What our customer's say!"They just don't make'em like this anymore.", I think the late 1990's were a golden age for the computer gamer. I remember I could walk into the local ComputerCity or BestBuy and browse rows and rows full of video games. Compare that now to maybe one row or less. *sigh* The good ole days!
One of the great relics of this golden age is Fallout. Fallout is a roleplaying game that takes place 80 years or so after a nuclear war engulfed the Earth. The adventurer's mission starts off trying to save a group of humans that survived the devastation by taking refuge in a vault. Their water purification system has failed and a replacement chip must be found. So you wander the wastes in search of this chip and find what is left of humanity.
The gameplay itself is spectacular. There are many ways to solve the quests in the game and violence is not a prerequisite. A lot of how you play the game is determined by how you build your character at the beginning. You could gear your character towards a warrior, a thief, a negotiator or even a scientist based on about 20 or so skills and traits. As the game progresses your character improves on those skills and gets "perks" along the way. Because every quest and encounter is dependent on your skills, outcomes can differ and so the replay value is extraordinary.
One of the things I love about this game is that it is geared toward adults. It can be as violent and bloody as you want depending on what preferences you set when you begin the game. Some of the language is also coarse and that too can be controled by the preferences you set. That said it should be noted that even though in its day it was considered edgey, it does not come close to the graphic nature of say GTA3, so things should be kept in perspective.
One last thing, if you can still get hold of it, the manual is absolutely awesome! It is spiral bound, beautifully illustrated and actually tells you what you need to know. This was another feature of the games that came out in the golden age, the manuals were complete and they would tell you most if not everything you need to know to play the game. Nowadays....well don't get me started.
If you still have this game, lucky you! If you do not have this game and are a big fan of CRPG games I highly recommend this classic treasure from Interplay!
P.S.
My only regret is I did not keep the beautiful box it came in.
"Absolutely the best RPG out there!", I love RPG's, but always get fed up with some illogical puzzle or impossible to beat enemy and stop playing about 3/4 of the way through. This is the first I've ever finished. Very well balanced, and has replay value, as there are 3 paths you can take: fighter, thief, or diplomat. Unlike most games it is possible to finish the game (but not quite all quests) with any of these paths.
One very minor issue: On windows XP, the help screen and movies have the color all messed up so that it's hard to make out what's in them. Probably easily solved by changing some setting, but I never bothered trying.
If you like RPG's, but want some variety from the AD&D type world, don't miss this one!
"A reinvention of the Computer Role Playing Game. Brilliantly unique.", Fallout 1 and Fallout 2 are available in a cheap bundle pack, but the bundle apparently does not include the amazing game manuals.
The Fallout games rank among the top few computer RPGs ever created. When the genre was in a slump, Fallout breathed fresh life into it. Fallout's originality, gritty post-apocalyptic environment, brilliant plot, and open-ended non-linear gameplay left an indelible mark upon the face of role playing.
Fallout has an isometric three-quarters view and features turn-based combat.
When nuclear fired rained from the heavens, incinerating most of humanity, a lucky few reached the safety of underground bunkers. You were born and raised in the womblike Vault 13, and its sterile walls encase the only world you have ever known. Fifty years after the war, the vault's water chip malfunctions, and you are sent outside to find a replacement. The door locks shut behind you, and as you exit the cave you are blinded by your first sight of the sun. You are alone in the blasted wasteland of California, a world teeming with danger: mutant beasts feed off of unwary travelers; the few decent farmers who plow the barren soil are murdered by barbaric raiders; criminals overpower lawmen; and a greater threat lurks over the horizon. You, the Vault Dweller, must adapt quickly if you wish to survive.
In a CRPG market dominated by fantasy archetypes of elves and wizards, the Fallout setting is radically distinct. It revitalizes tired fantasy conventions: the fallen, legendary kingdom is America; dark undead-infested dungeons are replaced by crumbling mutant-infested sewer systems; there is an unconventional stronghold of armored Paladins and Knights; and ancient buried scrolls are supplanted by scientific holo-disks.
The Fallout world is highly stylized, blending many influences into a unique package. It melds futuristic and retro styles, reflecting a futuristic post-apocalyptic world as imagined by 50's-era Americans, complete with vacuum tubes, blasters, giant mutants, and war propaganda. Fallout also drew inspiration from westerns, Mad Max, cheesy sci-fi movies, Monty Python, and Douglas Adams.
The unique character creation system does not involve classes or races, and focuses instead on attributes, traits, skills, and perks. It is simple to use and allows endless customization: a perceptive sniper can target a Radscorpion's eye across the screen, a skillful thief can creep past guards and rob merchants blind, a martial artist can kick highwaymen in the groin, and a diplomat can end conflicts without violence. Any combination is possible. The game's non-linear plot rewards unique characters by allowing multiple solutions to each quest.
Players have unprecedented freedom to shape their destiny without being herded along by a forced plot. Actions bestow a positive or negative reputation, and people react accordingly. Become a champion of justice or an enemy of decency. Assist the sheriff or the crime lord. Secure an alliance between two factions or set them at each others' throats. Nearly anyone can be killed, but prepare for the consequences. Also, play at least once with minimum intelligence - this limits conversational choices to grunts and causes people to treat the character as an idiot.
Fallout's low-resolution graphics were obsolete when it was first released, and may disappoint gamers who have been spoiled by modern graphics. There are few character models; towns seem to be populated by clones. Fortunately, the technical shortcomings are overcome by the brilliant art design. The original environments are visually compelling and the visceral death animations enliven combat.
The moody music helps create an immersive environment. The superb voice actors include Richard Dean Anderson (MacGyver). The sound effects are also great.
The NPC allies in Fallout 1 are notoriously unreliable. They shoot the player in the back and block doorways at every opportunity. They cannot wear armor and do not gain levels. (Fallout 2 improved the NPC allies, allowing the player to change their combat behaviors, push them out of doorways, upgrade their armor, and watch them grow stronger.)
The game manual is wire-bound, thick, well-detailed, humorous, and illustrated. Game companies no longer produce manuals of this quality.
The game contains graphic violence, sex, and language. Some adult content can be removed through the control panel.
There exists a debate as to whether Fallout 1 or Fallout 2 is superior, and consensus will never be reached. Fallout 2 has much greater scope, with more towns, quests, NPCs, and guns. It has a much improved party control system. Fallout 1 is more cohesive thematically, while the sequel went overboard on non-thematic elements such as pop-culture references, Easter Eggs, mobsters, and yakuza. Fallout 2 suffers from a boring opening area, the Temple of Trials, which is especially dull when replaying the game for the fourth time.
While the settings for both games are fascinating, Fallout 1 proves more loyal to classic survival themes. Fallout 1 takes place soon after the nuclear war: resources are limited, shanty towns contain warring factions, little communication and trade passes between towns, and barter systems are rudimentary. Fallout 2 takes place much later: unified city states control advanced technology and uniformed armies, regular trade passes between strongly allied governments, and gold currency is widely accepted.
Both games are amazing and should be played in their proper order, as the sequel continues the plot to a great conclusion. Fallout 1 and 2 are perfect games for anyone who likes creative RPGs, post-apocalyptic themes, and imaginative stories.
"Best computer RPG ever. Period. ", I like this game so much I've played it from start to finish about 5 times (and didn't even play it for the first time until 2003!). Fallout is about 8 years old at this point and it still ranks as the best computer RPG of all time. The atmosphere, storyline, and music are all excellent, and the graphics still look good to me. It's a crying shame there aren't more games like this. Forget fantasy and sci-fi RPGs -- let's see some more post-apocalypse scenarios. Fallout is far superior to anything else I've ever played, new or old. I'm glad I found it.
"War never changes....", Eighty years after WW3 the landscape is still recovering from the nuclear blasts that rocked the world. Few people survived, among them those of your home, Vault 13, one of a series of underground sanctuaries that were built in preparation for the nuclear devastation. But there's a problem. Your Vault's water chip is dying, and with it's demise the people of the Vault cannot survive. Your task is to head to the post-apocalyptic surface and find another water chip.
That's Fallout in a nutshell. Your task is to essentially rescue your Vault's populace from dying. There's a particular kind of gratification that comes from exploring California in such a setting, like visiting someplace you know but don't know at the same time. There's vagrants, raiders, innocent farmers, and a slew of mutated baddies waiting for you to just stumble across them. From the word "Go" you can super-customize your character to reflect your own ideology, from being a super sharpshooting badboy to a sweet talker, able to work your way around and through problems just by conversing. You can have a super powerful character who has the IQ of a cinderblock, or an agile character that can deftly pickpocket potential opponents, while at the same time unable to take too many hits in combat. The flexibility is unlike anything I've ever seen in an RPG, including Baldur's Gate.
A good plot and rock solid design are good enough, but Interplay didn't stop there. The style of the game itself is a triumph of game design and ideas, using 1950's paraphenalia as a major source of inspiration; Case in point the in-game illustrations and graphics are heavily drawn from 1950's America at it's peak. The only thing missing is Eisenhower!
Depending on what "Traits" you pick up at the beginning (these are initial characteristics for your character that usually give something really good with a major tradeoff, like "Fast Shot" which will let you shoot weapons faster, at the loss of aiming ability. "Gifted" gives you a bunch of extra stats, at the loss of skill abilities, etc), every 3 levels you get a Perk, a permanent asset to your character. With choices ranging from "Sharpshooter", which makes it easier to hit stuff at a distance, to "Night Vision" making it much easier to kill things at night, to "Mutate!", which lets you transform (ala the Incredible Hulk) into a powerful beast in the thick of combat...well, the possibilities for customizing your character are almost endless.
The plot progresses over the course of the game from simply finding a water chip to saving mankind as you know it. Something wants to take over the Wastes, and ultimately it's up to you to stop it. You can pick up NPC's along the way using dialogue or techniques to lure them into your group which helps in the long run but sometimes feels like a hindrance. "Dangit Tycho, get out of the way!"
The first time you hold a Turbocharged Plasma Rifle in your hands is a memorable event, considering you started out at level 1 with a knife. Likewise the first time you don Brotherhood of Steel Power Armor, you think back to the humble origins of your simple Vault Suit. And after customizing your character to death with the Perks and Skill enhancements of your choice it really dawns on you what a true RPG this game is and how well it really does work on the average person.
The most unbelievable thing of all is that they followed this game up with an even better sequel! Interplay definately had thier act together with this game, the perfect representation of it's genre. And nary an Elf or Dragon awaits you! An amazing game with even more amazing replayability and unequalled depth and storytelling, and a healthy dose of addiction!
A perfect game!
Read this reviews before You buy..."A quiet classic", When Fallout was released RPGs were in a slump. The Genre was dying. Then fallout was released, an unheralded first effort by three devoted designers. Fallout's post-apocalyptic setting was the first revolution. Before that almost all RPGs were in traditional fantasy settings with the notable exception of wasteland, the game that inspired fallout. Fallouts second great contribution to gaming in general (aside from its awesome gameplay, story, and atmosphere) was reviving the role-playing game along with the next year's might and magic 6 and baldur's gate. Fallout is an old school rpg yet is accessible to the newbies. Before playing it I had played no old school rpgs and now i have played several. Fallouts simple interface houses an addictive game and deep rpg system that will appeal to new comers and fans alike. At the great price amazon is offering there is no excuse to not own fallout.
"Great, funny, single-character RPG", This is about one guy wandering around a post-nuke war California. You can pick up an NPC or two, but it's not really a party-type adventure.
i don't really like post-apocalyptic stuff (i'm more into dragons and magic and stuff), but this game just plain rules. Plus, it's funny, and i love little bits of humor in an RPG (it's not silly/funny all the time, but it has enough cute little parts like a Red Ryder BB Gun to put eyes out and an X-Files reference to be enjoyable). It has quite a few references to various movies, which is cute
The odd thing about this game is that i've played it through to completion several times and intend to play it again. i tried first with an average guy, then i made new characters - a sharp shooter, a talker, a brute with a 2 intelligence, a bad guy, etc. The game's different each time (for humor, try talking to NPCs when your intelligence is 2). i just really like this game
"The Spirit of Wasteland lives!", Lucky me, I happened to stumble into some little sofware store when I did and trip on Fallout, more than likely one of the best platform/RPG games ever made.
Following closely in the footsteps of an ancient game by Electronic Arts known as Wasteland, this post-apocalyptic Earth RPG unveils a gritty and all too possible future for mankind. You play a young man(or woman if you so choose, which by the way is a nice change when you consider that the game does not play the same with the different sexes) who is sent on a quest to save his Vault (Fallout Shelter) from death.
Character creation is not only detailed and involving, but just plain hilarious with the Vault Tech mascot illustrating each and every aspect of your character sheet. You'll soon get caught-up in forming the character you invision and horde or spend those points to shape your destiny.
Combat is clean and turn-based. Using action points that are in direct reflection of your character design! Not only that, but the inclusion of a specific targeting system adds to the complexity of your tactics.
The bad news is, you can meet and enlist the help of NPCs in the game, but other that what weapons you pass them, you have no control over their defense or technique. Other than this flaw though, the game is great.
A rich and detailed story, great voice acting, outstanding sense of humor with fun and graphic combat scenes makes this a winner. Black Isle is at it again!
"Timeless Classic", I can't envision a time in the future when I will not enjoy playing this game. Even though a few years old, the compelling storyline and characters will keep you interested.
Loosely based on the classic game "Wasteland", this game presents a bleak future in which a nuclear disaster has struck the earth. Character development is fantastic allowing all kinds of routes to take to the finish. After playing, go back and read through hint/walkthrough pages and you will be blown away by the different means used to accomplish things. Most NPCs are fairly flat with a few exceptions. Dogmeat only has competition from Glottis as the most beloved sidekick of all time.
After you play this game you will understand why it has such a strong following to this very day.
"A neat RPG/fighter game", Most RPGs you play on the computer are based in fantasy worlds like dungeons with monsters and elves and such, Fallout takes place in a dark and desolate future, you are a member of a 'vault' that has managed to avoid all of the damage caused by the wars and the bombs and the radiation. Unfortunately your vault has suffered a problem in its systems and your people will all die if you can't find a replacement part.
You can choose between playing a male or a female and get to pick your stats. The combat system is very well done as you get to take time between combat rounds and decide what you want to do instead of just randomly whacking at something and hoping you can pound your buttons faster than the computer's AI.
One thing that's interesting is that your actions in the game have consequences. Who you help and who you don't determine what happens in the future. You can also make friends and have a band of NPCs joining you as you progress along.
Although this wasn't the most spectatular RPG I've ever played, I also had few complaints besides some clunky times with being able to see where I was or occasions where the NPCs had boxed me into a room and it took some tricky manuvering to get my way out.
All in all I think Fallout is a good introduction game for those wanting to wet their feet in computer RPGs, and for more seasoned gamers they'll find it a unique story and something easy to hold interest in.
