Truth be said, I never really got into Fallout 3. When it was first released my brother and my mate both got it on the xbox. I could constantly hear them in V.A.T.s mode, skipping conversations and on youtube looking for help. So I decided to borrow it, and I played a bit, got out of Vault 101, and got to Megaton. That's where I stalled. I never got any further, and never really found the game to drag me in.
Six months later, and WOW. I've gone from Level 3 in Megaton to Level 18 and onto the Broken Steel expansion. This game has totally changed my life, and has been the first RPG since Evolution on Dreamcast and Diablo on the PC to draw me in like this. I can't stop. Serious, I'm knocking out 3 or 4 achievements a night.
One of my all-time favourite games on the Dreamcast
Let me explain my reasons. The first time I played it, I had just left Vault 101 and literally thrust onto the Wasteland to fend for myself. At the time I thought this game was on the verge of being boring - however I now understand. From the safety of Vault 101, to the terror of leaving, to the feeling of being completely alone. This game has toyed with my emotions. The last game to do that was MGS4 at the end with Snake holding a pistol in his mouth. Except this time I wasn't in control of my emotions - I just felt completely alone. No-one was there, even my in-game Dad had run off. To me this feeling is beyond words. You're only guidance is a Pip-Boy 3000, and the ability to go north, south, east or west. That's it. YOU make the game.
Saw VII - Snake gets a gun glued to his mouth
Shortly after this, I had just finished the mission where this child eats his own parents and rescued him - and this is where the pace picked up quickly. My brother had just told me of the Lincoln Repeater. A .44 bullet taking long barrelled weapon. Imagine a magnum with a huge barrell, and the ability to kill in one clean headshot. With this gun I was able to fly through the rest of the quests. Picking up the occasional side quest when I ran into it. Along with my brother who gave me tips like not to use the Nuka-Cola Quantum, or not to side with the Enclave - I managed to beat the game. I felt like I had maybe the game in too little time, in that I hadn't given myself time to appreciate the Wasteland for all it's post-apocalyptic wonder.
Easily one of the best guns in the game..along side the Fatman
So now I'm most of the way through Broken Steel and I've realised...I got to do this game all over again. Quests can drop when you do the main quest, and I've had no idea of where they are simply because the map is HUGE. Therefore I'm going to have to go through the same emotions again, and to start off with a BB-Gun. Not only that but I'll have to do it with bad and neutral karma - unless I fancy doing the game again twice.
At the end of the day I'm quite happy to indulge in the Wasteland. I've got all four expansions for Fallout 3 (courtesy of my brother who bought the discs, loaded them onto our xboxes and sold them again on eBay!) so I'll be hooked for a while. I may even cancel my Modern Warfare 2 pre-order. For at the moment this game keeps getting bigger and better. If I do get 100% on this game, I may have to get Borderlands. Now that's a different story...