That was a somewhat disappointing playthrough. : Fallout: New Vegas

» Sun May 19, 2013 5:14 pm

I've been playing New Vegas on and off since it released, but I never finished it (I'm terrible at finishing games I enjoy because I hate to see them come to an end!) Anyway, recently I decided I'd stop dikeing around/losing interest/restarting and actually finish the game.

My character was mostly a good guy, but worked closely with the NCR. The only group he did not tolerate was the legion or anyone else spreading chaos with no chance of reform. I worked with the NCR, Yes Man, and House for most of the game. I was turned off Yes Man when I got a notification that the NCR did not like me working with him, and after he confessed to being the one responsible for tracking me down for Benny. I shot Yes Man dead. (Then he came back to life...so I just decided to ignore him.)

I started working with Mr House but found him difficult to trust. I had Veronica as a follower, and had helped her with the Brotherhood and also had the honour of being accepted into the Brotherhood. Mr. House then tells me I must take out the Brotherhood.

"Not happening," I thought. Not after growing fond of Veronica and helping the Brotherhood as much as I did. I tried to convince House to let them go/ignore them but he wouldn't have any of it. So I went to ask Veronica about it. No dialogue options. I ventured off to Hidden Valley to discuss the situation with the Elder. No dialogue options. I went back to House and tried convincing him, yet again, to ignore the Brotherhood. He would not.

I could not figure out a way around this so I decided if it was between the entire chapter of the BoS or one arrogant old bastard, I'd have to put an end to Mr. House. I unsealed him from his chamber and though I left him alive, he only hung there mute and everyone on the strip seemed to think he was dead. I decided to put House out of his misery, because apparently he wasn't going to do anything.

Following this I became a bit of a do-gooder, building relations and settling feuds between NCR and other groups on the strip and without. It was a lot of fun as I felt I was being given the chance to shape the future of the game to how I saw fit. I carried around this platinum chip, unsure what to do with it. I went on to the Hoover Dam battle in support of NCR and when that was over...Boom! So was the game.

I liked the montage at the end though I'm unsure why Cass and Boone were said to have died in ways they did not. I was with them when they died and they were both killed by Legionnaires. I was also disappointed that the NCR forced the Followers out of Freeside as this is one of the groups I thought I'd worked to secure and one my character was cool with.

But ultimately I was left wondering: Hey, what about the platinum chip? What about the robot army, the tops, Yes Man? What about CEASER? I was looking forward to crucifying him. Honestly, I kind of thought the game would continue after Hoover Dam. I have a motel room in Novac FULL of crafting items, and no reason for them anymore unless I reload to pre-battle.

Ah well. I'm happy I'll get to experience new things (hopefully) in the next play through, but I definitely will be playing a character that does not side with the NCR as it left a lot of loose ends, it seems.

Anyway, I just felt like talking about my experience. I wish there were more RPG’s like this—ones where you can actually make your own decisions and the game follows suit.

Please don't spoil me on other outcomes if you feel the need to reply. :smile:

» Mon May 20, 2013 4:59 am

The point of New Vegas' ending is to display how important your character really was to the state of the Mojave. Everything that happens (whether it be the Kings or Brotherhood of Steel) reflects the choices you make as a courier, and while it would be great to play after the ending, there is simply too many options for change to be able to successfully make a Broken Steel-type DLC. Obsidian sure wanted to, but due to limitations, the game fell short of what Obsidian *really* wanted it to be. The thing about the Brotherhood of Steel is that they're not the "good guys", and they're not important to the Mojave whatsoever. If anything, they're actually a blight upon it. If you choose the option to have Veronica leave the Brotherhood of Steel, you will be shown the Brotherhood's true colors.

Spoiler

That's the reason why House wants them to die, and that's why it's justified. He summed it up fairly well. "They are interested in technology, but you don't see them raiding hospitals for pre-war tech. No, rather, they hoard technology that puts people in hospitals. Mojave Brotherhood of Steel =/= Lyons Brotherhood of Steel. A lot of people dislike house for wanting to kill the BoS because they're used to the BoS being the generic good guys from Fallout 3, but they're really not.

Anyway, the thing about follower deaths; they have a generic slide for the death of each. They can't really fit enough slides to be able to display exactly why each follower perished.

House isn't "mute to everyone and going to do nothing". You should've probably exhausted every dialogue option from Mr. House before killing him, because he actually has more ambitious plans than any other leader in the Mojave; after the end slideshow, they're happening very slowly, due to House treading lightly and trying not to piss off the NCR, but House is trying to bring America (but for now, just the Mojave) back to its pre-war state.

If you want to kill Caesar, then go to the fort and kill him. Nothing's stopping you, and it's a good challenge. Now, the way that you continue to play Vegas is to return to the save before the battle and do various things. Achievements, the four awesome DLCs, gambling, weapon/armor collecting, anything you want.

Also, there is no generic "good" faction for New Vegas like there was in Fallout 3. They are all evil in some regard, and you have to choose a lesser evil. Now, the NCR does a fantastic job at putting on a facade of "honorable troops fighting for democracy!" while they're really just greedy about territory and wealth, which is why they're overstretching. So, if you only sided with NCR for a generic "good" option, then I would have to fact check that. However, Yes Man is far more open ended and the ending can really be anything you speculate. It's confirmed that you don't control anything more than Vegas after the ending, and the Mojave just becomes a bunch of self-governed territories. Just depends on what you want out of the faction, really. If you want the people to simply do what they please, then you want Yes Man. If you want to almost eliminate crime entirely and live in a safe, stable, and efficient society, but with a lack of rights, then you want Caesar. I don't really know how to explain the NCR because they're a puzzle, but I suppose that if you want what has been happening in the West to expand further, then you want the NCR. If you want New Vegas and the Mojave to progress economically and technologically to the extent that it could eventually be restored to pre-war condition, you want House.

» Mon May 20, 2013 6:39 am

How specifically did the game say Cass & Boone died? "Lost to the Mojave" is the standard companion death ending, and it isn't programmed to vary based on what killed your companion (Or other important NPCs).

Boone killed by Legionaires = Boone killed by Deathclaws = Boone killed by the Courier. As far as the ending slides go.

If you finished the game as NCR, you destroyed the robot army. Other faction paths request different choices be made at familiar junctions, and new choices at unique junctions.

Why NCR doesn't like Yes Man (Minor mechanic spoiler, insight into NCR's mindset):

Spoiler

I have to ask, though - why was he reluctant to destroy the Brotherhood when this was his creed?

Was Veronica encouraged to leave the Brotherhood or renew her faith in it?

» Mon May 20, 2013 8:44 am

Mojave BoS in a nutshell.