Fallout: New Vegas Old World Blues Reviews Round-up #4

[WorstUsernameEver]

Here's another batch of reviews for Old World Blues, which is receiving a considerably more favorable reception compared to its predecessors.

Our gracious host, AtomicGamer, awards it a 9/10 and hopes Obsidian can work on the franchise again.<blockquote>For someone like me who plays these RPGs as a pretty serious completionist, eight or more hours can be squeezed out of Old World Blues in exploring, looting, completing quests, and killing. And while the previous add-on, Honest Hearts, couldn't have been more different in its look and atmosphere, many of the best parts of that DLC are also represented here - the history, the interesting characters, and fun choices make this at least as good as Obsidian's previous DLC pack. You might even prefer the more traditional Fallout-like setting here over the more nature-oriented Honest Hearts. Admittedly, you'll also still be stuck with that sort of wonky-feeling combat that we've all gotten used to in the Gamebryo engine, but Obsidian can't do much about that at this point. Despite the limitations, this is probably the best DLC addon for Fallout period.

Bethesda has announced one final DLC add-on for New Vegas that will complete the Courier's story, and that'll be it. Let's hope that the success of the game overall - even if it was never a big runaway hit - prompts Bethesda to bring Obsidian back to work on future installment of Fallout in a few years, hopefully on a new game engine. id Tech 5 seems like a pretty good fit, don't you think?</blockquote>GameSpy, 4.5/5.<blockquote>A handful of bugs chew their way into this immersive experience, including an all-too-frequent fast-travel crash that makes you completely reload the game... but it's still not enough to derail the DLC juggernaut that is Old World Blues. With more than 13 hours' worth of fun, hilarious, and classic Fallout content, Fallout: new Vegas -- Old World Blues is a must for any New Vegas owner.</blockquote>Metro, 8/10.<blockquote> That said, the best laughs come from the personality-filled appliances you find in an unusually intact apartment. From talking light switches to a surprisingly useful toaster, the Douglas Adams -esque humour is good enough that it actually makes the previous Fallout games and downloads seem considerably less interesting by comparison.

We're not sure that was necessarily the intention but if the next download (called Lonesome Road) can keep this up then Bethesda should finally have made up for all that terrible business with the horse armour… </blockquote>Capsule Computers, 9/10.<blockquote> Old World Blues may be the third piece of downloadable content for Fallout: New Vegas but it is by far the strongest of the bunch. There isn’t a whole lot changed from your standard gameplay formula but the amount of content added is certainly worth the price of admission. Simply running through the story alone will take the average player around six hours, but with many areas to explore it would be a waste to simply blow through the quirky and enjoyable world that has been hidden away in Big MT.</blockquote>The Game Effect, 9.5/10.<blockquote> Old World Blues is undoubtedly New Vegas' best and most ambitious DLC yet. Along with the update that made noticeable changes to the games performance, the unique and entertaining story that lies within Big Mountain sets the bar high for future Fallout installments.</blockquote>MTV Multiplayer, scoreless.<blockquote> It's remarkable how much additional work was put into "Old World Blues." Every facet of the DLC bleeds quality and cleverness, from the voice acting to the quests to the exploration. If you're a fan of "Fallout" and have $10 to spend, there's no reason you shouldn't be spending it on "Old World Blues."</blockquote>

 

[Stanislao Moulinsky]

Here's another batch of reviews for Old World Blues, which is receiving a considerably more favorable reception compared to its predecessors.

In a way it doesn't surprise me, since it's a combat-oriented loot-fest.

 

[Hassknecht]

Here's another batch of reviews for Old World Blues, which is receiving a considerably more favorable reception compared to its predecessors.

In a way it doesn't surprise me, since it's a combat-oriented loot-fest.

That's probably it, also that it's superficially a lot more lighthearted than the rather bleak and dark Dead Money and the rather metaphysical/philosophical Honest Hearts.

 

[k1bell]

Metro, 8/10.<blockquote> That said, the best laughs come from the personality-filled appliances you find in an unusually intact apartment. From talking light switches to a surprisingly useful toaster, the Douglas Adams -esque humour is good enough that it actually makes the previous Fallout games and downloads seem considerably less interesting by comparison.

We're not sure that was necessarily the intention but if the next download (called Lonesome Road) can keep this up then Bethesda should finally have made up for all that terrible business with the horse armour… </blockquote>

What has Bethesda have to do with the DLCs and New Vegas other than selling em?

 

[OakTable]

Metro, 8/10.<blockquote> That said, the best laughs come from the personality-filled appliances you find in an unusually intact apartment. From talking light switches to a surprisingly useful toaster, the Douglas Adams -esque humour is good enough that it actually makes the previous Fallout games and downloads seem considerably less interesting by comparison.

We're not sure that was necessarily the intention but if the next download (called Lonesome Road) can keep this up then Bethesda should finally have made up for all that terrible business with the horse armour… </blockquote>

What has Bethesda have to do with the DLCs and New Vegas other than selling em?

Bug tested them and wrote such wonderful lines like, "PATROLLING THE MOJAVE ALMOST MAKES YOU WISH FOR A NUCLEAR WINTER" and "WHEN I GOT THIS ASSIGNMENT, I WAS HOPING THERE'D BE MORE GAMBLING."

 

[Lexx]

Well, the lines aren't bad, it's bad that you hear them a million times.

 

[Beelzebud]

I also hope they let Obsidian keep on working on Fallout. Obsidian "gets it" better than Bethesda ever will. New Vegas may not be perfect, but I think it's as good as we're going to get, considering who owns the license.

Do the right thing, Bethesda.

 

[chewie]

Do the right thing, Bethesda.

Which is something they can´t. So... pretty scary future for Fallout I guess.

 

[The Dutch Ghost]

Do the right thing, Bethesda.

Which is something they can´t. So... pretty scary future for Fallout I guess.

I was thinking of opening a topic for it in the Future Fallout Games sub forum but I am pretty sure that Bethesda's Fallout 4 will be a sequel to Fallout 3, if not in recycled content, then in spirit.

 

[Alphadrop]

If I have to work for the Brotherhood again for no discernable reason in Fallout 4, nuking their base at the end of Broken Steel will only be the start of it.

 

[ZeaLitY]

Do the right thing, Bethesda.

Which is something they can´t. So... pretty scary future for Fallout I guess.

Yeah. After the enjoyable game that was NV and these DLCs (with the overarching Ulysses arc that is building rabid suspense for me), I'm downright scared about possibly getting another Fallout 3. Just, no.

 

[TychoXI]

Do the right thing, Bethesda.

Which is something they can´t. So... pretty scary future for Fallout I guess.

I was thinking of opening a topic for it in the Future Fallout Games sub forum but I am pretty sure that Bethesda's Fallout 4 will be a sequel to Fallout 3, if not in recycled content, then in spirit.

Still, BethSoft had the little *decency* of setting FO3 in DC, if they repeat events with the next iteration it's a win-win (using "win" very loosely here): they release FO4 in the eastern coast keeping it easy for us to ignore and then let Obsidian roam free in the western coast with another release...

 

[Surf Solar]

If I have to work for the Brotherhood again for no discernable reason in Fallout 4, nuking their base at the end of Broken Steel will only be the start of it.

Actually, if the eastcoast BoS would've been potrayed from the get go as they've been in The Pitt I would even find them decent. I found that this addition was a less-than-puny-actually-good attempt to bring some "depth" into them. A shame it didn't build up on this premise, because there the BoS was actually potrayed even more "bad" as in "backwards, unforgiving etc" towards the NV BoS.

 

[DemonNick]

Do the right thing, Bethesda.

Which is something they can´t. So... pretty scary future for Fallout I guess.

I was thinking of opening a topic for it in the Future Fallout Games sub forum but I am pretty sure that Bethesda's Fallout 4 will be a sequel to Fallout 3, if not in recycled content, then in spirit.

Well, one the one hand they've alluded pretty heavily to other east coast locations. Honestly, I don't mind this. I LIKE the fact that they're not involving themselves in the old nineties continuity and are trying to do their own thing (though it would've worked better for me if they'd made a cleaner break and set it closer to the war), and I like the fact that their wasteland is so atmospheric and shit. Seeing them explore a Boston-Focused Massachusetts? That'd be cool even if it wouldn't necessarily be a good game when it came to storyplay.

On the other hand, apparently when New Vegas was in the planning stages they explicitly ruled out the use of certain areas in the Southwest. So...

Actually, if the eastcoast BoS would've been potrayed from the get go as they've been in The Pitt I would even find them decent. I found that this addition was a less-than-puny-actually-good attempt to bring some "depth" into them. A shame it didn't build up on this premise, because there the BoS was actually potrayed even more "bad" as in "backwards, unforgiving etc" towards the NV BoS.

Well, there were seeds of that in the game. You're told by several characters not to trust them. The Ghouls of Underworld see them as a bigger threat than the Mutants. They just never manage to deliver on that ambiguity until The Pitt, and even then, it's all second-hand.

That said, apparently one of the big things about Skyrim is that it's going to have a lot more emphasis put on quality narrative, so maybe in FO4 it'll be better.

 

[Ilosar]

That said, apparently one of the big things about Skyrim is that it's going to have a lot more emphasis put on quality narrative, so maybe in FO4 it'll be better.

That's assuming you believe Bethesda's promises, which, after Oblivion, I do not and will not. Ever. The only thing we saw so far about ''quality narrative'' is pretty much that there are are evil dragons (which, by the way, are infinite, so they will be a piece of cake and/or repetitive to kill. bleh.) and that you must save the world from them.

About the East Coast BOS, their massacre at the Pitt didn't help much. From what I know (feel free to correct me) they just passed in the area and... fancied themselves to slaughter an entire city because, hey, why not? Seems like a rather clumsy and heavy-handed attempt at that whole ''moral ambiguity'' stuff that Bethesda has been utterly unable to produce ever since Morrowind.

 

[Gaddes]

I'm not surprised it's getting such high scores. It's the most loot and combat heavy of the New Vegas DLC's. I can't go 15 steps without running into a group of Lobodomites or crazed robots.

one of the big things about Skyrim is that it's going to have a lot more emphasis put on quality narrative, so maybe in FO4 it'll be better.

Bethsoft promises a lot of things. Honesty, the story in Skyrim is probably, kill the Dragon lord/whatever and save the world.

 

[Felspawn]

That's assuming you believe Bethesda's promises, which, after Oblivion, I do not and will not. Ever.

Melodrama, thy name is Ilosar...

 

[ZeusComplex]

That's assuming you believe Bethesda's promises, which, after Oblivion, I do not and will not. Ever.

Melodrama, thy name is Ilosar...

Well, he does have a point. If it's one thing Beth can do right, is spew out buckets worth hyperbole to make any unsuspecting consumer excited for their so called improved product. But in the end its exactly what hyperbole is, hollow and full of shit. I personally don't HATE Beth games. I usually get some enjoyment out of them. However they release some critically flawed products that barely skim by.

But I'll admit I was quite excited about Oblivion- And then I played it. I was even adamant about FO3 but Beth assured it would be better than ever! - And then I played it. I even jumped on the Skyrim train for quite some time. -And then I remembered everything before. Fool me once, fool me twice.