Fallout 3 Week, Episode 1

Gameplayer has begun posting a week’s worth of Fallout 3 content, starting with a nine-page article that summarizes most of what we’ve learned since the game was announced in 2004.

Research proved to be very fruitful for everybody, Howard told us. (We did a lot of [research]. You’d be shocked at how naive the world was before the first nukes dropped. The whole idea that all you had to do was duck under your desk is pretty crazy. There are a number of documentaries on Hiroshima that are mind-blowing in terms of the horror and destruction it brought, but you have people returning to the city quickly, because they had no concept of radiation yet.)

This was often used as an excuse for why things like radiation were perhaps less realistic than they should have been. This alternate reality lives and breathes naivety about nuclear weapons, but is telling a story about such things harder now the Cold War is so far behind us? No, says Howard: (In this case no, as it really has a science-fiction angle to it, also. It’s post-apocalyptic, but it’s also a science-fiction, pulp-adventure piece.)

Of course, Bethesda couldn’t help but inject some of its own creativity into the proceedings, and we’ve seen plenty to suggest that this is not only a break from the Fallout series (as some fans had feared), but also a break for the development team, as new ideas and systems are created to complement the series. The Vault-Tec Advanced Targeting System (VATS) is a perfect example of this; building on the template of the original games, but not with tried-and-tested Bethesda formulas.

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(I think the VATS combat works really well,) he insists. (It feels like a throwback to the way many games were played, but visually it’s insane.) VATS essentially pauses the game and allows you to zoom into your target to get detailed information on damage taken and areas you can hit. Through the use of your action points, you can queue multiple attacks in a row, press go and be treated to a dramatic cinematic of your attacks taking effect.

The effectiveness of attacks, with or without the VATS, is dependent on your skills with different weapons and tactics. Your action points will then recharge over time, but can presumably be upgraded to use more in a single go.

The VATS is just one way in which Bethesda has taken objects and technology from the original games and made them its own, as the system is used through the iconic Pip-Boy 3000. As Howard explained to us, it was of great importance to the team that this piece of equipment in particular was dealt with properly. (The Pip-Boy itself is fantastic,) he enthuses, (and we spent a really long time on it. Being able to pick up radio stations on your Pip-Boy feels great in this setting.)