Fallout 3 (PC Games, 2008)

Although not as quirky as it's predecessors, Bethesda's vision of the Fallout universe retains a lot of the trademark humor--but that being said, it is a little more on the serious side. That isn't necessarily a good or bad thing--but given the first two installment's modus operandi, it would have done well to satiate the die-hard fan's yearning for the series staple myriad easter-eggs, mixture of light and dark humor, low and high comedy, and sprawling environment.

Bethesda's version has all of these--but to a much lesser extent. Fallout 3 is a more concise, deliberate undertaking with clearer objectives. It is an evolution to the series though--since we're hoping that subsequent installments of the Fallout series will be a bit more grand in scope, this smaller version was still a joy to go through, especially in the immersive 1st person perspective. This smaller, less open-ended method of delivering the Fallout experience lends itself very well to multiple Fallouts to explore the limitless story arcs that is the Fallout future.

I thoroughly enjoyed the game, and every aspect of it--from the excellent voice acting, menus, character interaction, dialogue, combat, environment, story, and look/feel. The real-time combat can sometimes be a bit on the "clunky" side, but that's what the VATS [Vault-Tec Assisted Targetting System] is for, which allows the user to stop combat and que up attacks, with associated % to hit to specific body parts. This can be one of the most enjoyable affairs in the game, to queue up attacks in VATS and watch limbs be blown off, or heads be blown away--in cinematic slow-motion.

Although not as quirky as it's predecessors, Bethesda's Fallout 3 has potential to be everything the Fallout series was, and what it can be, in spades. Can't wait for the next installment.

If you like games like Dead Space, Oblivion, F.E.A.R., and any other 1st person shooters/RPG's, you won't be disappointed with Fallout 3.