User reviews

This game is fantastic, make no mistake. Music, graphics, world, characters (with some exceptions), story, choice and exploration are all huge improvements from 'Fallout 3', and if you're at all interested in Bethesda Game Studios' latest offering then I highly recommend you check it out.

However, some flaws hold it back from surpassing the heights seen in previous games. The removal of karma and skill points greatly reduces the customisability of your character's stats, and the lack of a level cap means the need to replay the game is severely restricted, as a patient player could unlock every perk in one playthrough. The new dialogue system is a joke, and coupled with the voiced protagonist results in less choice or role-playing capability seen in other Fallout titles. It's painfully clear that 'Fallout 4' fell victim to the streamlining Bethesda implemented into 'TESV: Skyrim', which doesn't take away from the sheer fun factor but is disappointing to some RPG fans such as myself.

Had Bethesda not begun development so soon after 'Fallout 3', vital lessons could have been learned from Obsidian Entertainment's 'Fallout: New Vegas', which features greater mechanical depth than either of Bethesda's Fallout releases and made huge improvements on the formula created in 'Fallout 3' that seem lacking in 'Fallout 4' or were left out entirely. For example, the factions system in New Vegas resulted in diverse endings and game worlds where in 4 there is little impact had on the world. The developments made in New Vegas' conversation system are curiously absent, making dialogue much less diverse in terms of impacts and outcome (likely due to the inherent restrictions of a voiced protagonist).

In conclusion, this game is ****ing great, I can't stress that enough, but is held back (in my opinion) by simplified mechanics and a story and player character that restricts player choice and customization. But for sheer fun and value, this game is worth your time.

Greetings from Lithuania.

To think that i have invested around 100 hours of my life time into "Fallout 4" (2015), done the main story, made A LOT of side quests and the there is still A LOT to explore encourages me to safely say - "Fallout 4" is a great game.

I had big expectations for "Fallout 4" because 3rd game was probably one of my all time favorites. And although 4th part did not improve on graphics - for this date and age, the game looks OK / good but nothing more, it did improve on almost everything else. I loved the story of "Fallout 4" - it was better then 3rd games. There is also a good twist in a main story which kinda makes you later guessing your actions.

The open world to explore is amazing in this game. Literally when you walk to make one quest, you come back with 3 or 4 more to do. Later some of them were more like "fetch" quests, but there are plenty of interesting one. I loved weapon / armor crafting, house building stuff was OK but nothing more. There are tons upon a tons of places to discover, things to find or to kill. I played this game on hard more from the beginning and by the end i was like a bad ass / Rambo type character - the game is pretty easy even on hard mode.

Overall, while "Fallout 4" isn't as brilliantly fresh as "Fallout 3" was, still this is an excellent game. Hope in a future they do make another one but this time with new game engine.

Fallout 4 is probably one of the best games I've played. While it may have let down some, I think that it's great. The combat system isn't awful like some of the previous fallout games, the world is great and full of substance, items are great and NPCs are great (some are better than others). One thing that isn't as good a previous fallout games is dialogue. It's pretty 2 dimensional. There are situations where there's really only one direction to go in, even though there are 4 options. I would have liked there to be a way out of a conflict through dialogue instead of having to confront it. Overall great game.

From the moment the menu screen emerges and the familiar theme of fallout delicately plays in the background, there was no doubt in my mind I was in for a wild ride. Bethesda did not disappoint. The one thing that is most impressive about the game is its sheer ability to retain substance while simultaneously introducing a new atmosphere, full of varying and vast expanses that each hold their own character. The game continues to surprise me at each and every turn as almost every person I begin a conversation with has a deep back story, unique quest, or an occasional homage to the previous games in the fallout series. Bethesda has managed not only to maintain the high level of engrossment that the previous fallout games provided, but has built on their accomplishments. By including new features such as customising not just your own settlements but also your own weapons, and breathing new life into other factors such as the VATS and perk systems, the game has reached a level above and beyond any game I have played before. With the added factor of a mesmerisingly beautiful soundtrack that your character can change depending on their situation and stepping up a level with next generation graphics that make each area you visit a truly unique experience, the game deserves no less than a 10/10. Yes there are some bugs here and there but with a game as large and dense as this, they really don't take away from the experience whatsoever (and can sometimes be hilarious). Fans of the genre and the series should not hesitate to get this game, just be prepared for it to take up a large chunk of your life!

Fallout 4 is a wonderfulgame. First in 2015 still without the DLCs and bugged. I joined until 2018 and fortunately didn't have to go through this ordeal and got on straight away with the much-patched goty edition. It's now a mature game with incredible potential and various design options (e.g. Also but not necessarily first-person shooters or with a focus on SimCity/Sims/Settlement Development). It's running flawlessly for me now. But you always have to be careful, especially with mods and other changes. The strength of the game isn't the narrow or detailed story, but an open world worthy of the name! Almost everything is possible. You can follow the story, but you don't have to. The decisions are very important when you have to decide for/against one of the four factions (Institute, Brotherhood, Railroad, Minutemen). This should be carefully considered or delayed. It is its own (open) world in which there is always something new to discover. Due to the large number of mods and extensions, the game never gets boring and can be expanded or changed endlessly according to your own ideas. Because it uses the DX11 graphics interface, you have to pay attention to certain restrictions when modding in order not to "break" the game. I can fully recommend it and you can easily "sink" a lot of time.

I, personally, love Bethesda games. I love Fallout, Elderscrolls, Doom, and Dishonered. My favorite game ever for awhile was the Elderscrolls: Oblivion. All of Bethesda's titles are jam packed with content that will keep you busy for hours. After seeing Todd Howard announce the next game, Fallout 4, I was pretty excited. I had loved Fallout 3. And after it came out, i avoided learning and spoiling anything about it. I finally bought it and put it in and was greeted with cool and funny cartoon shorts as my game downloaded. After it was done downloading, i was thrown right in. And let me say, I was not disappointed.

I was thrown into a pre-war intro where you could build your own character and witness, in game, the world go to hell. I'm not going to spoil anything, but the story is great!

Game play is great! There's improved gun play, new slow motion VATS, power armor customization, weapons customization, armor customization, Legendary enemies, great companion and romance systems, and a new great perk system.

The game is set in Boston and is almost twice the size of Skyrim. The Main and side quests are all compelling and exciting. You are never at a lack of things to do. The setting is comfortable and brightly colored and there are many different areas with different kinds of enemies.

Its a great game and I highly recommend it.

Really good game mechanics, great storyline, good graphics, and every aspect of the game are really nailed it. I think it's the most rpg game of bethesda games company.

Fallout 4's gunplay and (some of the) gameplay are the best of the series. Hands down.

However... pretty much everything else? Let's talk about it.

The story is nothing to write home about. It takes a gigantic step back from F:NV in regards to that. There's literally two endings and that's it, whereas compared to F:NV there are several; choices actually matter in F:NV. And the actual "threat" in Fallout 4 isn't really that interesting nor intimidating.

The companions are fine; base building isn't necessary and is incredibly tacky, so I'd honestly not do it at all because it makes no difference. Mr. Preston Garvey (one of the first guys you interact with) is annoying as hell, hence why he's a meme.

The voice acted protagonist wasn't asked for; wasn't needed (clearly trying to be games like Mass Effect; the difference being a voice acted protagonist was there from the beginning...)

The crafting system is fine and somewhat welcomed, although you can go without it. I did pretty much for my first playthrough.

Overall, it's a fun game purely from a gameplay standpoint, but is overshadowed by many things that make it a bad Fallout game. It's a good game, but as a Fallout game? No.

Fallout 4 is the latest entry in the post-apocalyptic, role-playing franchise, Fallout. The trailer for this game generated loads of hype, and I, for one, was anticipating its release. This game was the first I purchased for the Xbox One and has managed to suck me in for tons of hours. While it is certainly not the strongest Bethesda game I have ever played, as that honor belongs to the Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim, it is still a very good installment to the Fallout franchise. There are several noticeable changes that have been implemented to the game- some good and some bad. Several positive aspects of the game are the improved character creator, weapons and armor customization, an abundance of companions, lots of content and quests, and finally, power armor, which has been altered to support a tank-based, combat role. However, the changes to dialogue and a lack of varying endings neuter an otherwise solid RPG.

Fallout 4 proved a bit divisive and 1 (the best), 3 and New Vegas are the superior entries but i still put 70 hours into the game and even went for all 3 fraction endings. The crafting system needs a do-over as the necessary items were given an inventory weight and the same applies to a lesser degree for the new conversation system yet i view both as a good addition to the Bethesda stable. The changed skill and armor system though need to revert back and the writer messed up the ultra-bland side quests big time while delivering the best Bethesda campaign and combat yet so i view the games as Fallout 3,5. It even fells like remake of F3 at times so i suggest fellow series veterans who liked that entry to keep at it if the game initially turns you off. It certainly grew on me as the main narrative went on. The developers lastly need to move on to a new engine! The bugs were reduced to a manageable level after the release and the landscapes are downright picturesque at time but the character models and animation are from another decade altogether. 8,5/10

Just finished the first play through of Fallout 4.... Underwhelmed, it's more a smaller Fallout 3 map with more people/mutants running around everywhere..... Fallout 3 was a bigger map and it was a "wasteland" with large uninhabited areas. The side quests are mainly "go here and kill things". After a few of the side quests you basically end up repeating them over and over again. The encampment building is pointless eventually and just becomes annoying. That's not to say its a bad game, its not its good and I enjoyed it. Just not as wondrous as Fallout 3 or enjoyable as Fallout: New Vegas. Kinda seems like step sideways for Bethesda after the brilliance of Skyrim... Lets hope the promised expansion packs make up for the currently uninspired and occasionally repetitive game play.

I think we may have been holding 'Fallout 4' up to a rather harsh set of expectations. 'Fallout 3' was one of the best games of the decade, and 'New Vegas' was another excellent title. Unless Bethesda pulled off the best game of the year, there'd be a lot of criticism.

The introduction was great, and I'd place it leagues above the first scenes of 'Fallout: New Vegas'. Bethesda successfully place this game firmly within the context of a nuclear apocalypse, taking us closer to the initial devastation than ever before. It's also in the earliest moments of the game that you realise that your character can talk! Bethesda's long-awaited decision to give player characters a voice worked rather well, and I hope they expand on it in the future.

Whilst I have praise for certain character-related modifications made in this game, there are also some problems. It's very hard to play an evil character in 'Fallout 4'. As many people have pointed out, your choices tend to range from 'very kind' to 'reluctantly kind'. That didn't really inconvenience me as I tend to play do-gooders on my first playthrough, but I do find it disappointing that the range of moral choice available to players in the earlier games has been significantly reduced.

Bizarrely, as player choice is restricted where decision-making is concerned, it is expanded tremendously in another area: the workshop. For the first time, we are given the ability to expand a fairly vast number of settlements, giving you the choie to install security, add stores, build homes and - most importantly - attract settlers to populate them. One of the key factions, the Minutemen, also tie in with the settlements feature, as you'll often be called upon to defend them from a variety of Wasteland threats.

I quite liked the Minutemen and their quests, but I wasn't so keen on the Institute. They just don't look as authentic as the other factions we've met. A certain degree of sci-fi can be very fitting in an apocalyptic RPG, and I think the contrast of '50s culture and futuristic technology really gave the earlier 'Fallout' games their charm. Around half-way through this latest game, though, I felt that they went a little too far. Given the importance of the Institute, this detracted somewhat from my ability to enjoy the story, but I still acknowledge that it had some very good moments.

Do I think it's as good as 'Fallout 3'? No. Do I think it's a good game? Yes. I've logged well over 100 hours on it, so something must have worked!

A brilliant RPG from Bethesda that leads you through an enticing story with 4 different endings and different storylines depending on what the player wants to do. This is another brilliant game by the great Todd Howard.

One of the biggest criticisms that gets lobbed at Fallout is the overall plot and the story of the Sole Survivor. I have to add that I haven't played any of the other Fallout games but I actually disagree. I like the overall arc of the Sole Survivor in Fallout 4 and his quest to find/avenge his family, I admit that it would be boring/too familiar of a revenge quest without the inclusion of the other factions but having played through the campaign twice, I was still caught up in it. I also really like the choose-your-own-adventure aspect of it, getting to pick which faction you support and seeing how it impacts the story is a lot of fun. I'm a bit of a sucker for when that mechanic is done well and this is one of the better games I've played that gives the player that kind of freedom (I'd also recommend the Far Harbor DLC for the same reason).

While Fallout 4 is defined as an RPG, I agree with the fans that its more of a FPS with RPG elements. The positive side of this is that the gun play is well designed and tons of fun. If this kind of game isn't your specialty, the inclusion of VATS (its a targeting system that helps the player play percentages of where to strike at an enemy) helps keep the game play fresh. There is a lot of variety with the enemies you can fight against, the ability to upgrade your weapons and your armour to buff against certain types of foes and damage. It was ahead of its time and it holds up pretty well.

I'd be remiss to not talk about my other favourite aspects of this game which is characters. The Sole Survivor is the audience avatar, he's got a driving force but you choose who he/she is or how they impact the Commonwealth. But the side characters are a colourful, vibrant and interesting group that I could continue to just gush about. They're alp distinct and grab your attention. The companions would be enough for me to recommend Fallout 4 alone and while your ability to interact with them properly falls short (more on that later), I couldn't help but be transfixed by their depth and their backstories at points in the game.

I wish it was all just praise but this game does become more of a mixed bag upon revisiting it. Firstly, while the game features an ample campaign with many missions, the pacing does drag, especially in the introductory missions for the factions. You get a lot of the standard fetch/ eliminate the target quests and while that is to be expected, that can be tiresome. The next is the dialogue system. To be fair, this isn't easy to do, to create natural sounding dialogue while giving the player choice. But the summation of the option in the dialogue wheel isn't always accurate and when you step back, the cadence of the responses becomes easier to discern. A lot of the dialogue is clunky because of this and picking one option could lead to a different result than you desired because of the inaccurate summary. Lastly, the RPG mechanics aren't as finely tuned as they could be. It was clear when I was playing this that the previous games were more focused on this and that in an effort to modernize the franchise, it got pushed to the side. I didn't think they were as awful as some do but underwhelming isn't a bad way to describe it.

Players of the classic Fallout games spit venom at this game and at Bethesda for diverting the the franchise. But coincidentally, most of the people who played this game first before other entries in the franchise (like me), really enjoy it for what it is. I haven't even touched on how big the map is and all the areas that can be explored (conversely, there's not as much aesthetic variety to the post-apocalyptic environment, another mixed element in 4). This game is the definition of a mixed bag with some strong virtues and some glaring weaknesses but its a memorable experience and even after playing the campaign twice, I'll probably revisit it again someday. If you're interested and willing to put the time in, I'd still recommend it. I'll play 76 someday but while that game was panned, at least this one had a mixed response overall?

Great game! My first very first Fallout game ever and also what got me into the Fallout series.

Fallout 4 takes place in a post apocalyptic world in Boston. You play a character as he tries to find his kidnapped son. Fallout 4 has the best graphics the game looks amazing. The combat has improved what times of new weapons being introduced in this game. Fallout 4 has a big open world with new lore and tons of places to explore. And like very other fallout game it's gives you so many choices for you to complete the main quest line and all the side quests! The game does change how the perks work and I think that is what I don't like. Overall the game is good but could have been way better.

Since the franchise is so popular right now, I'll take advantage of this and point out some things that bother me about this otherwise very good game.

I hope this review somehow gets the attention of a developer or something and they do something about this issue.

The game has a major flaw, that can be easily solved with a patch: POWER ARMOR! One of the most appealing things about this game is of course the concept of power armor. However, they made it so wrong in this game, in my opinion. When you put a power armor, you need to start feeling like a demigod, but that's not the case in this game. It doesn't work as it should and you immediately need to repair your armor after taking a couple of petty shots from a raider or something. So, how should power armor be? There is a very good example, I don't even need to come up with my own idea, Fallout 2 did it perfect! Two words: DAMAGE THRESHOLD. In Fallout 4, the armor only acts as a damage reduction. This means, even in your power armor, a mere cockroach can still damage you, albeit in very small numbers. But that's not how armor works in real life, nor should it be like that in every video game. Again, Fallout 2 did it perfect, when you put the power armor, on top of damage reduction, you get something called 'damage threshold' this means, if the point of damage is below a certain number, that damage gets completely blocked. Which makes you feel the power of power armor. From that point on, a bullet from a pistol from a raider will do nothing to you, you'll only have to worry about real, serious weapons. If you think that this might cause balance issues, well, then you don't know much about Bethesda games. There is not a real balance in the first place, but if the developers want to balance the game, they can still do it with a power armor that I have described above.

That's it! That's the whole review, I just wanted to point out this huge flaw of the game and hopefully get it fixed.

I know I know...this game isnt as good as the previous fallout games and the storytelling is pretty lackluster. But I guarantee you this is still a really great game, the graphics are good, the voice acting is great and best of all...you can take as long as you like..you don't have to finish the game quickly like most games...this one you can easily play for 80 hours without ever getting bored. Really great game and I highly recommend.