Fallout 3 vs. Oblivion

[monkeychemist]

Hello everyone,

I have a question about those two games. I have been playing Fallout 3 and love it! It is quite an impressive game I have to say (I am new to these types of open games BTW). I saw that the same company had previously made Oblivion. It looks like a similar engine and plenty of fun. My question is can someone go back a step from Fallout 3 to Oblivion? Or would it be not as fun? Sorta like playing MGS4 and then going back to 3 or 2... Are the games exactly the same with just a different theme?

Thanks in advance!

[Starwander]

I think both games share a lot in common, although Fallout 3 corrected one of the major issues I had with Oblivion, that of repetition. It might have been just me, although ever dungeon and lair that I raided seemed to be exactly identical both enemy wise and with the layout. Overall after fighting the same type of opponents for the millionth time it just becomes less interesting. Personally I wouldn’t want to go back after playing Fallout 3.

[Daria]

Oblivion's a totally different game, you should have no problem "going back". Not only is it a different game, but it's awesome. Quit asking silly questions and play it. :P

[monkeychemist]

Quit asking silly questions and play it. :P

I have to buy it first and currently I'm poor, that's why I wanted opinions...

[chrissylas]

I loved Oblivion. I definitely think you could "go back" to it. It's extremely similar to Fallout 3 but is in a completely different setting. Well worth picking the GOTY edition for it.

[Arcade_Ness]

If you don't mind another game to consume countless hours in, then jump on it. I still have fond memories of the game, but I prefer the setting of Fallout 3.

[kupomogli]

Since I couldn't get Fallout 3 for cheap at that Circuit City sale and they announced other expansions, I'm waiting for a Fallout 3 Game of the Year edition.

[carlcarlson]

After playing Fallout 3 I went back to Oblivion and put another 40 or so hours into it. So yeah, you can easily go "back". The games have similarities but in the end they are completely different.

[Trebuken]

Make sure you get The Game Of the Year Edition of Oblivion as well.

Fallout 3 does improve over some of what Oblivion did. I personally put much more time into Oblivion and loved it. Both games have too short main quests; Oblivion though has a much higher level cap which kept me going. Once I capped my level in Fallout 3 I lost interest...even the increase in level cap to 30 in an upcoming expansion is doing little to draw my interest back.

I thought the 'dungeons' in Oblivion were much too small, and Fallout 3 improved on that, but many were still too small.

You can go back. Truth be told you could probably go back to Morrowing as well and have fun. Fallout 1 and 2 still hold interest for many as well, though the gameplay is different...

[monkeychemist]

Thanks for the thoughts guys. I will get the GoTY edition of Oblivion when I can.

[JunkTheMagicDragon]

if at all possible, get the pc version, so you can download a mod to fix the difficulty scaling. they fixed the system in fallout, but in oblivion it's pretty ridiculous, and no way to fix it on 360 or ps3.

[TheDomesticInstitution]

I played and beat Fallout 3 before I sunk 100+ hours into Oblivion. The graphics in Oblivion are still pretty stunning, despite it being a bit older.

[NayusDante]

I played both at their respective release times, maybe a few weeks after, and both of them prompted me to upgrade my video card. I got my Radeon 4850 for Fallout 3 and both run great with it, considering that neither run flawlessly in terms of performance. If you want to play Fallout 3 as a shooter and not a slow RPG, be prepared to upgrade.

Oblivion's main quest felt longer than Fallout 3's. Then again, there was the whole "close the umpteen planes of Oblivion" thing which took forever. The dungeons, however, are mostly ruins of the ancient Ayleid civilization, so they're bound to look the same, even though they have varying layouts and sizes.

Fallout 3, on the other hand, is a much more "fun" and accessible title. It's much more fun to collect items and weapons, finding new ways to kill enemies/innocents. With Oblivion, you had to sit holed up in your mage tower to write spells to have that kind of fun.

In a nutshell, Oblivion is much deeper. If you want to do fantasy roleplaying, it's great for that. That's what I mean when I say that Fallout 3 is much more accessible, you can play it for a few minutes and have a ton of fun. I loved both for what they were, and I've put a LOT of time into each.

That said, they're both infinitely more fun with mods. It's not a bad idea to learn the editor, since making weapons OUTSIDE the game presents you with options not available INSIDE the game. Try a gatling gun that fires rail spikes, a shotgun that fires mini nukes, etc. If you ever get bored, just download a new mod.

[boatofcar]

if at all possible, get the pc version, so you can download a mod to fix the difficulty scaling. they fixed the system in fallout, but in oblivion it's pretty ridiculous, and no way to fix it on 360 or ps3.

I thought there was a difficulty slider in the 360 version...

[Poofta!]

I thought there was a difficulty slider in the 360 version...

thats got nothing to do with it. the game's scaling is broken. in general the pc version is worlds better than the console counterparts.

you can get hte GOTY for 20$... shouldnt be a problem picking it up like right now...

[monkeychemist]

Thanks NayusDante for a thorough comparison. I am a little scared of what you said about Oblivion. I remember several years back trying to start a quest in Morrowind. About 2 hours into the game I was so lost that I gave up never to pick it up again. Maybe I loved Fallout 3 for the reason that you mentioned: accessibility. It's a game you can pick up and play for either 30 min or 5 hours and have a lot of fun with. I am intrigued by Oblivion, as long as it's more fallout than morrowind (in terms of accessibility and fun) then I'll give it a shot.

Again, thank you for your comment

[Poofta!]

Thanks NayusDante for a thorough comparison. I am a little scared of what you said about Oblivion. I remember several years back trying to start a quest in Morrowind. About 2 hours into the game I was so lost that I gave up never to pick it up again. Maybe I loved Fallout 3 for the reason that you mentioned: accessibility. It's a game you can pick up and play for either 30 min or 5 hours and have a lot of fun with. I am intrigued by Oblivion, as long as it's more fallout than morrowind (in terms of accessibility and fun) then I'll give it a shot.

Again, thank you for your comment

funny, Oblivion was dumbed down to all hell to make it accessible to people like you (and console gamers in general). i think, and many RPGers agree, that morrowind was a far superior game, in story telling, scope and memorability.

[NayusDante]

Yes, Oblivion is definitely more accessible than Morrowind. As much as I like Morrowind, I never had enough drive to complete it. Oblivion has the quest arrows and such, so you simply don't get lost.

[Nebagram]

Both great games you can easily put 100 hours into without noticing... and that's before the dlc which'll swallow another 60. To me, Oblivion seems 'deeper'- particularly what with all the faction and Daedric quests, which take the better part of forever to finish- but Fallout 3's world seems more 'alive' if that makes any sense. Possibly due to Fallout having more than 2 voice actors, I dunno. It could be that, as stated before, Oblivion's dungeons are just that- medieval dungeons- whilst Fallout 3's interiors are a lot closer to home, you can actually believe they were what they were said to be pre-war.

[heybtbm]

I've played each one to death (easily racked up over 300 hours total). They're both excellent games. Probably the best two US-developed RPG's I've ever played.

That being said, Oblivion is my personal favorite. I prefer the fantasy setting over nuclear ravaged Washington D.C. I never get sick of exploring dungeons, scavenging though ancient ruins or just walking/swiming/climbing around Tamriel. The Wasteland, on the other hand, gets a bit depressing after awhile (Oh look...here's another bombed out building).

Oblivion has this ridiculously detailed back-story and lore that go back 1000's of years. Fallout 3's back-story is essentially, "China and the US had a nuclear war". Not as interesting at all. There isn't that sense of ancient history and mystery. To each their own of course.

[monkeychemist]

funny, Oblivion was dumbed down to all hell to make it accessible to people like you (and console gamers in general). i think, and many RPGers agree, that morrowind was a far superior game, in story telling, scope and memorability.

I find your comment helpful, albeit insulting. It does confirm that I would enjoy Oblivion.

[maxlords]

I found Fallout 3 to be a lackluster title myself. Repetetive, boring, etc.

However, Oblivion, which is quite similar, I enjoyed thoroughly and clocked somewhere around 130 hours into. IMO you can't go back to it....but I finished every single side quest. It's all the same now. I'd highly recommend Oblivion....even though it is RPG-lite.

[Kitsune Sniper]

This topic rocks, because I just bought Oblivion a few days ago. Haven't installed it yet, my backlog is too big.

How are the expansions?

[theChad]

When it comes to Oblivion and Fallout 3, it's no guarantee that if you liked one you'll like the other. I put around 10 hours into Oblivion and then just kind of forgot about it one day, whereas my brother put in over 200 hours. Then when it comes to Fallout, he had just gotten out of the Vault and let it lie, so I started my own character and have sunk 80+ hours in so far. After I've really exhausted Fallout 3, I may give Oblivion another go now that I've really begun to enjoy that kind of gameplay.

And to throw Morrowind into the mix... yeah, I'm another one of those people who put 2 hours in and don't know if I could ever pick it up again.

PS: Poofta, it's hardly right to insult someone for enjoying a game. Whether you find it challenging enough or not, to each his own.

[NayusDante]

Morrowind is definitely one of those games that you could get REALLY into, but you have to put yourself in the right mindset. Usually, I sit down to an RPG wanting to explore, progress, and enjoy a story. With Morrowind, however, it's "Are you ready to start your quest? Of course you're not, you need to go fetch this before I tell you anything."

Morrowind just feels too "heavy." When I get into the right mindset to enjoy it, I'm sure that I'll get absorbed for weeks. Then again, my first instinct is to make a mage and start learning spells, so I should probably give it a try as either full-on melee or something else like a merchant. Kinda kills the experience, though, when you need to learn the game before you can effectively roleplay it.

[pseudonym]

I loved Morrowind and Oblivion, I probably put at least a couple hundred hours into each game. One of my favorite things to do was to collect / read the books. Some of them are boring as hell to read, others were strangely facinating stories of the history and lore in the game.

I haven't gotten around to playing Fallout 3 yet. It's in my "to play" pile of games right now.

[boatofcar]

I find your comment helpful, albeit insulting. It does confirm that I would enjoy Oblivion.

It also confirms that you're not like Poofta, which is really more important and admirable.

[123►Genei-Jin]

Oblivion sucks without mods, way too repetitive for me, I threw in FCOM and like 50GBs of mods to make it worthwhile ,including armor & weapon packs, hi-res textures, quests, etc..., I guess I was expecting a lot more out of the game and I agree Morrowind is a far better game overall (with terrible animations though) Vanilla Oblivion feels somewhat rushed and there seems to be a lot of stuff that never made it to the final version of the game that you can tell by looking at the game from the construction tool set.

Fallout 3 was heavily influenced by the Oblivion modding community and feels more complete as a game IMO.

[BHvrd]

Pretty good replies, but I would add in the angle of aesthetics.

To me Fallout 3 is much more immersive and realistic in its presentation. Shooting off a head and watching it roll is much more satisfying than endlessly swinging a sword and just watching the bodies go limp. It may be a moot point, but to me it can really keep you going.

Also Fallout 3 really puts you into the shoes of a character and really fleshes it out, where in Oblivion you kinda make your own path and never have as strong of a connection.

It will feel like a step back as far as aesthetics go, but Oblivion offers a nice vast experience, if you are willing to put in the effort, and you WILL need to put forth more of an effort as the game is quite a bit more in depth which at times can get rather boring imo.

[Nesmaster]

If you go into Oblivion bearing in mind that it is over 3 years old, I'm sure you'll enjoy it. I actually just played through The Shivering Isles this month and found it very enjoyable.

I enjoyed both games well enough that I could never put one over the other, although I did really enjoy collecting the bobbleheads in Fallout... :)

[monkeychemist]

yea, I think I will give it a shot. It sounds like it will be fun without being overly complicated.

[Trumpman]

If you can, get it on PC. The mods for Oblivion are amazing, and some of them make it into a completely different game. I am about to start playing Oblivion again (never got Shivering Isle), and I'm going to play with a mod called FCOM, which combines four of the largest mega-mods for Oblivion into one mod to rule them all. I can't wait - it should be great fun.

[monkeychemist]

If you can, get it on PC. The mods for Oblivion are amazing, and some of them make it into a completely different game. I am about to start playing Oblivion again (never got Shivering Isle), and I'm going to play with a mod called FCOM, which combines four of the largest mega-mods for Oblivion into one mod to rule them all. I can't wait - it should be great fun.

Well, I have a PS3, so I will have to get it for that. I enjoy console gaming more anyways.

Yes, I know people are going to jump all over me with "GAHHH there's BUGS!!!" I read the Amazon reviews but they also say the same thing about Fallout 3. In my 100 hours of play I've encountered two freezes and two instances where my character was stuck behind a rock. I think that the game is pretty damn good enough that I can overlook that. Both instances of the game freezing, I took it as a hint that it was time to stop playing for now :)

[EricRyan34]

You can easily go back and play Oblivion, completely different game setting/story wise. I am planning on going back to it as soon as I am done with Fallout.

[mnbren05]

Its always possible to go back but I must say Oblivion felt boring to me. Granted they both are very similar but the world of Obliv. never really interested me at all. That and Fallout 3 feels more cohesive, polished, and relatable than Oblivion ever has to me. Fallout 3 is a type of game that a wide specturum of people can jump into and not not feel an epic sense of confusion. Oblivion however is more obscure/in depth and definatly requires more time to learn.

[Poofta!]

id like to apologize for the thin insult. i am bitter of developers going bankrupt or changing the base games i have grown to love. i understand that with rising development costs they need to appeal to a broader demographic and this, unfortunately, means making things easier, simpler and quicker. i grew up playing RPGs on the PC all throughout the 90s and i am sad to see them go (there is still hope in some companies & games). i enjoyed Oblivion, but compared to Morrowind, it was trash (IMHO). i loved fallout 3, and got EVERYTHING in the game, but still compared to 1 & 2, it barely stands.

you should try oblivion, you will probably like it. but please, for your sake, do not play it on the ps3. get the pc version. being a console gamer has nothing to do with it. its just a much better, polished game on pc. and if you like it, the pc gives you the freedom to expand it almost limitlessly thanks the the very easy to use mods. this is all of course if your pc can handle it.

[monkeychemist]

Thanks for clarifying Poofta. I would have to upgrade too much to play on PC so I'll stick with console. You avatar rocks by the way and is very relevant to this topic :)

[NayusDante]

Mind posting your PC specs? I've heard of people runnin Oblivion on rather crappy systems, and there's something called "Oldblivion" that lets it run on older hardware. Post what you have and we can give an estimate of how it would run.

[Daltone]

I've played each one to death (easily racked up over 300 hours total). They're both excellent games. Probably the best two US-developed RPG's I've ever played.

If this is indeed the case I demand that you run to the shops and purchase Baldur's Gate I & II immediately! (Or are/were Bioware Canadian?)

On topic, like everyone else said - give Oblivion a try. It's got Patrick Stewart in it, so you can't really lose.

[Lady Jaye]

Bioware is Canadian, they're based in Edmonton, Alberta.

[Daltone]

Bioware is Canadian, they're based in Edmonton, Alberta.


Ah, thank you!

In which case I retract my previous statement (but you should still go out and play Baldur's Gate, the second one especially.)

[monkeychemist]

Mind posting your PC specs? I've heard of people runnin Oblivion on rather crappy systems, and there's something called "Oldblivion" that lets it run on older hardware. Post what you have and we can give an estimate of how it would run.

I have a bottom of the line Lenovo laptop http://reviews.cnet.com/laptops/lenovo-3000-n200-0687/4505-3121_7-32462009.html So I would probably have to upgrade all kinds of things like graphics card or whatnot.

My main computer is an Apple so it probably doesn't exist.

Plus, I like to sit on the couch with a wireless controller when I play :)

[NayusDante]

The Intel video chip in that laptop is what kills it. That's actually a better system than my laptop, which ran Oblivion maxed. However, mine has a GeForce 7600 Go. Either install Windows on your Mac (Windows 7 RC1 is free for 13 months as of tomorrow), or get it on a console. Mods really do make it a different game, though, and it becomes more of a tool to make fun for yourself than a single game.

[monkeychemist]

The Intel video chip in that laptop is what kills it. That's actually a better system than my laptop, which ran Oblivion maxed. However, mine has a GeForce 7600 Go. Either install Windows on your Mac (Windows 7 RC1 is free for 13 months as of tomorrow), or get it on a console. Mods really do make it a different game, though, and it becomes more of a tool to make fun for yourself than a single game.

Yea, I'll stick to console. I've been reading some character development FAQs and the game seems pretty complex enough that I won't be craving mods just yet. Maybe after I run through it I may change my mind, but right now it seems to already push my threshold as far as RPGs go. I've always been a huge fan of RPGs but console/JRPGs. The ones you can just pick up and play with minimal planning.

[ianoid]

Sacrilege! Playing games on PCs is for... it's for... PC users!

Now that I have that off my chest, I haven't played a ton of either game. I may have to stop my Fallout 3 due to motion sickness that I get with FPSes. It has the usual refined FPS dynamic. Oblivion, although FPS, it a bit more of a button masher. The swordfighting seems very mashy. I prefer a tighter arcade feel, or 3rd person perspective with my RPGs, and the 3rd person option with Oblivion is pretty tacked on. I think a primary difference is gameplay.

In summary, if you want an FPS oriented RPG experience, it's Fallout. If you want deep fantasy RPG with some sacrifice of the action/fighting, it's Oblivion.

Personally I'm wishing someone would come up with a game with the depth of Oblivion with the control/action of Baldur's Gate Dark Alliance. I'm not that into FPS since it's been making me nauseous. I have high hopes for Sacred 2 as far as fantasy RPGs go. If it gets scores over 7/10, I'll probably spring for it.

[Lady Jaye]

I don't mind the third-person perspective in Oblivion -- I sure like it better than the first-person POV (which I only use for searching stuff). But I do agree that the controls in BG: DA were pretty good and could have been reused for a deeper hack n slash game.

I do find that the sword fighting in Oblivion is a bit difficult at times -- the game seems better suited for a magic user or an archer.

[TheDomesticInstitution]

The combat system, at least for melee users like myself, does require a lot of button mashing and isn't particularly refined. I just move around in circles a lot, and swing in the general direction of the opponent.

I brought up Ninja Gaiden in another thread, which has me wondering how hard it'd be to combine the fighting mechanics in that game with a RPG like Oblivion? I'd much rather do a majority of my combat in 3rd person, but I tend to use the 1st person almost exclusively because it's easier to tell where you're swinging.

A hack-N-slash, with the complexities of a Bethesda RPG? Now I'd buy that for a dollar!

Or maybe even 60.

[NayusDante]

A hack-N-slash, with the complexities of a Bethesda RPG?

I've been wanting something like this myself. I actually set out to form a development team and had a story written, but it's since turned into a 2D console-style RPG.

It's not a really complex design, but nobody's really done it yet. Fallout 3 is the closest thing, and it's still not action-based enough. Imagine PSO with more of a persistent world, and more complex dialog and NPCs, and you'll have an idea of what it could be.

A bit off topic, but would anyone be interested in making a game like that with a pre-existing engine? It might be funny to build a "Little Oblivion" with a DP Community retrogaming theme, and most of the work would be maps and content. NeoAxis (http://www.neoaxisgroup.com/)would be a good starting point.

[Lady Jaye]

Well, it's a bit early to know how well it will play, but later this year, Bioware's new game Dragon Age: Origins is coming out on PC, PS3 and X360... Bioware has said that it will be a spiritual successor to Baldur's Gate (but since EA bought Bioware and EA doesn't have the D&D license, it can't be a true-blue sequel).

[Daltone]

Well, it's a bit early to know how well it will play, but later this year, Bioware's new game Dragon Age: Origins is coming out on PC, PS3 and X360... Bioware has said that it will be a spiritual successor to Baldur's Gate (but since EA bought Bioware and EA doesn't have the D&D license, it can't be a true-blue sequel).

Aye, I heard this the other day. So long as it has the same depth of dialouge choices as BG I will be happy. Nothing beats making everyone think that you're doing the quest for them, then screwing the whole lot of them over.

[kupomogli]

The topic creator most likely has Oblivion now, but I just wanted to post my opinion on Fallout 3 vs Oblivion since I've put in a bit of time in Fallout so far.

With Oblivion, I actually liked it when I started the game, being a fan of games like King's Field, Eternal Ring, and somewhat, Shadow Tower, it was pretty cool that it was similar. Finished the earlier part and while the world looked good, the more you explored the more boring the game seemed. The world itself just looked pretty mashed together, repetitive, and not really realistic. The dungeons around the world seemed cool at first, but you're walking in there fighting enemies and getting mostly completely useless equipment and maybe some pretty cool equipment(like the Water Walking boots I've received at the beginning of the game.)

The main problem I had with Oblivion was the combat the further into the game you got. Depending on the type of character you played as it got too repetitive, but you couldn't very well be a Spellsword or similar because you'd be weaker in multiple aspects. As a physical attacker the game was mostly hold block wait for the enemy to attack and then counter with slashes or a powerful slash as if did anything other than that, the enemy would use the exact same combat system and would throw your character off balance with a block. Magic users, obviously repeat the same powerful spells over and over.

So overall I dislike Oblivion. I'd go back and play the King's Field games over it as they're just more enjoyable. I liked Morrowind better as well as the world itself was much more realistic wasn't so mashed together, but the only system I played it on is the PC and my graphics card, while it could run it, couldn't run it very well as it wasn't running it as fast as it could. I also didn't much like sitting on the computer using a keyboard and didn't have a controller. I should probably pick it up again and play it as my PC now could run it and I could always pick up a controller, but eh, whatever.

Now. With Fallout 3. At the beginning enjoyed it and then got to the world. The very outside of Vault 101 didn't look so great so I was afraid of another Oblivion. Exploring the school right outside the vault, then Megaton City there was much more than Oblivion had to offer it seems because there were even more quests to take on than if you just started on Oblivion.

Now so far I've made my way to Rivet City as far as quests go(bottom right of the map) so that's where I currently am, though I've finished quite a bit on the top right portion also. Also finished a couple other quests along the way, like the Fire Ant quest. I've found where my characters dad is but I stilll haven't went to the Radio Station. Other than the quests I've completed, I have explored a ton. On the way to Rivet City I have completely explored every subway tunnel and building I've come across, some lead me to different areas which I've explored a bit there as well until I came across another place I can fast travel back to.

Fallout 3 is much more realistic in its level design. Instead of a world mashed together, you actually have realistically built and different looking areas. Who cares about the ability to purchase junk houses in Oblivion when you can find a nice fast travel spot on Fallout 3 that happens to have a bed, nice looking area, and boxes/ammunition boxes to keep everything in(in which I still use Super Duper Mart but I've found a few good ones I would use.)

Combat itself is much better in Fallout 3 as well. Melee weapons are just like Oblivion but slashes are probably the best to use as I've found the power slashes worthless as I only attack animals with melee anyways. Instead of worrying about the flaws of waiting to block and then attack or the enemy will do the same, you just have to kill or be killed. Being an FPS you need to know how to aim well. But also make sure to try out different weapons on different enemies, see which ones work best.

So yeah. Less repetitive, more explorative as the areas look fairly different for the most part, though yes a lot of areas do look the same. World looks better designed. One thing I dislike about Fallout 3. Not too bad, but why are all the rocks in the world? This is the same thing on Oblivion. It seems that Bethesda sure does like using the random rock generator.

[ianoid]

Although the games have a similar dynamic, the complexity of Oblivion is really putting my off. Reminds me, I'd love to get back to Fallout and finish 4 more expansions. But Oblivion, 15 hours in, I'm tempted to put it down for Sacred 2. Sacred 2! Seriously! Oblivion is brutal. I'm finding it to be too hard. I have to save every second because one badly aimed fireball may be the end of me.

Fallout Fallout Fallout! I really loved playing through that game. I just loved being in the wasteland. It's such a crazy place.

[Zoltor]

I personally haven't played Fallout 3, but considering that Oblivion sucked big time(for the size of the game/world, there's virtually no content, the very limited/few enchanted equips are basically only obtainable as quest rewards, not dops), also you would think a land mass that size would have almost twice as many towns/cities, and a hell of alot more dungeons), so I'm gonna go on a limb and say, Fallout 3 is probally better.

[Therealqtip]

If you're like me and play FO3 before Oblivion and think Oblivion is gonna be fun, you're probably wrong. I played it, hated it, went back sorta enjoyed it but never as much as FO3.