First details about Fallout: New Vegas surface

There’s a great write-up of some information that will soon be revealed in the next issue of Game Informer pertaining to the rather mysterious Fallout: New Vegas over at That VideoGame Blog. It all sounds pretty legit though so I’m going to start getting excited this very second.

Fallout: New Vegas, from what was divulged, seems to be keeping in with some Fallout 3 traditions while also exploring new ways to tell a story via means like Dragon Age: Origins.

Looks like you’ll be playing as a number of different characters in the beginning, which would unlock specific perks. One such character would be a Crimson Dragoon on a mission to destroy the Hoover Dam who ultimately becomes a ghoul. Or you can go blank slate and be a Lone Wanderer type. Either way, with or without a moral system, this should up the replay value.

Also, it sounds like there will be much more strategy needed into distributing your S.P.E.C.I.A.L. points. One of the silly things in Fallout 3 was the fact that you could get a 100 in every focus, or, if not 100, very high up there. I spent all my time focusing on laser weapons and lock-picking that once I filled them to capacity I just started completing other skills. Wasn’t hard to do at all. I’d like a tougher challenge, and this seems to be it.

The leaked details claim that the size of the Vegas wasteland will greatly dwarf the Capital wasteland, which now gives reason to having accessible vehicles. Would love to hop in a car and go cruising across the desert. That said…dwarfing the Capital wasteland? We’ll just have to wait and see.

And, as expected, there’ll be a bit of gambling going on. C’mon Lucky 7s…ka-ching! Wonder if bottle caps will still be the currency used in the West Coast or if traditional money will still play a part.

In summary, mmmmmmmm. I need this now!

Gaming resolutions

Well, it’s 2010.

Guess I should baa baa baa along with everyone else and throw down some gaming resolutions. Let’s just go with three for now, but three that are actually obtainable. Everyone wants to complete their entire backlog and finish a game before buying the next one. Try being realistic for a change. Remember 1991’s What About Bob? It’s all about the “baby steps.”

Anyways, here’s my Big Three resolutions for 2010:

1. Finish an evil run on Fable II

Generally, when I get a game that offers moral choices and a good/evil/neutral sort of alignment, I will always play through it first as a good-nature male character. Always. Then the plan is to go back afterwards and experience the world from an evil lady’s view. Not sure what that says about my psyche. But there’s a problem as of late. It’s kind of boring playing Fable II over again as an evil lady…because it’s basically the same game I played as a holier-than-thou hero. You just have horns, and people kick your dog.

2. Unlock the full 1550 Gamerscore on Fallout 3

At the moment, I have 1,170/ 1,550 points (or 54/72 achievements). I’d love to get a full Gamerscore on a game that is not LEGO-based, and since Fallout 3 has no online achievements, this is totally possible. It just requires time and patience because it’ll involved two playthroughs for the evil and neutral achievements. No, I’m not into cheating and saving/reloading to get them at their respective levels. Gotta visit the Pitt, too.

3. Be more open-minded to game genres I’ve historically disliked

This is the doozy of the resolutions. Hardcore shooters, sports, and MMORPGs are often the game genres I’ve sneered at the most. Though the latter two are types I really never play. I’m trying to figure out why I don’t like shooters more…by giving them a chance. Did the demo for Left 4 Dead 2 and mildly enjoyed it. Am playing through BioShock at the moment…though I am dying a lot. Maybe it’s my reflexes or the fact that I’m scared of every sound, no matter how minute, but I’m working on this. Will also have to be more accepting of sequels, even if a lot of them feel more like shoehorning than progression.

And that’s that.

Have you any gaming resolutions for 2010? Please don’t say, “Finish my backlog.”

Top 5 Most Anticipated Games in 2010

Ah, 2009 is drawing to a close. It’s been an interesting one, filled with lots of games and excitement, as well as some disappointment. This was the year that I finally got an Xbox 360 and moved into the current generation, playing games that were mostly released one or two years ago. Oh well. I’m not rich, and we all know it. Besides, sometimes it is fun playing catch up.

But 2010 looms, and here’s the top five games I’m most looking forward to:

5. Final Fantasy XIII

If you haven’t heard, there’s a new Final Fantasy game coming out. Also, if you haven’t heard, then chances are you’re probably dead. Or undead. One of those. Anyways, this one looks amazingly flashy and kind of a bit like Final Fantasy VIII in some ways. It has a more science fiction tone to it than actual…fantasy. The fact that it’s coming to multiple platforms is great, and I’m definitely intrigued by a lot of the screenshots/videos that have surfaced. Battles look intense. I just worry that it is far too linear because I loved how much freedom the player was given in Final Fantasy XII, and to lose such a thing would be like taking seven steps back.

4. LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4

This has the potential to be my favorite mash-up of LEGOs and something else. Reports say that a lot of the camera issues have been fixed in LEGO Indiana Jones 2 so hopefully they brought that over in this one. Exploring Hogwarts is sure to be a blast, and even though it only covers the first four books there’s bound to be tons of stuff to do, collect, and see, all while casting a few spells. I’m sure this’ll be yet another LEGO game that flares up my OCD. Stay tuned for that.

3. Fable III

Fable II taunted us with lots of promises, and the game turned out to be…pretty good. Not great, not stellar, not the end-all, be-all. Just pretty good (with lackluster DLC). But that’s okay because there’s a sequel in the works, and this time you’ll play the ruler of all the land. Are you going to be a kind king or an evil queen? That’s up to you. Hopefully the consequences from these choices drastically affect those around you…otherwise, it’ll just be the same ol’, same ol’, but with slightly new clothes. Still, I’m looking forward to it because the humor of Fable II still sits in the back of my mind, chuckling to itself, and I really enjoyed a lot of my time in Albion. The combat, however, could use a little more spunk, as could the menu system. Actually, I have a long list of things that could be better, but nonetheless I’m looking forward to seeing how this turns out.

2. The Scott Pilgrim videogame

I absolutely love this graphic novel series, and considering how stuffed it is with videogame mentions and adorations it is only perfect that it’s becoming a videogame itself. My hope is that it’ll be a 2D side-scroller, something of a throwback to Mario or Sonic or even Streets of Rage, but truthfully…I’ll be happy with whatever it is. Glad to know that there’s even input from Bryan Lee O’Malley, the series creator, which gives me hope. Will probably release around the same time as the motion picture. And maybe there will be a “hot coffee” moment starring Kim Pine? Maybe? Man, I’m creepy.

1. Fallout: New Vegas

Mmm…more Fallout. Granted, Fallout: New Vegas is not being made by Bethesda, but I have confidence it’ll be designed in the same mold (and greatness) of Fallout 3. Plus, Nevada is a great setting, considering there’s plenty of desert to explore, and I can only imagine the Vegas Strip destroyed, the hundreds of slot machines in ruins, the ghoul hookers looking for a nightcap and a bite. So long as this one has just as many options and freedom, I’m buying it the day it’s released, something I rarely ever do.

What games are you most looking forward to in 2010?

I’m a Silver-Tongued, Glitch-Using Devil

I did not get to play many videogames over the weekend because, well, I was a little busy getting engaged. Didn’t even turn my Nintendo DS on once! How about that? Caaaaah-razy, I know.

But I did manage to make some more time last night for Fallout 3. Still trying to finish up some achievements and good karma-focused quests before I start over with a new, evil weasel of a character. After sneaking around for an hour and more or less getting nowhere (found one more bobblehead in Vault 108), I did the worst thing ever:

Cheated.

Well, took advantage of a glitch to be more specific. See, I was sitting at around 43 successful speech attempts, and you need 50 to unlock the following achievement:

Silver-Tongued Devil (20G): Won 50 Speech Challenges

Basically, if you go to Little Lamplight, there’s a kid sheriff there named Knock-Knock. Ask him to tell you a joke, use your intelligence to guess the answer, and then select the [Speech 100%] response. Rinse and repeat. You can do this as many times as you need to. Something, perhaps, Bethesda should have caught.

So I did it six more times until I heard that infamous ping, the very same ping that echoed in my head as I tried to sleep last night. It just doesn’t feel right, “achieving” what I did, but I was worried that I’d run out of proper speech options at this point, and I didn’t want to have my evildoer being all talky in my next playthrough. His/her speech success is most likely going to involve a rocket launcher to the face.

Not terribly proud of this, but I guess in the end it doesn’t matter.

Fallout 3: Status Report (Level 30)

Previous status updates include:

• Level 10: Where I grew up in a vault, chased after my dad, and hightailed it to faux-Alaska for a bit
• Level 20: Where I found my dad, learned of his plan to purify the Capital Wasteland, and got probed by some aliens

And here we are now…Level 30. Experience-wise, I can go no further. I’ve gotten all the perks I can get for my super-duper messiah, and enough ammo to shoot whatever I want, wherever I want, how ever many times I want. Bottle caps up the who-ha, too, thanks to the Fortune Finder perk. Which is a shame, because I now feel like everything from here forward is pointless (maybe that’s too harsh a word), a little less satisfying because there’s no more XP to earn.

[Some vague spoilers to follow]

But let’s talk about what I’ve been up to these past final 10 levels. Well, to start, I “took it back” wherein I, some Brotherhood head honchos, and Liberty Prime stormed against the Enclave in order to retrieve the G.E.C.K. they originally stole from me. This was a pretty epic fight hampered by the fact that I roleplay a sneaky sneak, meaning I basically hung back and watched my friends do damage. After that I continued on to wipe out the Enclave entirely (though, as a few continue to pop up later on in the game, this is not accurate), and then decided it was time for a change of scenery.

Enter: Point Lookout, Maryland.

What a creepy and quiet place. Now, the bombs did not drop in Maryland, but the state certainly has been affected by radiation. There’s shovel-weilding inbreds and a host of ghouls, as well as an abandoned amusement park pier and some unnerving caves full of coffins and booby-traps (“That’s what I said, booby-traps.”). The main missions involve protecting a mansion, and then picking a side between a foul-mouthed ghoul and Mother Brain. I was level 25 when I arrived, and I found it harder in the beginning and a breeze to complete come the end. It’s really more of the same, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing when it comes to Fallout 3, but I would’ve liked more enemy variety and quest choices in this DLC. There’s some sidequests which I started, but left to the wayside, returning to the Capital Wasteland to finish up some miscellaneous tasks.

That’s right. Miscellaneous tasks…at this point, it’s all I have left besides a few quests which I won’t do until I replay as an evil-doer (specifically, “Strictly Business” and “You Gotta Shoot ‘Em in the Head”) . I’m missing two Bobbleheads at the moment, need to kill three more Super Mutant Behemoths, and win some more Speech challenges. Once those are done, I’m starting all over to play Fallout 3 completely different. And this time I mean it because I said the same with Fable 2, but just found it to be the same game with a slightly different outlook. Evil woman avatar is basically good male avatar that scares people away. No terrible punishments. I really do get the impression that, in Fallout 3, your character’s actions (i.e., your actions) truly have consequences, making the world real, making the experience real.

And that’s it for now. I absolutely love this game, probably the first I’ve absolutely loved in awhile since Suikoden II and Super Metroid, and I can most certainly assure you I’ll be back once more to summarize the entire experience Fallout 3 brings to the player, and to the genre. Don’t think I’ll do status updates for the evil character though. Unless she holds a Chinese assault rifle to my head, that is.

The Best/Worst Glitches in Fallout 3

There’s a really great list of Fallout 3 glitches over at Bitmob, which is totally worth checking out.

I’ve come across a few in my 70+ hours of gameplay, but the one that bothers me the most is probably not even a glitch in glitch-terms. It has something to do with the physics engine. Anyways, whenever I re-enter a room in which I shot up some robots or Super Mutants, they always reappear and then crumble to the floor, scaring the living the daylights out of me. Even now when I expect it, the sound of bodies thumping to the ground makes me jump. I don’t really get why it happens…

I’ve also experienced a Deathclaw being sucked into the sky, over and over and over. Fun to watch for a bit. Until, y’know, it lands on you.

Got any favorites glitches?

Fallout 3 froze again

My second freeze after over 70+ hours…which is not a terrible record by any means, but still, I’m nervous. Was in Point Lookout and I fast traveled to the boardwalk area only to have the music get all glitchy and then poof…FROZE. Hadn’t been playing for very long at the time either so maybe it is just the DLC. Think good thoughts, everyone.

JUST BEAT: Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion

…and by “just beat” I mean I completed the main quest the other night. Let’s just say it was beyond lame. I have many reasons to back this up, but first, some backstory.

Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion is one of the games that led me to get an Xbox 360 (other key games include Fable II and Fallout 3), and I quickly immersed myself in Cyrodiil, honing my archery skills and sneaking through caves and ancient ruins alike to loot, loot, and loot some more. Upon first playing, I did the main quest up to the part where you return from Camoran’s paradise where I then gleefully wandered off to do sidequests and just explore. This was fun…for some time, but then my collection started to grow and I kind of forgot about Martin and Daedra and shutting down Oblivion gates. On occasion, I’d pop Oblivion back in and poke about for an hour or two. The last time I played the game before this past weekend was back in August. Er…yeah.

So yeah, I got motivated and figured I could complete the main quest at the very least if I buckled down and focused. Little did I know that it would involved little-to-none buckling down and zero focus. Ah, Oblivion, you lazy bastard. Grabbing Martin by his Sean Bean neck, I headed over to the Imperial City to re-light the Dragonfires and save Cyrodiil. This took less than 10 minutes. Here, I will give you a step by step:

1. Introduce Martin to some dude
2. Fight off a few Daedra that interrupt us
3. Move to the next zone
4. Fight off a few Daedra that interrupt us
5. Move to the next zone
6. Run past the Daedric Prince Mehrunes Dagon without incident
7. Control is taken away from the player and you watch as Martin turns into a dragon-bird to destroy Mehrunes

LESS THAN TEN MINUTES.

Probably the lamest aspect of this final main quest is that you are not playing at the end. You are watching. Or maybe you are not and you got up to pee or something. That is reasonable. The fact still remains; just when something large and epic is finally happening in Oblivion, you are put on pause, you are asked to stop role-playing, and you are forced to watch a stilted, turn-based battle between bird and demon-beast. It’s so anticlimactic that I can’t even imagine what other possibilities they threw away before going with this one.

I dunno if I’ll go back again and finish up the different guilds and expansion packs any time soon. It just seems kind of fruitless, especially after all the Fallout 3 I’ve been playing. Those quests offer both awards and gold, something severely lacking in Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, and even though each game had problematic endings, at least Fallout 3 was able to undo it and move on.

Fallout 3 Xbox avatar items on the horizon

Um, yeah, I know I’ve said before that paying for digital clothing and trinkets to dress up your digital self is silly and a stupid waste of money. War never changes, sure, but my outlook on this stupid trend just might because…

On Thursday, November 26, Bethesda is releasing the following Fallout 3 items on the Xbox Avatar Marketplace:

• Vault 101 Suit — 240 MS Points
• Bethesda Game Studios Shirt — 80 MS Points
• Fallout 3 Ringer Shirt — 80 MS Points
• Vault Boy Shirt — 80 MS Points
• Vault Boy Suit — 240 MS Points
• Vault Boy Head — 80 MS Points

Of them all, the Vault 101 Suit is looking the slickest.

First Screenshots of Fallout Online “Project V13”

MMORPGs have never interested me. Not even ones based in Tolkien’s Middle-Earth. I know. Cah-razy, right?

That said, screenshots of a Fallout MMORPG have recently surfaced thanks to some court battles, and while it does look like a rather bleak place to spend one’s time…I’m all for it. Hope these images only mean that “Project V13” is one step closer to becoming a reality. Check out the other two shots below the cut.