Could someone please DM me the answer to the ranch safe? I've tried every possible combination I could think of [typing it backwards like the hint suggests did not open it up at all] and I'm stumped, I don't want to give up on an otherwise intriguing mod because I'm horrible with math puzzles. Much thanks in advance!!
*update: apparently I'm blind - devious work there...if you're feeling truly stumped, be sure to check behind you!*
I haven't started playing this yet, but from looking in FO3edit the dialogue looks very well written. A shame there's no voice acting, but I might try to generate something for the non-human characters. Using a program to synthesize some robot-sounding voices should be simple enough.
You are absolutely an evil mod creator but I loved it! I had to step away a couple times and come back with fresh eyes. All I can say to others who may be struggling is you are most likely looking in the right spot. Look closer. Truly examine and utilize the squat option to see things from a fresh perspective. Use common sense and follow the clues in the notes and don't leave any rock unturned. EXAMINE EVERYTHING and READ EVERYTHING. The way the clues were laid out and the puzzles were set up made it ultra realistic as if you are an investigator.
I was about to DL this mod .. but after reading the reviews and Q & A's ... I've decided not to.
Here is what I see happening from my personal experiences with Puzzles and Quests and such.
It might seem " easy " to the Creator .. and to the people that he / she tested it out on. There is a very strong chance those that were testers already KNEW - KNOW how the Creator thinks from prior experiences .... but that does NOT include those that do NOT know how the Creator thinks.
I learned that I needed to test my puzzles out and such with people that did NOT know me and how I thought ... and I found out QUICKLY ... that what was EASY for me and my friends ... well I was enlightened and learned to check my puzzles and clues and such to those who do not know how I work and or think.
My 2 cents in this "bucket". Completed without any hints, only with notes in mod. It's not author's problem that some people just can't stop for a minute and try to understand logic of puzzles, presented in the quest.
Yes, i don't like puzzles either, and quests without a solution to consult, if necessary, are a nightmare for me too. After that, anyone plays as he likes and no as others want him he should play and that's all.
Early 2023 review: This is my first experience with JW1's projects and, if you need TLDR - don't wait, install and play it for yourself, if you like Puce Moose's mods and other quests which give you freedom to think and explore new environment without hand-holding quest arrows, but with good narrative part and, finally, some clever writing in a long time. Don't listen to unjustified and simply misleading comments from other users in this section. First of all, a bit of rant not about the mod itself, but about modern gaming and casual gamers in general. By looking through this comment section I see perfect examples of people that just couldn't solve basic problems in videogame without constant guide or hand-holding from the creator. I'm not so old to remember good old days of gaming (22 y.o. as for April of 2023), but my favourite games are still Thief, System Shock, Deus Ex and other immersive sim type of games from long gone era. These games didn't lead you instantly to the right path, you needed to think and understand mechanics and "rules" of problems which you must conquer within created game world. And "Apartment on New York Avenue" isn't an immersive sim at all, but all puzzles and problems in this mod have strong rules and basis for you to understand, like in all my favourite games. And now to more concrete examples: jjb54's thesis about "author didn't know how other gamers think" - the only thing he proposed to creator is to make his project more casual and streamlined, because some of the audience don't have minimal patience and time to think when dealing with problems to progress in questline. Tiegris's thesis about "impossible to complete" is absolutely misleading, because many players like myself found all right solutions without any hints or guide from creator, only by experiencing mod and carefully reading information bits that were presented in notes and logs. Also, "safe bug" that was mentioned by him isn't a bug at all. As I already replied - there are two patterns of combination lock that you can use, it's no rocket science and it's YOUR problem that you couldn't comprehend basic combinatorics for 5th grader. SteveB88's thesis about "jigsaw puzzles" is also misleading potential players by simply didn't paying attention to content of the mod. Every important hint from note or terminal logs is automatically copied to you Pip-Boy after reading, so you just need to re-read these logs carefully to understand where to find next clue or location. streetyson's thesis about "hard to find new interior door" is just lazy take on his part. This new door from "Apartment on New York Avenue" isn't hidden, so why it was so hard (no, it's not) for him to find new building door? Also, maybe someone should use mini-map in Pip-Boy and don't forget which cells he was already visited, huh? Also, "quest design is bothersome" isn't an argument in itself, he didn't present exact example what so bothersome about moving from one clue to another (say hi to dozens and dozens of other quests with the same structure like Overpass, A Note Easilly Missed, AQFH, even Fallout 76 and etc.)? And he didn't explain, why all in-mod hints were "pointless". Again, maybe it's not author's problem, but yours? And last word about spawn points of these androids and potential threat to kill other mod's quest npcs: without spoilers, these new enemies WON'T spawn near big towns or important quest locations, every spawn point that I found is always in some pretty dangerous zone in the vanilla game too (like near Super Mutants, Deathclaws and etc.). As for streetyson's killed npc in the Mall, I know that mod he's referred to and my quest npc was also killed in that place. Not by androids, but by vanilla SM Overlords without "Apartment on New York Avenue" not even installed at that time! So, is that really a problem of "Apartment on New York Avenue" and not this other quest mod author's decision to not make his npc essential in literal war zone of D.C. Ruins? Such a low effort job on streetyson's part to squeeze some kind of criticism without even thinking twice. These, ladies and gentlemen, are just a few examples of misleading and impatient gamers that couldn't deal with decent style of puzzles and couldn't even write down somewhat objective critique. Well, done with this, now let's talk about main content of the mod. It was good, It feels like Puce Moose's mod made baby with A World Of Pain mod in a good way. Enough challenging new battles with well-written note's storytelling is one of the best experiences for me since playing AQFH series. Every note and every location has decent design choices from the creator and overall story makes sense in Fallout universe. Also, it's not just "puzzle quest", "Apartment on New York Avenue" uses more exploration type of puzzles than standard logical puzzles like Talos Principle or Portal games. The best similar project in gaming industry, in my opinion, is Penumbra series. Same exploration elements, little puzzles and storytelling through notes. I really can't find any objective critique for this mod, because it was stable, engaging and not too long to fell asleep. Around 2-3 hours to explore new worldspace, find all clues and kill many super mutants and robots. And little impression from me about these new spooky androids. Are they tough like everyone else said in this section? Yep, around the same health as Super Mutant Overlord or Ghoul Reaver. Are they unkillable like streetyson said? Nope, they are hard enemies, but absolutely manageable type even in my very hard playthrough with Fallout 4 Survival mod Damage Increased. Just use gatling laser or tri-beam rifle in the head or, if you're more stealthy person like me, you will have no problem just punching their guts with any stick or pipe in stealth armor or with stealth-boy until they fall down. It's challenging new enemy, but not impossible to beat in encounters. Also, for very soft players like streetyson, I suggest to just edit android health bar in GECK. But, yeah, whining in comments is easier for many as I see. And, yes, you can complete ALL quest content only by pickpocket and sneak with stealth option (I've done it in my testing for 90% of my playtime with this mod quest) I understand that not everyone like this kind of narrative through hints, clues and puzzles, but author precisely warned everyone in the description section what this mod is about and what players can expect. In the end, I feel bad that initially I trusted all these whiney comments in this section and only now tried this, one of the best in my opinion, mods for Fallout 3 in quest's category. And I can't wait to start other big JW1's project Alien Resurrection Part 1, which I also will be reviewing after completion. Because I really want more of this stuff, and if vanilla Fallout 3 have had at least few side quests in the style of JW1, it could've been much more interesting and better kind of game for players like me. Should you try this mod in 2023? Yes, yes, yes, don't be afraid by other users' comments. This quest mod is absolutely worth your time and patience. One of the hidden gems of Fallout 3 modding community. Warning to potential players: this quest has conflict with "There's No Such Thing As Bad Publicity" mod, and I had instant CtD before deactivating mentioned mod. So I suggest to you to complete them activating and deactivating previous mod, one by one.
Endorsement and deepest gratitude from me, JW1, if you'll ever see this review.
Hey, take a chill pill dude. And it's a bit off to take a huge dig at someone and their comments without making it a reply. But you've misread and misunderstood at least some if not most of my comments - possibly a translation error? My comments about marked locations were specifically to do with a heavily modded game - the example I gave in Fairfax is typical - i.e. it's fine to have unmarked quests in new (i.e. mod-specific) areas but not in existing worldspace ones because other mods may also affect those areas and if the thing you need is unmarked you won't know if you're supposed to have found say the right spot but another mod has overwritten it. And yes, I have played AQFH (and loved it) - which if you'd read my comment properly you'd have seen. And yes I was stealthed (wearing the AQFH stealth suit, which if you'd read my comment you'd seen). Maybe you played the mod at a different level and with different mods to me and hence got a different experience, and that's ok - but basically you've completely misread my original review!
As for other bits (eg spawn points affecting my other mods), I am simply reporting my findings. And finally, as for the unnecessary and frankly pointless/immature personal insult that I am somehow "soft", I hope you will grow to realise that pointing an on-screen cursor in the shape of a gun and clicking on some moving pixels, doesn't somehow magically make you a real-life tough guy.
Imposible to do in 2022. No guide if you stuck. You can't decide if you encountered a bug, or you just can't solve the puzzle. I'm stuck at the ranch. Safe with the 6-digit code open, but there was nothing interesting inside, only randomly generated loot.
There are two available patterns for code, and this written on the note that you found. Yes, one will open it with junk, but another pattern will continue quest. Potential players, don't believe such uncareful users that couldn't understand simple combinatorics or couldn't read note properly.
A couple of necessary spoilers follow, but I must IMPLORE folks considering playing this mod to heed them:
So, I completed the mod, but at level 36 and only with uber-strong, uber-stealth armour & weaponry (from the Quest for Heaven mod, sadly not on Nexus). And even then, only via using kill-commands on the androids who I found unkillable even after unloading clip after clip of any of the insanely overpowered modded weapons I have. And only after removing a bunch of other mods (because the lack of quest markers in the DC world space would otherwise make finding this mod's own modded spots too bothersome, or potentially impossible (say, due to the Faifax Interiors mod). And only after using a TCL command at the final laser barrier because although I had all the contents from the farm safe, the barrier wouldn't open.
And then I had to uninstall the mod because the androids, who after you escape OGO suddenly appear in many DC locations, do one of two things depending on your choice at the final master computer which controls them - they all either become your uber-drones, or all go frenzy and kill each other and everything else. Having these virtually unkillable drones on your side makes playing the game any further pointless, but letting them go frenzy means they not only attack each other but also kill everyone else - including any other mods' NPCs who aren't already set essential before you meet them. Luckily I saw one such NPC get killed on the Mall as I approached and so at least I was aware of the problem (otherwise I'd be clueless), but it meant completely reinstalling that partly completed mod. ANNOYING - and who knows what other mods got screwed? Luckily I'm at such a late-game stage it didn't hurt my campaign much, but you might get screwed big-time.
Other than that, the quest design is bothersome, and the hints (both in-game and the hint sheet) are either too vague or utterly pointless ("look carefully" etc). I'd also have a bunch of other things to say but they're mostly minor quibbles of the sort that can affect many mods.
Which is all a huge shame because the new world space around New york Ave and the new interiors are mostly great, as is the story too.
No. But it does conflict with the Fairfax Interiors mod. And because of the lack of quest markers it's impossible to know without removing a bunch of mods already affecting the area. This is why modders should NEVER do quest mods in common vanilla world spaces where they change buildings but don't marker them or at least give very precise directions. I'll post separately on other issues.
Good luck with getting help, dude. We're six years too late. I've spent a week on this freaking mod and am stuck in Valley View also. Frustrating as the pixel hunting point and click games of the 90s. About ready to go back a couple dozen saves, shoot "Chuck" in Rivet City, and pretend none of this happened. :/
248 comments
*update: apparently I'm blind - devious work there...if you're feeling truly stumped, be sure to check behind you!*
Here is what I see happening from my personal experiences with Puzzles and Quests and such.
It might seem " easy " to the Creator .. and to the people that he / she tested it out on. There is a very strong chance those that were testers already KNEW - KNOW how the Creator thinks from prior experiences .... but that does NOT include those that do NOT know how the Creator thinks.
I learned that I needed to test my puzzles out and such with people that did NOT know me and how I thought ... and I found out QUICKLY ... that what was EASY for me and my friends ... well I was enlightened and learned to check my puzzles and clues and such to those who do not know how I work and or think.
It's not author's problem that some people just can't stop for a minute and try to understand logic of puzzles, presented in the quest.
First of all, a bit of rant not about the mod itself, but about modern gaming and casual gamers in general. By looking through this comment section I see perfect examples of people that just couldn't solve basic problems in videogame without constant guide or hand-holding from the creator. I'm not so old to remember good old days of gaming (22 y.o. as for April of 2023), but my favourite games are still Thief, System Shock, Deus Ex and other immersive sim type of games from long gone era. These games didn't lead you instantly to the right path, you needed to think and understand mechanics and "rules" of problems which you must conquer within created game world. And "Apartment on New York Avenue" isn't an immersive sim at all, but all puzzles and problems in this mod have strong rules and basis for you to understand, like in all my favourite games. And now to more concrete examples:
jjb54's thesis about "author didn't know how other gamers think" - the only thing he proposed to creator is to make his project more casual and streamlined, because some of the audience don't have minimal patience and time to think when dealing with problems to progress in questline.
Tiegris's thesis about "impossible to complete" is absolutely misleading, because many players like myself found all right solutions without any hints or guide from creator, only by experiencing mod and carefully reading information bits that were presented in notes and logs. Also, "safe bug" that was mentioned by him isn't a bug at all. As I already replied - there are two patterns of combination lock that you can use, it's no rocket science and it's YOUR problem that you couldn't comprehend basic combinatorics for 5th grader.
SteveB88's thesis about "jigsaw puzzles" is also misleading potential players by simply didn't paying attention to content of the mod. Every important hint from note or terminal logs is automatically copied to you Pip-Boy after reading, so you just need to re-read these logs carefully to understand where to find next clue or location.
streetyson's thesis about "hard to find new interior door" is just lazy take on his part. This new door from "Apartment on New York Avenue" isn't hidden, so why it was so hard (no, it's not) for him to find new building door? Also, maybe someone should use mini-map in Pip-Boy and don't forget which cells he was already visited, huh? Also, "quest design is bothersome" isn't an argument in itself, he didn't present exact example what so bothersome about moving from one clue to another (say hi to dozens and dozens of other quests with the same structure like Overpass, A Note Easilly Missed, AQFH, even Fallout 76 and etc.)? And he didn't explain, why all in-mod hints were "pointless". Again, maybe it's not author's problem, but yours?
And last word about spawn points of these androids and potential threat to kill other mod's quest npcs: without spoilers, these new enemies WON'T spawn near big towns or important quest locations, every spawn point that I found is always in some pretty dangerous zone in the vanilla game too (like near Super Mutants, Deathclaws and etc.). As for streetyson's killed npc in the Mall, I know that mod he's referred to and my quest npc was also killed in that place. Not by androids, but by vanilla SM Overlords without "Apartment on New York Avenue" not even installed at that time! So, is that really a problem of "Apartment on New York Avenue" and not this other quest mod author's decision to not make his npc essential in literal war zone of D.C. Ruins? Such a low effort job on streetyson's part to squeeze some kind of criticism without even thinking twice.
These, ladies and gentlemen, are just a few examples of misleading and impatient gamers that couldn't deal with decent style of puzzles and couldn't even write down somewhat objective critique.
Well, done with this, now let's talk about main content of the mod.
It was good, It feels like Puce Moose's mod made baby with A World Of Pain mod in a good way. Enough challenging new battles with well-written note's storytelling is one of the best experiences for me since playing AQFH series. Every note and every location has decent design choices from the creator and overall story makes sense in Fallout universe. Also, it's not just "puzzle quest", "Apartment on New York Avenue" uses more exploration type of puzzles than standard logical puzzles like Talos Principle or Portal games. The best similar project in gaming industry, in my opinion, is Penumbra series. Same exploration elements, little puzzles and storytelling through notes.
I really can't find any objective critique for this mod, because it was stable, engaging and not too long to fell asleep. Around 2-3 hours to explore new worldspace, find all clues and kill many super mutants and robots.
And little impression from me about these new spooky androids. Are they tough like everyone else said in this section? Yep, around the same health as Super Mutant Overlord or Ghoul Reaver. Are they unkillable like streetyson said? Nope, they are hard enemies, but absolutely manageable type even in my very hard playthrough with Fallout 4 Survival mod Damage Increased. Just use gatling laser or tri-beam rifle in the head or, if you're more stealthy person like me, you will have no problem just punching their guts with any stick or pipe in stealth armor or with stealth-boy until they fall down. It's challenging new enemy, but not impossible to beat in encounters. Also, for very soft players like streetyson, I suggest to just edit android health bar in GECK. But, yeah, whining in comments is easier for many as I see. And, yes, you can complete ALL quest content only by pickpocket and sneak with stealth option (I've done it in my testing for 90% of my playtime with this mod quest)
I understand that not everyone like this kind of narrative through hints, clues and puzzles, but author precisely warned everyone in the description section what this mod is about and what players can expect.
In the end, I feel bad that initially I trusted all these whiney comments in this section and only now tried this, one of the best in my opinion, mods for Fallout 3 in quest's category. And I can't wait to start other big JW1's project Alien Resurrection Part 1, which I also will be reviewing after completion. Because I really want more of this stuff, and if vanilla Fallout 3 have had at least few side quests in the style of JW1, it could've been much more interesting and better kind of game for players like me.
Should you try this mod in 2023? Yes, yes, yes, don't be afraid by other users' comments. This quest mod is absolutely worth your time and patience. One of the hidden gems of Fallout 3 modding community.
Warning to potential players: this quest has conflict with "There's No Such Thing As Bad Publicity" mod, and I had instant CtD before deactivating mentioned mod. So I suggest to you to complete them activating and deactivating previous mod, one by one.
Endorsement and deepest gratitude from me, JW1, if you'll ever see this review.
As for other bits (eg spawn points affecting my other mods), I am simply reporting my findings. And finally, as for the unnecessary and frankly pointless/immature personal insult that I am somehow "soft", I hope you will grow to realise that pointing an on-screen cursor in the shape of a gun and clicking on some moving pixels, doesn't somehow magically make you a real-life tough guy.
I'm stuck at the ranch. Safe with the 6-digit code open, but there was nothing interesting inside, only randomly generated loot.
Potential players, don't believe such uncareful users that couldn't understand simple combinatorics or couldn't read note properly.
?upstairs in a wall safe behind the bed (well hidden, too much hidden to be called good design)
But the safe downstairs has nothing in it. Only randomly generated loot: caps, junk, ammo.
So, I completed the mod, but at level 36 and only with uber-strong, uber-stealth armour & weaponry (from the Quest for Heaven mod, sadly not on Nexus). And even then, only via using kill-commands on the androids who I found unkillable even after unloading clip after clip of any of the insanely overpowered modded weapons I have. And only after removing a bunch of other mods (because the lack of quest markers in the DC world space would otherwise make finding this mod's own modded spots too bothersome, or potentially impossible (say, due to the Faifax Interiors mod). And only after using a TCL command at the final laser barrier because although I had all the contents from the farm safe, the barrier wouldn't open.
And then I had to uninstall the mod because the androids, who after you escape OGO suddenly appear in many DC locations, do one of two things depending on your choice at the final master computer which controls them - they all either become your uber-drones, or all go frenzy and kill each other and everything else. Having these virtually unkillable drones on your side makes playing the game any further pointless, but letting them go frenzy means they not only attack each other but also kill everyone else - including any other mods' NPCs who aren't already set essential before you meet them. Luckily I saw one such NPC get killed on the Mall as I approached and so at least I was aware of the problem (otherwise I'd be clueless), but it meant completely reinstalling that partly completed mod. ANNOYING - and who knows what other mods got screwed? Luckily I'm at such a late-game stage it didn't hurt my campaign much, but you might get screwed big-time.
Other than that, the quest design is bothersome, and the hints (both in-game and the hint sheet) are either too vague or utterly pointless ("look carefully" etc). I'd also have a bunch of other things to say but they're mostly minor quibbles of the sort that can affect many mods.
Which is all a huge shame because the new world space around New york Ave and the new interiors are mostly great, as is the story too.