Fallout: New Vegas

Genre: Post apocalyptic RPG
Console: Xbox 360, Ps3, PC.
Players: 1
Developer: Obsidian. Bethesda softworks.
Release date: 22th October
Ah Fallout. Ever since I put your third game in my Xbox, I've been addicted to your amazing series. Of course old Fallout fans have had a mixed reception to the game. They have called it an oblivion rip off. Of course Bethesda made oblivion which does make it seem like a pretty ridiculous reason. So, has Obsidian done a good job on this game? Or have they made a truly awful game that should be put in quarantine?

Plot:
You are the Courier. A simple person trying to make it along in life. Whether they are old or young, male or female it's up to you. One day you receive an important assignment. Deliver a platinum chip to the owner of Las Vegas, the mysterious Mr House. Unfortunately, your knocked out and awake to find you hands tied, on top of a lonely mountain, with a few other graves. A swave gangster loads up his gun and shoots you in the head.
But the next day you wake up, with a headache, inside a doctors house with multiple questions:
"Who the hell shot me?" "Why did they want the chip?" "Where am I"
So starts your grand journey, that will end with the fate of the wasteland in your hands.
The plot is good. It starts of interesting but it is kinda off weak. It's not until the end, when you decide which side your on, that the story gets interesting. Besides the main story, there are an array of side quests. And let me tell you, they are incredibly nuts. A female super mutant that has kidnapped a Spanish ghoul and has him holed up in an abandoned radio station.
A cybernetic dog needs a new brain, so you have to traverse the wasteland looking for one.
And finally, A bunch of ghouls who want you to take care of some special mutants, then help them fix their space ships so they can go into space. How insane. But there are a few weak quests. Like the brotherhood of steels quests. Run and fetch. Run and fetch.
9

Gameplay:
Fallout is game that can be played a different way depending on your character. They could be a good guy who would rather talk his way out of a confrontation. Or he could be an evil cannibal that inflicts pain with his chainsaw. Or she could be an eagle eyed sniper, that protects the innocent but if a more promising offer comes along that could be an evil act, she'll take it.
Of course combat can be a bit difficult. Sniping can be tricky, shooting people in and out of cover is slow and shooting people with a rocket launcher is bit random.
But vats save it. Yes I know, you may be saying that VATS requires no talent, but I don't want to hear it. It takes skill. You have to get close to the enemy and then calculate which is the best place to hit. It is interesting feature and with a few good perks you can play the whole game as a turn based combat experience.
Of course companions are easier to keep a hold of. A new feature, called the companion wheel, allows you to give companions commands without all the hassle of pointless dialog. It works perfectly.
Weapons are also awesome. Mods allow you to take your favorite machine gun and turn it into a bringer of death.
And finally hard core mode is amazing. With it switched on you must regularly feed your character, make sure they sleep and also get them to drink some water. But remember it's not for the faint of heart. Companions can die and even with very easy difficulty on, You can still take pretty big amounts of torture.
Of course there are some bugs. Sometimes a quest cannot be completed because the game won't allow the npcs to react to new developments. Also the game may freeze unexpectedly for no reason meaning any progress you made is now gone. Of course there are some good bugs. Like killing an NCR ranger while, say, being behind a rock a mile away means you don't get any bad karma or bad reputation with the NCR.
Still, remember to save regularly!
10

Graphics:
Okay. There not pretty. There actually a bit ugly. There is a lot more colour, but the old fallout 3 engine is showing it's age. Of course you can't blame it. We already have a massive wasteland full of detail. So for a game this big, there okay.
6

Music, Sound and Voice acting:
Music: Composed by the original fallout composer, it's full of emotion. One minute your scared. The next you feel slightly lonely. Then your going along to the sounds of battle. Truly inspiring.
Sound: The sound of battle echos throughout the canyons. Guns, Cash machines, explosions it's all there and it's all sounds realistic. And awesome.
Voice acting: I'll admit, The voice acting in the last fallout was flat. But in this it's full of emotion, and portrays the character brilliantly.
10

Conclusion:
Fallout: New Vegas is very similar to Fallout 3. But, it's so much more. It's not perfect, but it's getting close. In short buy this game. You'll be sucked in. See you later, I'm going to go Gecko hunting!

Diamond