Yes, I know it has been awhile since the Fallout 3 release and that I am a bit late jumping into playing it. The main reason for me starting to play it is mainly because most of my friends, have almost nothing good to say about it. They have been playing Fallout since the beginning, and have replayed the originals so many times, they have lost count. As they were playing the game, they did nothing but make fun of its Oblivionesque feel and play style, and complained about the linear story line and lack of player freedom. I, myself, thought Oblivion was a dreadful game, and was not prepared to play Fallout 3 if it was just "Oblivion with guns", as my friends put it. Anyways, last week I decided to take the plunge and I installed it and have been playing it probably for at least 2 or 3 hours a day after classes or work. I am not done yet, but here is what I think so far on what my friends say: "Oblivion with guns" ---------------------------- The game is not Oblivion with guns, but definatley has an Oblivionesque feel to it. Oblivion did not keep me interested in the game for long, and the only time I found myself playing it was when I was really bored. The game still feels a bit like Oblivion... the way the NPCs move and talk, the way combat works, quick travel etc. I would say what really sets Fallout 3 apart from Oblivion is the environment. The environment really immerses you into the game and was created really well. "Linear story and lack of freedom" ---------------------------------------------- It seems to me so far they were right about this one. Everytime I try to kill a character that is really pissing me off, sometimes they just become "Unconscious". My assumption is, is that they are critical to the story of the game, therefore you can not kill them. In the original Fallouts, you could just kill whomever you wanted, because of its non-linear story line. Another thing that makes me mad, is that I will see a merchant that is selling some badass guns, but I dont have enough caps. So I think to myself "Ill just kill the guy and loot him!", man was I wrong. Merchants never seem to carry what they sell. In the original fallouts, if you killed someone that said they had this and this on them, they would have that and that; but in Fallout 3, that mentality doesn't exist. VATS = Cruise Control to Win ---------------------------------------- OK, no matter how cool it is to watch someone get owned in slow motion, VATS is still overpowered. You do more damage in VATS, and take no damage in VATS. I have used VATS, many times to get me out of situations that would otherwise be very difficult, and since AP regens so damn quick, I can use it on almost everyone. VATS is overpowered, and makes the game really easy. Quick travel also makes the game alot easier, in the sense that if you are low on amo, you can just quick travel to a city and pick some up. But it is understandable why they would implement this feature, so you dont spend countless hours traversing the wasteland. Anyways, once I play it some more I may update the blog. Post what you think below! -Greg