War. War Never Changes: The Fallout Discussion (New Vegas & Others)

[Conspiracy_Victim]

Went back to it and knocking out some side quests. Might get back on the main quest in a bit. I've run in to a wierd bug. Every time I equip the Westhered 10mm pistol the screen gets washed out and the gun disappears from the character's hand. When I pull back into 3rd person, a strange red exclamation point shaped thing extends out from the character. When I go back to any other weapon, it gets back to normal.

Did you mod the weapon? Mine was fine until I modded it with a laser sight. Apparently the DLC doesn't take well to mods. I guess they didn't do the models for those add-ons. Hopefully it'll get fixed in the next patch.

Boone's a badass BTW.

Yes! I'm trying to round up all companions right now and am sorely missing Boone. Though, I have to admit, for someone that the strategy guide calls "the weakest character" - good old flaming gay Arcade Gannon is a really good shot with the default plasma pistol.

That makes sense I suppose. To be honest it's a good weapon but after some gambing with a better than average luck score and some judicious looting I've got better so it's not ireal important for this play through anymore.

Can you get power armor training any way besides through Veronica? I've got 2 sets sitting in my inventory (since your companions won't carry it) and I'd like to be able to either sell em off or wear one pretty soon.

 

[Mik]

Veronica and Lily were the two best companions, IMO. I didn't get Boone, and I'd imagine he's up there as well.

Veronica is a badass with that power fist of hers.

 

[vivisectvi]

Went back to it and knocking out some side quests. Might get back on the main quest in a bit. I've run in to a wierd bug. Every time I equip the Westhered 10mm pistol the screen gets washed out and the gun disappears from the character's hand. When I pull back into 3rd person, a strange red exclamation point shaped thing extends out from the character. When I go back to any other weapon, it gets back to normal.

Did you mod the weapon? Mine was fine until I modded it with a laser sight. Apparently the DLC doesn't take well to mods. I guess they didn't do the models for those add-ons. Hopefully it'll get fixed in the next patch.

Boone's a badass BTW.

Yes! I'm trying to round up all companions right now and am sorely missing Boone. Though, I have to admit, for someone that the strategy guide calls "the weakest character" - good old flaming gay Arcade Gannon is a really good shot with the default plasma pistol.

That makes sense I suppose. To be honest it's a good weapon but after some gambing with a better than average luck score and some judicious looting I've got better so it's not ireal important for this play through anymore.

Can you get power armor training any way besides through Veronica? I've got 2 sets sitting in my inventory (since your companions won't carry it) and I'd like to be able to either sell em off or wear one pretty soon.

If you get Arcarde's quest For Auld Lang Syne you can get training from one of the NPC's near the end of the quest. Arcarde wants to reunite some old soldiers to fight in the final battle for the dam, and one of them trains you as a reward for completing the quest. You need to do some travelling and talking with Arcade, though, as it's not a quest that is available with him from the get-go.

 

[Mik]

Oh - you get power armor training also by allowing Hardin to overthrow the Elder and take-over the BoS. When you come back in a bit he allows you to get the training and full access to their inventory.

 

[Conspiracy_Victim]

Oh - you get power armor training also by allowing Hardin to overthrow the Elder and take-over the BoS. When you come back in a bit he allows you to get the training and full access to their inventory.

Eh too late for that one. I guess I'll just do Arcade's quest, then dump him and go back to Boone.

 

[vivisectvi]

You won't have to worry about dumping him, CV..

Spoiler

He leaves you at the end of the quest to help the old soldiers you've reunited

 

[vivisectvi]

So, in the PC version, some dude created a mod that has the mini-gun shoot out mini-nukes..

Fallout New Vegas - The Mininuke Minigun Mod

Outstanding!

 

[vivisectvi]

Also, Bethesda posted this on their blog on the 5th:

We wanted to give you guys a heads-up regarding the latest progress on Fallout: New Vegas updates.

We’ve come up with solutions for the Xbox 360 save issue folks are reporting, along with a number of other issues being reported. We’re currently running final testing and certification on a comprehensive patch for all three platforms (PC, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3), so we’ll have something available in the coming weeks. When we have more details, we’ll let you know.

In the meantime, an incremental update for PC should be going up by early next week that will fix the save corruption issues and problems with companions, as well as improve performance for NVIDIA users and resolve some issues reported with Havok.

Stay tuned for more details.

 

[Mik]

First DLC announced.

Dead Money - December 21st:
As the victim of a raw deal you must work alongside three other captured wastelanders to recover the legendary treasure of the Sierra Madre Casino. In Dead Money, your life hangs in the balance as you face new terrain, foes, and choices. It is up to you how you play your cards in the quest to survive.

 

[vivisectvi]

I fucking hate this exclusivity bullshit. Fuck you Bethesda.

http://bethblog.com/index.php/2010/11/17/first-new-vegas-dlc-announced/

The first downloadable content for Fallout: New Vegas was just announced!

“Dead Money” will tell the tale of a deal gone bad. After teaming up with three fellow wastelanders, players will need to pull off an intense heist to find and recover the treasure of the Sierra Madre Casino.

If you’re looking for a sneak peek at Dead Money, we might have something In The ‘Works. For now, here’s the official release:

BETHESDA SOFTWORKS REVEALS DETAILS FOR FIRST FALLOUT®: NEW VEGAS™ DOWNLOADABLE CONTENT

‘Dead Money’ Available December 21st Exclusively on Xbox LIVE

November 17, 2010 (Rockville, MD) – Bethesda Softworks®, a ZeniMax® Media company, today announced that Dead Money, the first downloadable content for Fallout®: New Vegas™, will be available exclusively on Xbox LIVE® for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft beginning December 21, 2010.

“We’re pleased to give fans a chance to expand their experience in Fallout: New Vegas this December with Dead Money,” said Pete Hines, VP of PR and Marketing for Bethesda Softworks. “The release of Dead Money illustrates our commitment to creating entertaining add-on content for players to enjoy in already massive games like Fallout: New Vegas.”

As the victim of a raw deal you must work alongside three other captured wastelanders to recover the legendary treasure of the Sierra Madre Casino. In Dead Money, your life hangs in the balance as you face new terrain, foes, and choices. It is up to you how you play your cards in the quest to survive.

Fallout: New Vegas, the follow-up to Fallout 3 – the 2008 Game of the Year – brings this beloved franchise to a location only Fallout could do justice: Vegas. Fallout: New Vegas takes all the action, humor and post-apocalyptic grime and grit of this legendary series, and raises the stakes.

Reviews of Fallout: New Vegas have called the game as “an utterly essential purchase” (MSN UK) and as “addictively, rambunctiously fun” (Entertainment Weekly). The Associated Press awarded it a 4 out of 4 stars and said “Bottom Line: It’s a Blast”, while GameSpy gave it 4.5 out of 5 stars and called Fallout: New Vegas “one of the best games of the year.”

Published by Bethesda Softworks and developed at Obsidian Entertainment, Dead Money, has not yet been rated by the ESRB. It will be available for 800 Microsoft points.

 

[vivisectvi]

Update - we have a patch for PS3. v1.02 was out Sunday.. Next week for 360 & Steam.

http://bethblog.com/index.php/2010/12/10/new-vegas-game-update-available-on-playstation-3-will-be-on-xbox-360-steam-next-week/

Today PlayStation 3 users in North America and European territories can download the latest game update for Fallout: New Vegas. With your PS3 connected online, you should receive a prompt to download update 1.02*. This update will be available on Xbox 360 and Steam early next week (we’ll keep you posted). Below is list of issues resolved with the game update.

Top fixes:

Companions now show up as waypoints on the map
Companions will always fast travel with you, unless told to wait or sent away
Fix: DLC error/save corruption
Fix: Entering the strip after Debt Collector causes crash and autosave corruption
Fix: Using Mojave Express dropbox can cause DLC warnings
Crafting menu now filters valid (bright) recipes to the top of the list
Weathered pistol no longer glitches when applying mods
After the break, see other issues/quests the patch covers…

In addition, this patch addresses issues with the following areas:

Pip-Boy Interface
Pre-Order DLC Items
Reputation System
Radio Stations
Companion fixes
Companion Quests
Repair Menu
Caravan
Weapons and Weapon Mods
Hardcore Mode
Perks
Skills
Crafting Recipes
Crafting Menu
Mojave Express
Chems/Addiction
Doctors
Vendors
And fixes for the following quests:

Ain’t That a Kick in the Head
By a Campfire on The Trail
They Went That-a-Way
My Kind of Town
Boulder City Showdown
Ring a Ding Ding!
King’s Gambit
For The Republic, Part 2
Render Unto Caesar
Et Tumor, Brute?
The House Always Wins
Wild Card
Beyond the Beef
GI Blues
How Little We Know
Oh My Papa
Still In The Dark
You’ll Know It When It Happens
Arizona Killer
Eureka!
Veni, Vidi, Vici
All or Nothing
No Gods, No Masters
Birds of a Feather
I Put A Spell On you
Come Fly With Me
That Lucky Old Sun
Don’t Make a Beggar of Me
The White Wash
Ghost Town Gunfight
Restoring Hope
Bleed Me Dry
Aba Daba Honeymoon
Tend To Your Business
Wang Dang Atomic Tango
Flags of Our Foul-Ups
Debt Collector
Talent Pool
Left My Heart
Someone To Watch Over Me
Hard Luck Blues
*Please note that once you’ve updated the game, you can confirm it’s been installed by going to the Title Screen>Settings>Display. In the lower left corner you should see Version 1.2.0.310 in the lower left-hand corner.

 

[Mik]

http://kotaku.com/5713989/all-bets-action-at-dead-moneys-sierra-madre

Looks pretty awesome.

 

[vivisectvi]

That it does. I wonder when it will hit PS3?

 

[Garth]

Did anyone pick up Dead Money today?
If so, first impressions?

 

[Agent of Oblivion]

I NOW HAVE NEW VEGAS~!

 

[Mik]

I booted up my hardcore save to go play Sierra Madre but I had to put it off. It warns you when you get there that it's highly recommended to be Level 20+, I'm only Level 17 with that guy. Also, in hardcore mode the environment is toxic and damages you constantly (apparently)... I don't have enough stimpaks.

 

[bps21]

I haven't bought it yet because I read that you want a high level character or you'll get torn apart. I've been playing other things and am not even at level 10 yet! Hopefully by the time I get ready for it it'll hit deal of the week.

 

[Damaramu]

I'm playing through as a Good Guy. Should I take over New Vegas for myself or help Mr House?

 

[Vigo]

Did anyone pick up Dead Money today?
If so, first impressions?

I started playing the game again as I set it aside because of all the freezing issues. I play it and what do I find? The freezing shit is still happening. No way in hell these guys get more of my money until they fix the game. I had problems with the first Fallout, and now with this one. It's really making me think twice about buying games from these guys when they're first released as they're quality control seems to suck.

 

[Mik]

I think this is the last one on this engine. The new Elder Scrolls coming out in 2011 has a new engine.

 

[Damaramu]

Well, I beat it for the first time. Appears as though you need to beat it 4 times to get all the possible endings (NCR, Legion, Mr. House, Independent) and associated achievements. Each route has 2 separate achievements (Route to get to the Hoover Dam battle and all 4 Hoover Dam endings have their own separate achievement. So one playthrough has you 6 achievements short of all of them).

I went the Yes Man/Independent route the first time through... switched from the NCR at the end because I didn't want to

Spoiler

wipe out the Brotherhood of Steel.

Last boss:

Spoiler

Not really surprised it was Legate Lanius... and he was hard as fuck. I died on him a few times because his monster sword knocked me down and I couldn't do anything while I was wobbly.

And then the ending:

Spoiler

I decided to stay truly independent, so I had Yes Man throw the head NCR general off the dam. It was the last thing you see before the Fallout 3 style ending kicks in. It appears as though overall the free Vegas had some plusses and minuses.

Same exact ending style as Fallout 3. I was about 35 hours to beat it... I did a lot of side quests but clearly not all of them. I'm gonna start another playthrough, I guess.

Spoiler

I have several saves. I can't do the Legion one though because they already hate me so much they attack on sight. So no way I can get that one without starting the game over.

I was going to help the Brotherhood of Steel but after being sent on one goose chase too many I was like "Fuck this shit." I'm not going to waste my time in any fucking vaults. I hate going in vaults anyway, reminds me of dungeon crawling.


So I beat it with Yes-Man. I'm pretty sure you can't save the general. I looked and all options led to you telling him to fuck off. I mean you can either let him leave or have the robots kill him. I played through that part twice and did both and it's the same ending.

As for Lanius, if you use those Power Fists the elite guards have he dies in like 2 hits.


Now I need to try to beat it as Mr. House (not sure how that'll work since i can't be nice-nice with the legion and he wants me to be) and with the NCR

So much to do in this game and I don't think I've even done 80% of the side quests. I've done a lot but there seems to be so much more.

 

[Mik]

Uhh... Sierra Madre is fucking hard.

FUCK those radio transmitters that just blow up your head at random times. I can never find them without dying at least once.

EDIT: In fact, the entire thing is turning into a trap ridden annoyance. I've been blown to bits by all kinds of shit, at this point.

 

[Mik]

Dead Money is fun. I finally assembled my team and now need to get them all in position to start the raid on the casino. I was down to 1 health with no stimpaks, as the cloud just destroyed my health bar. I had to set my teammate Dog to aggressive, run into areas, run out quick, and let him kill any enemies. Each section is taking a few restarts using this method but I finally got the last member.

I was worried I didn't have enough stimpaks before I started and they take them all away from you anyway!

 

[Agent of Oblivion]

I tried storming the Powder Gangers prison at Level 4 with some small arms blazin' and some dynamite. Dumb. Those fuckers swarm. Kinda like the fact that I can't just waltz around massacring entire strongholds. At least so far. Absolutely love the soundtrack.

 

[Vigo]

I tried storming the Powder Gangers prison at Level 4 with some small arms blazin' and some dynamite. Dumb. Those fuckers swarm. Kinda like the fact that I can't just waltz around massacring entire strongholds. At least so far. Absolutely love the soundtrack.

You'll find that as you level up you'll have fewer and fewer problems with enemies except for in my case the Cazadors, which I run away from like a little bitch whenever I encounter them. Deathclaws, no problem. Cazadors suck cause they're fast and they'll chase your ass, I had to slide down the side of a mountain one time to escape them. I'm level 22 now and those bastards still mess me up.

 

[Mik]

On hardcore their poison doesn't wear off unless you have antivenom handy. Even less fun. You die quick.

Dead Money is much more fun after you get the vending code for Stimpaks and aren't on the verge of death every three seconds.

 

[Mik]

Ok - I finally finished Dead Money.

Cons: Some of the annoying gameplay aspects (exploding collars, traps everywhere). No real good loot like most of the Fallout 3 add-ons (unless you count all the gold bars in the vault - they are worth 10,000 caps a piece. I could only haul 3 because they weighed 35 a piece).
Pros: Increased level cap right away. The story is pretty solid. They seem to be linking the DLCs together for this game and that could be nice. It's got a separate ending, which is nice.

They set up the next (or another) DLC and it sounds pretty epic. The story they hint at is

Spoiler

Another courier who is aware of your existence... and he's already related to Christine (one of the DLC characters) at a prior point. They met at a place called the Big Empty that contains a ton of pre-war tech, which is where Father Elijah was before he came here and went crazy. In the ending, they twice hint at a future battle between the courier (you) and the other courier known as the "Great Divide" fought under an ancient flag at the "end of the world".

Hopefully it delivers as it looks like it could.

Overall I give it a pretty good grade because the story is strong enough to outweigh some of the annoying gameplay aspects.

 

[vivisectvi]

Sounds fun, but Bethesda can go fuck themselves with this exclusivity bullshit again.

 

[Master Thrasher]

Sounds fun, but Bethesda can go fuck themselves with this exclusivity bullshit again.

Meh, they'll fix most of the bugs before the DLC gets released on PS3/PC. They really need to expand their QA department though because there are many bugs in this game.

 

[vivisectvi]

Bugs are virtually non-existant for me post-patch, TBH. I'm just annoyed that they would go this route again, like they did with Fallout 3. Knowing them we won't even get the DLC until a year after the games initial release.