"Fallout: New Vegas" - now with more stuff!

Don’t you just love vague headlines? Sorry about the lack of updates this week, been busy with other projects here at the DNN. It’s also been partly because there hasn’t been anything new out, but that will all change next week with the release of Rockstar’s “Red Dead Redemption.” I won’t lie – you probably won’t see much of me once that game is released.

So with all the lost time I’m forseeing because of “RDR,” let me turn my attention to one of the best games of 2009 – “Fallout 3.” Well more specifically, its sequel “Fallout: New Vegas.” Though “F: NV” is being produced by Obsidian, rather than Bethesda, the producers of “Fallout 3,” it shares numerous similarities with its predecessor – namely the look of the game and the gameplay. But before I get into that – the stuff as promised by the headline!

Earlier this week, Bethesda announced what it has in store for the “Fallout: New Vegas” Collectors Edition. Being a person who normally never buys a special edition of a game, I gotta say this pack seems pretty f’n sweet. I suppose they were really trying to out-do the special edition of “Fallout 3,” which included an art book, a “Making Of” DVD, Vault Boy bobblehead inside of a “Fallout” inspired lunchbox tin.

“Out-do” is almost an understatement, though, considering what Bethesda is offering this time around for the same price as the “Fallout 3” Collector’s Edition. The Collector’s Edition of “Fallout 3” was the last special edition of a game that I bought and this one looks even cooler. Included in this pack are:

-7 poker chips, each one representing one of the major casinos that can be found in “Fallout: New Vegas.”

-A deck of cards, illustrated with characters and artwork from “F: NV,” that can be used to play any card game, including Caravan, a game created for the world of “F:NV.”

-A recreation of the game’s “Lucky 38” platinum poker chip.

-A hardcover graphic novel titled “All Roads.” This book tells the story of some of the characters and events leading up to “F: NV.” “All Roads” was written by the game’s creative director Chris Avellone in conjunction with Dark Horse Comics.

-A “F: NV” Making-Of DVD

-And what looks like a distressed, “F: NV” inspired box.

If you search for screen shots of “F: NV” you may become a little confused because the look of this game is extremely similar to “Fallout 3” – almost identical. But what “New Vegas” may lack in terms of graphical upgrades, it makes up for in new gameplay features and mechanics.

Before jumping into the new features of “New Vegas,” we’ll take a look at the reason you’ll be wandering the desert – the story. For the first game since, “Fallout 2,” players will not take the role of a Vault Dweller to begin the game (Vaults being underground bomb shelters a lucky few used to survive a nuclear apocalypse). After being shot and left for dead in the burning desert sand, you’re brought to the town of Goodsprings by a helpful robot named Victory who takes you to Doc Mitchell. The doctor patches you up and has you use a series of machines to determine the look of your character and your stats. Is this starting to sound familiar? Doc Mitchell’s “Reflectron” and “Vit-O-Matic” take the place of your character’s birth in “Fallout 3” but serves the same function.

While the game looks and begins similarly, new additions to the gameplay make “New Vegas” more than just an expensive expansion pack. Obsidian has stated that they realize how many people relied on V.A.T.S. (Vault-Tec Assisted Targeting System) to play “Fallout 3” and have worked to make the first-person action smoother and more fluid for “New Vegas.” I’m very pleased to hear that work is being done on the first-person shooting aspect of “New Vegas” because it was near impossible to hit anything without V.A.T.S., let alone kill anything. But don’t think that means there aren’t any updates to V.A.T.S. itself.

In an effort to reduce what seemed to become the typical combat situation in “Fallout 3” – see an enemy, go into V.A.T.S., target their head, repeat until dead – Obsidian is adding more tactical decisions to the use of V.A.T.S. for “New Vegas.” What that means for gamers is now different ammo types and weapons will have different effects on various enemies – such as some are better suited to use against armored human opponents than against a Super Mutant or a Deathclaw. Ammo types and weapons will even have different effects on what limb is targeted in V.A.T.S. so that each enemy encounter doesn’t play out the same way.

Similarly, V.A.T.S. will offer greater choices when using melee weapons. I’ve heard you’ll now be able to target specific body parts in V.A.T.S. now, but I’m not 100% sure about that. What I am sure about is that each melee weapon will now have a unique attack that can be performed in V.A.T.S.

While on the topic of weapons, “New Vegas” is reportedly going to have a greatly expanded selection of weapons available for use. Not only will there be more weapons to choose from, but players will be able to upgrade their weapons with modifications. Scopes, extended magazines and stocks are just a few of the upgrades players can expect to find in “New Vegas.”

But perhaps the most intriguing idea being introduced in “New Vegas” is Hardcore Mode. While “Fallout 3” was an incredible game that maintained the spirit of the original games, many decried its overall ease and lack of realism – well as real as a video game series about the apocalypse can be. Though it doesn’t necessarily increase the difficulty of the game – there is a separate difficulty setting – Hardcore mode imposes various restrictions and rules on the player that won’t be found in the game otherwise. For instance, Stim-Paks won’t automatically restore hit-points but rather restores them over time. Ammunition now has weight and will need to be another consideration in inventory management. Healing crippled limbs will require the aid of a doctor or a much higher medicine skill and players will also need to drink water to stay hydrated or risk death in the unforgiving Mojave desert.

While there isn’t an official release date yet, I would assume, barring delays, that “Fallout: New Vegas” should be out sometime before Christmas. Considering I put in well over 100 hours over the course of two or three playthroughs of “Fallout 3,” a new adventure through familiar territory (both “Fallout” and “Fallout 2” took place on the west coast) will definitely warrant probably way too much of my time.