For some reason whenever my character dies in this game, I really feel like he is dead and I have to start the game all over. I'm not sure why I am having this problem with this game when I never felt that way in Oblivion or Dragon Age when a character died. This time I started a character that I promised to myself that I would finish the game with. I got halfway to level 12 and he died. I did a little more with that character and then stopped the game because again I feel like I shouldn't be playing him anymore. Even worse I haven't even played all of the quests yet so no matter how far I get at some point I will probably be surprised and my character will die.

Any suggestions? Has anyone completed Fallout 3 without dying? It might help me to know that no one has. Or if anyone did, what did you do to stay alive?

Ummmm.....

At what point do you consider Fallout 3 "completed"?

If your just talking about the main questline and the various side-quests associated directly with it, then yes, I've done it without dying a time or two. If your talking about doing the main questline, all of the side quests, explored most of the map, and got to level 20, then no, I doubt I can claim that I've done that as there is always something that gets me in a long playthrough like that. Random deathclaw outta nowhere or a freaking hole in the overpass that I didn't see being the most likely.

Freaking overpass holes...... :dry:

I wanted to complete every quest and DLC, get every achievement possible in one playthrough and reach level 20 or beyond... Um...so I am guessing, not possible?

Turn the difficuly down maybe?

Oh to be sure, I'm guessing somewhere someone has done all that without dying. But realistically its a pretty significant feat and doesn't reflect on your gaming/Fallout 3 survivals skills if you don't make it all the way without coughing it. Statistically, something is going to get you at some point, even if its not by fighting enemies, I can't tell you how often I've misjudged a jump and been pancaked on the ground.

You can't be a perfectionist in this game the first time through, imo. There are places where the developers like to surprise bomb you when you are least expecting it. A rigged object, mines that have sunken through the landscape so that you can't see them or deactivate them, a sabotaged location, etc. Many unfair deaths where, to be honest, I feel no guilt in reloading.

:cryvaultboy:
This is probably the only realistic answer to "how can I stop dying in FO3?"

I play at the lower settings because I don't like leveling so fast, and I'm way too spazzy to kill anything higher than a mole rat at the hard settings.

I guess I understand about the disappointment of dying and then reloading as if nothing occurred, but I get over it pretty easily. I have to. :dead:

This. I won't go onto an overpass other than Arefu because of the magic holes. One time I completed the main quest and got to level 20 without dying. My character was a sneak sniper with CSA. To be honest, other than the challenge of doing it without dying it was dull. It was sneak attack kill or hide until they went away. On occasion I'll play iron man (dead is dead), but even then I don't count stupid deaths like magic holes or magic spawning death claws/rad scorpions.

As to your psychological problem, I can't help you. Maybe it is because this is guns and bullets game, and not a sword and sorcery game. No magic in FO, so maybe you can't accept a character coming back from death. FO doesn't even have super science to justify coming back from death.

Thank you for all the help guys! XD And Havelock I think you hit the nail on the head about why I feel dead is dead in this game. That and the game feels really realistic to me. And I probably would reload after a surprise death that I felt was unfair. But for some reason I seem to get killed by the groups of Talon Company Mercs that seem to dog my character's steps throughout the wasteland. I kill most of them but sometimes three with high powered weapons is just too much especially since I wear light armor and I don't have high endurance. I think I will try a sneak sniper character in the CSA since that is probably the only way to do it, since I really don't want to lower the difficulty.