Should I play through Fallout 3 before starting NV?

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Two-A

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Is not necessary, there's only a couple references to it. The game acts more like a sequel to Fallout 1 and 2.

As for hardcore mode, the game is rather easy (even on Normal), So yeah, go for it.
 

xshadowscreamx

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Oh I love fallout 3, stepping out of that vault the 1st time I member I will never forget. The nuclear 50's appealed a lot to me.
NV thankfully introduced a challenge system so every kill/eating and etc counts for something.

Since I did not play f1 and f2 I don't have lore criticisms with 3 .
 

Odbarc

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New Vegas seems to add a lot of content that feels like it should have been in Fallout 3 all along. If you played 1 and 2, 3 really feels departed where NV recovers.

Story wise, independent. You basically save the world (or area) by either being a villain or personal hero to people you come across for arbitrary good/evil alignment and eventually decide to suicide or coward the ending.

There are some interesting spots but you can just as likely visit them via youtube videos and get the same idea.

Game play wise, it's very much a watered down FPS in exchange for some tactical and/or stealth mechanics. I frankly never gung ho the game (which I assume is possible) for a persistent stealth/spy style of play.

One major problem with FO3 is that skill requirements seem to be either 25, 50, 75 or 100 to break locks/computers/persuade ect. where as VN has random intervals of 5. You may come across something early that requires a lot (Grenade skills for Old Pete) where if you specialize in something early there are early benefits and a lot of low~medium skill requirements as you go.

What does suck is the beginners trap at the beginning that kills you almost guaranteed if you go north. You gotta go around to the first main objective by following the highway/road for whatever reason. From there, the game opens up to let you do whatever.
In general, I'd recommend NV first and if you really like it, go back for FO3.
If price is a concern, get the cheaper one and decide if you want the other.

P.S. I never found the dog in FO3. I kept hearing about people who had him and cried when he kept dying. lol
 

Tactical Pause

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Thanks for the replies everyone, much appreciated. I think I'll give Fallout 3 one more shot, but if that doesn't work out, at least I'll know I'm not really missing anything by skipping to New Vegas.
 

Smeatza

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If you're anything like me, when you play New Vegas you'll think to yourself "Wow, this game is like Fallout 3, but fun, with atmosphere and real choices."

It's weird, but even though I never played a Fallout game before Fallout 3, I could still sense that something was very wrong with Fallout 3. Something that wasn't wrong with New Vegas.
It just shows how much better a franchise can be when it's in the hands of someone who knows how to, and is experienced in, handling it.
 

scorptatious

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May 14, 2009
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New Vegas is only $5 on Steam?

[small]Must resist... Must resist...

...
[/small]

GAH!

*Buys game*


OT: It doesn't really matter. The games aren't too related to each other story wise.

And yeah, definitely play the game on Hardcore mode. Makes things more interesting.
 

lacktheknack

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Dirty Hipsters said:
I wouldn't touch Fallout 3 on the PC with a ten foot pole because I don't want to interact with GFWL in any way. So no, you probably shouldn't play it.
Install the script extender, and BOOM. No more GFWL.

And then install ALL THE MODS.
 

lacktheknack

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Dirty Hipsters said:
ZombieFanatic said:
Dirty Hipsters said:
I wouldn't touch Fallout 3 on the PC with a ten foot pole because I don't want to interact with GFWL in any way. So no, you probably shouldn't play it.
I actually found a mod that just removes GFWL from the game completely. Since it has no online component, there are no negative side effects. It's pretty much the greatest mod ever, and I really wish it could be applied to more things.
I don't care if I can mod it, if GFWL is a requirement I just won't play the game. There's no way I'm going to buy anything that uses that "service" since my using it would be seen by Microsoft as an endorsement of that abomination.
No it wouldn't, because they wouldn't even notice. You wouldn't have a GFWL account for them to track.
 

Locutus9956

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Well I've not read any of the replies (I skimmed the thread a little out of curiosity but this is my unbiased reply):

Go right ahead and play NV. New Vegas has alot more of a proper old 'Falloutey' feel to it like FO1 and 2 which I somehow felt was lacking in FO3. In particular at times theres that dark sense of humour and craziness that FO3 just lacked at times not to mention the desert setting rather than the ruins of Washington just feels more 'Fallout' somehow.

The other thing I would say is turn hardcore mode on and never look back, it VASTLY improves the game imho by adding lots of little survival elements to the game and making ammo a more tangible commodity that you cant just carry around unlimited amounts of.

The story isn't really tied to FO3 in any way shape or form (no more than any other fallout game anyway) and you wont be missing out on anything if you don't play FO3. Personally I cant go back to FO3 now as NV is just better in every way.
 

happyninja42

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ZombieFanatic said:
The point of this thread is pretty much in the title. I picked up Fallout: New Vegas for $5 on steam the other day, since it was a pretty great deal and I'd heard lots of good things about the game. The only problem is... well, I didn't really like Fallout 3. For some reason I just couldn't get into it. I tried playing it multiple times, but never got more than five or so hours in before giving up.

Now, there's no guarantee that I won't do this with NV (hey, $5), but assuming I will enjoy it, should I try to play through Fallout 3 before starting New Vegas? Is there any major reason to play 3 before NV, or are they only tangentially related?
Nah, they're not really connected story wise at all. In fact, I don't think any of the stuff that happens in Fallout 3 is even mentioned in game, and if it is, its just in passing. If you didn't enjoy playing F3, then you won't lose any enjoyment of NV if you skip it.



ZombieFanatic said:
(Bonus question: When I do play New Vegas, should I start on hardcore mode? It seems rather interesting.)
YES! Without doubt. I played NV on Hardcore mode from the first time I played it, and I loved it. It's really not that much harder than normal mode, but the added layers of realism (eating, sleeping, injuries) really helped keep me immersed in the game, helped make it feel more real.
 

OCAdam

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wyldchyld337 said:
I'm in the same boat as the OP. Never played any of the Fallout games, but couldn't pass up a $5 deal for a game that, from everything I've read, is an awesome experience.

As far as mods go, which ones should be priorities? Not looking to go mod-crazy, but I've seen that the NV community has some decent fixes to the game.
I'd say Project Nevada as top priority. If that 5 buck deal is the Ultimate Edition of FONV, then maybe look at Mission Mojave: Ultimate Edition. Supposedly it fixes a lot of stuff, but while my crash rate has gone down, it's still not perfect at all. Any case, Project Nevada.

You might also like RobCo Certified if you think you'd like to employ robots and/or cyborgs as your way of fighting. New Vegas Bounties I & II and The Inheritance are nice quest mods that are nicely implemented, though the quest Lioth Biosas (or something like that, but it's part of NVB2 as a single bounty) might make you stumped for a while until you figure it out. Weapon Mods Expanded might be worth your time as well, and somewhat by extension you'd like to get The Weapon Mod Menu, especially if you go with adding specific custom guns. Powered Power Armor adds in more to do with power armor and makes the stuff more complex, yet more rewarding (and make sense why you'd actually need training to wear power armor due to the increase in complexity!).

Keeping the mod list I gave you simple, go only with Project Nevada. The rest are nice, though it might start to get you to go mod-crazy after a short time.
 

wyldchyld337

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Yosharian, OCAdam, and all of the others, thank you all. Did not intend to threadjack, but I am glad I chimed in, even just the little bit. As was said, $5 was too good to pass up for the Ultimate Edition of a game that has awesome word of mouth.
 

thehorror2

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Fallout 3 is noticeably easier than New Vegas, but if you didn't really like it, don't play it. New Vegas is both more and less focused than 3. There's a definite main quest to follow which I found to be much more engaging than Fo3's, but there are a bunch of faffing about sidequests as well. (And there's more than a little overlap. One branch of the main quest turns something like 80% of what would otherwise be mandatory content into optional sidequests that will only drag you in if you get really immersed into the world. From the sound of things, though, you don't want the kind of unrestricted sandboxiness that Bethesda-style games hallmark. (Which is more than reasonable; if a more focused, linear RPG narrative is more to your liking, may I suggest the Mass Effect trilogy?)
 

Phrozenflame500

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To answer your main question, no you do not. While Fallout NV exists in the same world as Fallout 3, they don't have much of a connection story-wise and the absolute most you will miss out on are a few out of the way references.

As for if you will like it, it depends. Fallout NV is much more non-linear then FO3 with a branching main quest with multiple endings and MANY more sidequests (I think the number was about 70 to FO3's 30). The gameplay is mostly the same, but the quality of the writing is much better. However, the game is REALLY buggy, and you probably want to play it with the wiki open and the dev console on. That being said, Fallout NV is my favorite RPG in recent memory, so I suggest you go for it.

Oh, and hardcore mode really isn't all that difficult, it just means you can't do some of the cheesier builds like spamming stimpacks in the middle of a battle and you have to lug a few food items in your inventory.
 

Jazoni89

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Most certainly play it, but mod the fuck out of it...

There's a lot of gameplay imbalances when compared to Fallout New Vegas, and you feel completely unstoppable by the mid 20 level. Unlike in New Vegas when Deathclaws still pose a challenge at max level (level 50) even. You can remedy this, by modding the various mechanics, like perks every two/three levels, or changing the stimpacks so they recover gradually. It makes the game more challenging, and more of a survival experience, akin more to the original games. If you want to go even more hardcore try the Fallout wanderers edition, which is similar to hardcore mode found in Fallout NV.

The Ironsights mod is a must, and adds a lot more dynamic to the shooting like it did in NV. Also Fellout removes the ugly green tinge to the graphics, making it look much better. Project Beauty is also a great mod that makes everyone's faces not as low poly and ugly looking.

The DLC's are a bit hit and miss in Fallout 3, unlike NV, which i found that all four were great in their own way (Yes even Honest Hearts, screw the haters!). Broken Steel, Point Lookout, and The Pitt are worth it though, especially Broken Steel, because it raises the level cap, gives you more late game content, and has more tougher beasts to take care of.

Mothership Zeta is total rubbish, and doesn't make sense at all in the Fallout Universe (though the Alien Laser guns are cool as hell), and Operation Anchorage is a boring three hour linear path to some really broken loot at the end, that completely destroys the game's balance (stealth suit is far too OP, a 100% sneak skill...yeah).

Overall...i find Fallout 3 to be a good game, but not a great fallout game. The dialog and characters (which the originals and New Vegas excelled at) are not memorable in the slightest, and if you want a good story you won't really find it here. Though if you want pure and utter atmosphere in your Post-Apocalyptic games that you could cut with a knife, Fallout 3 has it in spades, which even New Vegas lacks.

Also one thing of note, the speech system in Fallout 3 is absolute pants compared to NV. Going on a percentage to your skill points, rather than a required points system like in NV. So there's not really much point putting too much points into speech, as speech success boils down to luck pretty much (and if you are not successful you can just cheat and reload). In Fallout NV speech is one of the most important skills to have.
 

Mycroft Holmes

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Fallout, Fallout 2 and Fallout New Vegas represent a chain of games focusing on the same general area and series of events. Fallout 3 is mostly unrelated and takes place on the east coast instead of the west.

So it isn't necessary to play it to understand New Vegas at all. New Vegas is actually replete with references like Rose of Sharon Cassidy being the daughter of John Cassidy and running into Marcus again. But I don't think there is even a single reference to Fallout 3 in the whole game or even a nod that it exists at all.

If you don't like Bethesda games(I can sympathize;) just play New Vegas then skip Fallout 4 and wait for obsidian to make the next good one.
 

Jazoni89

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Mycroft Holmes said:
Fallout, Fallout 2 and Fallout New Vegas represent a chain of games focusing on the same general area and series of events. Fallout 3 is mostly unrelated and takes place on the east coast instead of the west.

So it isn't necessary to play it to understand New Vegas at all. New Vegas is actually replete with references like Rose of Sharon Cassidy being the daughter of John Cassidy and running into Marcus again. But I don't think there is even a single reference to Fallout 3 in the whole game or even a nod that it exists at all.

If you don't like Bethesda games(I can sympathize;) just play New Vegas then skip Fallout 4 and wait for obsidian to make the next good one.
There are references to Fallout 3 in New Vegas, but they are very few and far between.

The biggest nod is ED-E, who talks about Colonel Autumn in it's data file. It is also heavily hinted at that ED-E came from the Enclave base on the East Coast (Raven Rock) and escaped, and fled to the west coast, after his master freed him after being told that he would have to destroy ED-E for parts.

I also think (correct me if i'm wrong) that one of the Brotherhood of Steel members also say that they lost contact with the East Coast division of the BOS led by Elder Lyons in Fallout 3.

There is a reference to the West coast BOS in Fallout 3 as well, or as Lyons calls them "technology hungry scavengers", which fits the bill to the BOS found in NV, and the orginals.
 

RicoADF

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Jun 2, 2009
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DatedSandwich said:
If you have both NV and FO3 on the PC you can use the mod "Tale of Two Wastelands" which makes the entirety of Fallout 3 playable in New Vegas as a mod. This means you can use one character for both games, and they've tried to make a believable transition between FO3 and NV (After you're done in FO3 you get on a train and become a courier, 9 years later you get shot by Benny.) Somehow, it also makes New Vegas a much more stable game, fixed all the stuttering and crashing that I had.
Sounds like there were missing assets in FONV. Thst mod sounds awesome will be getting asap. Can you provide a DL link?
 

Fijiman

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You can if you want to, but you don't have to. Each one has its pros and cons, but it's up to you to decide if you like them or not.
 

Lightknight

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Sketchy said:
They're pretty much the same thing, so if you didn't like FO3, I doubt you'd like New Vegas.
Exactly, and you'll want to space them out too. I'd start with FO 3. Which one is better is highly subjective with any number of people in either camp. I don't know which one I'd choose.