Fallout: New Vegas - Magazine Tidbits #2

NMA has a summary of the Fallout: New Vegas article in PSM3 magazine. This is the one that CVG quoted on being "wittier":

• It shows the command wheel for followers, with 8 commands: toggle melee/ranged, open inventory, toggle stay close/keep distance, back up, toggle aggressive/passive AI, use stimpack, toggle wait here/follow me, return to normal dialogue.
• Scripting is wittier, characters more distinct. Example from vigour test word association: mother-human shield.
• Opening inventory consists of a kit from the doc, adapted to your starting stats (like Fallout 1).
• The Nevada area is less affected by the nuclear war, so it has plant life, relatively unspoiled houses, and in visual presentation has saturated colours and a bright sky.
• There's a tutorial (led by a character named Sunny who looks a lot like Moira Brown), but unlike Fallout 3, it's optional, so you can hit the open game in 5 minutes from starting.
• NCR and Caesar's Legion are the confirmed faction, article assumes Brotherhood of Steel will be in but they weren't not mentioned in the presentation.
• "In New Vegas it's all about the player examining the ideologies of the various groups that are controlling the area and supporting one over the others," explains Sawyer. "Each of the ideologies will have something good that you can relate to, but will also have massive flaws."
• When asked about PS3's Fallout 3 being inferior to the others and if New Vegas will do better, Obsidian devs make no promises but indicate it was a learning process and they're working with all 3 platforms and all have problems.
• The New Vegas strip is still in construction but will have gambling, variety shows and concerts.
• Electrical power is key in the faction struggle.
• Radiation is still a problem, there's a nuclear test site to explore north of New Vegas.
• The soundtrack will blend "Rat Pack style tunes with more Western numbers".
• New Vegas doesn't tell a single-player story, but weaves decision into the gameworld and gives you greater power to influence things than Fallout 3 did.
• On top of adding back in geckos, New Vegas has a whole new type of animal: mutated mountain rams called Big Horners.

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More information.

"New Vegas doesn't tell a single-player story, but weaves decision into the gameworld and gives you greater power to influence things than Fallout 3 did."

The above sounds interesting but a bit confusing as well. It is a single-player game no? I guess it means that the story isn't centered around the player. No "chosen one" i assume…

All in all I'm liking what I'm hearing about FNV more and more. I'm of the conviction that the bethesda gamebryo engine suits itself really well to the fallout universe. And now with Obsidian doing the writing and concept it's looking very promising.

Neither Fallout 1 or 2 was heavy on story as far as I remember.

If we're lucky New Vegas might be at least similar to New Reno in FO2.

I love the non black & white stuff implied … every bit I see gets me more intrigued!

This is sounding really good. An RPG where you are simply let loose on a world with various factions to do what you will. It sounds like there's no chosen one/save the world plot here. The Bethesda/Obsidian combo has a lot of promise, I think.

Not sure how I feel about the followers, I hope they don't go overboard and have you commanding an entire party. I liked the solo exploration in FO3.

Originally Posted by JDR13
Not sure how I feel about the followers, I hope they don't go overboard and have you commanding an entire party. I liked the solo exploration in FO3.

On the other hand, with a decent command system, the occasional mission with some followers will be much more fun.

I'd personally hate permanent followers for Fallout : New Vegas. I wouldn't mind it though if they'd function somewhat the same as buddies in Farcry 2.

For those who haven't played Farcry 2 : Buddies in Farcry 2 occasionally gave you missions to perform, which would upgrade your camp. At the same time, when you died during a gunfight and they were "available (not on cooldown or not blocked from a certain mission)", they'd resurrect you and help you clear the area.

They weren't godlike or anything, I lost one or two because they went down and I had no medkits left, but they were a nice help from time to time.

Sure but controlling NPCs is boring , if i have to give 1 command to any of them i am not gonna buy it , i find all this trend with party oriented RPGs disturbing.

Originally Posted by Tragos
Sure but controlling NPCs is boring , if i have to give 1 command to any of them i am not gonna buy it , i find all this trend with party oriented RPGs disturbing.

You mean the 'party that isn't really a party'? Honestly, in terms of structure, Mas Effect 2 is no more a party based game than the soon-to-be-released SOCOM 3 I'm playing on the PSP now.

Originally Posted by txa1265
You mean the 'party that isn't really a party'? Honestly, in terms of structure, Mas Effect 2 is no more a party based game than the soon-to-be-released SOCOM 3 I'm playing on the PSP now.

I mean no party at all or party that just follows me without having to execute (my) commands (IIRC in KoTOR party members were doing their thing alone)… i totally hate to even equip party members.
I am elder scrolls kind of gamer , tactical , turn based , DAO like games are not appealing to me but it looks like they are in fashion , of course i do need my fixation of RPG and this is why i appear somewhat bitter .

Originally Posted by Tragos
I am elder scrolls kind of gamer , tactical , turn based , DAO like games are not appealing to me but it looks like they are in fashion , of course i do need my fixation of RPG and this is why i appear somewhat bitter .

I like both types of games, but I agree with what you're saying about FO:NV. I prefer to be solo in first-person games, especially open-ended ones. For me it's more about the atmosphere and exploration, and having NPCs along doesn't add to those qualities for me.

Has it been confirmed that the game will be first-person?

Originally Posted by Kostaz
Has it been confirmed that the game will be fist-person?

I don't know, what's "fist-person"? jk….

From Fallout wiki…

While New Vegas is not a direct sequel, it will use the same engine and be in the same style as Fallout 3

I'm pretty sure it's 1st/3rd pov in the exact same way that FO3 was. The fact that VATS is implemented in the same way seems to confirm that.

Originally Posted by JDR13
For me it's more about the atmosphere and exploration, and having NPCs along doesn't add to those qualities for me.

If NPCs have interesting things to say, then it can be fun… But only for a brief time. Or if NPCs are somehow connected to the area you're exploring (example: Oghren - Deep Roads).

Originally Posted by Badesumofu
This is sounding really good. An RPG where you are simply let loose on a world with various factions to do what you will.

It sounds dumb to me. If there's no story, then what's your purpose in the game world, it'll get boring if you just do stuff without having a bigger plan. I liked how that was handled in Gothic 3 - the main quest wasn't obvious, it wasn't linear, you could just wander around the world the way you wanted, but it was there. There was some meaning to your presence in Myrtana.

Originally Posted by Malk
It sounds dumb to me. If there's no story, then what's your purpose in the game world, it'll get boring if you just do stuff without having a bigger plan. I liked how that was handled in Gothic 3 - the main quest wasn't obvious, it wasn't linear, you could just wander around the world the way you wanted, but it was there. There was some meaning to your presence in Myrtana.

Why there must be a purpose? exploring, meeting new cultures , (races) and lore , regional customs , getting into local intrigue and political struggle are all fun .I think that the big picture at the end shall not be what you 've done but who your character became through moral choices , combat success and involvement ; this is the idea of not saving the world , not be driven by linear story line and be free to reject all possible resolutions if they appear equally flawed and move on.
Think of a non linear witcher where the answer to "the girl or the village" is "neither".

Originally Posted by JDR13
I'm pretty sure it's 1st/3rd pov in the exact same way that FO3 was. The fact that VATS is implemented in the same way seems to confirm that.

I see what you're saying but I think there's still hope

Ok, so you do some quests, talk to people, etc, etc. What do you do when see all the game has to offer? It's a good idea on paper, but in practice without a proper ending it falls flat.

Originally Posted by Malk
Ok, so you do some quests, talk to people, etc, etc. What do you do when see all the game has to offer? It's a good idea on paper, but in practice without a proper ending it falls flat.

You believe that having an end cut scene and a big boss defeated adds more to what a game has to offer? we disagree , i believe that open world / free roam games only end when you feel the need to make another character and approach things differently .
What i am trying to say is that the journey matters , not arrival to a destination.