New Broken Steel Trailer

Oh my goodness check this vid out. I cannot wait til tomorrow. (Me tomorrow) Sorry Lisa, I'm busy. I know I haven't posted anything on The Pitt dlc, but after I finish Broken Awesomeness I'll make sure and write a review for both, mostly just to make Rogelio jealous. TeeHee

Fallout 3, Operation Anchorage Reviewed

Operation Anchorage is the recently released downloadable content for Fallout 3 on the Xbox 360. There is also more to come (Sorry Ito). Needless to say, it was highly anticipated on my part. The DLC adds a whole new look and feel to the game. Is it worth it? Review after the jump.

I downloaded this dlc the morning it was released, played for an hour before I left for school and waited anxiously throughout the day until I could get back home. Needless to say I finished it pretty quickly. Who needs sleep when you are med student, right? Other than the fact that I'm an idiot, it was fantastic. I'm an idiot because I thought that the level cap and the end game was going to be changed with this dlc. I was wrong, it's happening with the Broken Steel dlc that is due out in March.

Interestingly, Bethesda knows what there two main problems were for Fallout 3, and decided to fix the issues with Broken Steel. Executive producer Todd Howard, interviewed by MTV Multiplayer, said:

"Greatest Lesson? Don't let the game end, and don't have a level cap."

Lead produced Jeff Gardiner had this to say on the matter:

"Along with removing the game's 'ending' with Broken Steel, we figure raising the level cap would allow them to [enjoy the game for longer]. We plan on raising it to level 30 - but it will be a long, hard climb to get there!"

So there you have it. They realized that they had the right idea in Oblivion all along.

Pros:

1) The feel of the game completely changed in the dlc. I almost felt like I was Sam Fisher or was playing a sneaking level in Call of Duty. I am usually a run and gun type of player when it comes to Bethesda games, so it was a unexpectedly nice change of pace. From the get go they lean on you to be stealthy. I'm glad they did. Fun factor was very high, imho.

2) New stuff is always nice, but what happens when you can't have it. Anyone who has played Fallout knows that the first thing you do after clearing out some enemies is loot their corpse. Kind of morbid I know, but hey, it's the wasteland and a vault dweller has got to get by. The point is that since the most of the dlc takes place in a VR sim the baddies kind of phaze out after you take them out. The effect is great but what about my new stuff? If you remember a past post, I really wanted me some ninja suit. I was very disappointed, but alas Bethesda came through and gave me all the goodies after the VR sim. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Just to make the sting worse for Ito, let me elaborate on the goodies:

1) M72 Gauss Rifle. I really wish that I had some in game screen grabs to show you. It is essentially a one shot sniper rifle that packs quite punch. If it doesn't take 'em out it will push them down to the ground, giving you a chance to take them out quietly.



2) Hei Gui Chinese Stealth Armor. Not only does this thing look great, it's functional too. When crouched it enables a "stealth boy" type invisibility. Also fun, you can wear eye wear and hats with it. I rocked my stealth suit with Button's Wig.



3) Jingwei's Shock Sword. What ninja would be complete without his sword? This weapon essentially looks the same as other chinese swords in the game but with a sweet electric light show. Not too special, but cool nonetheless. (Pic I have is crappy and won't upload, sorry)

4) Other wearable armor. There is a new Winterized T-51b Power Armor, meh. It really doesn't have any great perks, BUT apparently it never degrades. It is possible that the code written for the Power Armor inside the sim may have been used for the real world armor. Is that really worth carrying around some heavy armor? I prefer Reilly's Rangers Armor. Then there is also a not so cool looking Neural Interface Suit. It is used to activate the sim and has no added perk. There is also one other item, but I don't want to say so I don't ruin the way they bring this quest about. There is a trench knife that is essentially a combat knife with brass knuckles, but who uses knives when you have electric swords.

3) It is a pretty decent size. I wish I could tell you more, but I don't want to spoil it for Ito. The dlc feels like a mission. It doesn't necessarily leave you wanting more. In trying to come up with more positive things about the length, I find myself writing negatives. So...

Cons:

1) Length. 10 bucks is a lot of money, especially seeing as how the other two dlc's are going to be ten bucks each as well. Of course I am totally going to get them anyways. Throughout the sim mission I kept thinking to myself, when is this going to end? Now?... Now? Maybe I was being too hard on it, expecting it to be too short. It doesn't take the 4 hours that Bethesda claims it does. Maybe if you are using a new character that you haven't leveled up yet. Which bring me to the next issue.

2) Difficulty. It's too easy. I never died once. I only came close once, and even then it was due to my stupid AI army buddy running in with guns blazing. What an idiot. They should have definitely done something to make it equalized for all levels of characters. Maybe even make the rank a set level just for the sim. I wouldn't have minded. Although I can see some annoying nerd types getting angry that their character that can take 50 direct shots to the head with an assault rifle is now a weakling.

3) You can't do the mission again. Yes, I saved before hand, duh. But I missed one of the intel cases that you need to recover to get the covert ops perk. I can't get it now. I was planning on being more thorough with my second character, oh well.

I feel that I have made this too long already. Hopefully I made Ito just jealous enough without spoiling too much.

See you in the wasteland, CHHIILLDDRRRENN!

Fallout Love

Yo!  ZombieR stopping in for a quick post, here...  So Adry's really been spreading the Fallout 3 love around this joint.  So much so, in fact, that it was HIS review that lead me to purchase this incredible game.  There's little that I disagree with in Adry's review.  He's pretty spot on.  And he's right about the ungodly time-suck this game has become for me.  "Just a quick quest" so easily turns into a 6-hour game-a-thon.  This being my first real venture into games of this genre (adventure/rpg/action), I have to say that the breadth with which Bethesda Studios has created a truly living, breathing virtual world is remarkable. Forget GTA...  It was a breathtaking (and intensely intimidating) experience catching your first glimpse of the Capitol Wasteland... "You mean I have to explore this?!?" To make a long story short, I'm in love. Some personalized Fallout 3 fun after the jump...

                      

                          Handsomest devil in the Capitol Wasteland?

You have to love the character customization features in Fallout 3.  Don't think I've ever gotten so close in any other game.  Plus then I found some specs in-game...  Icing on the cake!  If I re-grow my mustache, I'll make the appropriate adjustments to my in-game avatar.  Pretty great resemblance, though, no?  Better than my Mii, anyway...

The Minigun, a multi-barrel machine gun with a high rate of fire

Ohh hell yes, I cannot wait for this DLC. Bethesda juts released three more images for its upcoming Operation Anchorage missions. If you haven't picked up Fallout 3 yet, go get it. Check out my review here. Two more pics after the jump. Can't let Efren have all the posting fun, right?

Nice (Ninja) Suit.

Here are a few pics from the upcoming DLC for Fallout 3. First thing that popped up in my head? I hope I can loot that guys armor after he dies (by my hands if necessary). Apparently I am not the only one with these inclinations, as Mike Fahey from Kotaku put it:

[The] ninja screenshot features a guy who is going to die so I can wear his armor. Dressing for success in the world of Fallout 3 is a dangerous game, and a guy in a ninja outfit isn't going to last very long. His death is a moral imperative.

Pics after the Jump.

Fallout 3... will suck you in.

So I recently finished Fallout 3. I have to say, it is one of the best games I have played in a very very long time. If you haven't picked it up yet, go get it. In a winter season of great games, Fallout 3 stands out for me amongst greats like Left 4 Dead and Fable II. Check my review after the jump.

One of the greatest aspects of the game might be my biggest complaint. It is impossible to play this game for a half hour. I found myself loading my game to "just do a quest" and ending up playing for hours. There is nothing wrong with being so engrossed in a game that you completely lose track of time, as a matter of fact, it's great. BUT when you have other things to do such as work, studying, or giving time to family and friends or significant other, it could be a problem.

Pros:
V.A.T.S.: This system is such a huge improvement over ESIV: Oblivion, Bethesda's previous game. At first I was a bit undecided on the new fighting method. It seems as bit out of place to stop live action. Fortunately you quickly get used to it. One of the extra treats is slow-mo destruction of your targets body. It can be quite entertaining.

Length: I'm a little afraid to check how many hours I have already put into the game, but I assure you it is a lot. I am nowhere near completing the game or even 2/3s of the way through discovering every location on the map. There are so many quests and so many different ways to complete them that replay value is near endless.

Scenery: The landscape is beautifully destructed. The world outside the vault definitely looks and feels like what a post-apocalyptic world should. When you finally get to the National Mall the ruins are so well designed, enough left to make you want to visit. Be a tourist.

Gameplay: Although I was already very used to Oblivion's gameplay, I fell right in to the controls. Things become very familiar very quickly. Only complaint is this, I am embarrassed on how long it took me to realize that you have to hold donw "B" to be able to turn your light on. Something that I could definitely have used early on in the game. Maybe I should have read the directions.

Story: The story-line is fantastic. While in search of your father, I found myself truly wanted to find out what happened. What was he working on. Why did he leave me behind. I was eventually distracted by the many side quests which have their own involved story arcs. All in all, a great story.

Cons:
Leveling: One of the things I enjoyed most about Oblivion is that you were able to continue leveling up your character. Part of the replay value was to finish making your character the best he could be. Not so in Fallout. You cap at level 20. I suppose that it makes the game a little more enjoyable if you aren't some super human that can never get hurt, not to mention the strategy involved in making a character you like playing as most. Although, if you like attaining everything, seeing all the possible perks and not being able to choose them can be disheartening. Not to mention I didn't realize that you capped at 20. I would have definitely done things differently.
I do hear that the coming DLC will raise the possible level as well as include new perks.

Completing the game: Another cool aspect of Oblivion was that after you finish the game you were able to continue found quests and even find new ones. Again, this is not so in Fallout. Once you beat the game, thats it. You get an ending depending on how you played the game and then credits. I was disappointed when I wasn't able to go explore the outcomes of my decisions, finish open quests and explore the rest of the map. Of course you can always load up your save and not beat the game.

Dogmeat: After I lost my dog in Fable II I truly missed him. You get so used to having him around that you can't help but be a little sad after he's gone. On the other hand, I felt no attachment to Dogmeat. Why? First of all some bloody raiders killed him before I knew the poor pup. Secondly, I was still raw about losing my dog from Fable II. Maybe you will have a different experience. I hope you do. What is the take home message: save, save a lot.

All in all I am very impressed with the game. Any complaint was by comparing it to Bethesda's previous game. After playing what the winter offered Fallout 3 is just a cut above the rest. Go buy it if you haven't.