The bombs have fallen and Fallout 3 has blown this reviewer away! Bethesda delivers this dynamite title with a faithful sequel to the previous games. Time to walk the wastelands so grab your shotgun and power armor!

Fallout 3 takes place in the United States after an atomic war which pretty much blankets the world in endless wastes. Most of your childhood you spend in Vault 101 protected from the outside world. But things quickly get out of control and you’re forced to leave.

You begin the game with several snippets from your life as you grow up. Like your ninth birthday when you get your pip-boy 3000; a device that helps you throughout the game with Vault-tec assisted targeting system (V.A.T.S.) After you establish your characters looks and skills it time to leave the vault because of unforeseen consequences.

The wasteland is full of adventure from pristine makeshift cities to the unique ruins of downtown DC… and don’t forget to say hello to your friendly mini-gun wielding super-mutant. There are several items and locals to pick-up or visit in Fallout 3, along with unique enemies who will battle each other to the bloody death when they encounter each other. As a reviewer who is big on ambiance and creating feel, Fallout 3 does so perfectly from the era it portrays to the remnants of old office building. Sounds are all properly placed create this barren wasteland you have to survive in and trust me you in for a long haul. Dialog and expression give the NPC characters shape with a fitting A.I.

But because the world is so big there are a few graphical glitches and some of which your character can get stuck in, forcing a reload, so save often. The auto save feature comes in handy throughout the game saving at several key points.

Combat is fun in Fallout 3; it was well thought out and gives plenty of opportunities to be as passive or aggressive as you wish. Like my character that will sneak around and pot shot enemy heads off from afar. With the amount of perks and skills available there are several schedule replays. You can call shots on enemies with V.A.T.S. to slow down, disarm, or kill your enemies faster. If you need to repair you can use duplicates of a weapon to repair the weapon to max performance. And with an open world environment be ready for a long game as RPGs should be.

The only gameplay aspect that made me mad was the unique items don’t feel or look unique.

Quests and storyline are pretty big, many quests are expansive and require more then go to “point A” and return. The storyline is interesting and full of twists to keep the rollercoaster going. One thing that Fallout is known from is the humor in each game from the funny perks to the bloody messes, to the character dialog options. I’ve almost completed my first play-through and I know I haven’t seen everything.

Overall, Fallout 3 is a perfect title for anyone over 17 because of its M rating. Any fan of RPGs or shooters will feel a welcoming from Fallout 3. I found that any bugs I encountered are easily overlooked except the game crashing one. Add in the fact for future mods for the PC crowd and you get this: BUY THIS GAME!

The Good:
—Excellent Production Values
—Fun Gameplay
—Data Files for PC

The Bad:
—A few minor Bugs
—Nasty Crashes
—You don’t own it on any system!

Gameplay…10
Graphics… 10
Sound… 10
Story… 10
Value… 10