So I'm detecting a wee patern here in the last two games, and I'm wondering if anyone else has noticed it. In FO3 we start out with a very personal story of someone tracking down their astranged father who's vanished into the wastes. This relationship leads the LW to become a key player in the grand conflict between the Enclave and the Brotherhood of Steel. At this point we lose touch with any personal motivation. If the LW was a selfish person (or just an understandably grief stricken) they might decide to simply leave the CW after James's death. (I suppose you could argue that the LW stays to finish their father's work)

In New Vegas, the story begins with the Courier getting shot in the head and setting out to get some payback. Again, this begins with a personal storyline. (though a little less engaging IMO) Once the Courier deals with Benny, they are put, yet again, in the position to play a pivotal role in the wasteland. And again, looking from just the standpoint of the personal story, it is set aside for the grand scheme of the wastes. A selfish Courier might decide to say "to hell with it," and just leave the Mojave for greener [astures and let the factions deal with their problems on their own.

So has anyone else noticed this? Is this the scheme for most Fallout games or just these two? Do you like this setup or would you prefer the personal story to continue past the halfway point? Or would you prefer not to have a personal story at all?

Seems to be just for those two Fallout games.

Fallout: you leave the Vault to find the waterchip to save the Vault. Then you have to stop the Super Mutants to save the Vault. So you have all these people that depend on you.

Fallout 2: You leave Arroyo to find a GECK to save Arroyo, and then you have to save them from the Enclave. So again you have all these people that depend on you throughout the game.

Fallout Tactics: Well you have missions that keep you going to save the wasteland.

So its only a new thing that we run out of personal motivation beyond find Dad and Benny.

Although what they all have in common is that you start out setting after one simple goal ("Go find watership/GECK/dad/Benny and you're done") and turn up getting involved in something bigger than your little search quest ("Huge super mutant army threatening my vault and the entire wasteland? Gotta stop that! Douchebags in power armour kidnap my village and threaten the entire wasteland? Gotta stop that! Douchebags AND super mutants (again) threaten my parent's life work and the entire wasteland? Gotta stop that! Four different factions want to consume the wasteland in a war over who'll seize Vegas and.... well... FNV is actually a bit different since there isn't a general threat, one could call Legion the threat but that's no option since you can actually join them and cause stability in the wasteland so... Gotta stop that?)

Fallout 3 and NV have wayyy different beginnings. You don't really have a personal story in NV, in Fallout 3 you do, but still not too much.

Than again I don't roleplay in games so..

Here is an INTRO I thought of along with some friends I was talking to.


-Screen is black with the date OCTOBER 23, 2077 in white-
Words fade and alarm beeps.
Screen clears and you are in bed awakening to the noise. You turn it off and get up.
You go to your wardrobe to change clothes and get ready for work at [xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx].
Walk downstairs to get breakfast to open the fridge with no milk so you walk to the nearest grocer.
Apon arrival you meet the clerk and talk about the recent news and also get a paper to start your day.
At your front door you try to open it but forgot your keys on the kitchen table but lift the welcome mat to get a key.
Now you sit at the chair in the kitchen and read the paper.
-Nuka Quantum is produced- several other adds too and news of [xxxxxxx]
Air raid sirens go off in the streets and radios talk of missles being launched.
You run upstairs to tell your family screen fades to black. -MOMENTS LATER- appears and fades.
You are outside to see people but no one is around.
In the blue sky there is bombs covering the sunlight and it fades to white....[radios/sirens stop]
FALLOUT 4 is now shown.
-PRESENT DAY- fades in andout.


The story of your journey begins now as the section just presented was a tutorial and start of not only the game, but the great war.
*THIS WAS CREATED AS AN IDEA AND BELIEF OF THE UPCOMING FALLOUT TO OUR IMAGINATION*

What does this have to do with any thing discussed here? (I'm not trying to sound like an ass I'm actually wondering because I don't see a connection)

Maybe be he saw 'Storyline' and thought of a storyline without reading the sub-heading, does it really matter?

Can't make a pattern from 2 things, it's impossible - only with 3 things can a pattern begin to appear.

That sounds really cool

They probably choose such a beginning because it's rude to say "lol here's the game now go" without giving you ANY story or motivation outline to follow, but as an RPG, they don't wanna railroad you through the whole game. Thus, the "tutorial" has you following their outlined motivation and then afterwards you decide what you want to do.

I would like a Nv style tutorial level for FO4. In NV it was sweet and simple. Your a courier and you got shot in the head and some guy stole your package. You survive and from the moment you exit Doc Mitchell's home you can leave Goodsprings and start your adventure without even getting involved in Goodsprings' problems. Unlike Fo3 where you had to play through the tutorial levels in 101 everytime you make a new character.

Fallout 2 required you to go through a temple.
The fallout 3 growing up sequence wasn't really that long.

It was still quite long for what it tried to do. And problematic in that it didn't provide enough story for you to care about anyone, not even your dad who was at the crux of the whole MQ. Overly long for a forced tutorial, too short to provide any meaningful story buildup.

When did I mention Fo2? Also 3's 101 sequence was a good 8 or 10 minutes and is unskippable unlike NV where you can skip the tutorial outside of Goodsprings and leave right away.

Uh-huh... Kinda, sorta, completely missed the point of the OP.

While I'm glad to be filled in on the storylines of Fallout/Fallout2/Fallout Tactics (thanks for that Styles & Savage Beatings) I'm more interested in whether or not you think it's plausible/favorable to continue the personal aspect of the storyline from after the point where the PC realizes that they're mixed up in the whole "save/destroy" the wasteland bit.

I'd also like to add that there's a thread for posting ideas for future games --> http://www.gamesas.com/topic/1352810-fallout-4-speculation-suggestions-ideas-thread-54/. Please post your story ideas/intros there.