Fallout: New Vegas
Starting Out: You wake up oblivious and confused. Instead of reading a baby's book and taking the G.O.A.T., the doctor has you assign your S.P.E.C.I.A.L through the old-time arm grip machine and some lame psychological word & ink blot test. The results were pretty close to what I wanted except for some minor tweaks to favor lockpick & science. There is one thing I have to include here: the final ink blot looked like, to me, two bears high-fiving. I guess this was some super large joke for it lead to a mod, a t-shirt, and a formal response in the DLC. I made sure to avoid all perks relative to the V.A.T.S. (for challenge purposes) and use "Good Nature" as the only trait worth the penalty. Some also suggest gaining the "Wild Wasteland" perk but I found the list of changes trivial. If by sheer chance you have accidentally spent the majority of the game with a trait you don't like, The Old World Blues add-on makes it possible for you to re-pick the Courier's assigned traits. I also had to install New Vegas Stutter Removal since, I guess, Windows 10 was interfering with the game like it did with Fallout 3.
First 5 Hours: I was pleasantly surprised to see an in-game tutorial in the little town of Goodsprings. Not only did I get the jist of the area but I learned that my skills have a much larger impact on my dialogue choices. I honestly did not have enough skill in explosives to gain some dynamite from the old man in the battle against the Powder Gangers. I did find a shovel but didn't realize at the time how I could use it to dig up graves (without a karma penalty). I also wasn't aware of the ability to pick up the distinctive cigarette butts that were dropped by your own grave. I headed south to Primm and contacted the NCR base.
10 Hour Marker, The Legion: I became ecstatic to see an old Enclave Eye Bot laying on the desk at Primm. I wanted to repair it so badly but my skills weren't high enough. Only after visiting the base to the southwest was I able to level-up and obtain this wonderful thing as a pet. I was so happy. Then that happiness subsided when I entered the town of Nipton. Members of The Legion played some sick lottery game of the town and expected to just walk away? I pulled out my Mercenary Grenade Rifle included in the Courier's Stash and made quick work of them. Word must have gotten out fast for Legionnaire Assassins were continuously hounding me all the way north. The difficulty of these squads were insane, but I do not regret my actions in Nipton at all. I headed north to Novac and did the requirements (without looking) for both my hotel room and my second companion. I also spent all my funds in buying Gamechanger: That Gun. Oh and I did grab the message about Benny off Manny's terminal. Took me way to long to realize that it the town was named that because the sign was broken off: Novac(ancy).
10 to 20 Hour Stretch: I spent the majority of the time restoring power to the station at Helios One (did not choose to harness the power of the sun) and getting the ghouls set-up in the REPCONN Facility. No, I didn't know about saving the feral ghouls... so none of them got into the rocket. I quickly snagged the Comprehension and Educated perks to help build up my skills. I then stumbled upon the Fiend's base of operations at Vault 3. I persuaded the guard I was there on business and managed to roam around without being harmed. I saved the ranger and freed the slaves but refused to take any drastic actions of killing anyone without finding more about them in the game.
30 Hours In: I got lost. You would think I would have found the entrance to New Vegas by now. Nope. Instead, I took a detour to rescue the Great Khans at Boulder City while surprisingly getting word about Benny and his lighter. I took a detour west to say hello to the Great Khans (which I don't think are so great anymore) at their base of operations. Then I followed the sewer system and found Red Lucy at The Thorn which then directed me to Vault 22 which took much longer than I anticipated to navigate through while looting the Gamechanger: AER14 Prototype. I got to train some NCR misfits and do some favor for The Kings.
Courier does his job for the next 10 hours: Finally! I managed to get into The Strip and here I thought going through the Metro System in Fallout 3 was bad. There is... so much running around... with no ability to fast travel to any of these locations. Mr. House brings me in and "reminds me" of my job. I went to have a civilized discussion with Benny when he takes off with the package. Eh, I guess I'll worry about him later. The mysterious "Yes Man" told me about the various factions in the game. I solved the issue with the White Glove Society at The Ultra-Luxe casino. I solved the issue with the Omertas by having them shoot each other. I helped problems with the various locals and took some jobs at Crimson Caravan and Van Graffs. I grew quickly suspicious of both these two groups when they both seemed to take an interest to Cass, the whiskey-drinking lady stuck at the Mojave Outpost. To my surprise, I was able to recruit her as a companion! Not only that but I was able to tell Boone to hangout at the Lucky 38.
Dreaded Vault 34 at the 40 Hours Mark: I needed a break. I decided to head south and find a few sleeping sharecroppers. They complained about their crops not growing like they should and redirected me to check the water pumps. The terminal at the pump told me of a radiation issue. I knew exactly where it was coming from for I already stumbled upon the vault to the east with barrels of radiation blocking the entrance. Vault 34 is hard. I had to continue using Rad-X, Rad-Away, Med-X, Psycho, Rushing Water, and every sort of weapon I could salvage from the Armory. Yes, I even had to start using V.A.T.S. and Stim-packs to survive. The All-American Marskman Carbine and the unique Pulse Gun were both very inefficient to the task at hand.
Honest Heart DLC from 45 to 50 hours: Honest Hearts is officially the 2nd add-on to New Vegas but it is the only one that doesn't have a level requirement. People have suggested that it is more independently packaged without knowing more about the game. Though, people made it sound like the DLC was easy. It was no *cough* walk in the park. My game started to crash much more often. I think there was some compatibility issue with the new climate and water effects and the Stutter Removal program. The DLC was fun enough, taking place in a more tribal setting like that of Arroyo in Fallout 2. All the items weren't particularly better but were unique enough to add flavor to the game, especially the Mantis gauntlet. It is rumored that the Gecko armor is the toughest armor in the game. I never did get around to making one. I didn't really feel like my choice mattered too much in the end, but I did feel satisfied with at least convincing both tribes to fight for their land.
50 to 60 Hours In, Minor Factions: I followed the railroad tracks and made contact with the Boomers. They were kind enough to provide me with a Gamechanger: Rebreather. I carefully met up with Caesar and talked with the super mutants at Jacobstown. I was dragged down below with the Brotherhood of Steel and helped them with their problem.
60 to 75 Hours, Old World Blues. Somewhere on the Internet, I got the impression that Dead Money was really hard (level 20+) so I decided to try out the third add-on with a recommended level of 15 instead. There are no words to express how awesome this DLC was.
Everything is glorious from the tie-ins of the three characters from
the Mojave Desert to the six scientists that rule the zone. Each has a
very unique and interesting personality that is ultimately reinforced by
your dialogue in the Big Empty MT. Even their old neighborhood is reminiscent of the VR program in Fallout 3.
Gathering the three high-tech items never felt like a chore and
discovering that they have test rooms to try them out in is even more
grand. All of the items are significantly better than what I had
previously: Atomic-Valence Tri-Radii-oscillator, Christine's CoS
Recon Armor, Dr. Kleins glasses/scrubs/glove, Dr. Mobius
glasses/scrubs/glove, Hazmat Darklight Cowl with Night Vision (better
than Green Light or Catseye that you can turn on/off by just equipping
it), Stealth Suit Mk II (with a very lovely AI built inside it, much
more charming than the Protoype Medic Power Armor from Fallout 3),
Battle Brew (with +35 DR for 4 minutes), K9000 Cyberdog Gun/KIDO,
Christine's CoS Silencer Rifle, Elijah's Advanced LAER, Elijah's
Jury-Rigged Tesla Cannon, Protonic Inversal Axe, Sonic Emitter (with
alternating abilities), and the X-2 Antenna. You are provided with a
room with a vendor stocked of 14,000 caps and various tools with
personality chips installed that heal, install implants, fill empty
containers with water, replace core traits (one-time offer), buff, and
provide daily materials. They also can recycle plants (through cloning),
books, cups, clipboards, mugs... and maybe a few other things I'm
forgetting right now. Oh, and you are able to instantly teleport there
anytime through the use of a weapon upon completing the add-on that
doesn't care if you are overburdened. I especially like the added
Mysterious Radio Signal you can tune to for some lovely jazz listening.
There are resources everywhere in the dome and a skill book of each kind
(well, a one-time recipe at least). Sadly, there is one major drawback
to the DLC. It doesn't work well with companions. You must dismiss your
companions everytime you use the portal gun (and therefore reacquire
them either at the Lucky 38 or their designated home). I never knew there was a DLC-only temporary
companion named Roxie that you could get by *cough* retrieving a
specific holotape and using the DNA splicer. Roxie does not have a
companion wheel, therefore does not have the ability to carry your loot,
and generally dies the first time it engages combat. So I guess no real
lost there. Other than that the DLC would have been perfect.
75 to 80 Hours, Preparations. Honestly, I wasn't sure what I was doing at this point. I wanted to start Dead Money DLC but the "no-equipment" and "no-return" notices gave me pause. Since I just hit level 40, I wanted to use my last 5 perk points carefully - Jury Rigging (held-off for a challenge), Burden to Bear (on top of Pack Rat and Strong Back), and Explorer (for end-game). I went back to install some implants to make the game a little easier.
Dead Money DLC, 80 to 90 Hours. Dead Money is technically the first DLC released but also perhaps one of the toughest. It suggests entering in at minimum level 20 and has you stumbling through toxic clouds with a beeping death collar around your neck. The setting gets very tiresome, literally, as you aren't able to sleep and very limited in buying/selling items (as in no way of making bottle caps). There is enough equipment to give you an advantage but there are a few spots where weaponry is locked behind a level 100 lockpicking skill. What makes up for the daft atmosphere are the characters. You get to play around with three amazing character companions with their own story and the elder from Helios One as the antagonist. Two of these characters are referenced to have past through Old World Blues DLC. Most of the weapons weren't any where near as powerful as they should have been - Bear Trap Fist, Cosmic Knife, Holorifle - but at least Vera's Outfit is probably the best outfit in the game for my dear ol' Cass to wear. Sadly "God" (one of the companions) wouldn't shut up and the bell-tower ringing was so irritating that I was forced to mute the sound. I also failed to receive the message about "not letting go" for I was able to gather all 37 gold bars (valued around 10,000 each) and use the exact one Stealth Boy (not sure if it helped) to sneak past Elijah. Ironically after all that planning, I missed out on the snow globe. Oh well.
90 to 100 Hours, Explorer. Time to start finishing up what is left in the game. Boy, I missed out on a lot of early sections. I found: an Evil Gnome, Vertibird wreckage, Legendary Fire Gecko, Legendary Deathclaw, Mercy, Tesla-Beaton Prototype, Wasteland Survival Guides (from Fallout 3), the infamously useless Woodchopper weighing at 50 pounds, Vault 19, and Veronica... of all people. I have never seen so happy to see a dress before in my life! If only she would allow me to see her take off her robe and try it on!
The Annoying Lonesome Road, 5 Long Hours. Dead Money is no longer the worst DLC. You do get to have a new version of ED-E follow you around and travel to-and-fro as you wish. But I found "the message", as Ulysses would put it, of the DLC rather dumb. Like Bioshock and Spec Ops: The Line, the game forces you to commit a terrible act before proceeding with the game and then rebukes you for taking such action. In this case, it involves launching a nuke. I would have taken Ulysses advice to "return home" if it wasn't for the fact everything pointed to this being the final showdown. As if it wasn't bad enough, you essentially give Ulysses the tool to launch his own nukes at NCR and Legion (unlocking Long 15 and Dry Well in the Mojave Desert). Much of the DLC is scripted for better or worse. It might be because I was level 50 but the Deathclaws were able to kill me instantly without the help of Med-X. Bethseda did have to postpone the DLC twice before releasing it. At least the telemetry was nice to explore. I don't know... the whole thing didn't sit well with me.
Peaking at 110 Hours, Finale.
It is surprising that the final part of the game only took me roughly 5
hours. I upgraded the securitrons and killed Benny just so Caesar
wouldn't kill me on the spot. I helped out Mr. House until he told me to
get rid of the Brotherhood of Steel. Despite them offering a truce and
assistance, Mr. House made it clear he only wanted me to blow up their
bunker. So I disconnected Mr. House from the network and uploaded Yes
Man. There was a very nice quest involving what I counted 50 different ways to complete. Personally, I disabled the bomb on the vertibird and reported it to the ranger. The ranger then ran
casually walked up to stop the president's speech when a sniper shot
down one of the NCR guards. The final battle at Hoover Dam was pretty
hectic but easy enough with all my buddies doing most of the work.
All-in-all a good way to finish the game.
Review
Fallout: New Vegas was much better at balancing combat and offering quests than Fallout 3. The game had its rough patches at trying new things while factions did actually improve the dynamic of the game. Although reminiscent of Fallout 2, I found the ability to recycle and load different types of ammo too taxing of a system to even worry about. I'm actually hoping that the rumors of the game being the best in the series aren't true as I venture into Fallout 4.
7-19-2018