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Fallout 4 is a post-apocalyptic open-world action-adventure game that can be played in first and third person. There are also elements of layered armor, customizable weapons as well as base building. The story sees the player setting out in to a wasteland in order to solve the mystery of their missing son.
SpecsUpdate
Pros
Pro Heavily moddable
Users can find all sorts of mods at Nexus Mods or Bethesda website, which will help expand and change the gameplay (including interface adjustments, graphical improvements, additional quests, and many other things) making for an infinitely playable game due to the vast amount of options available.
Pro Base building mechanic that makes for a solid distraction to the main story
Base building is a way that the player can collect components in the world to then use them to make their own base for equipment and supplies. There is also an interesting aspect where the player can attract NPCs in the game to their base in order to create a settlement (basically a small town of people). This can only be done in particular spaces in the game though. The rest of the base building mechanics can be used anywhere the player wants and in any style they like. If you want to build a floating base that only you can access, this can be done. Want to build a giant towering structure that goes as high as you like, you can do that too. Really there is very little limiting the player from creating anything they imagine for their base. This can make for a solid distraction from the main story of the game as the player can sink as much or as little time into it as they like.
Pro Huge world with a lot to discover
The Fallout world is massive and even outside of the main campaign there are so many things going on that the world feels real and alive. Lots of the buildings are actually enter-able and usually have something unique and interesting to discover. Many areas to explore, tons of quests to complete, and lots of collectibles to find. There's easily enough content to keep you playing for over a hundred hours.
Pro Companions can help make the game a little easier
There are a bunch of companions to find in the game, starting with a dog. Each companion has their own skills that can help the player in the game, such as the dog can find hidden items in the world and retrieve them. As the player progresses in the game, more companions can be found, though only one can be used at a time. They can be easily swapped out for those that would like to see what each offers easily. Even better is the player does not have to use one if they do not like, which may make the game a little more tough, but some may enjoy that challenge.
Pro Addicting building mechanic
One of the more interesting parts of managing your settlement is the house building aspect. There are various preset houses you can put down quickly, but you can make large structures entirely from scratch, starting with the foundation and ending with the roof of a 10 story building. While there are some constraints such as limited building area, you can really let your imagination loose, allowing you to spend countless hours on it.
Pro Unique loot
You can pick up most of the stuff you see laying around in Fallout 4. Every item, including weapons and armors, can be broken down into reusable crafting materials. This makes it hard to stop yourself from going around and collecting everything in sight because everything has a purpose.
You can also find unique versions of equipment on the corpses of legendary enemies. Each of these items has an additional effect such as speed boost or extra damage. This may cause you to constantly pick fights you'll probably lose, but it's worth it once you get your hands on that extremely good piece of equipment.
Pro Diverse enemy types keep the gameplay exciting
There a lot of different enemies found in the game such as super mutants, feral ghouls, robots, mutated wildlife, and many others. All of them have their unique behaviors, strengths, and weaknesses.
For example, robots often use heavy weaponry such as rocket launchers and lasers, making it really hard to deal with them. Fortunately enough, they're very vulnerable to EMP grenades and can also be hacked.
Another example are the feral ghouls that will almost always charge at you. They can surround you really fast, clawing away at your health and affecting you with radiation, but they lack any intelligence. So if you plant mines infront of you and attract them with gunshots, they'll lose their legs in the minefield, leaving them at your mercy.
The various enemy types and methods you can fight them with keeps the gameplay fresh for a long time.
Pro Deep perk/skill system
The perk/skill system is presented as a large grid of perks the player can pick from. As the player levels up, they earn skill points which can then be used to gain perks in this large grid. The choices are pretty vast with seven different areas that perks can be picked from. This is called the S.P.E.C.I.A.L. system, standing for Strength, Perception, Endurance, Charisma, Intelligence, Agility and Luck. Each of these seven skills have their own row of perks, of which those perks cost a certain amount of skill points to use. A total of 70 perks give the player a lot of choice and customization to their character.
If you want to make a character centered around being a sharp shooter, there are perks for that, if you want to focus on creating a tank of a character that can plow through enemies with little damage, there are perks for that too. This way anyone can create a very original character on each playthrough.
Pro Interesting settlement management
In Fallout 4 you can set up thriving communities in various locations. You'll have to provide the settlers with housing, bedding, water, food, and protection. Over time you'll be able to establish trade routes between the settlements and expand into an empire spanning the entire territory of Fallout 4. This really gives it the feeling like you're trying to rebuild society, which is a welcome change in a post-apocalyptic game.
Pro You can adjust equipment to suit your playstyle
In Fallout 4 you have a lot of options when modifying your equipment, giving you a chance to make equipment that matches your playstyle.
You can take an assault rifle and change most of its parts. Each part you can change has an upside and a downside to it. For example, adding a long range scope would make the rifle useless in close quarters, but it would be great for picking off targets from afar.
You can also tailor your armors for various situations. You can lower the weight or add pockets to make carrying loot easier. Or you can add additional linings or padding to gain increased protection against various hazards such as radiation.
Pro Great storyline that is expanded by sidequests
The main story has a very personal theme of family and revenge, featuring the main character looking for their lost son in a post-apocalyptic version of Boston. The side-quests also provide a decent backdrop, expanding on some of the plot elements of the main story. There are many twists and mysteries, but the narrative remains coherent throughout the story, creating a very enjoyable experience.
Pro Solid gunplay
Fallout has typically used a slowed down time-based gun mechanic called VATS, which works as an assisted shooting and aiming mechanic that allows one to pick the body parts of an enemy to target in slowed down time. This is very useful for getting out of tight spots, allowing you to instantly clear groups of enemies or kill a really tough enemy charging at you. It also has the benefit of making you feel like an expert gunman, even if your aim isn't that great. This system is present in Fallout 4, but the first/third person gunplay has been improved so much over previous titles that it is not as necessary to use anymore (as it once was). Basically, the gunplay works so well in this game that players can run and gun with ease, though the VATs system is still there for those that prefer it. Either way, the gunplay feels and plays well, no matter the system used, which makes for a varied design that feels solid and enjoyable. You can shoot from the hip, aim down the sights/scope, or even just run and gun.
Cons
Con Buggy gameplay
There are bugs in the game that users will run into. While most are not game breaking, it can detract from the experience.
Con The dialogue choices are confusing
Most of the dialogue choices will only show a few words that don't actually reflect what your character is gonna say. This creates a disconnect between you and your character, making it seem like you don't control what your character is gonna say at any point.
Con Occasional bugs
There are bugs in the game that users will run into. While most are not game breaking, it can detract from the experience.
Recommendations
Comments
Flagged Pros + Cons
Pro You can adjust equipment to suit your playstyle
In Fallout 4 you have a lot of options when modifying your equipment, giving you a chance to make equipment that matches your playstyle.
You can take an assault rifle and change most of its parts. Each part you can change has an upside and a downside to it. For example, adding a long range scope would make the rifle useless in close quarters, but it would be great for pick off targets from afar.
You can also tailor your armors for various situations. You can lower the weight or add pockets to make carrying loot easier. Or you can add additional linings or padding to gain increased protection against various hazards such as radiation.
Pro Diverse enemy types keep the gameplay exciting
There a lot of different enemies found in the game such as super mutants, feral ghouls, robots, mutated wildlife, and many others. All of them have their unique behaviors, strengths, and weaknesses.
For example, robots often use heavy weaponry such as rocket launchers and lasers, making it really hard to deal with them. Fortunately enough, they're very vulnerable to EMP grenades and can also be hacked.
Another example is the feral ghouls that will almost always charge at you. They can surround you really fast, clawing away at your health and affecting you with radiation, but they lack any intelligence. So if you plant mines in front of you and attract them with gunshots, they'll lose their legs in the minefield, leaving them at your mercy.
The various enemy types and methods you can fight them with keeps the gameplay fresh for a long time.
Pro Great storyline
The main story has a very personal theme of family and revenge, featuring a main character looking for their lost son in a post-apocalyptic version of Boston. The side-quests also provide a decent backdrop, expanding on some of the plot elements of the main story. There are many twists and mysteries, but the narrative remains coherent throughout the story, creating a very enjoyable experience.
Pro Huge world with loads of content
The world of Fallout 4 is massive so there's quite a lot to do. Many areas to explore, tons of quests to complete, and lots of collectibles to find. There's easily enough content to keep you playing for over a hundred hours.
Pro Great selection of mods
You can find all sorts of mods at the Bethesda website, giving you the freedom to change the parts of the game you don't like. This includes interface adjustments, graphical improvements, additional quests, and many other things.
Pro Addictive to collect loot
You can pick up most of the stuff you see laying around in Fallout 4. Every item, including weapons and armors, can be broken down into reusable crafting materials. This makes it hard to stop yourself from going around and collecting everything in sight because everything has a purpose.
You can also find unique versions of equipment on the corpses of legendary enemies. Each of these items has an additional effect such as speed boost or extra damage. This may cause you to constantly pick fights you'll probably lose, but it's worth it once you get your hands on that extremely good piece of equipment.
Pro Solid gunplay with an interesting twist
The gunplay plays so well it almost feels like a pure FPS. You can shoot from the hip, aim down the sights/scope, or even just run and gun. However, what makes Fallout 4 stand out is VATS (Vault-Tec Assisted Targeting System). When you activate VATS, the time slows down to a crawl, allowing you to mark body parts of enemies. When you execute it your character will automatically shoot the marked body parts. This is very useful for getting out of tight spots, allowing you to instantly clear groups of enemies or kill a really tough enemy charging at you. It also has the benefit of making you feel like an expert gunman, even if your aim isn't that great.
Pro Incredible modding possibilities
Over 59.000 Mods big and small to customize your experience in any way you want.