Customer Reviews
Survive, If You Can....
Fallout and Fallout 2 are, hands down, some of the best RPG games in the history of PC gaming. If you're into RPG's, and you don't already have a copy of either one of these, I SERIOUSLY recommend picking both of them up.
Fallout takes you to post-apocalyptic California, where you have survived as a third generation child of an underground bunker called Vault 13. Your elder comes to you to tell you that the water purification system has malfunctioned, and you need to find a replacement chip to fix it. From there, all hell breaks loose as you battle raiders, monsters, and a slew of mutated creatures, all changed by the severe radiation poisoning the world has been left with. Pick up weapons, develop your skills, and explore the landscape for answers to your people's salvation.
Fallout 2 takes you some 80 years after the first title. You are a decendent of the hero of the first Fallout game, and need to help your village survive a horrid drought by finding a Garden of Eden Creation Kit (GECK). This item will help your people to grow new crops, and bring a new era of civilization to the tribals. After that, you're left to find answers to where the sacred Vault 13 is, and whether or not you can get a GECK to save your people with. You'll battle similar enemies from the first title, plus an assortment of new baddies. You'll get some different weapons, and the command interface is a little more user friendly.
The best part of these games is the freedom elements. Don't want to complete that mission? Then don't! Many of the quests are optional, so you can choose which ones you want to complete. You can attack just about anyone (provided you can fight off their friends), steal from people, or be a helpful vigilante and bring justice to the wastelands.
This game should only be viewed by mature audiences because of sexual situations and coarse dialogue. So, if you're 17 or older and want a game that you'll play again and again, pick up Fallout and Fallout 2.
Terrific and Addictive Gameplay Packs an Awesome Punch
Fallout and Fallout II are both wonderfully addictive games that shouldn't let you down in any way. The stories are fun and exciting, the characters are interesting and you truly have the capabilities of developing a character based on your own preferences.
The top-down, slightly askew view is perfect for navigating around, the control layout is easily learned, (it does take a teeny bit of tinkering around to fully get the gist of it, but what game doesn't?), the cinematic dialogue scenes are well generated and the Role-Playing factor is creatively designed, yet easy to manage.
Those looking for fast-playing action games need to go somewhere else. The gameplay is great, but it's turn-based once the fighting begins, which means your reflexes need not apply. (Believe me, it's still a blast, even if you're not "fragging people.")
I played the two games in order, (which I recommend you do), and I must say that Fallout II definitely has more beef to it in every count, plus the developers managed to solve a few minor bugs that hassled us in the first game. That's not to say that the 1st Fallout isn't equally as fun. If nothing else, Fallout is a perfect way to train yourself for Fallout II. (Do you like watching the sequel to a movie before seeing the original itself? I didn't think so.)
One of the best things about these games is that there are a lot of randomly activated occurances in them. Weapons you find, people you bump into, places to explore. Yet they manage to keep things linear just enough so that you're not wandering around TOO much and not accomplishing anything.
I'm a big fan of post-apocalyptic themes. I don't why, but I always find them exciting and adventurous, (and yes dark and gloomy in a certain way!) Fallout and Fallout II are hands-down the best PC games to conquer this realm. It'll be interesting to see what Fallout Tactics is like!...
The Best RPG ever made
First a little warning, this game is not for children, it uses adult themes and language. I played the first title of this saga years ago, at the time I bought it because the title won "RPG of the year" award by popular PC magazines. It was merely out of curiosity that I stumbled on the game that has changed my view of RPG standards. These games can justly be called the "mother of all RPGs" its creators have made the titles of Bauldur's gate, Archanum, Torment and many other games (it is sad that they cannot get along long enough to make a third Fallout). Till now, whenever I play an RPG title, I think back to Fallout and compare it. To be honest, I have yet to see one that can match it. Let me explain:
The secret of the success of both titles was not in the graphics, game play or the fighting sequences, the secret to its success was mainly due to the rich storyline. This game played very much like a movie or a novel except you are in the driver seat. There is nothing linear about this game, it does not play like a normal RPG where doing certain missions propel you forward. This game engulfs the player in its quests and provides an endless spider web of opportunities to change the story. It was essentially the only game I have ever played that possessed a true "open ended" game engine. You can, literally, become a sharif, a drug dealer, a slaver, a ranger, a mob made-man fighting against other mob families, a prostitute, a porn star, a mercenary, a thief, a person with a bounty on their heads, a child murderer, a bandit, a cattle driver and even lead a small army... Every city you enter provides you with endless opportunities and jobs. It will take 40-50 hours each game and you will appreciate every minute of it.
The storyline of the first fallout is that you are chosen among the vault dwellers (humans cooped up in Vaults for long periods of time to escape the nuclear holocaust) to search for a new "water chip" essential for the survival of the vault. You spend some time searching for it in the begining but the story does not end there. The second game involves the descendants of the original vault dweller (hero of the first game) 80 years later and their quest to find the "Holy GECK" which is a device that turns the scorched wasteland into the Garden of Eden. The game designers have very cleverly linked both games together in away that it makes you feel you are playing one single game. Characters from Fallout 1 are old and crusting on Fallout 2 and will happily tell you the tale of the original vault dweller in which you are his/her descendant. A wonderful aspect about this game is that the designers are a crowd of dorks, who happen to be big fans of movies like "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" and "Star Trek", there is a bit of subtle humor hidden in the game in the form of "special encounters" which are randomized events occurring while you travel. Their purpose is to make you smile and even laugh at the imagination of the Fallout designers in their quest to pay homage to their favorite shows, something I miss dearly from new RPGs.
The system used for character development is the same as the system used for other RPG with 'perks' thrown in every few levels that give the character extra abilities. You can choose the direction of your character from the beginning but there is no limitation as you can change it later on in the game unlike most other RPG engines. You can choose to have companions (depending on your charisma rating) which is one of the interesting aspect about this game is that they are totally independent in their actions and sometimes even fight among each other, dialogue can be very funny. The combat sequences can be melee or gun power, energy weapons and rocket launchers are my favorite. It is turn-based which means that you have to use a bit of brain with your tactics, unlike hack and slash RPGs.
Bottom line, buy this game and you will find yourself to be one of many who have joined in a cult-like admiration for these titles. How many RPGs do you know of that have Fan-based fiction writing sites lasting for years? Many fans are even making their own storylines based on Fallout Tactics engine now like Fallout Awaken. You will feel sad after beating it once and you will play it again and again as I have. It is simply the best, the king of all RPG's and none who played it can contest that statement.
