Fallout 3

[digiram]

Originally posted by: Skoorb

Originally posted by: digiram
I get freezes in the game here and there on my Xbox

System lock or pauses? I do have blips sometimes for a disk read when equipping a weapon in third person view, but it's fairly trivial.

pauses. not complete lock ups. I get that with GEOW 2 once in a while.

 

[StageLeft]

OK I have to say I completely regret not having a 100 in at least lockpicking or science. There have been a ton of cases where it would have helped. I do think a 100 lockpick is best. If I did this game again I would certainly go for that and possibly shortchange medicine. Other than requiring a 60 to rescucitate somebody, it only otherwise makes stimpaks and what not more effective, but that's just money. Maybe I'd go less on sneak, but having only a 77 science and 25 lockpick sucks! I also wouldn't have gotten the perk that gives a 10% experience bump, it's useless with the top level-cap of 20.

I have received a couple of plasmas now. I cannot say for sure whether big guns or laser is best since I've not used my plasma yet or the gatling laser.

BTW I had three lockups a couple days ago. In VATS with the railroad rifle in the subway tunnel near tenpenny it locked up each time I'd hit a ghoul. My xbox was on a hot cable box source (it's a jasper but it was hot) so I don't know if it was that or the ghouls. I am thinking probably the ghouls and rifle, since it happened only during vats, but in any case now the xbox is by itself. Also, leaving rivet city's market when I was told it was about to close dogmeat and charon didn't join me, then I couldn't get back in because it was locked. I had to wait until morning, then I could go back in and retrieve them.

I'm now running from the HD and load times are indeed better.

 

[erwos]

Plasma is best in VATS, but insta-hit weapons can be more useful outside of it.

 

[Kabob]

Originally posted by: Yreka
Those, the Alien Blaster and, of course the Gatling Laser are the energy weapons to get. A3-21 is my MVP weapon of the game, I get it early, and it remains effective all the way to the end.

Gatling Laser is a "Big Gun" I believe.

I'm down to 2 quests left for the Survivors Guide, ran into an oddity. I've not done much of the main quest, I'm still on the "Follow in his footsteps" part and haven't gone to the radio station. In the survivors guide I'm on the part where you have to go to Rivet City. I went there and talked to the scientist lady and it said I completed the Follow in his footsteps quest but it did not give me the achievement. I can only assume it's because I didn't go to the radio station, so I loaded a save right before I talked to her and went to do it, hopefully it doesn't mess me up.

I'm with you Skoorb, I'm not nearly as far into the game as you are but I already wish I'd gone with Lockpick instead of Science. I haven't put many points in science but it was one of the 3 I choose at the beginning...it seems though that in 95% of situations if you can use a computer you can just as easily use lockpick, but not visa versa.

 

[imported_hopeless]

Originally posted by: kabob983
I'm down to 2 quests left for the Survivors Guide, ran into an oddity. I've not done much of the main quest, I'm still on the "Follow in his footsteps" part and haven't gone to the radio station. In the survivors guide I'm on the part where you have to go to Rivet City. I went there and talked to the scientist lady and it said I completed the Follow in his footsteps quest but it did not give me the achievement. I can only assume it's because I didn't go to the radio station, so I loaded a save right before I talked to her and went to do it, hopefully it doesn't mess me up.

I'm with you Skoorb, I'm not nearly as far into the game as you are but I already wish I'd gone with Lockpick instead of Science. I haven't put many points in science but it was one of the 3 I choose at the beginning...it seems though that in 95% of situations if you can use a computer you can just as easily use lockpick, but not visa versa.

I still haven't went to the radio station either, but I did finally finish the survivor guide the other night. When I went to Rivet City, I had already read somewhere that the main quest takes you there so I didn't talk to anyone I didn't have to execpt for that quest and another side quest that started for me in megaton when I picked up a holotape.

Last night I decided to roam around again and stumbled across 2 super mutant behemoths. Lets just say I was glad I bought a fat man while I was in rivet city. It took me 2 mini-nukes apiece to kill them.

I would also recommend putting points in the Repair skill, with the bobblehead I've got mine at 95 and just carry around a vault 101 suit that gives +5 to repair and another skill. Saves money from having to pay for repairs and makes money because the better the quality the better the selling price. Also weapons do more dmg and armor takes more dmg the better shape there in.

 

[Kabob]

Yeah, my repair skill is pretty high. I've not yet run into a behemoth (surprising considering I've spent most of my time roaming around). I think I only have 2 mini nukes total, so I might be in trouble

 

[Yreka]

Originally posted by: kabob983

Originally posted by: Yreka
Those, the Alien Blaster and, of course the Gatling Laser are the energy weapons to get. A3-21 is my MVP weapon of the game, I get it early, and it remains effective all the way to the end.

Gatling Laser is a "Big Gun" I believe.

Listed as energy here.

I remember seeing it somewhere else too, wiki maybe.. I remember thinking it strange at the time, it make Big Guns path look even less attractive. (not that I ended up using it very much anyway)

It belongs in BG from a balance standpoint IMO..

I'm with you Skoorb, I'm not nearly as far into the game as you are but I already wish I'd gone with Lockpick instead of Science. I haven't put many points in science but it was one of the 3 I choose at the beginning...it seems though that in 95% of situations if you can use a computer you can just as easily use lockpick, but not visa versa.

My first playthough, I did quite a bit in Science and Repair thinking along the lines of Fallout 1&2 where you could actually repair generators, purifiers, etc. I was a little disappointed to find out there was very little of that in F3. I can only remember repairing something other than my gear once.. Repair is obviously still important for weapons / armor, so it wasnt a total waste, but science / lockpick seem interchangeable..

There is usually a computer or a lock, defeating either one will get the prize. Factor in all the other locked ammo boxes etc sprinked around, LP seems like the way to go.

 

[Kabob]

Yeah, seems like Big Guns get the shaft in FO3. A patch might change that but I'm not counting on it. I think on my next play around I'll definately go lock pick since I'll try to be evil and breaking into people's houses will be handy.

Also, oddly enough as massive as the world is for some reason it doesn't "seem" as big as Oblivion. And I'm sure I've not explored the majority of it...there's just something about it, I think it's that while in the wastes you can see so far it sorta compresses the world.

 

[StageLeft]

I just finished at 56 hours.

DEFINITELY would want lockpick if I played again.

Definitely would not bother with big guns, I don't see much point, really.

I had 7 mininukes and never used fatman. The problem with ammo-sparse weapons is I never know when to use them, so they just don't get used; I usd the alien blaster for a single shot, for example, never used gatling laser, never used fatman.

Anyway, great game, definitely two thumbs up.

 

[dighn]

Lockpick is definitely useful, but I raised to 50 only in the latter half of the game and had no problems. I have to say though lockpicking is a lot less tedious than the hacking minigame. The game is pretty easy either way; finished it at level 16 and everything was a cakewalk, though having lots of skill points (10 int (9 starting + bobblehead) + educated perk) and the A3-21 plasma rifle (this thing rocks) probably helped things a lot.

Can't wait for the DLCs

 

[StageLeft]

Yeah the hacking minigame still confused me up to the end for some reason; maybe I didn't pay enough attention.

I tried to google briefly but couldn't find out: I wonder what the fastest possible finish on the game is? I bet it could be done in 15 hours if a person knew what they were doing, maybe quicker (?).

 

[Kabob]

Originally posted by: dighn
Lockpick is definitely useful, but I raised to 50 only in the latter half of the game and had no problems. I have to say though lockpicking is a lot less tedious than the hacking minigame. The game is pretty easy either way; finished it at level 16 and everything was a cakewalk, though having lots of skill points (10 int (9 starting + bobblehead) + educated perk) and the A3-21 plasma rifle (this thing rocks) probably helped things a lot.

Can't wait for the DLCs

Yeah, the hacking minigame is odd. Thing is, it's not even fun. Lockpicking at least is easy and relatively fun, hacking...well...lets just say that after the 8th try on one computer it gets boring. There's a hacking guide on gamefaqs, helped me out a lil' bit.

Originally posted by: Skoorb
Yeah the hacking minigame still confused me up to the end for some reason; maybe I didn't pay enough attention.

I tried to google briefly but couldn't find out: I wonder what the fastest possible finish on the game is? I bet it could be done in 15 hours if a person knew what they were doing, maybe quicker (?).

I'm sure it can be done relatively quickly, you can skip several main quests. You can go from Megaton straight to Dr. Li in rivit city and skip the two quests in between. I assume you'll be able to skip another one or two in between.

I got the A3-21 rifle but I have no points in energy weapons...looks like it'll be decoration.

I too have only used big guns twice, two mini-nukes against the first behemoth.

 

[StageLeft]

I should note that at hour 50 or 52 or so I could feel my interest in the game drop quite quickly, and quite unexpectantly. I had a lot left to explore and was still enjoying it before this. I do believe it's because once I hit level 20 it no longer became fun to kill people because they merely represented a loss in time or stimpaks. I think that RPGs should essentially have unlimited levels. I know why they capped it, but it doesn't work; even if they made it such that getting from level 20 to 21 took as long as from 10 to 20 at least I would have felt some kind of continual progression. I would say that may be the main complaint (not a huge one, but probably tops my list).

 

[Kabob]

Makes sense to me. Oblivion didn't have a cap I don't believe, not sure why they added it. I'm with you, once I hit 20 (a good ways off) I don't feel the need to kill anyone unless it's imperitive.

I probably won't try to do every quest on my first run through...we'll see.

 

[trmiv]

I think they should have made it harder to level, especially from levels 17-19, and then another big jump to 20 (especially since the grim reapers sprint perk makes you virtually invincible with the right weapon). My character was god-like at level 20, and super strong by level 12-13. I ended up bumping up a difficulty level at level 15 just to have somewhat of a challenge.

In games like Baldur's Gate, it became harder and harder to level as you got to a higher level due to the amount of experience required. In Fallout 3, the required experience per level was too low, and you got so much experience for random stuff like Giant Rad Scorpions, Talon Company Mercs, etc that I was flying through the levels.

 

[Xavier434]

Originally posted by: trmiv
I think they should have made it harder to level, especially from levels 17-19, and then another big jump to 20 (especially since the grim reapers sprint perk makes you virtually invincible with the right weapon). In games like Baldur's Gate, it became harder and harder to level as you got to a higher level due to the amount of experience required. In Fallout 3, the required experience per level was too low, and you got so much experience for random stuff like Giant Rad Scorpions, Talon Company Mercs, etc that I was flying through the levels.

Taking a long time to level gets boring though. I would rather see them keep the leveling pace the same but tack on another 20 levels or something.

 

[ubercaffeinated]

Man I put in close to a hundred hours in this game over a month. I didn't realize it til I took a look at my save games. It did get a bit tedious towards the end, but I pushed forward. Not a bad game.

 

[StageLeft]

Agree grim reaper's perk was almost silly. I had no challenging encounters on hard (the one between normal and the top) at that point. I also increaesd difficulty at level 15, but I believe that XP raises quicker on harder difficulties, so you'll just end up hitting level 20 faster. It was kind of strange in that I was godlike in combat but since I'd topped out levels I still could not learn new skills. One way or the other the level cap had to disappear.

 

[trmiv]

Originally posted by: Xavier434

Originally posted by: trmiv
I think they should have made it harder to level, especially from levels 17-19, and then another big jump to 20 (especially since the grim reapers sprint perk makes you virtually invincible with the right weapon). In games like Baldur's Gate, it became harder and harder to level as you got to a higher level due to the amount of experience required. In Fallout 3, the required experience per level was too low, and you got so much experience for random stuff like Giant Rad Scorpions, Talon Company Mercs, etc that I was flying through the levels.

Taking a long time to level gets boring though. I would rather see them keep the leveling pace the same but tack on another 20 levels or something.

Yea I'd like to see more levels, but I still think the leveling happens too fast in this game. Way faster than any RPG I've ever played. If they did tack on more levels they'd need to make some seriously tougher enemies. I was killing behemoths with a shotgun without taking a hit at level 20.

The main problem with the leveling system in FO3 is, there are only so many perks you can have. The entire coolness of leveling system is built off of perks. If you have unlimited levels, they would have to keep making more and more creative and useful perks. Eventually what is the point of playing if you've got so many cool perks that you can just mow people down without breaking a sweat along with having every single skill topped out to 100? There is no incentive to specialize in anything at that point because you know you'll eventually be an expert in everything (BTW, it's entirely possible to get 100's in everything even with the level 20 cap).

Now if the game were in development still and I know what I know now, my advice would have been to make the perks less powerful, but allow you unlimited levels. Some of the perks, especially when combined, are super powerful and just make you god-like by level 20.

 

[Zenoth]

I haven't read all of the posts of this thread but in case anyone is interested in seeing all of the known bugs (or rather the publicized ones) then there's a list of them at the Fallout 3's Vault (it's the Fallout 3 Wiki):

http://fallout.wikia.com/wiki/Fallout_3_bugs

We can all cross our fingers in hope that the next patch (supposed to come out before the first DLC, so perhaps if we're lucky we'll see it before this year's end or very early in January) will fix at least the major ones (and especially the very nasty memory leaks on the PC version).

 

[dighn]

Originally posted by: Skoorb
Yeah the hacking minigame still confused me up to the end for some reason; maybe I didn't pay enough attention.

I tried to google briefly but couldn't find out: I wonder what the fastest possible finish on the game is? I bet it could be done in 15 hours if a person knew what they were doing, maybe quicker (?).

read the guide on gamefaqs if you are interested. it's very easy but tedious as hell.

I wish there were more role playing options. high int + sci didn't offer many interesting dialog/game play options. but I guess that's too much to expect from these new action RPGs.

 

[TallBill]

Well, just beat it on the first run through at just under 13 hours. Gonna run through again, pick up all the bobbleheads, schematics, and do the achievement giving side quests. Also not going to be an evil bastard this time around.

 

[Rage187]

Originally posted by: TallBill
Well, just beat it on the first run through at just under 13 hours. Gonna run through again, pick up all the bobbleheads, schematics, and do the achievement giving side quests. Also not going to be an evil bastard this time around.

I'm doing it all in one great shibang.

Just finished the Nuka Cola challenge. I luckily started collecting them when the game began and only had to go find 1 of the 30 after I got the quest.

Love the game so far; have maybe 25 hours into it and still have much more to go.

 

[Kabob]

Yeah, I've got a ton of Nuka Quantum's, haven't run into that quest yet though.