I played F: NV before F3 and rather spoilt it by too much reading of the equivalent to the F3 http://fallout.wikia.com/wiki/Portal:Fallout_3. I didn't mean to but after getting very frustrated trying to find something in some vault I found myself using it whenever I had a problem and once in there it's so tempting to follow the links and find out things way ahead of time.

So with F3 I've hardly looked at it at all, only to see if it was possible to save the Sheriff after shopping Burke and after Tranquillity Lane, and I've enjoyed it much more. For instance I've now completed all but a few quests, including the DLCs and I've only just discovered the Outcasts hideout and why the BOS in F:NV is so different to those in F3.

Now I'm in the end I'm checking it occasionally "after the event" when I've been somewhere or completed a quest but I think even this is spoiling things and reducing the replay value.

So is checking the wiki a good thing, a bad thing or a guilty pleasure?

I just generally read the wiki when i'm bored, it's got a lot of neat stuff on there some of which I had no idea about.

I can't recall using it for FO3 or F:NV (I have used it though for FO1 and FO2, when looking for more quests)

My friends think I am the FO3 wikki... !! I think becasue they always ask easy questions though, like where bobbleheads or followers can be found and general queries about DLC and so on.

I've used it myself to check the content of Point Lookout to make sure I didn't miss out on any quests etc. I also use Wikki when I encounter glitches I can't avoid or get around with reloading saves etc.

I've resisted using it to find out things like Gallows real name (or how to go about finding out his name) this is bugging me loads ggrrrrrrrrrr

I use the Vault a lot when supporting a lot of the arguments that are made in the series board.

I should included "I use it but only for good" :wink_smile:

I didn't use it at all for my first FO3 playthrough and it was great. I had a fantastic time with my lousy character build and knowing absolutely nothing about nothing. I started my first NV playthrough the same way. I stayed out of the threads here and tried to kept myself pretty ignorant about the game until I went into the gameworld. I'll do the same with Skyrim. There is nothing quite like the first playthrough and you never get back those first time experiences.

However, having said all of that, the wiki is great. I use (d) it all the time for FO3 after that first playthrough. I used it to find the uniques and to learn details that I was curious about, etc. It's a fun place. You can't learn some stats about the weapons, for instance, in the game. Some stuff you have to go to wiki to get.

I use it when I'm stuck, mostly. But even then I have to be careful to only look up the thing I'm stuck on, and ignore the temptation to just browse. It's a wonderful resource, but can svck all the suprise out of the game, and so should be used sparingly.

Hey now, arguing about canon and what does or doesn't fit is good >.<.

I never used it until about my fourth playthrough. I think I needed it for finding the Firelance. Which I learned was a random encounter.

But.... is the wikki accurate?

I'm sure there's been stuff on there in the past that wasn't quite right or didn't show the full or comlplete picture. For just reading up on stuff and locations etc it should be fine, some stuff though I expect comes down to the interpretation of the people postting the stuff on the site.

It is generally well moderated by Ausir, and fairly accurate. Most of the canonicity issues come up when people refuse to understand that Bethesda now has complete control of the Canon now. Black isle and Beth disagree a lot on certain issues. I believe there was a problem with ghouls and supermutants.

Pretty much. Essentially the big argument now is "why the hell is there FEV in Vault 87?".

Pretty basic really. The Fev was a pre war development. It was known to produce random and erratic mutations. Knowing this the Goverment was unable to take part in human testing as of yet. Although with animal testing they found it quite favorable(deathclaw I believe). So to test on humuns they'd have to break the social code. So the incited a nuclear slug fest with china, which allowed them to dump millions of test subjects in Vaults.

I always have a bad habbit of reading everything about a game on the wiki before I buy it, I did it with both Oblivion and Fallout 3. However in a way it was kind of a good thing because it helped me to know what both games were like and if I would enjoy the content in them or not.

Now a days I rarely look at the wiki unless it's to look up useless information that I'm curious about.

Well, that isn't the big argument here. That's an argument to be had elsewhere. The FO3 specific question that bothers me, is why isn't there any FEV in Vault 87 when the player gets there? We can come up with all kinds of theories for how it got to DC, but you can't find any in V87. So what are the Muties using to make more Muties out of the captives they take? They talk about taking them to dunk in the green stuff, but there isn't any that you can find in V87. Very irritating.

Anyway, this is all off topic.

Exactly, my first playthrough of F3 was the best gaming experience that Ive ever had. As great as the wiki is, don't let it spoil the surprises. I use it for weapon research, or investigating how the game mechanics (critical chance, sneaking etc) work. Only after I've completed a quest do I check out the wiki details.

I confess, I did use the wiki to find Dogmeat for the first time, then made a special trip just to get him. It was worth it.

I used it in the early days, to bring myself some of the core aspects of Fallout lore. After I got the big picture, I moved into playing the games over and over again and now I handle pretty much everything in Fallout canon except Van Buren/FOBOS stuff.

Didn't use it for three playthoughs. Why spoil things for yourself?

It been awhile since I've been to 87, but if remember correctly there are drains in testing rooms. I think when they infected the people they'd use a remote aerosol blast to fill the room. Or worse maybe a hose... Either way the green stuff flowed into the drains into an area the player cannot, or does not want to go to. At least that's how I stay sane.

lol!! In my first playthrough I had NO idea who or what Dogmeat was, but I must have gone close enough to the Scrapyard to activate him because I was fighting the Muties who hangout in the overpass building thingie by the irradiated Metro north of the Jefferson Memorial and he came up to me in the middle of the fight. I thought he was another viscious dog attacking me and I have to confess I shot at him. Then, after the fight, when I saw I could talk to him I sent him off to find something and, then, of course he never came back. I never saw him again with that character.



@ Cory - Hey, that's a pretty good way of looking at it. I would NOT want to go down into those drains. Ick.

I love the wikia.
Didnt use it at first. i am not sure how people ath never uesed it, or a strategy guide could even find all of the in game stuff.

after i did find it, i made up my own battle plans.. a large printed map with locateions for weapons, special items, bobbles and the like.
good times

OH. In that case never. I had a guide book (full of typos and missing content, go figure) preordered with Fallout 3. Hard-covered too. Didn't go that route with any other Fallouts though.

I remember 1st time I met dogmeat, I wacked him. I just seen him tear apart 4 raiders & then he headed straight at me, I thought, ooh sh*t! This must b some super boss! Luckily by dat time I was Savin regularly...4 sum reason I just wanted 2 c what wud happen if I let him get 2 me. 1 of my favorite memories of da game. I just cudn't stand 2 lose him anytime he died I wud reload a previous save. So far n my latest plythrough I haven't lost him once...ive learned 2 keep him away frum dose crabpeople.
Oh srry that was way off topic. My point was, it wudn't have had it's affect da same if I read it 1st.

I'll use it a lot to find where books might be or for specfic locations for quests.

I do try an balance using the wiki so I know somestuff before hand and not make mistakes / miss stuff which will just annoy me for the duration of that character, but I really am trying not to read too many spoilers, as I'm actually still on my 1st playthrough!
The amount of spoilers in this General Discussion forum are shocking! I guess some people don't think of them as spoilers, as they're so used to knowing stuff. Trouble is, I get bored at work and think, I'll just have a read of.... of damn, didn't know that