[Multiplatform] Fallout 4

[Severontous]

Had no idea the game released next week, good thing I get paid on the same day. And that map though, can't wait. Can't wait at all~

[PAZ]

[youtube]ivStn8l6_9w[/youtube]

damn

[Blake81]

The fapping intensifies...

Anyway, Steam says it'll be out the November 9. Just 3 days....

[Blake81]

Well, after almost 4 days of DLing, here's a small initial review from playing a couple hours of the game.

- Char Creation

Simply breathtaking; FO4 has taken the char creation to a whole new level. Not only you have quasi infinite array of ways to shape your char's face and body, but with enough time and effort, you can pretty much clone your own body into the game. Also, the new Body Weight system is quite a nice addition; for the first time, you can choose if you wanna play as a skinny, muscular or fat character, or anything in between.

The only part still controlled by good ol' sliders are the facial marks (which has an overly large pool of choices) and hairstyle. Everything else is just like you saw it on E3.


- Graphics

Despite all Requirement Site saying my PC should barely be able to play the game at minimum and the game itself telling me that it doesn't recognize my VCard, I was able to set the game's quality to High without falling under 58FPS. As usual, both Steam and the developers lie in favor of the hardware manufacturers.

Still, as usual, the game's actual graphic quality isn't the same as in the E3 vids (not even in Ultra according to some ppl wigh beefier PCs than mine), but that was to be expected. Nonetheless, the graphics are far above Witcher 3 and Mad Max.

During the tutorial (which is the Pre-War era segment) everything looks quite well and detailed, which was why it surprised me that the Vault was so ugly inside. Yet, when I came out of the vault, it was all beautiful again. I get the feeling the Vault was made gritty and ugly on purpose for narrative reasons. (NO SPOILERS!)


-Combat

At first, I found combat quite hard, but that was because many of the controls were relocated (VATS is now Q instead of V), however, once I got used to that, I found that combat has been massively improved.

First of all, many tiny new details and tweaks were added to many of the critters to make them more challenging. Radroaches cling to the walls and ceiling, Molerats ambush you by coming from underground (you can't spot them till they're out), Bloatflies are utterly fast at evading melee, and many other things. (I haven't faced any Raiders of similar humanoid enemies yet, so I can't say anything about them). This makes each of these critters feel different and creates the need of developing strategies against them; it's no longer just VATS, VATS and more VATS (although those work quite well still).


- BUGS (always the same...)

Truth to be told, so far I've only encountered one major bug and no minor ones (surprisingly), and this one seems to be caused by Bethesda thinking that absolutely everyone has a 16:9 Monitor, so, for those with a 5:4 monitor, some HUD functions are missing one big chunk to the right or simply don't work, the Lockpicking minigame being the first one you encounter (the lock becomes invisible). Seriously Bethesda, you pretty much punctured my hype balloon with this one..

Luckily for us, Modders have come to the rescue (as usual).

http://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/143/?

This fancy lil' mod will fix MOST (not all of them YET) of these errors without any issues (worked like a charm for me).

I'll add some more reviews as I keep playing.

[Feathers]

I'm REALLY considering buying this. Can't decide, yet. My deciding factor is going to be the companion options, I think. I'm not to keen on the "story" premise though. Why does my character have to have a son? Okay, I know why they did it- because

Spoiler: show

is the

Spoiler: show

and they wanted it to have an epic

Spoiler: show

, but still, I like having my character be mine in a Bethes game. I still might (okay I will eventually for sure when it's cheaper) buy it though, because like you said, modders to the rescue.

[SIERRA-116]

You definitely should. This game is great, but it is HARD.

Enemies that were once pitiful and pathetic are now something to not take lightly.

And enemies that were wreck-your-face machines are now beings of death.

Also, suicide mole rats.

This game is great.

[Blake81]

Yeah, the combat overhaul is probably the best new element so far. Suicide Molerats, evasive Bloatflies and Bloodbugs, bulletproof Mirelurks, Feral Ghouls who pretend to be dead or come out of the smallest crevice you've ever seen and dash at you like a L4D Hunter and whose limbs you can blow away and they're still alive. And don't even get me started on the Deathclaw....

The Raiders are also awfully smart now; like they all got a freaking PhD in ''Dodge the Bullet and Chuck Grenades'' now. They also no longer come charging at you like a freaking Kamikaze; they stay back and stay grouped while they attack you. And if you run towards them, they flee and regroup. They also stopped going to the ''Imperial Stormtrooper Marksmanship Academy''; their aim is almost as good as your own now....

[Severontous]

I'll just leave this here.
https://gifsound.com/?gfycat=TightBlari ... u9gY&s=128


On a slightly unrelated note I shat bricks when I saw raiders with power armor for the first time. And not only was my first experience against raider power armor but also my first experience against a raider with power armor using a fat man.

At the beginning of the game.

[Feathers]

I'm sure the electronics guy at my work will be talking about this all morning and try to convince me to buy. The new combat does sound tempting. With mods that add custom companions I should be sold on it. Main deterrent is that price tag man..

[Helios Leinheart]

To all of you that has the equipment and funds to play this game. F**k you.

[Blake81]

What are your specs? Because, according to pretty much every requirements site, I shouldn't even be able to run FO4 on minimum with my rig and I have it on High. Maybe you CAN indeed run it...

[Feathers]

I heard even people with great PCs are having bad random FPS drops.

Friend of mine made a funny comment though - "Fallout 4 is the best 9 FPS game I have ever played. Even that won't keep me from stopping playing, because the game is so great!"

[Helios Leinheart]

What are your specs?

Intel HD Graphics. Nuff said. I play video games on a potato.

[SIERRA-116]

The Settlement UI needs a big update. A free form build mode so time freezes and you can fly would be nice.

[SIERRA-116]

Yeah, the combat overhaul is probably the best new element so far. Suicide Molerats, evasive Bloatflies and Bloodbugs, bulletproof Mirelurks, Feral Ghouls who pretend to be dead or come out of the smallest crevice you've ever seen and dash at you like a L4D Hunter and whose limbs you can blow away and they're still alive. And don't even get me started on the Deathclaw....

The Raiders are also awfully smart now; like they all got a freaking PhD in ''Dodge the Bullet and Chuck Grenades'' now. They also no longer come charging at you like a freaking Kamikaze; they stay back and stay grouped while they attack you. And if you run towards them, they flee and regroup. They also stopped going to the ''Imperial Stormtrooper Marksmanship Academy''; their aim is almost as good as your own now....

What's amazing is the RANGE in which they'll shit at you.

A good place to see this is that flooded quarry, after it's been drained; if they're aware of your presence, they'll shoot at you clear across from the other side of the quarry; they'll barely be able to hit you, but running away from a super mutant encampment with bullets pinging off everything around you is incredible.

Few other FPS games seem to have enemy AI ranges like this.

[Feathers]

Was going to grab it yesterday, but sold out. Must be a sign to wait. >_?

[Blake81]

What are your specs?

Intel HD Graphics. Nuff said. I play video games on a potato.

Ugh! My deepest condolences man, I know how that feels as my Laptop has the same, and it can't even run pixely games like La Mulana and FTL, only Touhou works there.

The Settlement UI needs a big update. A free form build mode so time freezes and you can fly would be nice.

Yeah, the building mode is quite primitive and unpolished. This is specially visible regarding heights and uneven grounds; you can't control how high or low something goes, and when the floor's anything less than perfectly flat and clean, stuff ends up floating or simply unplaceable, not to mention there are many specific containers (like First Aid Kits, Chem Boxes, Freezers and Ammo Boxes) which aren't available for placing, dunno why. Also, not all the things can be moved around; some can't only be scrapped for materials and some won't even be selectable (like those annoying tiny tables and the counter in the Red Rocket base), and there's also the ''start from above'' issue; if you have, say, five crates piles on top of another and you scrap the lowest one first, the rest vanish. You have to start from top to down.

Still, it's a basic function, and I'm sure that modders will make it into something damn epic before long.

What's amazing is the RANGE in which they'll shit at you.

A good place to see this is that flooded quarry, after it's been drained; if they're aware of your presence, they'll shoot at you clear across from the other side of the quarry; they'll barely be able to hit you, but running away from a super mutant encampment with bullets pinging off everything around you is incredible.

Few other FPS games seem to have enemy AI ranges like this.

Yeah, the AI is CRAZY GOOD in the sense it really makes you feel the danger and be more careful. Yesterday I was wandering around Lexington without a care in the world and suddenly BOOM! HEADSHOT!, my char was dead. At first I thought it was a bug, but then I saw the raider with the overly improved Sniper Rifle standing high above a broken highway so far it didn't even show on my compass. Now that rifle's my best gun.

I heard even people with great PCs are having bad random FPS drops.

Friend of mine made a funny comment though - "Fallout 4 is the best 9 FPS game I have ever played. Even that won't keep me from stopping playing, because the game is so great!"

... Really? Man, the only big FPS I had was during the starting sequence in the Pre-War world, when the bombing starts that everybody starts running. And it dropped only to 47-51 FPS (It's usually around 58-60FPS) and I use HIGH quality....

Either those guys have some other background software eating their RAM or my PC is a beast and should be held in zoo. (A cookie to whomever knows this reference).

Anyway, I just found my very first LEGENDARY WEAPON (unique weapons with special bonuses you can't get anywhere else). It's a Pipe Pistol that consumes 25% Less APs in VATS! Damn epic stuff....

Also, has anyone noticed that the new ''Choose you pieces of armor'' thing is actually Beth's on take on the legendary ''Tailor Maid Armor Mod'' from both FO3 and FNV. It's creator must've had his life's happiest moment when he realized that....

[Gamergirl64]

[youtube]k_i6Ewj1cLk[/youtube]

What's a fallout game without humorous ways to solve social dilemmas, such as a robot that follows the curfew order?

Ah man, I wish I could play this! My desktop computer and my laptop are both total crap when it comes to gaming, though.

[Severontous]

I wish this game had the terrible presence perk tho, unless i'm missing something I can't find it. ;(

[Blake81]

These last 2 days have been days of discoveries, so I'll mention some here.

- There's armor for Dogmeat.

- The Muties now have Mutie Dogs; guess they wanted animal companions too.

- Power Armor allows you to breath underwater for a very long time, yet you can't swim upwards and there's no air meter. So, if you run outta air, you best bet is to Fast Travel away... or lose your armor and try to swim up.

- Remember the Dunwich Building in FO3? Remember how the terminals in there said it belonged to ''Dunwich Borers''? Well, Dunwich Borers is in the Commonwealth, and it seems Bethesda decided to spice up the horror, adding elements from Amnesia and Dead Space to the ol' Lovecraftian Horror mix. Make sure you bring your diapers.

- You don't know fear until you've seen a Feral Ghoul Reaver dodge all of your attack like he's freaking NEO!

- Fear the Molerats....

- Holstered weapons are gone! Your equipped weapon is no longer visible. Why the FiretrUCK did Bethesda remove that!?

- I am seriously starting to miss FNV's Ammo Bench. Why did they remove this too?

- Piper's one of the most hilarious companions EVER! Heck, even her name's a pun; you'll see what I mean.

- Saw my first Power-Armored Raider, and as if that wasn't enough scare, it was carrying a Fat Man. Had to change pants....

- Then, it was TWO POWER-ARMORED RAIDERS WITH A FAT MAN!! Need me Brown Pants....

- Raider PA is complete trash.

- The Gunner have some of the best gear around, and one of the lamest names ever. Heck, wasn't Talon Company Mercs a cool name? Why they didn't give them a similar one this time. Seriously Beth...

- The Nexus Mod Manager was updated to support FO4. IT'S MODDING TIME!! Or it will be as soon as the Creation Kit gets out...

- Mutie Armor is loot-able now. I recon we'll get a Mutie Companion at some point.

- If you thought the first Deathclaw was nasty, wait till you see the Alpha Deathclaws. You won't shit bricks; you'll shit entire pillars.

- The Mirelurk Queens' Poison Attacks make both Alpha Deathclaws and PA Raiders look like a pair of fluffy Corgis.... You'll shit castles with this...

- You can't make Weapon Mods you don't have the necessary perks or materials for, but if you find the same weapon with those mods, you can unequip them and add it to your own.

Hope this all helps!