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The end of the world courtesy of atomic Armageddon is nasty business. Survivors have to deal with all manner of inconveniences, such as dilapidated buildings, an irradiated water supply, and mutated cockroaches the size of a beagle.
First-person RPG “Fallout 4” is enormous in scope, presenting the player a wealth of opportunities to experience its fictionalized Boston. This being a Bethesda title, however, “Fallout 4” is also abundant in complications of the irritating and game-breaking varieties. Still, few games will hook you, reel you in, and make a captive of you so utterly that you’ll go to great lengths reshuffling your daily routines just to make time for more post-nuclear bliss.
Beautiful devastation
You’ve got it all: a loving family, a wonderful home in an idyllic neighborhood, and even a robotic butler who can pronounce names like “Jack” and “Jennifer.”
Then the bombs blast your suburban dreams to kingdom come.
You crawl out of your shelter to a world transformed. Where once greenery flourished, now wild brambles and skeletal trees cover vast tracts of inhospitable land. Filth-encrusted buildings, like the carapaces of dead animals, rise to meet the scorching sun. Amidst the ruin, life hangs by a thread. Murderous raiders harass isolated outposts and farmsteads. Feral ghouls lie in ambush in the crumbling hallways of once-bustling establishments. And behind the proverbial curtain lurks the Institute, a shadowy organization whose agenda may be tied to your own fate.
“Fallout 4” is brimming with content. Aside from the quests that comprise the main plot, a horde of side missions will take you to all corners of the broken Boston. They’ll thrust you into encounters with its diverse population of gangsters, idealists, murderers, and the protectors of humanity’s remnants.
Several factions, each with their own morally ambiguous code, provide many of the game’s branching narratives. Because major decisions can impact the fragile political landscape of the Commonwealth, whom you align with becomes the subject of many anxious musings. An alliance with one company can put your friendship with another at risk. A favor for one friend could be seen with contempt by an equally favorable associate. This interconnectedness of regions, groups, and individuals brings a cohesiveness to the entire realm, so that it feels like a real, lived-in place as opposed to a hodgepodge of islands.
When you’re not tormenting yourself over some ethical dilemma, you’ll be scouring Boston’s museums, schools, bunkers, and libraries for precious secrets. So much lore to unravel. So many items to snatch from the jaws of decrepitude. It’s like diving into a labyrinthine cave, not knowing what you’ll find, but knowing that treasures abound in the darkness. Often you’ll stray from a quest to inspect a derelict subway or a blood-drenched supermarket. The map is huge, but it isn’t gigantic; what makes it exceptionally impressive is that it’s jam-packed with points of interest, each one promising more curiosities than the next.
You’ll discover junk of every type in your travels. Trash no longer simply exists to make the wasteland look convincing. Every pencil, typewriter, and moth-eaten teddy bear can be dissected for materials used to create weapon mods and armor enhancements.
“Fallout 4’s” extensive crafting system extends to developing settlements for the wasteland’s denizens. As these communities grow, they start earning you money and items. All that good stuff makes the bad guys jealous, so expect some pillaging excursions every now and then. Beyond yielding material rewards and the opportunity to exercise your creativity, settlements contribute little else to your adventure. Still, as an optional diversion, it’s a nice change of pace from all that political maneuvering and radroach-killing.
Going nuclear
Speaking of killing, the V.A.T.S. combat system returns. In battle, V.A.T.S. allows you to aim your weapon at specific body parts. That ghoul coming at you, fast? Introduce his groin to the floor by blasting away his legs. A super mutant lugging around a miniature nuke? Detonate the thing in his face by sniping his load-bearing arm. And it’s all done with cinematic flair. In line with “Fallout 4’s” darkly irreverent humor, there are few things more amusing that popping a psychopath’s head off his shoulders in dramatic slowmo.
V.A.T.S. no longer freezes time, but slows it to a crawl. So there’s a sense of urgency to the whole process. Of course, you can always opt for real-time gunplay, which, though lacking the sophistication found in games like “Call of Duty,” nevertheless manages to thrill.
The iconic Power Armor is back, too. This time, donning it is like operating a heavily armored death machine. Think Iron Man Mark 1 from the Marvel movies, and you’ll get the idea of what it’s capable of. It does, however, require fuel, and its assortment of parts can be damaged (and, conversely, repaired and upgraded). You’ll likely end up saving it for the big quests and epic firefights.
When it comes to loot drops, “Fallout 4” takes a page out of “Diablo III.” Certain “legendary” enemies drop randomly generated equipment with amazing bonuses, like 50% damage against humans and exploding bullets.
All this gear you collect? You can have your companions equip them. Even Dogmeat gets to look badass in canine armor. Aside from helping you in battle, companions act like portable storage, so they’re great to have around when you’re in a scavenging mood.
Companions have their own intriguing stories to tell. And if they like you enough, who knows? In this post-apocalyptic wilderness, where death by radiation sickness or bullet to the brain could be mere seconds away, you don’t get to be picky with your romances. But, as each companion observes their own unique value system, you still have to exercise caution. So cannibalize that dead mercenary if you must, but you can be as sure as hell your goody-two-shoes friend won’t like it.
And once you’ve gained enough experience attending to the Commonwealth’s troubles, it’s time to level up. “Fallout” fans will be familiar with the acronym S.P.E.C.I.A.L., which corresponds to the primary statistics of strength, perception, endurance, charisma, intelligence, agility, and luck. Raising each will improve your ability to perform particular tasks, such as persuasion and stealth.
Most remarkable is the augmented perks system, which combines “Fallout 3’s” skills and perks. Perks are now categorized according to their defining statistic. For example, if you want to hack robots, you’ll need to meet a minimum intelligence requirement of 8. Furthermore, each perk can be upgraded. Bloody Mess, a luck-based perk that sometimes causes your enemies to explode in a shower of gore, grows more injurious with every level. The perks are an exciting way to customize your character according to your preferred playstyle. And because “Fallout 4” doesn’t have a level cap, it’s possible to unlock all the perks – provided you have room in your life for such a gargantuan undertaking.
Attack of the mutant bugs
Here’s the deal with the bugs. “Fallout 4” has a lot of them. Sometimes, bears start flying and followers get stuck in the scenery. Nothing a little patience and the good old-fashioned reload can’t fix. But there are a few that will prevent you from progressing through the game. These won’t happen to everyone, but it’s still prudent to keep several save files in case disaster strikes.
“Fallout 4” also has plenty of loading screens. It doesn’t help that they usually take forever to load. First “Bloodborne,” now this!
Though the graphics are beautiful and successfully convey Boston’s devastation, they are a tad underwhelming for a next-gen title. Exquisitely detailed environments sometimes make way for bland textures. Character models range from the pleasant to the freakish. The animation has improved over its predecessor’s, but stiff, robotic movements remain a problem.
Incandescent
At the end of the day, technical glitches, occasionally awkward visuals, and other issues aren’t enough to detract from the fantastic experience that is “Fallout 4.”
Its exquisitely detailed and immersive gameworld is a wonder to explore, while fascinating characters enthrall with their personal tales. The combat’s combination of strategy and action is exhilarating. Thousands of loot allow for endless customization options. There is simply so much to see and do that the possibilities seem limitless. So slip into your Vault jumpsuit, holster your pipe bolt-action rifle, and say hello to your new obsession. — BM, GMA News
Rating – 9/10
Platforms: Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
