VATS so that you can target specific body areas. The system will be clunky lame and distracting. I had hoped that they would have taken a cue from that much maligned game Fallout Tactics and its Continuous Turn Based Mode with its highly automated ‘Sentry Mode’ combat system. This allowed you to play the character (such as it was) instead of being completely absorbed with the game controller.
‘Sentry Mode’ allowed you to set your parties reaction to three conditions:
Don’t Fire Ever
Fire if Fired Upon
Fire at all Hostile Targets Immediately.
Essentially the mode also allowed you to select the range at which your character and the party started engaging targets by letting you select a hit probability trigger. Sounds like a pain but it amounted to just two clicks on the control panel and from then on you could maneuver around the board hunt for things take actions like stealing or picking locks. Then when an enemy appeared close enough to trigger your sentry mode the fire fight begins and you can then try to think your way trough it. You could of course take over the combat by clicking on your character and then selecting a target and pulling the trigger at anytime.
The bottom line is that Fallout3 will be an OK game but it will not cure the Fallout itch, in fact playing it might just be a very disappointing experience.
The God view or isometric view of the Fallout world is something that we were quite happy with, I mean who didn’t like to see the world the way Zeus, Thor and Jehovah did?
The Isometric view has a very direct link to the old table top RPG games like D&D and its many clones. Because of the perspective, character generation system, skill based combat and maneuver system players found it easy to forget about themselves and play their characters. For those of us that played those old RPG’s it was easy to ‘play in character’, and it was a very important component of the game. In my opinion no other computer RPG game emulated the old table top RPG games better than fallout 1 and 2. The games were addicting, reasonably open ended, fostered character identification and allowed us to jump into the wasteland and become completely immersed in the game.
Fallout 1&2 were home runs in my book.
The question is can a game that looks and feels a lot like a 3D shooter and requires the player to immerse himself in the mechanics of real time combat (let’s not talk about V.A.T.S) foster the same degree of character immersion and identification that Fallout 1 and 2 did? The answer is in my book a resounding NO! And the reasons for that are many. I’ll list a few:
1) With fallout 1 & 2 and even Fallout tactics the game playing pieces (characters + NPC’s) were small enough not look plastic or grossly faceted the way the critters in Oblivion and every other 3D shooter do. That plastic, faceted look is an impediment to character identification and hence game immersion. The pixel art critters in FO1 & 2 and the small heavily reworked 3D model critters in Fallout Tactics did not look real, they were simply electronic analogs of the lead miniatures that people used to play with in D & D. Those miniatures (real or virtual) seemed to have fostered character Identification for some reason. The large scale 3D models used in first person games do not seem to have that effect on most of us.�
2) In a good RPG combat is an enjoyable side task but it is not intended to dominate the game completely. I don’t like a 3D shooting combat system or any thing like it in an RPG because it’s too much damn work. During combat the world becomes a blur of Forward---Left---Right---zoom in---Select Weapon---Fire---reload---change weapon---repeat action. I can accept and even like games like Return To Wolfenstein, Doom3 etc because shooting is the game but not in an RPG. Bethesda is attempting to put a Band-Aid on the game with VATS so that you can target specific body areas. The system will be clunky lame and distracting. I had hoped that they would have taken a cue from that much maligned game Fallout Tactics and its Continuous Turn Based Mode with its highly automated ‘Sentry Mode’ combat system. This allowed you to play the character (such as it was) instead of being completely absorbed with the game controller.
‘Sentry Mode’ allowed you to set your parties reaction to three conditions:
Don’t Fire Ever
Fire if Fired Upon
Fire at all Hostile Targets Immediately.
Essentially the mode also allowed you to select the range at which your character and the party started engaging targets by letting you select a hit probability trigger. Sounds like a pain but it amounted to just two clicks on the control panel and from then on you could maneuver around the board hunt for things take actions like stealing or picking locks. Then when an enemy appeared close enough to trigger your sentry mode the fire fight begins and you can then try to think your way trough it. You could of course take over the combat by clicking on your character and then selecting a target and pulling the trigger at anytime.
The bottom line is that Fallout3 will be an OK game but it will not cure the Fallout itch, in fact playing it might just be a very disappointing experience.
.
