Fallout: New Vegas DLC Overview

[mirror's edgy]

NV was crap because it was so linear compared to Fallout 3. I really didn't like being forced to go in one direction to get the game going... that and the whole bug-ridden crashes that destroyed quite a few saves in my game...
Obsidian, why do you have to make games with awesome concepts and horribad QA testing?

What makes you call it linear? Some sequences are admittedly pretty straightforward combat, but I found almost every character, location, and quest to provide a nice variety of options to deal with them, many of which had affects on other aspects of the game. I thought this kind of varied design made it stand well as an RPG. Are you referring specifically to the DLCs? Because those were smaller, but still allowed players to choose alliances with NPCs, affect the new location's future, and had multiple endings, most of which were pretty satisfying. I'd like to hear your perspective on it.

 

[Dr. Crawver]

good review, but also he plasma defender was part of the original game (check the silver rush, there's a bad quality one lying on the desk)

 

[Irridium]

I'd say that all of them are must-buys. I love all of them. I love how New Vegas' DLC expand upon and explain things about the people/creatures you hear about/meet in the wasteland. And the items added by these DLC's aren't hilariously overpowered.

Dead Money I love for the haunting atmosphere, great characters, and fantastic story. The end was particularly great, sometimes you just got to learn to let go...

Honest Hearts was good, but it's my least favorite. Reading about the Survivalist though... that's easily the best thing about this DLC.

Old World Blues is a complete joy from start to finish. It's funny, fun, has interesting locale's, great characters, and it explains quite a bit about many of the creatures you encounter in the Mojave, as well as explain quite a few things about the things you encounter in the Sierra Madre.

Again, what I love most about these DLC's is how they expand upon/explain people/characters you encounter in the Wasteland and other DLC's. I'm really looking forward to the final DLC, can't wait.

 

[Laser Priest]

I agree on a lot of this, but I can't say much Honest Hearts. The background stories such as the Survivalist's, Joshua Graham and Daniel are interesting. It was nice to meet the Burned Man.

The rest of it just... wasn't very interesting. I didn't really care for the feel of the .45 Pistol and the Desert Ranger armor was the only thing I really got out of the DLC. The environments were entirely unexciting to me.

I think Dead Money was much more frustrating but otherwise better than Honest Hearts.

Old World Blues is still the best of them so far.

 

[newwiseman]

I did like the bald mute lesbian brotherhood lady in Dead Money... that's it for what I recall about the DLC,.. not very memorable.

 

[Imperioratorex Caprae]

NV was crap because it was so linear compared to Fallout 3. I really didn't like being forced to go in one direction to get the game going... that and the whole bug-ridden crashes that destroyed quite a few saves in my game...
Obsidian, why do you have to make games with awesome concepts and horribad QA testing?

What makes you call it linear? Some sequences are admittedly pretty straightforward combat, but I found almost every character, location, and quest to provide a nice variety of options to deal with them, many of which had affects on other aspects of the game. I thought this kind of varied design made it stand well as an RPG. Are you referring specifically to the DLCs? Because those were smaller, but still allowed players to choose alliances with NPCs, affect the new location's future, and had multiple endings, most of which were pretty satisfying. I'd like to hear your perspective on it.

Sorry if I wasn't clear on this, I was referring to the main game's way of forcing your journey to New Vegas to basically only one way by putting higher level NPC's in every path but the one they intended for you to go (Deathclaws, Radscorpions, etc.). Whereas Fallout 3 allowed you to go pretty much anywhere after you left the Vault. That was more than enough compiled with the bugs to make me dislike it. All I got to play beyond the main game was Dead Money and still with the bugs it wasn't a fun experience.
Linearity to me is much like how FF13 played... a straight line path with no real options otherwise. Sure NV had side-quests and all, but again I would have liked to take a different path to Vegas than the one Obsidian planned for me... Much like I felt when I bought Red Faction: Armageddon and got a game that was more like the first two than the Guerilla sandbox I really enjoyed.
Sure, linear games are fun but it feels almost like a backwards step if the previous games were more open-world.

 

[mirror's edgy]

NV was crap because it was so linear compared to Fallout 3. I really didn't like being forced to go in one direction to get the game going... that and the whole bug-ridden crashes that destroyed quite a few saves in my game...
Obsidian, why do you have to make games with awesome concepts and horribad QA testing?

What makes you call it linear? Some sequences are admittedly pretty straightforward combat, but I found almost every character, location, and quest to provide a nice variety of options to deal with them, many of which had affects on other aspects of the game. I thought this kind of varied design made it stand well as an RPG. Are you referring specifically to the DLCs? Because those were smaller, but still allowed players to choose alliances with NPCs, affect the new location's future, and had multiple endings, most of which were pretty satisfying. I'd like to hear your perspective on it.

Sorry if I wasn't clear on this, I was referring to the main game's way of forcing your journey to New Vegas to basically only one way by putting higher level NPC's in every path but the one they intended for you to go (Deathclaws, Radscorpions, etc.). Whereas Fallout 3 allowed you to go pretty much anywhere after you left the Vault. That was more than enough compiled with the bugs to make me dislike it. All I got to play beyond the main game was Dead Money and still with the bugs it wasn't a fun experience.
Linearity to me is much like how FF13 played... a straight line path with no real options otherwise. Sure NV had side-quests and all, but again I would have liked to take a different path to Vegas than the one Obsidian planned for me... Much like I felt when I bought Red Faction: Armageddon and got a game that was more like the first two than the Guerilla sandbox I really enjoyed.
Sure, linear games are fun but it feels almost like a backwards step if the previous games were more open-world.

You are entirely correct about the path to New Vegas that kicks things off, but I think that it serves as a good introduction to the game's mechanics before they let you off the leash. You learn about all the main factions and characters on the way, as well as getting a hang of which playstyle you prefer and how to interact with NPCs. The amount of available sidequests is a nice way to show the benefits and reaching effects of helping or hurting some characters. The older Fallout games certainly offered more freedom, but I felt that knowing what the player would see, learn, and do while they adjusted to the game is a good way for an RPG to prepare the player for when the training wheels come off. And just to clarify, If New Vegas gave you a jetpack to get around, FF XIII would give you a straitjacket, story and gameplay- wise.

 

[DustyDrB]

Old World Blues is among the best DLC content I've ever played (Lair of the Shadow Broker might be the only one to top it).

Even though I hated Dead Money, I have to give the Obsidian team props on giving each DLC its own unique feel and gameplay. Dead Money, Honest Hearts, and Old World Blues all feel distinct from the main game and from each other, but they do this while also fitting in (and filling in much background) to New Vegas. Bravo.

 

[Alssadar]

I have a really crappy computer, which chugs through the normal Mojave.
Nonetheless, I haven't bought OWB yet, but I got the other two, and from my laggy perspective, Honest Hearts felt refreshing (Oh my god, RAIN ) in comparison to Dead Money. Honest Hearts was in a living, green canyon, while Dead Money was in dark city streets and an abandoned casino.
Though, I did like how Dead Money often felt like scarce survival, scrambling for coins to spam food that barely heals you. It also made me extremely wary about stealth as my (laggy) dark screen failed to alert me to the ghost peoples.

 

[Alphakirby]

Old World Blues is the only one of the DLC I got,it is pretty awesome but despite the defensive boost I get from the stealth armor,it gets a little annoying when you are at low health and out of stimpacks. THE DAMN THING NEVER SHUTS UP WHEN THAT HAPPENS. I also wish the stealth suit would've gotten the memo that I'm playing on Hardcore mode so she(?) won't keep spamming the stimpacks.

 

[KingsGambit_v1legacy]

Honest Hearts had a critical flaw in it, whereby at the very beginning of the DLC, immediately after the start, when crossing the bridge I shot a man that in the midst of combat looked the same as other enemies. Turns out he was plot critical and without him the DLC story could not progress.

Sadly by the time I discovered this, my quicksave and autosave were both useless. I cannot restart the DLC without beginning a new game. This is fundamentally BAD game design. A plot critical character should not be possible to kill, or standing surrounded by similar looking enemies.

 

[dagens24]

This just goes to show you just how arbitrary reviews really are. In several months time Dead Money has gone from a glowing must-have to a meh so-so.

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

With just one planned DLC adventure yet to be released for Fallout 3

In the first line of the article you say Fallout 3 when I think you mean Fallout: New Vegas. <.<; Just FYI.

Obviously a malfunction of the handpenises.

 

[zwober]

THE DAMN THING NEVER SHUTS UP

oh, i so /agree to that. also, it feels as if i myself went into the pip-boy and administer a stimpack, it looks like im getting more bang for the buck for some reason. not really sure if that´s reality or my mind playing tricks on me.

However, what i liked the most about OwB was the preamble for one of the companions in DeadMoney, and the hints of the last DLC aswell. sadly, i think its going to take me awhile untill i replay the game, so i wont be able to find out if walking into Deadmoney with the companions gear and messages will spawn some unique conversations or dialogue.

but yeah, the d*mned robo-scorpions at lvl 45 are way OP for my liking, it would have been ok if the LAER would have an EMP-attack, similar to the pulse-gun, (or for that matter - that the pulsegun would actually do the same kind of damage as it does towards the robots outside the Big empty) in the end - Big MT is filled with the casings of many a spent bullet from my arsenal.

Perhaps i should have invested more in Energy weapons.. Nah, cant beat the feeling of the Anti-Material rifle with an inc-round at XX Yards.

Ka-blewey.

 

[The Last Nomad]

I'm really hoping a special editions or GOTY edition comes out with all the DLC with the Game, I'd probly buy it then cause I still haven't got round to gettin New Vegas, I know I'd love it though, these look great and it would be great to get them all at once at a probably lower price.

 

[Vern]

I'm playing Old World Blues at the moment, and it's good. I love the dialogue and chatter with the computers, but the glitches are starting to get to me. I had maybe three times in the main game when it completely froze, a few times when I was stuck in objects, over a play time of 70 hours.

In the five hours I've put into Old World Blues the game has frozen three times. At least five times when I've gone into VATS and fired, my character stands there doing nothing, and starts doing what I can only call a seizure. The character jolts and vibrates around, and ends up with his feet above his head and gets hacked to death after not firing a shot. Then I walked onto a rock in the middle of the area nowhere near the border and I fell through and got stuck. Keep in mind I'm still enjoying it mainly due to the robots and their stories, and also getting to try out my .50 match grade rounds on lobomites, but it's not perfect.

I haven't played Honest Hearts, but I would disagree about Dead Money being bad. I had quite a bit of fun with it, I didn't get many useful weapons or items aside from the gold, but it had an enjoyable story, good gameplay, and interesting characters. Part of that may be because I loved Thief, and the scrambling around in dark towns full of poisonous gas avoiding people made me think of Thief while I played it. The atmosphere made it for me, the environment was dark, rundown, despondent, and in the case of the gas it was aggressive. The gas seemed like what the radiation should've been, it will kill you, no spending 5 minutes in it and then running out and popping rad-away.

 

[Coldster]

Why would you recommend getting Old World Blues before Dead Money? There are a bunch of hints towards the background story of Father Elijah in Old World Blues that players would only understand if they played Dead Money first. My suggestion is to get Dead Money first then Old World Blues, but Honest Hearts can be played anytime.

 

[TwistedEllipses]

I thought that Old World Blues started off way too slow. The brains talking to each other was interesting for the first 5 minutes, but then they kept going on.... And on.... And on....

There is a massive info-dump at the beginning and while it is humorous, it does go on way too long. Worse for some reason (might just be me) the camera fixed motionless on one scientist, so I assumed they all shared a body...

Old World Blues is by far the best DLC with plenty of exploration, interesting character and a couple of new interesting enemies and weapons. Despite what Dr.Mobius claims there are far worse things out there than robo-scorpions. Not convinced? Three reasons you should get this:
1. You get a narrated epilogue for all your household appliances
2. You get some perks and tech to finally stop Cazadors being an annoyance
3. To learn all about formology...

P.s. Really disliked Honest Hearts, there just wasn't a lot to it.

 

[SomebodyNowhere]

I picked up dead money and honest hearts when steam had them on special for $3 each and I really enjoyed dm(I've yet to get at hh).
I've heard a bunch of good reviews for Old World Blues and I'm sure it'd be good for my character considering I have way high stats in energy weapons and that dlc seems to be crawling with them, but I'm still likely to wait until the winter steam deals and hope they have a similar special.
also I take way way longer to play through the dlc than Mr. Pitts. I can't remember how long it took me on dm, but I am pretty sure it was longer than 8 hours.