Topic: Why all the hype for Fallout 4?

Ok at the cost of being tarred and feathered I just wanted to ask why all the hype with Fallout 4? I played Fallout 3 and a bit of New Vegas but I didn't find anything special about them. It was good don't get me wrong but the way the media and people are going on about it they are acting like it's the second coming of Christ. So I was wondering can some explain to me what makes these games so special? Did they offer some revolutionary gameplay or art style or something else I am missing. Not trying to sound rude or start an argument perhaps by shedding some light I will enjoy these games more but now as it stands I just don't get it.

I think it's primarily Bethesda - seen by many as the studio when it comes to open world role-playing games because of Oblivion, Fallout 3, and Skyrim.

Fallout 3 was a big deal back in 2008. Something about it just clicked with a lot of people, and I think it's fair to say that it paved the way for many players to explore other RPGs. I'd even argue that Fallout 3's success led - in part - to a resurgence of post-apocalyptic fiction over the last few years.

With Fallout 4, I feel people are just eager to see what a truly new-gen Fallout will be like.

The other thing is that I suppose Fallout appeals to quite a wide audience, despite its hardcore RPG roots. It's a shooter/RPG hybrid that's open world - and it's got a wicked sense of humour.

I don't think you're necessarily missing anything - if it didn't appeal to you there's not much more to say. It's easily one of the most anticipated games of this generation so far, though. It's going to sell like hotcakes.

I do have to give Bethesda props for consistently having good storytelling integrated into the gameplay. That is, it feels like in alot of their games the plot is leading rather than being a contrived story to explain the level design, and simultaneously without breaking down into MGS2 style 12 hours of cutscenes and 4 hours of gameplay.

That said there are other shooter-RPGs with a sense of humour out there, like Borderlands

Personally though, I never managed to get into fallout 3, its on my steam wall of shame . Fallout tactics way back in the day was pretty awesome though.

I'm not a Fallout fan, never played one. As far as Skyrim goes I played 40-50 hours and I was more or less done with it. But it's still pretty obvious to me why so many people love Bethesda's games.

I'll definitely be picking Fallout up before/at Christmas.

I played Fallout 3 for way longer than I'd ever usually play a single game, but I was chatting to @ShogunRok about this - I don't really remember anything about the story. I kinda came to the conclusion that it's moments, one-off encounters, and landmarks that really stick out in this series, and from what I've seen of Fallout 4 prior to release, it's going to have those in spades.

To be honest with you @Tasuki, I've found it difficult to muster the same fervour around this release as everyone else. It looks like a brilliant Fallout game, don't get me wrong - but I guess the charred Americana doesn't really do it for me. I know that when I do eventually pick it up closer to Christmas, though, I won't be able to put it down. There's just something really compulsive about Bethesda games, I guess.

I don't understand all the hype for it either. Fallout 3 was a good game but also had its flaws too - a lot of them! The Story wasn't memorable and like a lot of RPG's it was somewhat lost in all those side-quests. I also happened to stumble into the ending by accident whilst just roaming, trying to discover new areas etc and after seeing how it ended, I certainly lost a lot of interest in it. Mechanically its clunky but considering the scale and scope, its unsurprising. Fallout certainly wouldn't make my top 10 of last gen.
If I do get Fallout 4, it will be during a lull in game releases and I am looking for 'something' that can fill that void as Fallout games can offer a lot of hours worth of gaming. I doubt its release will be a smooth one either so I will pick it up after the inevitable patches and price drops!

Bethesda is one of the few companies I trust to consistently put out a quality product. Of course their engine is known to be the buggy mess we all know and love. Generally people are wary the first week or two, until it's clear that everything is appropriately patched up. Other than that, they never miss a beat when it comes to gameplay, story, and setting. All three are always a grand slam on Bethesday titles. And as an RPG fan nothing makes me happier than an announcement for one of their games. Fallout 3 was also one of my first RPGs, and definitely among the top 10 for me. I only started playing RPGs around 2008 so It took me by storm, suffice to say.

Those are all good points and the make sense, I guess in the end those games are just not for me hence why I don't get the hype. I am sure there will be games that I will hyped over and others wouldn't understand why.

Those are all good points and the make sense, I guess in the end those games are just not for me hence why I don't get the hype. I am sure there will be games that I will hyped over and others wouldn't understand why.

@Tasuki: Do you try and play the games though or just generally assume they arnt for you?

@Tasuki:

I actually kind of feel the same way. I like Fallout well enough, but I'd also say there are other Western RPGs that I like much more. I have a lot of respect for the work Bethesda does but the pacing in Fallout games has always seemed off to me and I've never been a huge fan of the combat element. That said, the series is pretty consistently in the upper 80s, lower 90s with reviews so the devs must be doing something right.

I don't know, I feel like my taste in games is a lot different than from others. Anything Halo, Deus Ex, inFamous or GTA or a new IP from Naughty Dog is instant hype (of course this doesn't mean I'm so blinded by hype that I can't recognize flaws if the games have them). However, I have absolutely no clue why people loved FF VII and why the remake is so anticipated but to each their own.

@kyleforrester87: Yes I played 3 and New Vegas. Finished 3 and it was alright nothing that made me go OMG THAT WAS THE BEST GAME EVER!!! New Vegas I got a bit into it and that was enough for me and I moved on to other games. It's odd really cause I like games like Borderlands but Fallout I don't known just doesn't ring any bells for me.

@Tasuki: Fair enough then. Sometimes all it takes is for a few key elements to appeal. For example some people enjoy the whole swords and shields thing over post apocalyptic wastelands so while they enjoy Skyrim they'll never dig Fallout, even though in other areas they are so similar.

It's one of the reasons I never got into Bioshock even though I know they are great games. Even the font they use for the title annoys me lol.

@Gamer83: I guess the reason why FF VII is so loved by many is cause it was their first JRPG game. Before that JRPG games where a niche thing, sure the SNES had a bunch and even the NES, Genesis and Master System had a few but unless you followed that genre, there was no way to know when a game like FF III came out. There was little to no advertising for FF III or Chrono Trigger or even Secret of Mana yet those are some the most popular JRPGS on the SNES. Sony was smart and made FF VII the Playstation's killer app and advertised the **** out of it so everyone knew about it before they had a PS and some even got one for it alone.

At least that's my theory.

@kyleforrester87: Lol what's funny about that is I don't even care for Skyrim. Honestly I prefer JRPGS over western ones.

But back to the topic I am happy for the Fallout fanbase though it's nice when developers listen to their fans.

@kyleforrester87: Lol what's funny about that is I don't even care for Skyrim. Honestly I prefer JRPGS over western ones.

But back to the topic I am happy for the Fallout fanbase though it's nice when developers listen to their fans.

@Tasuki:
Were JRPGs really that niche before FF VII though? The reason I ask is because back in those days, video games in general were still kind of looked at kids toys and certainly weren't as popular as they are today, so I'd say on the whole it was more that the entire market was still niche. I'll give Sony this. PSone took things to new heights and helped bring gaming much more mainstream. It's advertising in those games was brilliant so that certainly helped but a lot of people today will go back to PSone era games and can admit that many are still liked more for nostalgic reasons than anything. FF VII, however, seems to be one of those games that endures. It doesn't seem to do much different from prior JRPGs though and among the fanbase who played it from the start it seems like most of them who I talk to enjoy the NES and SNES Final Fantasies better. There was something Square got right with the game, but whatever it was it didn't click with me. To be fair to the game, around the time Super Mario RPG came out and I couldn't get into it, I realized turn-based gaming was no longer for me.

And to bring it back on topic, it's the exact same with Fallout. I completely agree with anybody who says it doesn't seem to be doing anything amazing but it's also entirely possible it's just my own biases getting in the way.

@Gamer83: I think the time for video games to become main stream just happened around the PS era. For one thing the kids who grew up with Nintendo, Genesis and SNES were all grown up now we could speak on our own on what we wanted to do with our time and money no longer did we have to deal with our parents telling us no you can't play video games cause they rot your brain or something along those lines. Heck for me the Playstation was the first system I bought with my own money rather then waiting and hoping I'd get one on my birthday or Christmas.

As far as JRPGS being a niche what I meant was even more so then other games. I remembering growing up seeing ads on tv for Mario games and sports games even puzzle games like Tetris and Dr Mario but I don't remember seeing any Chrono Trigger ads or Lufia and The Fortress of Doom ads or even Final Fantasy III. Heck even after Final Fantasy VII I didn't see many ads for JRPGS but that's another story.

As far as people playing previous FF games before 7, I only knew a few people who did and what's funny is like me they don't get the hype that surrounds FF 7 most people who hype up FF 7 didn't play a game in the series before and then when they have gone back and play say 6 they compare it to FF 7 but maybe that's just what it seems to me.

@Gamer83: FF7 did everything differently. CGI, 3d battles, more story telling as carts had limited space, better music as it was true cd quality, better backgrounds, etc etc.

Now this is were @Tasuki steps in Its like the step up from Fallout 2 - Fallout 3 that final fantasy 6 - final fantasy 7 was. Everything's realer, bigger, more detailed.

From your strange beginning in a cot (remember that) the journey was just about you. You are in that game. Blowing up megaton to get 100 gold, getting kicked out of every other town, developing your ability to trade when no one will talk to you. Great game - although a lot of games have copied bits of the template since.

truth is, most of the RPGs out there are fantasy setting, so Fallout, being post-apocalyptic open-world, is somewhat special. Actually, it's truly one of a kind. You can easily find plenty of Final Fantasy clones or what-ever-comes-to-your-mind-clones, but Fallout? An open-world RPG set in a possible post-apocalyptic world? It is truly one of a kind, so I believe that's where the hype comes from. Post-apo culture is huge, but expect from Mad Max, Fallout and Borderlands, we don't get much attention.

EDIT:
I saw you guys mentioning about the leap from Final Fantasy VI and VII and Fallout 2 to 3. I don't really think it's about that. Actually, a lot of Fallout fans were extremely disappointed with a change. If Fallout 4 went back to it roots and be a 2d, turn-based RPG, I would be as hyped as for the version we have now, Like I mentioned earlier, I believe we simply lack games in post-apo convention