The world of Fallout 3 will suck you in and surprise you again and again.
You play as the son of a scientist who has escaped Vault 101, a protective underground vault that shields its inhabitants from the dangers of the outside, post-nuclear environment they live in. Once he escapes, the powers that be come looking for you, so you're forced to also flee to the outside world (known as the Wastelands). Make no mistake that almost everything in the Wastes wants to either eat you, torture you, rob you, or kill you…not necessarily in that order.
This game is different from its predecessors (Fallout and Fallout 2) in that most of the humor is gone and has been replaced with a very serious, dark tone that overshadows the entire game. It does still have its hilarious moments, however, which take the form of various robot encounters throughout the land. But these moments are very few and far between, and seem to be there just to keep things from becoming too serious as opposed to setting the overall tone.
It also bears some striking similarities to games like Morrowind and Oblivion when it comes to conversing with other characters, which you will do a lot of during the course of the game. That's only to say that the game wears its developer on its sleeve, as it's true Bethesda all the way.
But let none of what I've just mentioned scare you away from is one of the finest titles to come out this year. It's apparent that nothing was left to chance in the development of this title, and this game is certainly much more than just the same old thing when it comes to an Action-RPG title.
At first you may not think to much of it visually, but it won't take your eyes long to adjust to what's going on. The gritty, dirty-looking graphics are nothing more than a reflection of the era in which your character lives, and as a result nothing looks very pretty. Instead it all looks cold and destroyed, which is exactly the way the game should look.
There is also a lot of finery in the sound department. Everything from a laser blast to a bullet richocheting off a nearby rock is done well, and the screams and sounds of some of your enemies will send chills down your spine at times. And while both the sound-effects and the music are all excellent, the real star of the show here is the voice acting. Liam Neison does an excellent job playing as your father of course, but even the lesser characters are done to near perfection. Granted, if you talk with a lot of characters (and you will), you hear a lot of repeat voices, but it doesn't really detract from the game at all. They managed to completely avoid any bad or cheesy dialogue, so you'll be happy to stand and talk with someone for awhile.
The controls and in-game mechanics all work great. Menus are easy to navigate, it's easy to assign experience points as you level-up, and you'll never miss your target due to a control error. You'll only miss if you're trying to rush, you make a mistake, or your character simply sucks with whatever weapon you're trying to use. For example, a character who handles standard firearms well may not be so handy with a sledgehammer, so it pays to be attentive to what strengths you're choosing for your character.
Speaking of targeting, the best of the new mechanics the game employs is its VATS system. With the click of a shoulder-button, you will zoom in on your target, be able to select various body parts, and see how likely you are to hit that body part once you've selected it. Once you've selected what you want to aim for, you simply hit the A-button and the VATS systems does the rest.
The beauty of this system is that it allows you to make choices. Want to dizzy your opponent? Hit them in the head. Want to keep them from running away but not kill them? Shoot them in the leg. Just be prepared for some nasty side effects, as it does put your shots into slow-motion and uses a more dramatic camera angle, so you may end up watching an enemy's head, leg, or arm splatter on the wall behind them.
Choices and consequences are the name of the game here, because literally everything you do carries a consequence and is all interwoven into the storyline. Cross the wrong person and you may have hit-squads hunting you for the rest of game, but help the right person and you may end up with an extra ability. It all comes together in the end, when the game will actually highlight your various achievements throughout the game. It's a great effect and helps make all of your efforts worth it
So my final recommendation? I have trouble thinking of anyone who wouldn't at least like this game, and most will love it. Its disc is packed with amazing gameplay, carries a massive storyline, and has tons of replay value thanks to all of the different choices you can make. You can literally play the game again and come up with entirely different results. The only people who should avoid this are those who can't stand games longer than 10 hours, and those who hate RPG elements in gaming. Everyone else should appreciate the gameplay, and the value it carries.