Fallout 3: A Different Kind of Treasure

Lvl 64 Klutz

Crowsplosion!
Apr 8, 2008
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I'm slightly confused. I take it from your mention of it, that you enjoyed Oblivion, but I find that Fallout 3 has more loot than that game. I mean, you have two basic types of armor, and only about 4 sets from each type. Then if you don't count the random enchantments on them, only a few handfuls of weapons. The only unique items in the game come from the statue quests.

It was that same lack of loot you mention about Fallout 3 that I didn't enjoy Oblivion. With Fallout 3, there is the occasional unique item like story pieces or bobbleheads. Combine that with the fact that every environment feels unique, unlike Oblivion where just about everywhere was a cave, ruin, or fort; each one feeling like a randomly generated dungeon.
 

Dramatic Flare

Frightening Frolicker
Jun 18, 2008
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perhaps. There was certainly a sense of "wait... really? SWEET!" in the first game when you got the laser rifle/power armor combo, turning you from man to unstoppable juggernaut. having not played through the third one yet (damn you, bills!) I can't stay how it compares.
But yeah, I'll say that F3 is not your traditional RPG in many aspects.
 

Dommyboy

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Jul 20, 2008
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Well there are still some areas with contain big loot at the end though there is not a lot of it. Fallout 1 and 2 contained loot end dungeons though you had to be intelligent and search for it as the loot wouldn't just be right there on a big alter, which is somewhat like Fallout 3.
 

Tiamat666

Level 80 Legendary Postlord
Dec 4, 2007
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Cheeze_Pavilion said:
Tiamat666 said:
This is something that turned me off about STALKER. Exploration is not rewarded as the only things you will find are the usual assortment of ammo, medikits and tin cans.

Sometimes you are "rewarded" by finding, er, "interesting" scenery, like a bunch of soldiers that were torn apart and mutilated by wild dogs. But I agree with the author that in a world were almost everything is a grey, radioactive wasteland there is only so much you can do to keep exploration interesting without including some special loot every once in a while.
I think the author's point was that there are 'story loot' people, and there are 'item loot' people (and of course people who are both, etc.). If your thing is 'item loot' then even great 'story loot' can only go so far.

Then again, if you're a 'story loot' person, F3 is a gold mine. Especially if you're the kind of person who isn't put off by a grey, radioactive wasteland. Because that grey, radioactive wasteland is just the sea in which there are a whole lot of islands chock full of 'story loot'.

In a way, 'item loot' wouldn't make sense in F3: like Moira says, a lot of people are trying to put the past back together the way it was, when they should really be trying to use the past as raw materials to assemble a new future. In a way, if F3 had been an 'item loot' game, it wouldn't have made as much sense. The idea in the Fallout world seems to have always been that the Vaults and the past were tombs, were dead. Real life happens out there in the wastes as people try and create a new world.
I got the point and I agree with the 'story loot' and 'item loot' thing. I would also add a 'scenery loot' to it, as exploration can be very rewarding by encountering an interesting or pretty location. Usually any kind of 'loot' will do for me and I do usually enjoy 'story loot' the most, which is why I am eager to play Fallout 3 (right after my final exams are over).
While reading the article I just remembered that I didn't like STALKER alot for similiar reasons... because it has neither decent story nor item loot and only the occasional 'scenery loot'.
 

Spartan Bannana

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Apr 27, 2008
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I feel exactly the same way. I greatly enjoy the little stories of people you find in dungeons, but once I took that game out of my console for more then 3 days, I had trouble playing it again.
 

ThaBenMan

Mandalorian Buddha
Mar 6, 2008
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See, I like the relative scarcity of loot in Fallout 3 because in most fantasy rpgs I find myself weighted down with a glut of sweet new magic weapons and armor that I've found. It makes that much more rewarding when you find one of those truly rare special weapons or suit of armor in the Wasteland.

And I also must disagree with your dislike of the aesthetic of the world of Fallout 3, Ms. Arendt. I think the Capital Wasteland is very beautiful in it's own way. The deserted suburbs, hills dotted with blasted, withered trees, and the faded glory of Washington, DC, are locales that I'm sure I'll visit time and again.

I'm just glad that you didn't comepletely give up on it and gave it another chance :D
 

pantsoffdanceoff

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Jun 14, 2008
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Wow, that was a quite frankly an amazing article. I felt the same way about the game but I didn't know it. Great Job!

My other big beef with the game is that its hard to play a second charter because you need to have two of your three skills be small guns and lock picking or you'll be screwed.
 

Genta8

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Nov 27, 2008
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Hmm... Shes right... I think I'm gonna start looking at other games like that also...
 
Feb 13, 2008
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Tiamat666 said:
Cheeze_Pavilion said:
Tiamat666 said:
This is something that turned me off about STALKER. Exploration is not rewarded as the only things you will find are the usual assortment of ammo, medikits and tin cans.

Sometimes you are "rewarded" by finding, er, "interesting" scenery, like a bunch of soldiers that were torn apart and mutilated by wild dogs. But I agree with the author that in a world were almost everything is a grey, radioactive wasteland there is only so much you can do to keep exploration interesting without including some special loot every once in a while.
I think the author's point was that there are 'story loot' people, and there are 'item loot' people (and of course people who are both, etc.). If your thing is 'item loot' then even great 'story loot' can only go so far.

Then again, if you're a 'story loot' person, F3 is a gold mine. Especially if you're the kind of person who isn't put off by a grey, radioactive wasteland. Because that grey, radioactive wasteland is just the sea in which there are a whole lot of islands chock full of 'story loot'.

In a way, 'item loot' wouldn't make sense in F3: like Moira says, a lot of people are trying to put the past back together the way it was, when they should really be trying to use the past as raw materials to assemble a new future. In a way, if F3 had been an 'item loot' game, it wouldn't have made as much sense. The idea in the Fallout world seems to have always been that the Vaults and the past were tombs, were dead. Real life happens out there in the wastes as people try and create a new world.
I got the point and I agree with the 'story loot' and 'item loot' thing. I would also add a 'scenery loot' to it, as exploration can be very rewarding by encountering an interesting or pretty location. Usually any kind of 'loot' will do for me and I do usually enjoy 'story loot' the most, which is why I am eager to play Fallout 3 (right after my final exams are over).
While reading the article I just remembered that I didn't like STALKER alot for similiar reasons... because it has neither decent story nor item loot and only the occasional 'scenery loot'.
One of the other nice things is "fluff" loot, like badges and little in-jokes. Coming across a "McDaneils styrofoam cup", with the coffee still warm, is one of those silly things that you can slip past the rader and is still fun to get for some.
 

Susan Arendt

Nerd Queen
Jan 9, 2007
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ThaBenMan said:
And I also must disagree with your dislike of the aesthetic of the world of Fallout 3, Ms. Arendt. I think the Capital Wasteland is very beautiful in it's own way. The deserted suburbs, hills dotted with blasted, withered trees, and the faded glory of Washington, DC, are locales that I'm sure I'll visit time and again.

I'm just glad that you didn't comepletely give up on it and gave it another chance :D
Beauty's in the eye, and all that. :) Don't get me wrong, I think the visuals of Fallout are extremely well done - Bethesda deserves heaps of praise for its attention to detail (though I do wish they had made the "unpassable" piles of rubble just a wee bit taller in some areas...if I can see over it, I should be able to climb it, dammit!). I just found it all so heartbreaking.
 

Zankabo

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Sep 14, 2008
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I agree with this article, Fallout 3 isn't much about the loot.

Course I had an advantage going into this game; I have played and loved the previous games in the series (and they are on Gametap now, for those who never got to play em.. worth a look!). I don't recall ever getting much big loot in the Fallout series, but instead a story that was both interesting and heartbreaking. Probably why this game stands out among all the Dungeon Hack games, where loot is king and the story is there to give some flavor.

I haven't finished Fallout 3 yet, I am somewhat slowly wandering the entire wasteland, finding as many little jokes, stories, and scenes as possible. I am generally amazed with the game, and all the stuff that has been put within it. The finding of the Vault 77 suit was definitely funny, and the vault full of psychotropic drugs was downright creepy.

Really, a lot of the game is creepy.. and keeps me on edge. I only just finally went to the Deathclaw Sanctuary and that place put me on edge the whole time. Dunwich is next on my list, been sorta saving it for a time where I could really enjoy a place referencing Lovecraft.

But anywho, I am sure the generation of gamers who have spent more time in MMOs than old style story based RPGs have been somewhat disappointed with Fallout 3. I noticed back when I played World of Warcraft that the most often avoided quests were those whose loot was mostly 'flavor' and 'story'. Personally I like a good laugh and an interesting story over the Kithkithall Blade (Kill Them, Kill Them All! - Raisinlost Story).
 

ccesarano

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Oct 3, 2007
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I've only played a little bit of Fallout 2, but never enough to really make a judgment call on how Fallout 3 is in comparison.

Even so, I have trouble getting into Fallout 3 because it feels like they don't do enough with what they could. I'm only at the Galaxy News Radio mission, about to get the dish from the museum, and so far most of the areas I've had to go through are all subway tunnels. The first couple I searched extensively, but after finding little in the way of loot or variety, I've found myself tired of subway tunnels and mostly head right for the objective. Exploration doesn't feel worth my time anymore.

Similarly, when I've been wandering the wastes, I've found the random monsters that attack me without purpose to be irritating. It was actually one of my beefs with Oblivion. I'm off exploring, and suddenly a random rodent is chomping at my ankles. Five minutes later, another little rodent is chomping at them. It is a bit irritating.

However, there are some encounters that I've really enjoyed and give the wasteland a depth of life for me. I was walking by a random ruin of a building, and all of a sudden there are gun shots heading my way. I wasn't in the condition to fight, so I ran away as best as I could. It was thrilling, and it felt real. I enjoyed the fight in the old grocery store for the Wasteland Survival Guide quest. I enjoyed emerging from the subway to get to the museum, only to pretty much hold off a siege against what felt like a dozen super mutants. I also liked it the first time I fought against a bandit barricade with mines littered before it. However, even that has been repeated and gets annoying once in a while.

As I said, I'm not very far in the game, but like Oblivion the game is so full of repetition that it is already becoming bland. I like quests, I like story and finding recordings for atmosphere, but I don't like being dragged through subway after subway.

If I was wandering the wastes, and all of a sudden I started to hear dogs/wolves howl and five minutes later had to fend off a pack of them and then having no combat for a while, that would be more fun than having to fight a single mongrel or rodent every five minutes. Even having some of the beasts vary their behavior would be a great idea, having some that won't attack unless you get too close, but even then won't fight to the death unless you attack them.

I'm sure the Capital Wastelands are interesting, but it feels as if Bethesda just strung a bunch of pieces together to add game time and take up space instead of being genuinely interesting and unique. As such, while I enjoy it, I've found much more pleasure in playing Mirror's Edge, Left 4 Dead and replaying Gears 2 with my brother the past few weeks than playing Fallout 3.

Quite interesting for what is commonly being called Game of the Year.
 

Novajam

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Apr 26, 2008
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Susan Arendt said:
Tiamat666 said:
This is something that turned me off about STALKER. Exploration is not rewarded as the only things you will find are the usual assortment of ammo, medikits and tin cans.

Sometimes you are "rewarded" by finding, er, "interesting" scenery, like a bunch of soldiers that were torn apart and mutilated by wild dogs. But I agree with the author that in a world were almost everything is a grey, radioactive wasteland there is only so much you can do to keep exploration interesting without including some special loot every once in a while.
I ran into a tiny grocery last night in which some clever wastelander with homicidal intent had set up a Rube Goldberg-style apparatus meant to set off a cluster of grenades. It was amusing, but there are only so many of those moments in the game.
I just couldn't get that thing to work properly. The first time I stepped on the pressure plate, they all fell the wrong way. About five tries later they did fall the right way, but didn't activate the next part of the chain. The seventh time around a couple of the boxes in the middle fell onto the floor in some odd clipping issue. Eventually I did get it to go through the sequence, but the explosion at the end wasn't triggered. I was at this point that I got impatient and just took all the Sugar Bombs I could get my hands to Murphy.

Oh Havok, where won't you glitch so reliably?

Also, you've got a little typo in that last paragraph :)
 

antipunt

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Jan 3, 2009
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I agree with those that say they played fallout 3 just to explore the nooks and grannies. To find those vaults, those weird arse towns, those quirky side quests. Also, after a while, you get freaking BUFF (which was enough for me). I virtually owned the entire cap economy =P

that said, I respected the review for the most part, except one thing though: she seems a little over-obsessed with the fact that Fallout3's world was 'depressing' or 'gloomy' or something. I..dunno. I mean, did she want it to be HAPPIER IN POSTAPOCALYPTICA?! IMMERSION people.immersion!
 
Mar 6, 2008
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I am enjoying FO3 but I agree with Susan in that the "loot" or items that you find are a little lack lustre. In an age of excessive consumption and materialism in which WWIII was said to have commenced, you'd think that there'd be a bit more variety in the items than say a .32 calibre pistol or a "hunting rifle".

Right now there is a enormous amount of weaponary availble to a firearms enthusiast in the US of A and I'd have imagined a great deal of it would have survived the 200+ years since the bombs fell which finds us in the FO3 universe.

I am hoping that further patches, mods or modules will rectify this. The FO universe has that wonderful quirky '50's feel about it. Why not translate that flavouring as well, such as a variety of weapons by a mocked up gun maker - Filly instead of Colt for example? Each weapon would be different than the others, some would be rarer and better etc while there'd be others that are cheap and nasty.

This would also go for the other non-weapon like items for the game.
 

Susan Arendt

Nerd Queen
Jan 9, 2007
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antipunt said:
I agree with those that say they played fallout 3 just to explore the nooks and grannies. To find those vaults, those weird arse towns, those quirky side quests. Also, after a while, you get freaking BUFF (which was enough for me). I virtually owned the entire cap economy =P

that said, I respected the review for the most part, except one thing though: she seems a little over-obsessed with the fact that Fallout3's world was 'depressing' or 'gloomy' or something. I..dunno. I mean, did she want it to be HAPPIER IN POSTAPOCALYPTICA?! IMMERSION people.immersion!
It's not a review, and I never said the dismal vibe wasn't utterly appropriate to the game. I simply observed that it's not exactly what you'd call inviting.
 

Stylish_Robot

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Dec 29, 2008
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I usually don't notice the stories in the towns and whatnot. I'm just going "what's here I can use and can I sleep here?". Today I was in Yao Guai Tunnels and one dead dude had a note saying he preferred to the tunnels to everywhere else and instead of being sad about him being yao guai lunch, I just said "too bad you became a bear snack"