Dialogue Overhaul
The announcement trailer for Fallout 4 gives us a hint at something big for the series: The vault-dweller is no longer a silent cipher. If the character is indeed fully voiced (as the “Let’s go, pal” seems to indicate), that opens up a variety of options for the way interactions can proceed. Instead of making players read through full text for multiple responses, Bethesda could implement a more cinematic method to keep conversations flowing. Maybe that’s a Mass Effect-style conversation wheel, or maybe it’s a new concept we haven’t seen before. Whatever the case, we’d like to see the pauses in the dialogue minimized, while still giving players the opportunity to respond according to their vision for the character.
Keep The Single-Player Focus
A large part of what makes Fallout compelling is the concept of surviving by yourself in a ruined, post-apocalyptic world. That should not change; those who want the “lone wasteland wanderer” experience should still find it front-and-center. However, we wouldn’t be opposed to the idea of a multiplayer component – especially if it goes beyond the standard co-op and competitive fare. Those could be interesting, too, but they shouldn’t draw attention away from the solitary RPG experience.
A large part of what makes Fallout compelling is the concept of surviving by yourself in a ruined, post-apocalyptic world. That should not change; those who want the “lone wasteland wanderer” experience should still find it front-and-center. However, we wouldn’t be opposed to the idea of a multiplayer component – especially if it goes beyond the standard co-op and competitive fare. Those could be interesting, too, but they shouldn’t draw attention away from the solitary RPG experience.
Friends and Companions
As important as the solo adventure is, you won’t survive without allies. The series’ trend of interesting companions should continue, complete with cool quests that allow you to learn more about your comrades. Even if you can’t bring someone into combat with you, the friendship system for civilians could be deeper, with more changes to people’s demeanor and actions based on your reputation and actions.
As important as the solo adventure is, you won’t survive without allies. The series’ trend of interesting companions should continue, complete with cool quests that allow you to learn more about your comrades. Even if you can’t bring someone into combat with you, the friendship system for civilians could be deeper, with more changes to people’s demeanor and actions based on your reputation and actions.
V.A.T.S.
This is probably super-obvious, but V.A.T.S. was great in Fallout 3 and Fallout New Vegas. The system allows players to freeze combat and strategically plan an assault by targeting specific parts of your enemies. We assume that Bethesda has a few new twists cooked up for Fallout 4, but we hope the basic principle of V.A.T.S. remains intact.
This is probably super-obvious, but V.A.T.S. was great in Fallout 3 and Fallout New Vegas. The system allows players to freeze combat and strategically plan an assault by targeting specific parts of your enemies. We assume that Bethesda has a few new twists cooked up for Fallout 4, but we hope the basic principle of V.A.T.S. remains intact.
Solid Shooting
Though V.A.T.S. is the highlight of the Fallout combat experience, sometimes you find yourself out of action points. That means you’re stuck using traditional shooter mechanics, which haven’t been as tight as they could be in the past. We want to some extra attention paid to the non-V.A.T.S. shooting in Fallout 4. The points you’ve invested in weapon skills could still play a role, but it would be nice to not feel quite so helpless when confronted with fast-moving enemies.
Though V.A.T.S. is the highlight of the Fallout combat experience, sometimes you find yourself out of action points. That means you’re stuck using traditional shooter mechanics, which haven’t been as tight as they could be in the past. We want to some extra attention paid to the non-V.A.T.S. shooting in Fallout 4. The points you’ve invested in weapon skills could still play a role, but it would be nice to not feel quite so helpless when confronted with fast-moving enemies.
Decent Third-Person View
Recent incarnations of Fallout seem designed to be viewed from the first-person perspective, though a third-person option is available. The problem is that the animation and camera still look weird and unnatural from this perspective (which is also a problem in the Elder Scrolls series). We like seeing our character, and want to experiment with that viewpoint more, but we don’t want it to look like we’re ice-skating through the world.
Recent incarnations of Fallout seem designed to be viewed from the first-person perspective, though a third-person option is available. The problem is that the animation and camera still look weird and unnatural from this perspective (which is also a problem in the Elder Scrolls series). We like seeing our character, and want to experiment with that viewpoint more, but we don’t want it to look like we’re ice-skating through the world.
DANGER!
You know that feeling of dread you get when you realize you are in over your head? That’s awesome in Fallout, and players should retain the ability to wander into areas and encounter enemies that are far beyond their capabilities. This boils down to a total elimination of auto-scaling. If an area is too hard, the enemies shouldn’t be made easier to accommodate you. On the flip side, if you go back to early game areas once you’re powerful, the enemies there shouldn’t have magically become more fearsome.
You know that feeling of dread you get when you realize you are in over your head? That’s awesome in Fallout, and players should retain the ability to wander into areas and encounter enemies that are far beyond their capabilities. This boils down to a total elimination of auto-scaling. If an area is too hard, the enemies shouldn’t be made easier to accommodate you. On the flip side, if you go back to early game areas once you’re powerful, the enemies there shouldn’t have magically become more fearsome.
0 comments:
Post a Comment