ElderMaxson
Out of my mind, freshly made
(Note: this post will be continuously updated as a I discover more about each companion. Also, SPOILERS!)
The following companions, I need to look more into:
MacCready - played with a bit
Codsworth - played with a bit
Strong - haven't tried at all
Deacon - played with a bit
John Hancock - barely
Nick Valentine - barely
Cait - will update as soon as I finish her companion quest
I found that Fallout 4 companions was built with a solid, lightly defined background and one to two traits per character. This is great - as a ground base for more character building. But Bethesda opted to leave it at that, obviously to focus on making more Legendary Deathclaws badass and scary, and making Vertibirds look even more awesome. Woo-hoo, they're gonna love this!
Ahem. Anyways, I was hoping to show how they could've expanded on that more. Correct me and reply with opinions as you may, I appreciate good viewpoints.
Piper - Reporter - Diamond City
An enthusiastic, talkative, antagonistic newspaper reporter for her own founded newspaper, Publick Occurences, and somewhat obsessed with "the truth". She was presented with a good background about her growing up, and her stories on her way to becoming a reporter, which was intriguing. She also has a moral side in which she approves, no exceptions, of the player "helping" the people of the Commonwealth wherever they can.
How could she have been improved?
Well, for starters, her relationship with her sister Nat is not expanded on more, which could've shown another side to her. Her history with angering the Children of Atom, and her other enemies, could've been expanded on. The conflict between her fight for the truth and her hope to do good for everyone could've been explored so much more. Her history and her moral conflict could've given her much more depth than as was presented.
Preston Garvey - The Last Minuteman - Concord
A depressed soldier hoping to protect everyone he ever meets. A "do-gooder" with a one-sided moral compass and a judgemental attitude, in addition to general naivety and comic-book view of the world. When he's met, he seems to be very upset about the imminent death and the end of the Minutemen organisation, which he idolized as a child.
How could he have been improved?
The one-sided moral compass, for one, should've had more than one side. Over time, he should've lost that naivety and start to see why the wasteland does not reward the quest to save everyone. His depression over the loss of his dream team should've been explored much further, rather than only as subtle overtones. He seems like the typical "good" Bethesda companion, but he had the groundworks to become a far more complex companion.
Curie - Pathogen Research Miss Nanny with a French accent - Vault 81
Designed to appeal to players as an "adorable" character. She's naive, innocent, makes comments towards the world like she doesn't understand it... the whole nine yards. Speaks like she was designed to be - a medical expert who worries for people.
How could she have been improved?
Her justification for becoming a synth and characterisation before that was pretty damn poor. She had potential to be a conflicted person (she lives for researching the world, and she had to bury the scientists that took care of her while living alone for years), and her adjustments after becoming a synth could've been expanded on greatly.
Dogmeat - German Shepherd and free spirit - Red Rocket Station
Um. I don't think... yeah.
X6-88 - Institute Synth Courser - The Institute
An emotionless, skilled, powerful killer and a weapon for the enigmatic and mysterious Institute. Coursers are like a more well-defined Terminator, but less interesting in terms of combat.
How could he have been improved?
Not by much. But he was there to pick up the synth replica of Shaun from Kellogg. His relation to the player character's history could've been expanded, like with Star Paladin Cross, though that would imply the history Bethesda forced on the player was any good in the first place. So no, if Bethesda had pulled it right, this character would be completely irrelevant here. If all the other companions were better written, however, he could've served as a decent foil, as an emotionless opposite to most of the other companions. It would be a good way of contrasting the cold nature of the Institute's tools with all the people of the Commonwealth.
Paladin Danse - A staunch Paladin of the Brotherhood of Steel - Cambridge Police Station
He's a proud, one-sided, stern member of the Brotherhood of Steel. He's loyal, unwavering, and apart from that, he's basically Buzz Lightyear to such an extent that even Bethfans make fun of his one-dimensional personality. Shame he's the only Brotherhood companion.
How could he have been improved?
This was a hard one. His revelation to be a synth and the order for his death by Elder Maxson could've defined him more as a person, but it was simply played as a quick emotional impact for players who could not persuade the Elder to let him go. He ended up one-dimensional and potential-less in that aspect. His other two squad members, Rhys and Haylen, could've both made better companions. But then again, that would be putting faith in Bethesda's ability to, y'know, write.
That's all for now. Will update more as I discover more. Pray I don't die of boredom from some of Bethesda's cringfest in the meantime. They had some good stuff but decided to use it badly, instead.
In terms of their writing, it's like Bethesda mines through a cave, extracts all the useless, harmful, horrible smelling minerals, and take only a little bit of the gold despite there being a massive amount of gold in the mine, then proceed to sell those minerals along with the little gold they had.
The following companions, I need to look more into:
MacCready - played with a bit
Codsworth - played with a bit
Strong - haven't tried at all
Deacon - played with a bit
John Hancock - barely
Nick Valentine - barely
Cait - will update as soon as I finish her companion quest
I found that Fallout 4 companions was built with a solid, lightly defined background and one to two traits per character. This is great - as a ground base for more character building. But Bethesda opted to leave it at that, obviously to focus on making more Legendary Deathclaws badass and scary, and making Vertibirds look even more awesome. Woo-hoo, they're gonna love this!
Ahem. Anyways, I was hoping to show how they could've expanded on that more. Correct me and reply with opinions as you may, I appreciate good viewpoints.
Piper - Reporter - Diamond City
An enthusiastic, talkative, antagonistic newspaper reporter for her own founded newspaper, Publick Occurences, and somewhat obsessed with "the truth". She was presented with a good background about her growing up, and her stories on her way to becoming a reporter, which was intriguing. She also has a moral side in which she approves, no exceptions, of the player "helping" the people of the Commonwealth wherever they can.
How could she have been improved?
Well, for starters, her relationship with her sister Nat is not expanded on more, which could've shown another side to her. Her history with angering the Children of Atom, and her other enemies, could've been expanded on. The conflict between her fight for the truth and her hope to do good for everyone could've been explored so much more. Her history and her moral conflict could've given her much more depth than as was presented.
Preston Garvey - The Last Minuteman - Concord
A depressed soldier hoping to protect everyone he ever meets. A "do-gooder" with a one-sided moral compass and a judgemental attitude, in addition to general naivety and comic-book view of the world. When he's met, he seems to be very upset about the imminent death and the end of the Minutemen organisation, which he idolized as a child.
How could he have been improved?
The one-sided moral compass, for one, should've had more than one side. Over time, he should've lost that naivety and start to see why the wasteland does not reward the quest to save everyone. His depression over the loss of his dream team should've been explored much further, rather than only as subtle overtones. He seems like the typical "good" Bethesda companion, but he had the groundworks to become a far more complex companion.
Curie - Pathogen Research Miss Nanny with a French accent - Vault 81
Designed to appeal to players as an "adorable" character. She's naive, innocent, makes comments towards the world like she doesn't understand it... the whole nine yards. Speaks like she was designed to be - a medical expert who worries for people.
How could she have been improved?
Her justification for becoming a synth and characterisation before that was pretty damn poor. She had potential to be a conflicted person (she lives for researching the world, and she had to bury the scientists that took care of her while living alone for years), and her adjustments after becoming a synth could've been expanded on greatly.
Dogmeat - German Shepherd and free spirit - Red Rocket Station
Um. I don't think... yeah.
X6-88 - Institute Synth Courser - The Institute
An emotionless, skilled, powerful killer and a weapon for the enigmatic and mysterious Institute. Coursers are like a more well-defined Terminator, but less interesting in terms of combat.
How could he have been improved?
Not by much. But he was there to pick up the synth replica of Shaun from Kellogg. His relation to the player character's history could've been expanded, like with Star Paladin Cross, though that would imply the history Bethesda forced on the player was any good in the first place. So no, if Bethesda had pulled it right, this character would be completely irrelevant here. If all the other companions were better written, however, he could've served as a decent foil, as an emotionless opposite to most of the other companions. It would be a good way of contrasting the cold nature of the Institute's tools with all the people of the Commonwealth.
Paladin Danse - A staunch Paladin of the Brotherhood of Steel - Cambridge Police Station
He's a proud, one-sided, stern member of the Brotherhood of Steel. He's loyal, unwavering, and apart from that, he's basically Buzz Lightyear to such an extent that even Bethfans make fun of his one-dimensional personality. Shame he's the only Brotherhood companion.
How could he have been improved?
This was a hard one. His revelation to be a synth and the order for his death by Elder Maxson could've defined him more as a person, but it was simply played as a quick emotional impact for players who could not persuade the Elder to let him go. He ended up one-dimensional and potential-less in that aspect. His other two squad members, Rhys and Haylen, could've both made better companions. But then again, that would be putting faith in Bethesda's ability to, y'know, write.
That's all for now. Will update more as I discover more. Pray I don't die of boredom from some of Bethesda's cringfest in the meantime. They had some good stuff but decided to use it badly, instead.
In terms of their writing, it's like Bethesda mines through a cave, extracts all the useless, harmful, horrible smelling minerals, and take only a little bit of the gold despite there being a massive amount of gold in the mine, then proceed to sell those minerals along with the little gold they had.
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