Fallout: New Vegas (PC) Second Opinion Review

There's a very strong feeling of Déjà vu here. From the way everything looks and sounds, to the way it plays, Fallout: New Vegas is Fallout 3 all over again. They share the same engine, almost unaltered, and the same overall mechanics, despite some improvements here and there. In other words, most among those who hated the previous instalment will find it hard to love this one. There are some differences, however, and they do manage to turn this into the better experience. Is it the setting? Not really. The greyness of the Capital Wasteland has been exchanged with the yellowness of the Wild West of Nevada, but everything is largely the same. Is it the way it plays? As mentioned earlier, some improvements have been made, like weapon mods, better ammo variety, better crafting options and so on and forth, but this remains the same exact deal. Explore, shoot at bad things, talk with people.

It's no secret that people who love New Vegas do so because of how it throws more of its weight on the writing and roleplaying compared to Fallout 3, which was basically a first-person sandbox with a little bit of story thrown in. Yes, New Vegas is indeed better as an RPG, and that becomes evident in the very first town you come upon, where you are given actual choices. The player character can help these folk, rob them of their possessions, betray them and kill them with the help of some raiders, or simply forget all about them and set out to do some adventuring. The same continues with the rest of the experience, at least when compared to the more black or white approach of the previous entry. Here's a hot take, though: it's not as good as people make it out to be.

Fallout: New Vegas is a love letter to Fallout 2. For many that's a blessing, for some, like the one writing this, it is not. For starters the story, and as a result, the world, is somewhat boring. It's hard to care about anything - again, like in Fallout 2 - as you are basically forced into partaking in the political scheming and machinations of the Wasteland's big players, rather than trying to survive or save the world, or at least forge your own path. The whole thing begins with you having to get revenge on the one who betrayed you and left you to die on a hole, which is a good start. Other than that, however, it's hard to give a darn about the New California Republic, Caesar's Legion, or whatever faction you'll get to meet up with. It's not very… personal, if that makes any sense. Or at least it never manages to get personal.

Long story short, no, this critic doesn't place this on a high pedestal… but it's sure better than Fallout 3. For starters, the denizens of this world take their predicament a little bit more seriously. Forget the clowns of Fallout 3, the folks who try to survive in New Vegas are exactly that: survivors. This never ever becomes as dark as in the 1997 original, but generally it has a much better understanding of what a world after a nuclear holocaust should look like, with the writing avoiding being as simplistic in form, and… well, goofy as the one from the hand of Bethesda. Perfect? Not by a long shot. The writing, while better, tends to lean towards the more generic side of the scale. There are few if any memorable dialogue sequences to talk about, and as such, very few interesting characters. The world itself is also a bit empty, with very few points of interest sprinkled around, which is something that probably has to do with how rushed the development was.

It should be noted that, while still an open-world title, New Vegas is probably the most linear in the series, at least in the first couple of hours, which sort of funnel you into a very specific path. The good thing about that is that it works in favour of storytelling, as you are not likely to wonder aimlessly before something exciting happens. The bad thing about said linearity is that it kind of hurts replayability, as few players will try to follow a completely different path in subsequent playthroughs. It's possible, sure, but in practice it makes it clear that you have little reason to do so, since the "other" roads are usually way too hard, and not really as rewarding as the one you are supposed to follow.

In the end, what is Fallout: New Vegas? Well, in the humble opinion of this old-fart, this is the second most enjoyable Fallout in terms of gameplay, like movement, combat, and so on and forth, amongst the absolute best when it comes to roleplaying due to the sheer number of options available, but probably one of the weakest - yes, the weakest - when it comes to story, world-building, factions, and all that stuff that helped the ultra-archaic original remain one of the best in the realm of RPGs. In other words, do try it out if you haven't already, but don't expect the second coming of Christ, like many of its hardcore fans will lead you to believe it is. Oh, and bugs. This has plenty of 'em. Say safe, and quick save very often nuclear cowboys and cowgirls!