If the first thing Bethesda advertises about Fallout 4 is how it railroads you into having a specific companion, with a specific name, that cannot die and power armor that you must use in "certain levels", in a game most like for its sandbox elements, it makes you worry... a lot.

The so-called casual player likes being railroaded. That's why some say "the do it for casuals", at least in this case. And that is a shame for people who hate being railroaded and like to RP freely instead.

Personally, I will not buy the game until enough mods that can make it an authentic sandbox survival experience are released.

Making Dogmeat immortal brings the game closer to its pencil-and-paper RPG roots. It is a savvy move by veteran RPG designers, not a compromise to appease mythical casuals.

If all people think like you then Bethesda needs to put their games for free and charge for the mods instead.

Not that I disagree, actually I agree.

He's not the same. He's named the same. F4 is loosely set at the same time as F3. That means there are two dogs, living simultaneously in two regions with little to no contact with the same name. Logic prevailing, the slang name "Dogmeat" used for a wasteland dog, wouldn't apply to someone who just woke up from cryogenic sleep, and has had no contact with the culture of the Apocalypse. There is no logic to support the consistent renaming, and it bothers me deeply. Give me a true piece of logic behind the decision and I will back you 100%!

I'm frequently amazed that people get so worked up over a little thing like gaming. Or "fun hobbies" in general. But hey, maybe I'm just a relaxed kind of guy.

As for "slowly beginning to go for a casual audience" (whatever "casual audience" really means - there was a long "what is this casual thing" thread over in Community that didn't come to any conclusions)..... people have been saying that about Beth for several games now. So it'd be kind of hard to say "beginning", if one holds that position.

By it's very nature, "AAA game development" and/or games that sell millions-to-tens of millions of copies? Are targeted at a mass audience. So yeah - they're not aiming at some super-niche cadre of True Fans who feel that they're Owed Something. Just as they weren't with Skyrim, or Fallout 3, or Oblivion.

(Personally, I find the whole "casuals" insult to be a silly. Word means different things for different people/groups - like, the industry def of "casual gaming" isn't the same as forum goers. And for some, it's just become a stereotyped, meaningless, "hip" insult. Blame it on the casuals/atheists/liberals/"hollywood elite"/whatever. Throw away all critical thought to just sling empty phrases at things you don't like....... meh, no thanks.)

Well, all the companions in all their games have had specific names, so not sure what that's worth. "Cannot die" is a general thing they've done for a couple games now, has nothing to do with that specific companion. And "railroaded"..... well, if "gives you the chance to interact with an NPC, and the option to take it with you as a companion" is "railroading".... not sure what to say. (ie, why are you assuming that you're forced to take the dog as a companion? Given that there's other companions, and you can only have one at a time, I'd think that you can leave the dog behind.)

1. It's just a game.

2. It's just a cute little tradition to have a dog named "Dogmeat" in that Just A Game series.

Logic: the PC doesn't actually name the dog. Maybe Dogmeat is its actual name, given by his previous, wastelander owner, which the PC wouldn't have any way of knowing because he doesn't have a tag. So far we have only heard the PC refer to the dog as "pal".

edit: grammar

Hahahah true. Well, since they don't cater to my needs...

They could cater to my needs by having difficulty levels that change the game more deeply in a realistic way (e.g. instead of just "enemies deal more damage" to "bullets do realistic damage"/injuries don't magically heal etc) and a survival mode (food,water,sleep, temp, diseases) for example.

Watch the Todd Howard interview during E3 talking about the dog. It's the same dogmeat from F3, you don't know as character the name until a npc tells dogmeat story and his name. This game takes place same year few months later. So i recommend all of you watch Bethesda Chanel before complaint.

"Beginning to"? Please. I've heard this "catering to THOSE" people argument since Morrowind. It's the standard non-sequitur applied to mask a general sense of pessimism by blaming everyone else.

Meanwhile, Bethesda continues to be an extremely successfull development shop. The entitled people think this is because is sacrificing something. It's more likely that Beth is just making legitimately good games.

So drop your mike and "walk away from the light" or whatever you call it. Do you want everyone to applaud?

Totally agree man, I still remember the complaints about Morrowind being too casual and video gamey.

If that's the case then I am relieved. From my understanding it was an "extra permanent companion". Also hope you don't miss content/gameplay features if you ditch him. From what I understood so far he assists the player in much more than combat.

No mate, these people are right in many cases. There have been MANY cases of "streamlining" from Daggerfall to Skyrim for example. Last victims were attributes, number of skills, spells, spell making and many more. There IS a point to some of these complains - not saying to all.

Screw Dogmeat. I'm hoping there is at least an Ed-E type companion who can do more than play fetch and neck grabs once unlock his Attack Dog perk. I can't believe there is an actual perk wasted once again on Dogmeat. I'd honestly rather see Three Dog back on the airwaves versus Dogmeat returning as an invincible.

First off, everyone is entitled to a fishy stick. Having never received one myself, I will make you one using a fish....and a stick.

Now, about Dogmeat.

I can see your frustration with the repetitiveness of the name Dogmeat being used for EVERY companion dog in the series.

I don't have a problem with the name, however, I would like the option to rename him to something of my liking though. Who knows, that may actually be an option. A much wanted option in your opinion I'm sure! LOL

Really? Wow. Casual is the last adjective I would use to describe Morrowind.

It's Just A Game that I will spend $60 of my hard earned money into, hundreds of my hours into, and a part of myself into. Just A Game is for Nintendo. Consistent, medium-changing entries in multiple series, is for Bethesda. Ask anyone, Bethesda makes More Than Just A Game games.

To anyone who dislikes the insults about casual gaming, Call of Duty is a casual game series made for twelve year olds despite its rating. They are sad little games that lack the effort or artistry that a "hardcoe" game has. Todd Howard won't make a yearly game, because it takes years to pull off the mastery that's inside of a Fallout game. Not months. Years.

Boom

You want logic? I can certainly use some of yours. By your logic, until the Sole Survivor has read educational material or been informed in some other way, he/she shouldn't know what a Molerat is called, nor a Deathclaw, Raider, Super Mutant, or any other creature or npc type or name. Logic prevailing, these names wouldn't apply to someone who just woke up from cryogenic sleep, right? Yet the creature or person is recognized and their name appears on the screen. Please be consistent and make sure to get fussy about that, too. Your mentality with this is a slippery slope.

Dogmeat is simply a description of what dogs are good for in the wasteland .. yummy dog meat!

Noooooo!

Black Ops 3 has been in development for about 4 years.

Also, ''hardcoe'' game? Play zombies. (Which is really the only reason for why people buy Black Ops).

SOLE SURVIVOR GREW UP IN THE VAULT!!!!!! Sure, he didn't have as much access to the outside world, but he had access to other humans and culture. It's a stretch in F3, but it doesn't hold for F4.

Well, there's been some debate back and forth due to FO:NV having the "one human companion / one non-human companion" rule (I think), so some people were wondering if Dogmeat would follow that. So really, all we have to go on is simple statements in the middle of conversations like "you can have one companion" (but one could still wonder if the dog counts. Just like one could wonder if the Lone Wanderer perk - bonuses if you have no companion - counts the dog as well.) So, to be 100% honest, We'll Have To See.

I certainly hope we can tell the dog to take a hike, because I plan to play with no NPC helpers at all.

As for...

...well, we'll definitely miss out on some sort of content or features if we don't take companions. Like I missed out on most of the FO:NV companion questlines by not taking them. Yes, it looks like the dog has a couple unique functions (since he's not an equippable humanoid) like holding enemies down. But gaining and losing things based on our choices among the provided options is part of gaming. If I choose not to take the dog, there are consequences (and gains, like not having an annoying companion underfoot). Ditto if I don't take the other companions.

You're quite correct Juice. An arcade onslaught shooter is indeed a hardcoe game, circa 1985. hardcoe my ass. It took forty-five seconds to come up with that idea, and half as long for them to copy it into every game. C'mon. Zombies? That's your argument? Thanks for the fishy stick V.A.T.S.

...tasty.

Please, can we not turn this thread into another casual vs hard-core strawman that never leads to anywhere?

Dogmeat has always been in the Fallout games. Like all companions he's optional. You don't "miss" any content by not picking him any more than you do if you choose not to bring a different companion.

There are twelve companions and you only get to take one with you at a time. In my grade school economics class we called this "opportunity cost." By choosing one over another you are picking what they bring to the table over any other companions.

You also can't rename Piper or the other companions in the game...

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