Stitch on 7/11/2008 at 15:35
Quote Posted by Matthew
From what I've played so far I'd have to say you're being overly harsh on the quality of the writing and the voice acting, mothra.
While I'd agree with "overly harsh," Mothra is still on to something here. As good as the game is--and I think it's actually quite good--there's an absurd lack of polish that is most apparent whenever you interact with people. Dialogue is generally lackluster at best and all evidence points to few proper proofreading passes ("your" and "you're" are two different words, guys). Seeing that kind of shit in an A-list game is baffling, although Bethesda have kind of turned it into a tradition by this point.
Having said that, the game isn't really social enough to make that much of a hindrance. The game perfectly captures the haunted loneliness of wandering the ashes of a destroyed civilization.
Rogue Keeper on 7/11/2008 at 16:49
Quote Posted by Angel Dust
Also I don't know if I'm alone on this, but does wandering around these decimated city scapes at night remind anyone else of a somewhat forgotten classic that came Bethesda studios many year ago?
Wow, thanks for mentioning this coincidence! I think many of us forgot they're not new in the post-apo field... even though I played Future Shock only for a short while.
I presume I can't shoot the Moon down this time?
242 on 7/11/2008 at 17:01
Quote Posted by BR796164
Wow, thanks for mentioning this coincidence! I think many of us forgot they're not new in the post-apo field... even though I played Future Shock only for a short while.
I remember this game from 94 or 95 (or was it 96?), was VERY impressed by its huge (as it seemed to me) world, and unusual for 1st person exploration and freedom back then.
Sulphur on 7/11/2008 at 17:10
Quote Posted by BR796164
I presume I can't shoot the Moon down this time?
Heh, I remember doing that in the demo way back when I was a kid on my dad's 486. I was fairly cackling with glee when it went 'ouch' and then fell away into the horizon.
Sulphur on 7/11/2008 at 21:20
Quote Posted by Stitch
While I'd agree with "overly harsh," Mothra is still on to something here. As good as the game is--and I think it's actually quite good--there's an absurd lack of polish that is most apparent whenever you interact with people. Dialogue is generally lackluster at best and all evidence points to few proper proofreading passes ("your" and "you're" are two different words, guys). Seeing that kind of shit in an A-list game is baffling, although Bethesda have kind of turned it into a tradition by this point.
Having said that, the game isn't really social enough to make that much of a hindrance. The game perfectly captures the haunted loneliness of wandering the ashes of a destroyed civilization.
Oh, I don't know, Stitch. The text certainly needs cleanup in places, but the voice-overs, while not consistently top-shelf material, aren't as utterly flat and emotionless as the majority of Oblivion's. From what I've seen so far, there's actually some
character in the characters this time around.
Part of this also stems from the branching quest lines and the outcome of the decisions you make. I'm pleasantly surprised at how many different ways you can deal with quests, and that a lot of your choices actually do have repercussions, some of which is reflected in the characters themselves.
IMO it's this, along with some of the other deft touches in the game that translate to that intangible thing called 'soul'. It's odd, but for a game that's set in an arid wasteland, it seems that a lot more life was poured into it than the pretty but hollow experience that was Oblivion.
Of course, I don't think it matches the original Fallout - not from what I've played so far, at least - but it makes a pretty damn good effort.
Ostriig on 7/11/2008 at 21:40
Quote Posted by Sulphur
The text certainly needs cleanup in places, but the voice-overs, while not consistently top-shelf material, aren't as utterly flat and emotionless as the majority of Oblivion's. From what I've seen so far, there's actually some
character in the characters this time around.
I'll second that. It's no award-winning performance, there's room for much better, but the dialog seems to hit the spot fine enough. Personally, I haven't noticed grammatical errors but then again, having full voice-overs, I wasn't paying too much attention to the text, just skimming it.
I think that something that generally works against the quality of dramatics in a game like Fallout 3 is the sheer size of the whole thing. I'd like to see Bethesda taking a stab at a more focused experience, a game with a smaller-scale setting, and a more minutely detailed version of their AI system providing for a greater degree of interconnection between minor and major plot points, along with a seemingly more realistic "awareness" of the NPC cast.
ZylonBane on 7/11/2008 at 22:13
Quote Posted by Renzatic
You can pick up a better AGP card than that. ATI made Radeons in AGP flavors all the way up HD3x line.
I could, but it'd be a waste. When half the ports on your computer are officially deprecated, you know it's time to move on.
And I would kill for a modern-tech update of Terminator: Future Shock. I spent countless hours wandering the barren, robot-infested wasteland of that game. Sounds like FO3 would be perfect for it. Only thing missing is a collection of evil robots to fight.
Angel Dust on 7/11/2008 at 22:45
Yeah, Terminator: Future Shock is one of my all time favourites and has one of the most immersive gameworlds I've ever experienced.
Regarding Fallout 3's dialog what really hurts the game is that after big events happen there is usually very little acknowledgement from the NPC directly affected by it. I know that's par for the course for most RPG's, Fallout 1/2 being no exceptions, but I would have thought Bethseda would have the resources to put a little but more into the writing side of things for some alternate sets of dialog. It's particularly jarring since when they go halfway with a few alternate dialog lines, reflecting the changes in the world "Now that my Dad is dead etc.., before going back to canned responses "My Dad is ...".
Yakoob on 8/11/2008 at 02:58
The one thing that really bothers me about the dialogue is that, a lot of the times, once you speak to one person, you've spoken to them all. A great example is the Tenpenny tower. Every single person has the exact same dialogue options. Every single person has the exact same responses. Except for maybe one or two, there is absolutely no reason to even talk to these people since they will just give you the old same o yea ghouls suck Zylon's dick response all the time. It's really pissing me off since I have the obsession to explore every nook and cranny and talk to every single person, so it really shows.
catbarf on 8/11/2008 at 04:07
Quote Posted by BR796164
Wow, thanks for mentioning this coincidence! I think many of us forgot they're not new in the post-apo field... even though I played Future Shock only for a short while.
I presume I can't shoot the Moon down this time?
Skynet, which seems to be the sequel to Future Shock, was one of the first games I ever played. That brings back memories- mostly of being scared shitless by all of the enemies.
