So just a quick question for those who've played through a fair bit now.

I've just retrieved the platinum chip from Benny and talked to Yes Man. I know I wanna eventually install Yes Man and carve my own little empire outta Vegas but I'm a bit of a completionist and I really want to play through/experience as many of the factions missions as possible in my first playthrough (and as I understand it the platinum chip is for upgrading the robots, returning it to House doesn't 'lock in' that alliance).

So my question is this: is there a particular point of no return in terms of committing to Mr House/NCR etc. (i.e. when do you 'lock in' your alliance)? How far can I play through working for Mr House before I have to install yes man/knock him off his perch? And if I leave it till later to install myself will this affect whether the other 'lesser' factions (boomers, kings etc.) I work with/befriend fall into line/help me?

A quick guide to when I have to stage my little coup would be much appreciated (preferably without spoilers if possible)

Well there is a popup at the end of the quest line of each faction that asks "are you sure you wish to commit to this course of action" or something similar, and assuming you friendly or neutral to all the factions, you should be able to make a choice at this stage. However, due to a lot of quest bugs, a few of them become stuck, and you might find yourself tied into one course of action.

Also, keep in mind that throughout the game you are gaining other factions trust, and thus able to get them to assist you, legion or NCR. However, when they say assist "you", it assumes you will be taking control, and not simply assisting you in whatever choice you make later. So you really need to decide who you want them to assist (Legion, NCR or You/Yes Man) as you complete their quests, then stick to it through to the end, or they will be fighting against you. For example, if you tell them to assist NCR, and you decide to go Yes Man option, all those factions you helped out and asked to assist you in helping NCR will now be your enemy.

So the answer your question simply. You lock in each minor faction at the end of that faction's quest line. You lock in each major faction when you get to the president quest. It seems that the player was supposed to be able to choose later than that, but due to bugs you will end up with only one choice, and that is the faction you assist when saving/killing the president. This is where the popup should have been.

Check out the thread I just posted in this forum for my take.

Excellent. That's exactly what I was looking to find out- very clear and concise, thanks Anach
So basically I should lock in Yes Man option on finishing quest line for each minor faction and can play through the legion/NCR/Mr House quests until the president mission, at which point I need to choose whatever the Yes Man option is?

I'm not sure you know this but after my luck with that excellent first post I may as well ask: is there any other particular missions (especially during the main plot) that I should be careful about doing that cut off/eliminate other side quests?

Thanks again!

The turning point huh? You'll know it when it happens.

Possibly related tidbit. I was playing the game as NCR and Wild Card on the side, so I could experience both sides at once. It worked perfectly well until Kimball's vit. I forst recieved the quest from Yes Man, then I went to Hoover Dam and talked to Colonel Moore. Now I saved the president, but Moore would not respond afterwards and give me the final NCR mission. Instead, I could only recieve Yes Man's final task. I suspect I was locked into Wild Card storyline once I uploaded Yes Man to the Lucky 38, because immediately afterwards, Arcade offered to contact the Remants SPECIFICALLY to help create an independant New Vegas.

Essentially, if you protect the president for Yes Man, you have no real option but to finish the game following the Yes Man path. Both NCR and Yes Man give you the president quest. I assume Legion may also.

As for your other question. I only couldn't say off-hand. It was all really a blur the first play through. I just happened to finish the game as I saw your post