This review pertains to both games because they are nearly identical in almost every area. Both are the GOG versions of the game and have relieved any updates the site has received to date, and no mods, cheats, or any other software manipulation has been applied.
Review contains spoilers
Many who have wandered the Capital or Mojave Wastelands have never scoured the Core Region for the source of the super mutant scourge or drove their Highwayman to New Reno to take part in some debauchery, and once veterans of the early post-apocalyptic world encourage them to partake in the adventures that inspired one of their favorite games many merely glance at its aesthetics or turnbased combat and cringe; I admit that the rare instances of voice acting and isometric view almost kept me from the legacy of Vault 13, but luckily I managed to set aside my prejudices and was rewarded with an amazing experience that has made me eager to play numerous other games that I had previously been on the fence about.
Flaws
- Moderate Many skills, perks, attributes, etc. are practically useless and in some case completely useless because they literally have no effect on the game due to either bugs or developer error.
- Moderate Fallout 2 has almost half the number of talking heads as 1 but yet it's twice as big, so most flavor voice acting is painfully spaced apart.
- Moderate As soon as you begin your quest any real interest or any significant implementation of the main story is mostly abandoned until you reach the latest stages of the game (this is a bigger issue in 2 than 1), and the time limit in 1 is a cheap way to keep you from totally forgetting your primary quest.
- Moderate NPC's often don't respond properly to your actions or character in general and occasionally speak to you about events that haven't even taken place yet (this is mostly negligible in 2 and primarily pertains to 1), and in both games a lot of the possible endings do not correctly coincide with your actions.
- Moderate Fallout 2 treats the Enclave with a black and white morality that not only does not let you join their cause but presents dialogue options that treats them like villainous scum and only allows you to exterminate them instead of exploring other options. Really the entire introduction of both games group of antagonists was weak and did not prove nearly enough background or buildup.
- Moderate Every aspect of companion use is terribly done in 1 and they are devoid of personality and are of no importance to plot or anyone in the world. Companions are done infinitely better in 2 but the majority of them cater to characters of good karma.
- Minor Incessant use of the same sprites even for the most important characters, and 2 doesn't introduce many new models.
- Minor Obviously it's not nearly as good looking as virtually any other game released in the past few years, but the game is centered around its looks and after the first hour or so of playing you'll likely be to adsorbed to ever notice again.
Strengths
- Major Some of the best written dialogue ever presented in a game and you are given near absolute freedom in the conversations, this allows you to sculpt your personality into your character and influence the game in a countless number of ways; dialogue is so fun to engage in and so pertinent to the game that I'd say that I probably spent more than 60% of my time chatting with the wasteland's denizens and most of it was completely irrelevant to any particular quest.
- Major Character creation is superbly done and lets you create an utterly unique character whose attributes will drastically affect not only combat but dialogue and all other interactions with the game's world, also nearly all builds are viable so there are an incredible number of ways to approach the game on respective playthroughs or as the game progresses.
- Major Freedom. If there was one word to describe this game it'd be freedom. In Fallout you're free to do damn near whatever you want without breaking the gameplay or its plot, 1 sometimes struggles to appropriately respond to your actions but the world in 2 will respond accordingly to your deeds.
- Major Creates an atmosphere that sucks you into its world and half way makes you wish that the nuclear holocaust would finally occur so you could go on your own radiation filled adventures. Characters, notes, and items paint a vivid picture of life in the wasteland and enthralls you with its lore. Constant humor (usually uniquely dark) and popular culture references keeps you grinning and sometimes induces laughter and multiple reloads to experience the hilarity once more.
- MajorCombat is loads of fun and unpredictable, lots of the fun stems from you witnessing the results of your skill point allocation, perk choices, and weapon acquisitions but while simple the presentation of the combat combined with its wildcard nature is exceedingly entertaining in its own right.
- ModerateTalking heads are presented very well and help keep you engaged in the plot and freshen up the experience so you don't get tired of all the text too quickly (this mostly pertains to 1 for reasons mentioned in the flaws section).
The original Fallout's stand the test of time because of their exceptional writing, atmosphere, character creation, and in game freedom, while many games will be lost to the memories of many because they relied too heavily on their aesthetics, novelty features, or well executed but easily replicated gameplay others like Fallout will always be remembered fondly and rated highly in even the most technologically advanced times because of their ageless qualities. Speech aside, if you love rpg's, amazing dialogue, and absolute freedom (in game, this ain't a rally) and don't mind reading and less than flashy graphics pick up the first two Fallout's and you'll have a hell of a time.