Fallout 4

When Fallout 4 was first announced last June at E3, I like many gamers was thrilled for the latest chapter in this ongoing and enduring series. The fact that Bethesda was able to deliver successfully on the November release date was even more amazing as was the incredible stability, complexity, and fun of the game.

While we featured the game extensively on our holiday gift guides and radio segments, I opted to wait to do the full review until I had spent more time with the game. The story the game is very compelling and that you’re a father looking to recover his son in a post-apocalyptic world. The interactions that NPC characters are extremely enjoyable, as is the open world and highly customizable nature of the game. There are countless options for weapon and clothing customization, side quests, weapons, your armor, and even your companion. All of this helps make the game ending incredibly complex, diverse, and deeply rewarding experience.

I have to admit that I do have some frustration with the menu system as for me; I’m not a big fan of micromanagement and I have to admit that I found crafting a bit frustrating at times. I remember an early mission where I had to construct a transmitter to be very frustrating as I could not seem to get all of the completed parts together.

The beauty of the game though was that I was able to go off on other quests, combat enemies, trade, craft, customize, explore, and more so that I was able to be more than entertained when I got caught up in a segment. I really enjoyed being able to do things like raid an enemy base and take down numerous bad guys as well is combat mutated creatures. The longer I spend with the game, the more I began to appreciate the complexity of it in that there are multiple ways to play it, when it, and enjoy it. I’ve heard of players who achieve great things without even leaving the vault area at the start of the game. There are players spend a considerable amount of time crafting their community, appearance, and weaponry to find the best overall gaming experience.
I and the other hand like it sleek and simple, and prefer to get right down to the action. Now this course cause me to learn some patience as I would often overload my character was salvage and had to learn quickly what is useful to keep, sell, and discard. Combat was extremely satisfying although I did get a little hung up at times having to change weapons in my Pip Boy. I would’ve liked a little more streamlined approach where I could have several weapons stage as well as grenades without having to access a menu during heated moments. Naturally I understand this is a frustration from a PC gamer’s perspective and those playing the game on a console don’t have the luxury of multiple hotkeys to assign.

From the solid voice acting, enjoyable story, numerous customizations, an abundance of fun and action filled moments; Fallout 4 is the rare game that delivers on what fans expect as well as brings an abundance of options and enjoyment to the game will be on the first play through. Not only is the game one of the better releases of 2015, but one can argue that it is one of the better game releases ever not just of the series which is high praise indeed. I cannot wait to see what comes next for the series as this is been a trip well worth taking.

5 stars out of 5.