I just wanted to check on those that don't use Fast Travel, and the reasoning. I think I get it: it breaks gameplay by allowing you to zoom everywhere untouched by raiders, etc. Makes sense to me.

If that's the case though, shouldn't they also be avoiding VATS? While the targeting system itself falls into a level of "reasonable technology", doesn't the slowing of time during VATS break gameplay in a similar manner?

(While we're at it, I *think* picking locks and hacking totally stops time, so that is another issue altogether. Or, can you ever be attacked while picking a lock?)

Just curious.

The only fast travel I have done is with the Vertibird and once to get out of a certain factions building. I also have never used V.A.T.S. and probably never will. I guess it's from all the years of playing FPS that I never really think about it.

This should be a poll, but I do not fast travel or VATS.

I think not fast traveling just makes the game more fun

it adds a complete different factor into the game: item management

you can't just take everything and beam to sanctuary... you have to plan routes, only take light junk with you

the game starts to feel like a journey ^^ when leaving sanctuary, you will have to deal with the idea, that you may not be able to go back for the next 50 hours and play that way

Not fast traveling also gets rid of some flaws of the game... "no I can't go to that settlement Preston, because it's too far away for me... they will have to wait or care about it themselves"

you start to concentrate on your journey, rather than on the quests you have to complete

it adds so much to the game

I did never know how much more I would enjoy the game without it, having used fast traveling all the time in Skyrim, NV and 3 ^^

and seeing less loading screens definitely makes the game way more fun as well

so after all, I don't think fast traveling is a cheat; I just think it's a game mechanic, that destroys the 'journey' part of the game and makes the game less fun for me, if I would use it

With the right perks Vats is a form of fast travel.

I use VATS very rarely, usually on bloatflies or bloodbugs at distance because I find them hard to hit without it and quickly before they get closer. That buzzing sound they make creeps me the f out. Although I carry jet for the Max Payne effect during harder fights.

As for FT, I usually don't as you never know what you'll run into, you might come across something interesting. Get good loot, random encounters, XP etc. When not in the mood and can't be bothered, just FT.

I have no philosophical problems with it and still use it. However, I just recently started a new character and have been avoiding it because I'm going places that I know from metagaming that I don't know about yet in the game. I'm finding it pretty engaging and think it adds a lot to the game. A much better sense of "place". With FT all the locations are just kind of islands that exist by themselves, but once you start walking around you get a much better feel for where things are AND you start recognizing things and being able to go there without the map. For example I last night I was heading down to Diamond City for the first time (lvl 6 character) through a totally blank map. I crossed a train track and recognized that following that particular track would take me directly to Graygarden so I swung down that way and got Graygarden on my map (and bought some fertilizer from the green guy). It helps with the sense of distance, too. Like knowing there is no point in FT'ing to Abernathy, which I did for the entirety of my first playthrough. It is literally faster to walk to Abernathy than to sit through the loading screens.

Not to mention there are SO many hidden gems scattered around the landscape that you'll miss if you teleport over them. Things like the Wicked Shipping trucks, Railroad caches, etc.

I think I'm going to continue the walking around thing as much as possible, but I will continue to FT when it suits me. This game serves ME, after all.

I think many who avoid fast traveling do it for lack of a proper mechanic of getting around. It's point and click and magically appear. Daggerfall had the best fast travel system to date (that I know of). However, Daggerfall was also huge enough to absolutely require it. Area/distances in later games doesn't really require it, and I never used "magic" fast travel in Skyrim, but I did use the carriages which was a mechanic placed to lessen the guilt I guess

If I made it, I wouldn't disallow fast travel due weight (and speed change would be gradual), instead I would have player either quest/setup his own fast travel points/travel service, and/or having to spend perks for better options. It would have a time, cost, and safety factor, and weight would play in heavily on how long it would take and if you were rested/fatigued when you arrived.

Currently the only sacrifice is having to wait until relatively high level until you can fast travel overencumbered. It's an okay wait I think (since encumbrance is now the only thing, since area is so ridiculously small scale), but the whole system could have been so much more.

My 6th restart now and haven't fast travelled this time, to me it is a lot more fun missed so many little things before. Don't really see how VATS would break the emersion like fast travel does. Though to be honest I don't use it much as its quicker most the time to kill outside of VATS.

Then I would just be playing an FPS, yes? You actually would prefer it if there were no other options and time never paused, ever? I would never survive. While we're at it, shall we disable the save and pause functions as well?

i find it funny how some people are almost bragging on how they "don't use VATS", itsn ot like you need to use it, but the enemies in fallout games are sometimes bullet sponges, can be very quick, fast and maneuverable and VATS is a good way to not waste a lot of ammo on those types of enemies as well as sometimes just being very fun to use, true FPS mechanics like an id software game etc generally have very smooth shooting mechanics and the enemies in FPS aren't usually very quick and fast and plus there's ammo every 20ft usually in a fps, i like to have a lot of ammo for when i really need it, so i like using VATS on the very quick enemies that otherwise would use up a lot of ammo, and its fun to orchestrate/line up shots in VATS and watch it play out, VATs is not some "sure thing" either, i have lined up multiple shots and none of them hit, either the enemy moves, the bullets might hit something else so its not like VATs is some sure fire way to kill something real fast, it doesn't always work like that, unless your perception is high VATS and be very unaccurate also, so you need to know how and when to use it to make the best use of it.

Yup, see's blue truck and runs up to it. Does my key work on this one?

I play my BGS games as the life and adventures of my characters, If I fast travel I miss many of moments of their adventure whereas VATS simply gives them their cinematic badass moments. Anyway that's how I see it from a guy who loves that stimpacks now have an animation but wishes other stuff did.

BTW: Did you ever notice how painful it looks to use a stimpack? Those are dern big needles!

I don't know about anyone else's reasons for not using fast travel, but I personally don't use it often simply because I prefer going on foot and dealing with whatever along the way. Has nothing to do with feeling it breaks the game.

Have no issue with using VATS either as I like combat that is based on the stats of my character because RPG and its entertaining to watch. What's going on today in the forums? Did I miss the memo about the VATS roast by the git gud players?

I change my ways on a daily basis, and I mean real days, not game days. Sometimes I want to work on xp, or stop and admire the world and check every little nook and cranny. Sometimes I'm just not in the mood and I'll fast travel everywhere with no stops.

It's what I love about Bethesda games, you can play anyway you like.

you are mistaken... we arent disabling fast travel because its a cheat. we do it because it removes a lots of content. just teleporting from places to places i could finish fallout probably in 3 hours. its boring. i dont use fast travel so i can go out and enjoy just walking around and fighting whatever gets in my way. vats is part of the game, it has its own beauty and its own annoying side but i think the "jimpy jumpy runinzigzag" is far worse and far less realistic (yes, for me its far less realistic than having a tech like vats)...

I'll admit. I use fast travel A LOT. It take so long to do anything anyhow and I don't have the patience anymore. I do, however like to hoof it when I do the rounds of all my settlements, but that takes me 2 full days (about 16 hours real time) to do.

Edit: Besides, now that I belong to the Institute, I figure I can teleport with impunity.

Well the build i am doing now depends on VATS, unarmed with the Blitz Perk. VATS is the closest thing you actually get to turn based combat and see the number crunching in detail, don't have any problem with it.

I've hardly ever fast traveled in Bethesda games. I feel like it's possible to skip a lot of encounters that the game sets up for you along your travels.


Which IMO takes away from the experience.


I did, however, decide that riding carriages in Skyrim was acceptable. That's my OCD way of thinking, anyhow...


Ludicrous, I know

It depends on how you look at it whether it's a similar break of gameplay.

I hoof it because for me fast travelling detracts from the experience. It breaks the gameplay for me because if I use it: I don't get to experience the wonderfully immersive world in between, I'll miss lots of various random encounters and adventures that would normally cross my path, having to plan trips makes it more "real", I'd loose a lot of the sense of adventure and exploration, etc.

VATS also breaks gameplay, but that's just because slows time. Lockpicking and hacking as well, only those stop time. Those things don't break the gameplay in the way fast travel does, at least not for me.

Having said that I must add that rarely use VATS. (I am planning on doing a VATS playthrough soon though.)

first off, I fast travel a lot...I'll fast travel from sanctuary to red rocket...but I was wondering something for those that NEVER fast travel..

so when Preston sends you to the castle, for example, do you guys really walk all the way across, then back when you are done? Also same for other quests that have you going to multiple locations, then back to the quest giver? Do you do other stuff along the way? Or do you just run right to your destination?

(was just wondering...maybe I'll try it out some day)

If I avoid using fast travel, it's because there's a lot of interesting stuff that can happen between point A and point B, or I want to enjoy the scenery on the way. Skyrim and Fallout 4 especially made it fun to skip fast travel, with all of the random encounters and unscripted chaos that can happen.

It's not an immersion thing, and I never even thought about "immersion" in these games before the Skyrim modding community abused that word like a tax loophole.

I hoof it.

Whether I do other stuff along the way depends on whether my current objective has some sense of urgency, or whether something picks my fancy, or whatever. Normally I just role play within the pace and flow of the game at any given time.

I don't know if that makes sense to you. You should definitely try it sometime. Although it would take some getting used to if you consider hoofing it tedious.

The worst is when people don't use drugs in fallout because "drugs are bad" like a bunch of sissies.