Fallout: New Vegas - Still Playing @ Edge Online

Edge Online's "Still Playing" column turns their attention to Fallout: New Vegas, explaining the allure the game still holds:

I’m always averse to finishing stories in games when the world you’re presented with is far more enticing than any tale playing out within it. A lot of this is down to my lack of enthusiasm for vanquishing evil forever and ever until a sequel appears, and my inability to suspend disbelief when narrative events allow me to single-handedly decide the fate of entire societies locked in endless, self-sustaining wars. Personally, I’m much happier finding my own path to zen by wandering a game’s geography and exploring the limits of its mechanics.
Fallout: New Vegas is about as perfect an example of this sort of game as you could hope to find. I’m still playing it precisely because I refused to take a role in its prescribed endgame, where the gritty world unfurls a host of gritty decisions to make over which gritty faction gets control. Having been through Fallout 3’s cartoony wrap-ups, I don’t think there’s going to be a satisfactory tying up of the game’s narrative strands. Some might say that choosing the most palatable conclusion from a bad bunch is the point of New Vegas, but having spoiled all the endings for myself (to no overall loss of satisfaction), I decided to define my own endgame by taking to the wasteland as an agent of justice, creating an endless, noble quest of subsistence that'll last as long as my actual, natural life.

More information.

I play this game once a year and have still never beat the main plot. Every session gets into the 80 hour range, and I still haven't touched every part of the map.

This sums up quite nicely why I like FO3 and FO:NV so much. The end game is not the point of playing for me. I just like being in the world and doing things and exploring. Yes, I like a general direction, but I don't want to feel like I'm being funneled into a particular course. Give me a vast open world in which to meet people, solve problems, fight some Bad Guys, and explore. My ideal game.

The entire Gothic series, with the exception of Forsaken Gods, is much the same for me. I'm not through with Risen yet and Arcania is next on the list. Right now, I'm wrapping up another play-through of G2.

I can always pop back into Fallout 3 at any time, really enjoy the random encounters and loot in that one. Lost all my old saves on my dead laptop and seriously thinking about replaying the thing from scratch again to just beat up more super mutants!! Vegas is fun too, but the 3rd is better for me.


-Carn

I actually did it all.

Almost every side quest in Fallout:NV has an interesting and engaging story that keeps you coming back (I can never forget the story and atmosphere of the bunker with the overgrowth!). Moreover, you can approach stories, characters and quest in whichever way you want, and it all ties in nicely like fine gold threads through its Universe, not to mention the DLCs. This game is a masterpiece.

Agreed, the main quest is always the last one I do, in all RPGs if possible. Besides, Obsidian EXCELS at NPC development. Their companions are some of the most, if not the most worthy in RPG games.

I'm still astounded at how well llamaRCA has done making Willow, clearly one of the best fan made NPC's ever. Last I checked, llamaRCA started working on companion for Skyrim but was having bad issues with the CK and is now working on a sequel to Willow.

Originally Posted by Acleacius
Agreed, the main quest is always the last one I do, in all RPGs if possible. Besides, Obsidian EXCELS at NPC development. Their companions are some of the most, if not the most worthy in RPG games.

I'm still astounded at how well llamaRCA has done making Willow, clearly one of the best fan made NPC's ever. Last I checked, llamaRCA started working on companion for Skyrim but was having bad issues with the CK and is now working on a sequel to Willow.

That CK. I've had several beloved mods not being made for Skyrim or getting compromised because of issues with the CK. Specially with Papyrus.

This article might just make me go back to Vegas again. BGS games worlds are great for just living in and Obsidian just makes it better.

I used a no-limit companion mod and ran around with all companions at the same time. Note Willow in the crowd.





If you would ask; "but doesn't that remove the challenge, what's fun with that?" you would be asking the wrong question. In previous Fallouts you could play a Charisma character and recruit many companions with you as their leader. You not doing the fighting is the point with that kind of character. I have always played like that since I am not really that interested in fighting in the first place. In Dragon Age: Origins I quickly got the Tactician achievement. In Diablo 3 I enjoy the Witch Doctor. In Neverwinter Nights and Baldur's Gate I always played the Cleric and beefed up my companions like crazy.

Originally Posted by Achievement
Dragon Age: Origins / Tactician Achievement
"Main character killed 250 enemies without them inflicting damage (PC)"

Even in real life I like getting groups together and motivate the group to success. I always been a natural leader in that regard and I do have Mahatma Gandhi as one of my heroes.

My joy with playing the leader character have unfortunately been lost in modern RPG's due to the habit of reducing available companions to 1. I am happy mods can solve that and I do not care that the "challenge" as in "the challenge for you to kill all the enemies" is removed by such mods.

I like to play the occasional party leader too, but without mods to up the difficulty, companions can pretty much steamroll the enemies without the PC, which kind of ruins the whole point of being a leader.

NV is one of my top-5 all time favorite games, but the ending did suck. Part of the problem was that I figured out a way to assault Caesar's base (and kill him) about halfway through my game, so the ending really lost its drama.

I thought the story really kind of dragged on after a while, couldnt wait to be over with it to be honest. I got all the DLC's but i really had enough of the world after playing 60h or so, so i never even played them.

Absolutely not a bad game, just not one that i will remember as anything spectacular. Maybe my problem was that i've played FO3 2-3 times over the years, and after that i had enough of it already. I also found FO3's world more interesting than the Western / mafia inspired FO:NV. New Vegas was an especially dull place, even modded with tons of more stuff than default.

I wonder if westerns tend to resonate with westerners and people with similar backgrounds (Aussies?). People who grew up in the US east and Europe? Nowhere near the interest.

They used to be really popular and then fell off a cliff. I suspect that having a frame of reference or shared experience helps and without it, a person just doesn't find it attractive.

Oddly enough, I still haven't gotten around to playing FO:NV yet. I even have it and all the DLC installed since getting it dirt cheap on Steam last year. I loved FO3 though, and if NV is even close in terms of atmosphere, I'll be happy.

Im in the same boat. Yet to experience it, but sure got a ton of mileage out of Fo3. I think Jemy's style of playing as a commander looks interesting.

My current morrowind game has me summoning up a ton of stuff during battles and letting them do the heavy lifting, and its pretty fun.

Geez, any actual role-playing game fans here?

As far as I'm concerned, FNV brutally murders F03 and leaves its entrails out in the glowing desert sun for role-playing opportunities, choices, depth in its story-telling and most importantly for me - sense of connection to Fallout canon.

Interestingly, I've played through the game some four times, but still have the one DLC to experience. It's certainly in my backlog though, perhaps with some mods, but we'll see.

I have played heavily modded fallout3 for two years now. Just last weekend for many hours. Im still amazed how much new places and stuff I found in it. There is always something new behind the next hill. My gf asked "When are you going to finish that game?" and I really had no idea.