A Gamer's Perspective

If you've ever wondered why I'm still creating mods for Fallout: New Vegas in 2023, despite its age and technical limitations, the answer is simple. The heart and soul of what made Fallout a truly unique gaming experience has been replaced in Fallout 4 with features akin to a generic looter-shooter like Borderlands. To put it simply, for me, Fallout 4 isn't a "real" Fallout game. This isn't an attack on the game, that's been done to death, we all know 4 isn't that great at this point, but the modding community is much, much more active that NV, so I wanted to address this.

An Uninvited Change in Gameplay

Let's start by addressing the game's role-playing elements. A vital aspect of the original Fallout games was the flexibility to assume any role with any motivation. I fell in love with Fallout, especially New Vegas, primarily because of the boundless possibilities. Even in Fallout 1, beyond being a Vault Dweller, you're given very little in the way of backstory or motivations. Your character, your story, and your motives were yours to shape. Unfortunately, Fallout 4 deviates from this tradition.

Your main character in Fallout 4 comes with a voice, a strict storyline, and pre-determined motivations. From the moment you decide you don't want to be a vault dweller from the pre-war era searching for his child, Fallout 4 loses its allure. The core premise is basically a rehash of the plot from Fallout 3, and the removal of this player agency is a significant loss for the franchise. You would think that Bethesda would have learned from the fact that THE most downloaded mod for 3 is one that places the start and changes up the story for more roleplaying. Is every Fallout game going to start with a Vault dweller? It made sense for 1, being the first game in the series and I'd even be willing to defend it in 3, since it was a soft reboot of the series. I think we all have the expectation that it will be the same for Fallout 5. I really, really hope the MC isn't voice acted. It's like making Link voice acted, it doesn't work, it ruined the feel of the game.

Redefining The VATS System

The VATS system, a unique addition to the original Fallout game's FPS mechanics, made the game more approachable and enhanced its RPG elements. It allowed tactics, target limitations, and strategies such as shooting off weapons or crippling limbs. However, in Fallout 4, this innovative system was replaced by a very generic "bullet-time" system, considerably diluting the Fallout flavor we came to love. VATS really is the reason I love Fallout as an FPS. I am a huge fan of strategy games like X-Com and the limp targeting system really added a nice mix of that tactical gameplay to the mix. Yes, the shooting mechanics are better in Fallout 4 compared to Fallout 3/NV, that's undeniable, you know what? I don't care. If I wanted to play a shooting mechanic heavy FPS, I'd play one built for it, like Doom Eternal. Also the loss of the VATS system is a big blow to the accessibility of the game, in a way a bullet time system can't replace. I know several people who don't jive with regular FPS games, but that enjoyed 3/NV because of the VATS system giving it a more turn based feel.

 Stripping Away The Fallout Identity

The struggle to survive and the freedom to shape the wastelands through your actions were defining characteristics of the Fallout series. Unfortunately, Fallout 4 feels more like a Borderlands clone bearing the Fallout name rather than a continuation of the franchise. The erasure of the traits system was just another blow to the authenticity of the game. You're battling death claws in the first moments of the game basically. There's no sense of survival, of struggle, of adaptation, instead you're just a badass in a Power armor. Cool. Make a damn spinoff game if you want this, it's not the spirit or the style of Fallout and it's not fun.

Fallout 4: A Hollow Shell

In essence, Fallout 4 feels like a shell of its former self, stripped of the essential features that made it distinctive and enjoyable. Instead, it adopted generic looter-shooter mechanics reminiscent of Borderlands, resulting in the loss of its unique identity. I don't want to play Borderlands, I don't want to play Destiny. I don't want to play a Power Armor FPS game, I want to play Fallout, a game that really did for a time stand on it's own as THE RPG-FPS. The soul of the game wasn't just removed; it was exorcised.

Looking Forward

As a long-time fan of the Fallout series, if Fallout 5 doesn't reclaim its roots and return to form, I won't be buying it. Obviously I want the game to be good, and Fallout 4 did do a lot of things right (Settlement building is a great addition to the series core gameplay, execution could be better, also the Lovecraftian stuff is a great addition as well). Ever since I first played 3 on the PS3 way, way back in the day, I've been a fan of the series, I want to continue to be a fan of the series, and I continue to commend Bethesda's stance on community, modding and fan projects. As someone who's been active in the Pokemon romhacking scene, it's honestly mind blowing to know, no, I'm not at risk of being sued or DMCAed for making content for a game series I am a massive, massive fan of.

However, given the trend of the series, the trend of companies to not care what fans say (I'm sure the shareholders loved Fallout 4 more than the fans), I can only hope a competitor rises to fill the RPG-FPS niche that the Fallout series seems to be moving away from and if you're working on that competitor, let's get in touch. There is hope though, with In-Xile, Obsidian and Bethesda all now being owned by Microsoft, we have a chance to see a return to form once again, I remain hopeful.  Meanwhile, you'll find me in the Mojave Wasteland, crafting new mods for Fallout: New Vegas, keeping alive the true spirit of the Fallout series.

Side Note: If Sony wants to create a Fallout competitor, the Resistance franchise would make a great one to do it with. Huge fan of that series.