I'm not trying to bring this game down or anything. It's a good game and i play it. But I feel somewhat annoyed about this.

To start off with, I am quite aware that the Fallout: New Vegas map is bigger than the map in Fallout 3. But it is definitely not the same amount of space being used in it. Just have a look at these two pictures:

http://fallout.wikia.com/wiki/Fallout_3_map
http://fallout.wikia.com/wiki/Fallout:_New_Vegas_map

In Fallout 3, there were locations all the way across the map. Even out in the edges. But in Fallout: New Vegas, as you can see, it is all kind of squished into the middle. Why? Yes, i am quite aware that it is a desert and all. But they could have invented their own places and stuff! It's their world, right? If they had just placed a little more factories and camps, and spread the locations more out, i wouldn't be complaining.

But, actually i find that many of the locations are pure [censored]. In Fallout 3, there was many camps, shacks and whatnot, that wasn't marked. In Fallout: New Vegas, it seems like that they just marked many of those small random things. Some examples are:

http://fallout.wikia.com/wiki/Goodsprings_gas_station
http://fallout.wikia.com/wiki/Yangtze_Memorial
http://fallout.wikia.com/wiki/California_Sunset_Drive-in
http://fallout.wikia.com/wiki/Goodsprings_Source
And then there's a bunch of random shacks like Fields' Shack, Raul's Shack, Bradley's Shack, Cap counterfeiting shack, Fisherman's Pride shack, Neil's Shack, Deserted Shack, Harper's shack...

None of the following above have a purpose, whatsoever. Sure, they should have been there, but why ever mark them?! It's nothing but minor loot. And also, are they just trying to make it feel like you're traveling longer, by making the map larger and make the character running slower? Then blocking off 35% of the map with mountains and invsible walls? (you can take a perk that will make you run as fast as in Fallout 3, which is ridiculous, i think).

Okay, i feel like i have ranted enough about Fallout: New Vegas. It is a good game, and this is the only thing i can complain about. And Fallout 3 had these kind of non-purpose map markers too, no doubt of that. But it had a lot unmarked random places and camps, to make up for it. What do you think?

i agree much. NV marked every little thingy to seem "bigger". that's a real shame. invisible walls are a shame too. FO3 is much more immersive, IMO. that + the fact that FO3 is technically superior to NV, graphically and in term of stability. NV seems kinda rushed.

Yes. But what would have been a good thing to do, would might be to add some more buildings (since this is Las Vegas and it was never hit by the bombs), and make it so you could go into some of them, find l00t, encounter enemies... it would also make the city feel a lot bigger, like in Fallout 3, where there were many destroyed buildings.

Also, i find it a little hard to belive, that New Vegas was never hit by the bombs. As this is how The Strip looks today (no picture of The Strip in the 1950's, but the picture doesn't matter) http://www.rollanet.org/~rharris/images/The%20Strip.jpg, you would think that there would be a little more buildings.

It would probably have taken a lot longer time to make more buildings, but i wouldn't mind if it had taken a year or two longer to make the game, if it got twice as good. It looks like Oblivion rushed it a bit.

You're right. Obsidian kind of did a Fast Food take on alot of locations. You see it in pictures, 'Oh boy I can't wait to try getting there!' then when you get there '.....that's it? I'm not even remotely satisfied :/ '

The location I was most disappointed by was Searchlight airport.

Edit: You can't use a modern picture of The Strip, the one in New Vegas is modeled after the 1950's strip.

Sorry, couldn't find one. Anyways, the picture doesn't matter, it's my point.

I blame the desert setting more than anything else. I just don't like deserts, its harder to do the kind of terrain/setting in Fallout 3 in New Vegas because deserts are supposed to be barren.

For this reason I hope that we never go back to a desert setting again. Give me Alaskan tundra/forests or midwestern terrain and locations, no more deserts please though.

But your point is invalid when you use an unrelated picture. Thats like if I took a picture of an explosion in a Micheal Bay movie to say he doesnt rely on them for every movie he makes.

Yes, but there are 9 buildings on the strip. And 6 in Freeside that you can walk into. How many buildings can you walk into in Fallout 3 in the downtown area?


Agree. In my opinion, a Fallout game in a big city like New York City would be the most awesome thing ever. But err... small chance for that happening, and it got to fit into the Fallout history too. Still, i would prefer something else than a desert.

I agree, many of the locations are poor.

You can certainly tell which locations got the full time needed for completion and those they were near enough forced to rush/board up/block due to time

It didn't feel empty to me, it felt almost too crowded even. What NV lacks in exlorable locations, it makes up in the ridiculous amount of settlements. It seems like you can't even fart without hitting one.

Not every map should be a map shaped.

I was hoping some of the empty areas would be opened up by DLC

Yeah, doesn't feel quite as dangerous as wandering around in The Wasteland. You're not going to bump into a bunch of raiders, a Sentry Bot, or some Talon Company-ish stuff in the Mojave. If you should, NCR patrollers would just take them out.


Let's hope for that.

I agree, too much desert and mountains. Maybe this is why I find NV super boring. Now don't get me wrong, I love this game. LOVE IT. But the quests are boring and the setting is barren wasteland for miles around. Fallout 3 at least had cities all over. Anyways, on topic, alot of space on the map for major locations but Obsidian just didn't take advantage of it and rushed through development.

I completely agree with this post.
This was absolute biggest disappointment with NV.
Small map, and meaningless locales.

I agree with this post. I've pointed this out a long time ago when people believed the opposite. I know it's supposed to be a desert, but thats not an excuse to be lazy and put more explorable areas and at least a higher quantity of enemies around. When I got this game, I thought it was going to be just as fun exploring it. Now I find myself using the map markers more because of the strict and small areas to explore. The terrain looks the same, at least make it weird in like in fallout 3. It gave it some life.

Its not like fallout 3 had any meaningful locations at all, there are thousands of places on the map like Ma's Bed and Breakfast or some randomly named location that just had some loot, TOO MUCH loot by the time I was done exploring maybe 6 boring locations on the map I had about 40 unique weapons, and 50 nuka-cola quantum and stealth boys. The entire map is over run with supermutants and raiders for no reason. Infact raiders basically outnumber civilized people 400:1. Its boring to me to go to a "Trading Hub" of 4 people and do some poorly designed super-hero quest. Or find a town of 6 people way up north which has one idiotic quest that does nothing for the region.

Mojave is a desert, its is way more populated then I thought.

However, I have to agree the towns and certain location (like Search Light airport) are underwhelming.

the shape of the map areas isn't the problem, its a LACK of things to do, not enough enemies or good locations to fight in and explore, come on FO3 had the capitol building both sides inside and out, the statesman hotel, the cryslus building, lob enterprises, vault tech building, national archives, GNR battle, the entire downtown dc area was pretty fun to battle the supermutants in, the roosovelt academy, red racer factory, le enfant plaza, enclave patrols, outcast patrols, new vegas just doesn't have nearly as much to do, i'm bored with it already, not enough good battlezones or places to explore,well at least bethesda will be making FO4, and bethesda is into exploring and battlezones, way more than obsidian, obsidian is prob better with stories and dialogue, general quests etc, but exploration, enemies and battles bethesda is king in that area.