The height of the FromSoft rule: The bad parts are there, but the good parts are so good that you can ignore the bad parts. Sure, the formula for bosses has only improved with time and has reached new heights with Bloodborne and Dark Souls III. Sure, the build variety in Dark Souls II and Elden Ring is a lot more diverse and open. Sure, this game plays much, much slower than what came after it, to the point of it being considered one of the easiest entries in the series solely for how easy its combat can be. I'll even acquiesce to the public opinion and say that maybe the second half isn't as good as the first half, both in terms of level design and bosses. By all technical accounts, this game is pretty much outmoded and surpassed by its peers, except for one detail: the heart. At the end of the day, I really don't care how this plays in comparison to the other games, because it just feels so good, so warm, so full of love and care for the world and the player. Thematically rich, stylistically breathtaking, intricately built, very clearly made by special people who wanted to make something beautiful. If I had to choose only one game to play for the rest of my life, it'd be this without a doubt. Next time I replay it, I'll probably have even more to say on it. It's the well that never runs dry.

If I could describe this game in one word, it would be overstated. Not necessarily overrated, because I do think it's earned its praise, but overstated because I think people blow some of the features out of proportion. The RPG elements are really only effective in regards to your shooting, the openness is not quite as limitless as you'd expect, and I don't think this game is as "prophetic" as people say it is. I'm sure you lot all agree, but I get a special thorn in my side whenever I read a comment that says something along the likes of "this is the real world we're living in!!!!" That's not to say it's not incredibly impressive with how much it got right; aside from a certain billionaire's recent escapades with a certain social media site perfectly replicating the main antagonist, the constant paranoia and unease of a post-Patriot Act world is captured excellently to an almost unsettling degree. The miasma of disbelief whenever you talk to a new person as the game continues is a good example of the game's greatest strength: its immersion. Finding a code for a locked door by thoroughly searching a room you merely glazed over before. Talking to people to get information that contradicts what you've heard before, making you want to double-check all the facts you've been given. Listening to some banging ambient techno background music to really get yourself in that cyberpunk mindset. Despite how much Deus Ex uses these tricks, they somehow never get old, and still feel satisfying to be a part of. There's a constant feeling of everything you're doing being your way of doing things that just... really clicks with me. It's hard to explain, it just makes you feel like you're actually doing something in the world.

It has a couple hefty flaws, the biggest one being how awful the AI is. I know it was 2000, but jesus are the enemies ever inconsistent. Barrel at them down a hallway at mach 4 with a rocket launcher in your hands and they'll barely blink, accidentally drop a knife 3 rooms away from them and they'll hone in on your location like they had wallhacks. The combat itself isn't terribly great, with unupgraded weapons being practically impossible to use, though it does make it more satisfying when you finally get the skill points to properly use a gun you want. Not that any of that even matters because combat is effectively disabled about a third through the game with a saddeningly powerful melee weapon that renders pretty much every bullet weapon completely obsolete. In general, this game's strengths very clearly lie in its world, freedom, and immersion rather than its combat, and it really shows in some areas.

Overall, I enjoyed playing this. Some areas were a little too grindy (the final boss battle really leaves a bad taste in your mouth), but nearly all of the levels in this are phenomenally designed, especially near the back half of the game. I don't see myself coming back for a replay any time soon, but I can definitely see it happen in the future when I need a refresher on how immersive games can really be. JC Denton, my beloved.

I'll be fair and not score this since I didn't complete it, but even if I did want to score it, I don't know what it'd be. More than anything, this game is interesting. It's neat to kind of go back in time and see my favorite game franchise's roots, concepts that would get reused or honed in future installments, and for what it is, it is still pretty impressive just how much they got right on the first go. But I can't bring myself to keep going. The disjointed level design, mixed atmosphere (either really great or pretty flat), and overall combat jankiness make this an unenjoyable experience for me. The only reason I played the original was so that I could see its art style before going onto the remake, as I didn't want just one version to live in my mind. I don't think the remake will solve all my problems, but I have hopes it will at least feel smoother than this. At the end of the day, even if I don't like playing this game, I can really respect it and especially Miyazaki's vision.

It feels incredibly bizarre to finally complete my arc, but yeah, I love this game. I made a promise around 8 months ago that once the endgame was better handled that I'd gladly come back and give this the love it deserves; I'm happy to announce that I can fulfill that promise. I don't know if it's because I spent more time exploring that I was more leveled up and had better gear, or if my time away let me ruminate on my feelings towards this game, or if even my new PC setup made it a smoother experience, but something clicked in my brain, and I'm now officially a whole-hearted fan of this game. It has its flaws, yes, and I do think that the latter parts of the game that are less exploration-heavy are weaker than the rest, but they make up for it by having excellent level design, crushingly hard boss fights, and an overall sense of brevity to a lot of the story details near the end. But, man, when you have this much great stuff in one package, I feel like it's almost nitpicking to say that one part of the game isn't as great as the rest. I don't want to copout a review, but really, there's just so much that I can't even talk about it all. I'm beyond happy to love this game now, and I can absolutely see myself sinking more and more hours into it as time goes on. I would consider this the peak of the Souls formula, even if it's not my personal favorite (nor my vote for the best), and I truly wonder how FromSoft is going to follow this up, if they even will at all. Can't wait for the DLC.

As much as I want to give this a higher rating due to its charm, there are some elements that really hold it back for me. The bosses aren't that great, sailing is a neat concept that grows stale pretty quickly, and the last third of the game (Triforce Hunt + Ganon's Tower) completely drops the ball and grinds progression to a halt. In terms of the actual "Zelda" aspects of the game, it's lacking. But, the temples are all actually really solid, the art style is iconic and super fun to see, the music is fantastic and my 2nd favorite Zelda soundtrack (behind Majora's), the lore and Ocarina callbacks are surprisingly intriguing and captivating, and the characters are all very sweet and loveable, even ones you don't see very often. The critical half of me and the loving half of me are fighting hard over this game, but in the end, I think the loving half wins just a bit. This game's adorable, man. Even if its adventure aspects are somewhat uneven, the world itself is an absolute delight, and make up for the undercooked parts.

It's time for me to face the music.

I decided to replay this game for the first time in almost a decade, successfully aiming to get a true 101% completion, colored bananas and all. This game really means a lot to me; it's the first game I remember really getting into, I have a ton of vivid childhood memories of going through it at various ages and learning more and more about it, it's partially responsible for making me a furry, and I've always been ready to come up to bat to defend it from the naysayers. Sure, it's dated, but it's still good, right? ... right?

It's really hard to tackle the many issues this game has, so to get it out of the way, I'll talk about the good. As to be expected from Rare, it's incredibly charming. All the characters are so vivid and full of personality, from idle animations to falling screams to their weapon choices, everything really sticks with you and makes you smile throughout the entire game. The art style is very fun, managing to create such colorful and varied scenery with the N64's limited ability. Although, hands down, the best aspect of this game might be its sound design. Grant Kirkhope is one of the true gaming composing legends, and he once again proves it in this game. All the sound effects are so memorable and playful, and the music consistently goes crazy hard, especially the boss themes. The gameplay, while repetitive, does have some really fun moments; I love all the minecart sequences, some of the puzzles are really clever, and in general the levels are surprisingly atmospheric and rich for such a silly game. However, cracks are going to show if you stay in these levels for long periods.

There are three major complaints I see towards this game: #1 is that there's too many collectibles, #2 is that it's too segmented, and #3 is that it relies on mini-games too much. I would like to actually defend the first point, I think the amount of collectibles works perfectly from a level-to-level basis and really never feels like it's overbearing, unless including all colored bananas. 5 Golden Bananas for each Kong (which is really 4 + finding an enemy), 5 Banana Medals, 2 Banana Fairies, and a Battle Crown. Sure, it sounds like a lot when you write it down like that, but it flows fine in-game and doesn't leave too many sloggish moments. However, complaint #2 is not something I can defend at all. The game is too segmented. Full stop.

Having a game be linear and segmented is not necessarily a bad thing, e.g. Ocarina of Time, but the problem in DK64 arises from the unbelievable level of backtracking that you have to do if you plan on collecting everything. There are numerous levels where teleport pads are used just to bring one Kong to a room they otherwise could not have gotten to just to shoot a balloon and gain 10 bananas. It doesn't feel fun or satisfying, it just leads to a slow trek back to a Tag Barrel to swap for the one Kong you need, teleporting to the room, shooting, and walking all the way back to continue with the level. There are also a lot of occasions of one room having to be entered and exited with multiple different Kongs, which while seeming clever at first, just leads to a very repetitive and stale experience where you go in and out and in and out and in and out of the same room with very little difference. You're not seeing 5 different rooms, you're seeing 1 room 5 times, and it gets grating. Luckily, there is a romhack that mitigates some of these issues, allowing you to swap Kongs at almost any moment, which significantly cuts down the backtracking. You would think that would be a major solution, and I will definitely admit that it helps a lot, but it still doesn't solve everything, specifically...

Complaint #3, too many mini-games. Yes, yes, yes, and yes. I don't remember the exact number, but I believe the total amount of Golden Bananas obtained solely through Bonus Barrels is over 25, if not over 30. That's not a small amount, especially when you consider that some mini-games are only used once, which means the rest are repeated over and over. Some are fine (Kremling Kosh), some are tedious (Stealthy Snoop), and some make you want to crush your controller in your hands (Minecart Mayhem). Overall, it's a lot more negative than positive, and you just keep seeing them, all the way to the literal end of the game, you will see mini-games. But the thing that really bothers me, the thing that really pushed me over the edge and made me realize a huge flaw in the design, is how the mini-games are used. Occasionally, it's something as simple as hitting a switch and then going into a Bonus Barrel; it's basic, sure, but that's all it needs to be. Other times, a Bonus Barrel is used as a supplement for a regular Golden Banana for solving a puzzle. Really think about this: they're giving you the opportunity to gain a Golden Banana, rather than just giving you the Banana. It sucks away so much of the enjoyment of figuring something out, having your "a-ha!", and feeling the satisfaction of hearing the success sound effect, just to see a Bonus Barrel pop up. If I wasn't going for 100%, I would've absolutely skipped most of them.

That's actually something I felt during a lot of this playthrough, and I feel an accurate summation of the game's flawed design. There is some great stuff in here, and the layouts of the levels themselves is pretty consistently good, but so much of it is bogged down by how tedious and grindy 100%'ing it is. Normally that wouldn't be an issue, but it's a collect-a-thon game, a genre that actively encourages you to go out of your way and search every nook and cranny to get every possible thing you can. Unfortunately, doing that here leads to an actively worse experience than if you were to just play the game "normally" and be willing to give up when a Banana just gets too frustrating to unlock, if you're okay with not having every number be maxed out, every slot filled. That's the biggest takeaway I can give for this game: it's a collect-a-thon where the best possible way to play is to not collect everything.

Do I still like this game? Yes, I do. It still means a lot to me and I really can't even say it's terrible, but it is horribly flawed and its dated design will most likely only continue to age worse and worse as time goes on. Who knows, maybe there will be a collect-a-thon revival in a few years and people will come back to love this. Would be cool. For now, though, it remains as a massive guilty pleasure for my inner kid, while the adult on the outside is suffering headaches from doubling back for the 5th time looking for the last green banana bunch.

This is a very uneven game. There are some parts of it that are my favorite parts of the whole series, and some that make me not want to ever replay this.

The game's biggest sin is how strict it is about when and where you can warp. It puts a lot of arbitrary limits that don't actually affect the world or storytelling that much, and just make things feel like a hassle of constantly asking "can i warp yet" until the game finally says yes. The in-between sections, where you're outside of temples, can be total slogs sometimes, especially towards the back half of the game. So much needless backtracking and fetching, made worse by the again draconic warping. This isn't too major of a complaint, since you don't use her that much, but holy god above are the horse controls ever awful. Extremely clunky and unresponsive, I don't know how an N64 game got it right while this completely fumbled the ball.

All that aside, however, this is the most fun I've had with this series in a long time. Midna is such a wonderful companion; her dialogue is delightfully spunky, she's actually useful both in the story and in gameplay (unlike near every one of her contemporaries in the series), and she has some shockingly compelling character growth for one of these games. The combat is ridiculously fun, easily the best in the series, it's super nuanced and it allows you to pull off cool combos and finishers rather than the typical "block, hit, block, hit" affair. My favorite part of the game by far, though, is the temples. I know a lot of people complain that they're too long, and while I agree, that's personally a plus. I love how atmospheric and labyrinthine they can feel, like you really are an adventurer lost in some ancient structure. Even outside of that, they feel much more unique in this, with some pretty interesting concepts that are executed really well. Also, the art style. Even the people who don't like this game have quietly applauded it, and for good reason. Everything has such a carved, abstract look to it that makes certain designs really pop out and leaves nothing looking bland or uninteresting; even the most basic of enemies are memorable just because of how they look in this style. I wanted to mention this but didn't know where to put it, but I feel like this is the true sequel to Ocarina of Time. I can't really place why, but a lot of this game has a vibe of taking place long after it, and this Link pulls upon the power of Ocarina Link. It's a really, really interesting vibe that makes me love the game even more.

All told, this is a great game with some soaring highs and some screeching lows. It definitely feels more subjective than other games in the series, I see some people praise the aspects that others criticize. Me personally, I'd consider myself a fan of it, even with its flaws. Its length will prevent me from coming back to it too often, but I still had a really fun time with it, and I definitely recommend it.

I've been delaying writing this review for a few hours because I was busy playing through it again. I want to be critical and say that it doesn't need to exist (which it doesn't, really), or say that it's a 9/10 due to some aspects that are lesser than the original, but nah, fuck it. It's still RE4, and it's still great.

I guess I'll start with my short list of complaints, which are more like nitpicks, really. The RE2make style aiming is a great way to mimic the classic tank controls, but it does feel a bit restrictive at times, leading to more than a few scenarios of getting hit when you didn't need to, due to having to stand near-perfectly still to aim. I do wish there was some kind of recipe for making a "knife repair kit" on the fly, because while I absolutely love the new knife system, it can be a bit strict on just how much you can use it if you're not careful. Granted, I think this is a deliberate choice, but it's just so fun to use that it's hard not to. Uhm... a couple rooms were removed that I liked from the original? Does kind of bum me out, but not nearly enough for it to matter. Legitimately, maybe my biggest and most wholehearted complaint for this remake is that suplexes no longer explode cultists' heads. Your kicks still explode heads, why not your suplexes???

Nah, I can't do this anymore. Making a remake, as much as some overly critical gamers might disagree with me, is not easy. You change too much, you have people saying it's not the same game. You change too little, you have even more people wondering why it was made. With such a delicate balance in mind, remaking a game like Resident Evil 4 should be like walking a razor's edge; questionable and moderately concerning to everyone watching, even your biggest fans. Capcom, being Capcom, decided to start breakdancing on the razor. Not only do they perfectly understand what made the original so beloved and able to withstand the test of time, they were brave enough to change things up to keep it fresh and prevent it from being a 1:1 remake. Certain sequences are redone, boss fights are added onto while still retaining their original feel, and even the characters have had a good level of polish to them, while still keeping great care to not deviate from their original versions. They didn't make a game that held hands and appealed only to new players, and they didn't make a game mired in nostalgia and self-references that appealed to veterans, they made a game that anyone can pick up and feel like it was their first time playing RE4.

It's always been very hard for me to describe why RE4 works, why it's such a great game, and unfortunately that difficulty has stuck with me, but throughout my entire time playing this, I was constantly shocked at how little I was thinking "the original did this better" or "I don't like this change". Hell, most of the times I did think that were for a line delivery that was less cheesy than I had wished, which of course makes sense for the REmakes; the perfect balance of serious and cheese. Leon is grittier and less goofier here, but still knows how to show off and crack some great action movie one-liners. Salazar is played a bit more straight, but is still just as absurd and sneering as his original. Granted, I do miss hearing "MEESTAR KENNEDYYYYYY", but the new version is certainly not a bad replacement. It's more realistic, sure, but not soulless in the slightest. The exact same sentiment stands for the visuals, as well. I feel like too many critical gamers have the belief that photorealism = soullessness, and while I get why such a belief exists, I can't think of a worse game to apply it to than this. It is still just as stylized as the original, with characters all looking incredibly distinct and memorable; not even characters, your guns all look really unique, the different areas do, even basic props still have a very video game-y feel to them while looking fantastic doing so.

Yeah, man, I don't know what else to write here. I've been up all night playing this, and this is just my scribbled out rambling thoughts so I can get back to playing it more. I will leave on a very important thought: I do not think this is better than the original. Similarly, I don't think it's worse, either. I think they are both exceptional action-horror games that have their own great strengths and minor weaknesses. I will probably end up coming back to this version more simply for the gameplay, but that's not necessarily a reflection on quality. The original's level design is still unbeatable, but the new gameplay additions in this version give it an undeniable edge for me. Point is, I don't think we need to hate on one version to praise another. The original is still available to play (unlike RE2 and 3...), and I think this is a fine modern counterpart to it, rather than a full-on replacement. We can like both! Hopefully, that sentiment will begin to ring true in some of this game's detractors. An excellent remake that stands toe-to-toe with the original in nearly every front, and one I'm going to be spending a lot of time with for a very long while.

It's mind-blowingly racist to the point of 1920s-style caricature.

But it's RE4 with co-op.

The pacing is all over the place, leading to sections that feel overly dramatic for no reason and a short length that you really notice.

But it's RE4 with co-op.

The plot has too many infodumps that, while interesting to the worldbuilding, lead to even more pacing issues to have you stop in your tracks and read a file on a computer somewhere.

But it's RE4 with co-op.

Sheva is a terribly underutilized character with a lot of squandered potential, and in her finished state, really only heightens the accusations of stereotyping.

But it's RE4 with co-op.

The inventory system is a massive stepdown from the previous iterations in every way, feeling overly strict a la the classic games without having the tension of said strictness, nor the satisfaction of creating an arsenal of weapons by rearranging your inventory spaces.

But it's RE4 with co-op.

The bosses range from boring to actively infuriating with their lengths, most being conceptually great but suffering from being overly long and tedious, with some being so mechanically strict that you'll find yourself getting hit through no real fault of your own.

But it's RE4 with co-op.

Also, there's Wesker.

There's so much I want to say about this game that I struggle to find the words for. If my critical mind can tell the truth, this isn't a 5/5. Its flaws are much too glaring to swipe under the rug in its worst moments, and its gameplay cycle is quite repetitive at the end of the day. However, if a game this shoddily put together has the sheer confidence to grab me by the shoulders, look me in the eye, and tell me to play through it 3 times, and I find myself obeying without a single doubt in my mind? I believe that's worthy of the score I've given. Impossibly rich with its themes and writing, and meticulously crafted in regards to its world, all in stark contrast to the deceivingly low quality of its gameplay and graphics. A miracle of a game, no questions asked. Will I find myself replaying it in favor of its requel? I'll be truthful and say no, but I'm alright with having experienced everything this has to offer me in the 70+ hours I've sank into it. I feel like I've just closed one of the greatest books I'll ever read, and that feeling alone nets this game my praise. This game will live with me forever, I feel, and I welcome it.

Conceptually perfect with a great base to build off of, but nearly everything good about this game is heavily weighed down by a clunky and finnicky engine. When a game is supposed to have really fluid and dynamic combat, having to stand still to activate it makes things feel herky-jerky and unsatisfying. Most of the gunfights in this I had to savescum my way through, despite hitting my marks most of the time. It's a serious shame, because this is a really great game at its core. The noir mood is superb, the way the story just keeps evolving and growing into something more is perfectly done, and the idea of bullet time in combat is so brilliant, even with the sloppy execution. There's a reason this game is as important as it is, and I definitely felt that while playing, even if I had my frustrations with the gameplay. I'm not one to endorse remakes (though I will gladly partake in them), but I definitely feel like this game could really shine from having some better tuning. Until then, my feelings on it will most likely remain the same.

So, the fact that it took me this long to play this is kind of a cardinal sin for someone who has New Vegas in their top 5. I can't even use the excuse of "well, I don't like the older games", because I love Fallout 1! For a lot of reasons, some that were still retained in this playthrough, I just never could finish this. I tried maybe 5 or 6 times, and I'd always get to The Den and just peter out. This time through, I put my foot down and made myself beat it, and... I certainly went through an arc.

As previously mentioned, I really do love Fallout 1, even with its flaws. I know the combat is a bit boring, and there are some glaring QOL issues, but I always considered it to be a marvelously tight experience that mastered the atmosphere of a post-apocalyptic America. There's no real major factions, there's essentially just tribes with differing ideas that still find a way to war with each other. It felt desolate, bleak, hopeless, but those all complimented the game's tone perfectly. Now, the reason I bring all this up is because I don't think Fallout 2 succeeds in that capacity at all, really.


This isn't necessarily a bad thing, and I think it makes sense to see the wasteland grow and evolve, but I feel it leads to an extreme tonal dissonance at times. The political aspects, such as anything Enclave related or the three-way battle for power between the NCR, Vault City, and New Reno, are all done really well, and show that the writing can still be top-notch when it needs to be. I also really loved the expanded-upon themes from Fallout 1; whereas that game focused on the cyclical nature of humanity by looking at small groups still warring over ideology, here the focus is shifted more to the downfalls of the layman, like illicit drug trading, gambling, brothels, and government corruption. It makes it feel like a real sequel, developing the concepts that would grow to be a through line for the rest of the series. The comedic moments, while definitely hilarious at times, tended to stick out to me, and made the game feel a bit less serious, despite trying to be with the aforementioned themes and conflicts. It felt like it was constantly flip-flopping between both sides, and I can't say I loved the feeling. The pop culture references, even if some did get a chuckle out of me, were way too on the nose and often just resulted in me rolling my eyes, I can't stress how much better New Vegas handled them than this. I definitely think that the feel of the game improves drastically as you continue, because the first few areas feel completely flat to me, neither politically nor comedically intriguing, just fodder for you to milk information from. Fallout 1 did this, too, but I find that the early areas in that are much, much more interesting and diverse.

As for the gameplay, little has changed, outside of a few QOL features and having companions that aren't mostly useless cardboard cutouts, which is nice. The flow of weaponry is mostly the same; early game pistol, middle game SMG or shotgun, late game energy weapon, but they definitely give you enough wiggle room to use what you're comfortable with, including a much higher focus to melee and unarmed. This somewhat backfires in the beginning, as having to use melee leads to some very drawn-out and unfun combat moments, but as soon as you get your first real gun, things start going a lot smoother. I do want to mention one aspect of "gameplay" that is definitely a step down from 1; there's barely any talking heads! Seriously, this game has maybe triple the amount of characters to talk to, and yet half the number of talking heads. Sure, it made the NPCs that do have them really stick out (Frank Horrigan...), but it led to a lot of quests feeling kind of dull when you're not really seeing the person you're talking to.

Regardless of my complaints, this is still a Black Isle Fallout game, and they really are the masters of RPG progression. Sure, at the end of the day, it's still point-and-click and turn-based combat, but they know how to make you feel like what you're doing is important, and that's what really matters. I've heard a lot of people say that this is just "Fallout 1 but more", and I think it's an apt way to put it, but it has to be noted that that includes both the pros and cons of Fallout 1. As a result, you'll have a lot of fun with the quests, character creation, and different factions, at the cost of it feeling like a looser (meandering, at worst) experience. But hey, it's set around Reno and San Fran, you can't expect things to be too uptight, yeah?

I will grit my teeth and do everything I can to not draw comparisons to New Vegas, a game that is better than this on literally every front, and instead look at it as its own experience and as a sequel to Fallout 1 and 2.

Nothing you do in this game matters. Nothing. There's no choice that you make that ever has an impact on the story, you just walk a straight line to the end while the writers beat you over the head with their ideas and themes that they want to develop but never spend any time doing so. Bethesda is so terrified that you might not enjoy their story and world, so they trip over their own feet at every turn to make you connected, despite it being completely counterintuitive. A 20-minute long intro that takes you through the first 19 years of your life! Wow, don't you feel connected with your character and the places you see? Don't you love your good ol' dad? Oh no, the Vault is melting down (or something)! Aren't you sad about this? After all, this is where you grew up! I won't go into spoiler territory, even though the "twists" in the story really do not matter, but the examples I gave are just the tip of the iceberg of how much Bethesda grabs you by the back of the head and bashes your face into its story.

So, a lot of people who defend this game would respond to all of my complaints about the main story with a reasonable rebuttal: sure, it's not a good story, but the side quests and world design are pretty great. Alright, that's understandable, and I kept that in mind while I played, but I find that this isn't true at all. Side quests are more than the surface objectives, it's what they mean, to you and to the world around you. Fallout 2 had a quest that was nothing more than going across the street and buying a plow for a Vault City slave, and that had more impact on me than anything this game had to offer. Now, that isn't me being snarky and cynical for no reason, I'm offering it up to make a point; as much as FO3 tries, and it tries very hard, there is never a real connection with the player and the world around them because of how shoddily it's put together. Things exist and happen for no reason, characters are all completely flat, motives make no sense (when they're not blatantly aping the previous 2 entries), nothing in the game feels impactful to you at all. What's the point in me doing side quests if my reward is learning more about this poorly written world from poorly written characters with poorly directed voice actors? There's no sense of satisfaction, because my actions don't mean anything. My dialogue options are nothing more than "kind response", "neutral response", and "mean response". It's almost funny how the other games in the series have been critiqued for having Karma systems that mean practically nothing, when this game goes out of its way to flaunt its Karma system that has even less impact and feels even more phoned-in than the other games. I also want to mention, with regards to the side quests, that you have to find a great deal of them organically, via digging through the world for settlements. On the surface, this isn't a bad idea, but the problem is how segmented the world design is, on both micro and macro scales. Areas are unnecessarily broken up and labyrinthian just to make you have to find byzantine routes around, and said areas are thrown about randomly throughout the wasteland, with very rare instructions pointing you in any real direction. Not only that, but everything blends in visually to the point that you might glaze right over a possible area and side quests just because it didn't grab your eye. I never felt any drive to explore the wasteland because, outside of the quests having no meaning to me, it just never made me feel like the trek to find things would be worth it.

This shouldn't come as a shock, but all nuance and subtext in this is practically non-existent. Again, discounting New Vegas, compared solely to 1 and 2, it is genuinely impressive how much this game fumbles any and all meaning in its text. The Bible verse that is bludgeoned into your head relentlessly throughout the game is the perfect example of this; taking symbolism from the Bible, an incredibly symbolic and metaphor-ridden text, and playing it completely straight. The verse mentions water, and you're bringing water to the wastelands! Do you get it yet? Do you understand that whenever we bring up the water, we want you to think about how clever we are for choosing that Bible verse? Everything else in the game is the exact same way, absolutely zero subtlety and everything that could have even the slightest nuance being played completely straight and blunt. Wow, the guy who traps people in a simulation of the 50s is obsessed with the past and doesn't want things to change! It's so tiring. It is so, so tiring.

With as much as I rip this game to shreds, and believe me, it deserves every ounce, I have to reluctantly give it one compliment. Bethesda did a pretty good job at adapting the Fallout visual and gameplay style to a 3D world, with little details thrown in like Vault layouts, certain weapon and world models faithfully recreated, even the dialogue you tell your companions being similar to the games previous. But, I don't know how genuine of a compliment "you managed to follow the exact footsteps your predecessors laid out" is.

To wrap things up, I want to make my points as clear and concise as they can get, because I know I can get wordy. Bethesda is so terrified at the player not interacting with the story and world "correctly", that they strip away all impact that the player's choices have. This leads to interactions being flat, emotional moments feeling forced, and a general feeling of unimportance. To borrow a line from my friend who I played this game with, you are not the main character of the story; your dad and Doctor Li are, you are on the sidelines spectating the entire time. Your choices have already been made for you, you only get to decide what words will be used. This is the core issue with this game, and what leads to the world being inherently uninteresting and as a result, everything that happens to, and because of, the player feeling like they lack any influence.

"It's like... Bethesda is a bakery, and the visual designers do the frosting, while the writers make the cake. And the writers can't bake a cake to save their fucking lives, so the only thing the visual designers can do is make it look really nice on the outside and hope you don't notice how bad the inside is. It's not their fault that the end result is unenjoyable, they did the best they can." - aforementioned friend