Bethesda

While in function it’s nothing like those that came before it, Fallout 3 captures the only thing that was fundamental to those beloved isometric masterpieces of the past: a world reborn from apocalyptic ash. The weathered hills and the tattered Washington cityscape of Fallout 3, spawned from the heat of Cold War hysteria, are more than just futuristic doom and gloom; for those born in its landscape, a time close to our present is their battered history. Idealists would have it back in all its ostensible happy-go-lucky glory, while those unhinged from nostalgia see an old world long gone and a new one taking shape from the rubble. Continue »

A massive bulkhead door slumbers open; it creaks, it groans and it gapes to expose a tunnel. There is light at the end of it. You begin walking through; a shrivelled corpse is curled up at the side. One of the many, they probably clawed at the vault doors for entrance, looking for solace in a world burnt asunder. The walk continues up the passageway, no turning back now, and you come upon a weathered door to the outside world.

A stark white light shines on fresh eyes and the journey of Fallout 3 begins. As a vault dweller, born to a 1950’s style happy-go-lucky underground existence, you have never before seen the true daylight. Nor the ravages of the apocalyptic war that had you stuck in there in the first place. Continue »

Some gamers are in a fuss about Fallout 3, but you can’t please people with rather irrational expectations — unless of course you stick with decade old design choices. For those without pipe dreams, or a fundamentalist attachment to nostalgia, Fallout 3 is everything it should be. Here are a slew of new screens and an interview with the game’s producer, Todd Howard.

Post-apocalyptic robots, greasers, birthday parties, dismemberment; Fallout 3 has got it all. Expanding upon the very short teaser released a few days ago, Bethesda is blowing the lid of their truly spectacular rpg. After the jump is the “Shelter” trailer as well as a gameplay presentation, which were shown at Microsoft’s press conference earlier this morning.

At Microsoft’s E3 Press Conference this morning, Todd Howard, producer of Fallout 3, announced that exclusive downloadable content will be available only for Xbox 360 and Windows platforms. No word on what it might be or when it will release, though when an official release date is announced for the game we may get a better indication.

The jovial hum of 1950’s golden oldies, playing over an advert for “Nuka-Cola” and “Smart Bombs” cereal, open the latest Fallout 3 teaser. But the cheerful jive is slowly drowned out as the camera pulls away, revealing a desolate Washington DC with a few iconic monuments peaking the grim horizon. It’s definitely in-game and it looks more intriguing than ever. All you can ask for at this point is a release date.

Over on the Bethesda forums a second fan interview has been posted, providing fresh details on Fallout 3, the third entry in the almost frighteningly revered apocalyptic RPG series. The interview covers everything from the inability to kill children (oddly, two questions are asked about that one… weirdoes), to dialogue trees, to the freedom of player choice and much, much more.

Also included were a few brand new screens, one of which shows off the appropriately named Megaton Bar, with its ominous interior and equally unsettling bartender.

Updated: The full interview is below, enjoy.

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