Based on how the Vault Dweller completed their quests, they can either earn or lose karma points. While almost every quest can be completed through diplomatic, combative, or stealthy methods some quests also allow solutions that are unconventional or contrary to the original task. Fallout often allows the Vault Dweller to complete tasks in multiple ways. Occasionally, inhabitants will be immersed in dilemmas, which the Vault Dweller may choose to solve to acquire karma and experience points. The gameplay in Fallout centers around the game world, visiting locations and interacting with the local inhabitants. Exploration and combat Īn example of dialogue between characters in Fallout Every three levels, the player can assign a special ability, or "perk", to the Vault Dweller which can aid them in their journey through the wasteland. When the Vault Dweller levels up after obtaining a certain number of experience points through various actions, the player can increase their skills with a limited number of skill points. The player can pick up to two traits during character creation out of a possible 16. Traits are character qualities that have a positive and a negative effect. Three can be tagged during creation to give them +20%. The initial value of each skill is determined by the primary statistics. Skills are the learned abilities that the Vault Dweller can have. Two other statistics that can be changed upon character creation are skills and traits. The player can adjust the value of each statistic from one to ten. By default, the primary statistics are set at five. Luck determines the likelihood of events happening. Agility adjusts many of the combat statistics. Intelligence affects the number of dialogue choices available, along with the number of skills the Vault Dweller can learn. Charisma determines how well the Vault Dweller can communicate with others without resorting to violence. Endurance affects the Vault Dweller's hit points and resistance against status effects. Perception determines the amount of detail of objects the Vault Dweller will notice, along with how far they can shoot weapons. Strength determines the weight of the weapons the Vault Dweller can carry and the attack power of melee weapons. The Vault Dweller's primary statistics are governed by the system called SPECIAL which consists of strength, perception, endurance, charisma, intelligence, agility, and luck. The player begins Fallout by selecting one of three characters to play as the Vault Dweller, or alternatively, they can create one with custom attributes. Gameplay Character creation įallout is a role-playing video game.
It was followed by a number of sequels and spin-off games, collectively known as the Fallout series. Fallout, among other games, has been credited for renewing consumer interest in role-playing video games. It won "Role-Playing Game of the Year" from both GameSpot and Computer Games Magazine, along with being nominated for an equivalent award by the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences and Spotlight Awards. The game reached 600,000 sales worldwide and is considered one of the best video games of all time.
It was praised for its open-ended gameplay, combat, and character system. The art style drew inspiration from works from the Atomic Age.įallout was critically acclaimed and a financial success. Fallout is considered to be the spiritual successor to the 1988 role-playing video game Wasteland. It was initially intended to use Steve Jackson Games' system GURPS, but Interplay eventually developed their own system called "SPECIAL" for the game. Fallout was conceptualized as a game where the player could do whatever they wanted. The game was treated as low-budget by Interplay and was outsourced to the role-playing game division of Interplay, though it would cost $3 million. Tim Cain is the creator of Fallout, working on it as early as 1994. The protagonist of Fallout is an inhabitant of a Vault, part of a network of long-term nuclear shelters, who is forced to venture out into the wastes to find a replacement part to fix their Vault's failing water supply system and save their fellow Vault dwellers. The game has a post-apocalyptic and chiefly retro-futuristic setting, taking place in the mid-22nd century decades after a global nuclear war. Fallout is a 1997 role-playing video game developed and published by Interplay Productions.