If you played games, casual or otherwise, there’s a significant chance that you might know about this little game from Bethesda Softworks. Fallout 3. An RPG game mixed in with a little FPS thrown in, sets in a huge post-appocalypse Washington D.C. (I had to assume that it was based on the actual Washington D.C. only charred and scarred) with tons of explorable locations to browse through, this game promises tens, probably hundreds of game-hours which definitely worth every damn dime you spent upon purchasing this game.
Although not without flaws (one of the prominent flaw I’d say is the lack of variety in the enemy’s database), it was generally agreed by many that Fallout 3 is one of the best, if not the best itself, product the gaming industry has to offer in the year that has passed. At the very least, it is a widely popular one.
Now, when we’re talking about popular, the internet age has provided us with a clear distinction of what is popular and what is not. Google hits. Though I can’t vouch on how many Google hits for “Fallout 3″ has, the abundance of reviews, game guides, and walkthroughs are proof enough about the popularity of this game. My initial guides and walkthroughs as I played the game for my second playthrough (I usually played game at least twice. The first time is solo, and the second ones – yes, it’s plural – with walkthroughs) is one from Fallout Wikia. A wiki-style guide edited by the society and thus in my opinion, pretty thorough and detailed.
Therefore, we’re back at the square one, a question, “Why Another Guide?”, why providing another one when the similar and most likely better products are easily available? Well, (1) Because I want to, and (2) Because I can. These two alone are reasons enough to justify the decision to jumped to the already running and steaming wagon because, really, if you can’t write or post something you want and could actually afford to write or post one, what’s the point on having your own domain?
However, I also had a third reason, which simply because I want something as a memento of my experience playing the game. So, the “guide” that started with this post is basically my actual playthrough with an elusive goal to maximize the experience (i.e. maximizing the obtained Skill books, Bobbleheads, et cetera). And again, what’s better place to put a memento than the internet, where everyone could see? 
So, What’s in the Store?
As with most other games available in the market, Fallout 3 essentially puts the player in point A where he/she has to eventually progressed to point B where the game concludes. In order to do so, the game sometime requires the player to traverse from predetermined points (A1, A2, A3, and so forth) where the game decides (preprogrammed or parameterized) to increase the difficulty and obstacles the player has to overcome in order to keep the player involved and interested. On that alone, it is safe to say that Fallout 3 had succeeded to keep the player involved and interested.
In Fallout 3, even if we still have these predetermined points to traverse through, given the vast world it has to offer, the player has an option to explore, took as many sidequests as possible, right from the get go before even giving the main quest a momentarily thought. It gives the much wider alternative in how the player choses to play his game. I have played the game thrice, and none of the three yield similar results and progress. As I wrote this “guide”, I’m also attempted to play the game thoroughly, fully, and completely (sometimes, it is hard to be a completist).
The game began with your birth in one of the post-nuclear war containment Vault 101. Fast forward, nineteen years later, your dad had escaped the Vault, and you decided to escape as well, looking for his whereabouts. The Vault 101 acts as a starting point for about twenty or thirty minutes, and once you escaped the Vault, you chose your own adventure, until you decided to actually finish the game.
The game itself sets in a post-apocalyptic future where the world has gone in a rubble after the Great Nuclear War. You’ll find tidbits of information regarding this war, the events that preceded and followed the war as you progressed in the game. The game’s story is decidedly bleak, and quite a stand out if compared to most games in its genre. However, it is been said that although the game is quite superior, it doesn’t gave the similar vibe that the other Fallout games has. Having never played the previous two games, I couldn’t vouch for the presumption.
My only complaints about this game is probably the lack of variety in the enemy. It’s so lacking I had to stifle a yawn now and then when I entered the combat mode. The semi-turn-based combat system known as VATS and the ridiculous gore level the combat provides is only a momentary relieve. Even so, somehow, I could manage to play non-stop for six hours before decided to quit.