Fallout: New Vegas golden

Wasteland wanderers can start polishing their combat armor--Fallout: New Vegas is gold. Today, publisher Bethesda Softworks announced that the post-nuclear role-playing game is finished, with the master disc now en route to the factory. The game ships on October 19 in the US and October 22 in the UK; it is rated M for mature by the ESRB and 18 by PEGI.

Developed by many veterans of the original Fallout games at Obsidian Entertainment (Alpha Protocol), New Vegas is set in the Mojave Wasteland and casts players in the role of a courier who gets shot in the head over a package and is left for dead. After recovering, players will be free to roam the desert, exploring new areas and modifying weapons. They will also get wrapped up in the larger conflict between the New California Republic and the slave-trading Caesar's Legion, based out of the former casino Caesar's Palace.

New Vegas will feature a bevy of voice talent, including Mr. Las Vegas himself, Wayne Newton. Other actors on board include Danny Trejo (Machete), Kris Kristofferson (Blade), Felicia Day (The Guild), and Matthew Perry (Friends). Ron Perlman (Sons of Anarchy) will once again be the game's narrator, and Michael Dorn (Star Trek: The Next Generation) will reprise his role as Marcus, the intelligent mutant from Fallout 2.

New Vegas will be simultaneously released on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC. On the latter platform, the minimum requirements are as follows:

--OS: Windows 7/Vista/XP
--Processor: Dual Core 2.0 GHz
--Memory: 2 GB RAM, 10GB hard drive space
--Video card: Nvidia Gforce 6 series, ATI 1300XT minimum

For more information on New Vegas, check out GameSpot's previous coverage or the mini-documentary on the game's art direction below.