After E3 and the much anticipated showcasing of Fallout 4 we have found ourselves queuing outside the wasteland waiting for admission. I’m making a big, big claim here but I feel that Fallout 4 will be one of the games of the year if not THE game of the year, however something struck me when I watched some more gameplay footage – courtesy of Kotaku:
My concern is this ‘settlement building’ feature which was exhibited at E3, and visible above. As a newcomer to the wasteland you can create your own shack and build it into a shack-like palace.From there you can develop your own settlement and help it thrive and survive. However, its similarities to games like Rust make me wonder whether Bethesda are going a little bit too far with this ‘in-depth’ customisation. Watching your character upgrade their laser pistol into the bringer of death and despair in a few simple tweaks will be something to look forward to but this settlement building doesn’t fill me with confidence.
On the one hand building a community in the desolate post-apocalyptic wasteland and helping it thrive would be something that could only add to the wealth of opportunities you get in Fallout games. There’s always something to kill/find/save/buy/deliver. Having said that, as the video outlines you’ll have to defend your settlement from bandits and the like, so it may just turn into a tower defence game as a result. As much as I want to love this new addition I can see some sort of notification on screen saying “Better go to the aid of your settlement… Again. Oh and drop everything you’re doing right now, the farmer’s died after being hit over the head with his own shovel.”
ALSO: 8 THINGS WE WANT TO SEE IN FALLOUT 4
It may just turn out to be pre-game nerves and the settlement builder will do everything and more to keep you wandering the wasteland so there’s the challenge for you Bethesda: make this work and make it stick. I will be in line with everyone else waiting to leave the safety of Vault 111 and explore the wasteland. This settlement thing does not exactly fill me with confidence, but on the other hand this kind of thing really does:
One fan got so excited about the forthcoming release of Fallout 4 that he sent Bethesda over 2000 bottle caps by way of payment for the game. Whether Bethesda will actually accept this as a pre-order payment is a different matter but you’ve got to give the Fallout fan some appreciation for actually finding that many bottle caps and having the balls to send them in. Either way he’s got to get something back.
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