Fallout

by MacPlay

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00006GXD7
• Media: CD-ROM
• Release Date: September 30, 2002
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #33,993 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
  • #37 in Video Games > Mac Games > Role-Playing
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Platform: Mac

Amazon.com Review

Mad Max, Blade Runner, The Terminator, The Matrix--all the best sci-fi movies set on a futuristic Earth have one common message: things are going to be bleak, and it'll take a special kind of hero to make any sort of difference. Fallout is a superb riff on this theme, letting you play the role of the hero as you venture across a nuked United States on a quest to help your imperiled community of survivors.

Three generations have passed since The War, and all that time your "tribe" has been living in a self-sufficient fallout shelter called Vault-13. Unfortunately, its water purification system is broken, and it's your job to find either another chip or a safe water supply before the current reserves dry up. Alone, you leave the safety of the vault and embark on an unforgettable adventure.

There are several elements that elevate Fallout above similar role-playing games, but the detailed character statistics are at the top of the list. This is one of the few games that lets you truly fine-tune a character to your liking, and the skills, traits, and attributes you hone have a real impact on gameplay. A sneaky character with a great personality can easily steal items and talk his or her way out of a tough situation, while a character specialized in ranged combat can let his guns do the talking. Different character types will develop the plot in different ways, and it's worth going through the game again with a different character just to see how things change.

As the game progresses, you'll find that there are more important things happening in the outside world than the troubles your vault is having. In fact, it's possible to ignore the plight of your people entirely and focus on the bigger picture if that's the way you want to play the game. There are a few problems with this nonlinear play style in that you'll occasionally see things or hear conversations that make no sense, but it's a small price to pay for the chance to play one of the most ambitious role-playing games ever produced. --T. Byrl Baker

Pros:

• Compelling story set in a postapocalyptic future
• Detailed character stats and skills lets users play the game exactly as they want to
• Spiritual successor to the Commodore 64 classic Wasteland

Cons:

• Nonlinear story line means sometimes events are triggered when they shouldn't be
• Some characters that join your party can be a terrible burden during combat sequences

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Game in The World, Period., January 6, 2005

By 

E-dog - See all my reviews

= Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Fallout (Mac) (CD-ROM)

I'll be blunt: Fallout is the single best game I've ever played. I personally think that story, interactivity, creativity, and challenge are the most important aspects of a game, and the Fallout RPGs excell in all these areas and more.

Firstly, let's talk gameplay. A lot of people blew off this title when it came out because of the turn-based combat, and I admit to some it's pretty lame. But Fallout HAS TO be turnbased: if it wasn't, the player would get wasted in the first ten minutes of the game. Hundreds of weapons and armor combinations, unpredictable enimies varying in strenth and intelligence, and viciously realistic combat damage makes the turnbased system a necesity, if not an asset. Besides, think of it as a chess game rather than a mindless brawl: chances are you'll never have a REAL gunfight, so you can excersize your mind and employ new stratigies rather than just blow the crap out of everyone in sight. So if you want realistic gunfights, go for Max Payne or even Fallout's squad-level combat strategy cousin "Fallout Tactics."

Aside from combat, the games quests and characters are almost as realistic and in-depth as you'd expect in real life. Say the wrong thing, and a character will hate you. Do the right thing, and your reputation improves and people love you as their champion. The meticulous attention to detail makes for an extensive gameworld, giving the player for long hours of game play and a diverse world to explore, and even more deverse quests and experiances.

The story of Fallout is easily one of the best written for a game I've come across, rivaling those of the old-school Marathon series (a pre-Halo first person shooter classic from Bungie). Also, the dark, quirky, and distinctive sence of humor put into this game gives the game a memorable personality, and nearly makes it qualify as a a comedy.

Buy this game. Just do it. It's worth it. I could talk for hours about how amazing it is, but I'm getting tiered of typing. I bought this game about 6 years ago off the markdown shelf, and I still play it, even though I've beaten it over 12 times. Fallout, and Fallout 2 for that matter, are must-haves for anyone who loves a good story and a kickin' game to play.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fallout still awesome in 2007- all games should be this complex, September 7, 2007

By 

S. Arnold - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

= Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Fallout (Mac) (CD-ROM)

The brilliance and enjoyment of Fallout and Fallout 2 cannot be put into words. These are my favorite video games ever. The complexity on every level is so amazing. I'm playing it now in 2007 and it still makes a lot of console games seem so stupid and simple.

I love the art- those first 2 Fallout games have amazing signature designs so you love exploring this wasteland and seeing what's out there. So many details to take in. All adding to the realism of this post nuke america. The characters and monsters are so cool- the brotherhood "knights" in their junk- technological armor and the radiated mutant freaks for example.

I love the excellent transferrence of old rpg game elements into this sci fi wasteland setting- that could have been done lamely but was perfectly enacted. This is one of my most loved rpg game systems as well. I love the turn based combat- I tried playing "Fallout Brotherhood of Steel" on the Playstation 2 and it really doesn't hold a candle to those first 2 games- I hate they eliminated the AWESOME game system from the first games!!! They lobotomized the series and turned it into a shooter wherein the camera view makes you angry but you can never change it. I love the original game system and pray the makers of Fallout 3 return to the original brilliance. It's fun collecting items, managing them and using them in the turn based combat. I'm not a fan of the real time combat systems- I like the old school style of being able to take my time and think of strategy. THAT IS ONE OF THE MAIN PILLARS OF THE FALLOUT GAMES. (In the future, game makers should retain this great rpg system and build upon it and update graphics, but don't take away what makes the game work so well.)

I love the stark realism of the ruined world. This is not some corny console game with bad dialogue. You really feel you are in this desolate horrible place.

I love the moral choices- you are allowed to be the hero or a villain. You have choices in dialogue with characters that can affect the future. You can be a noble rescuer or a common slaver. This type of gameplay will become more common in the future as it opens up vistas of experience to players. You are not forced to accept one role- you can assume many in many different games- making each game you play almost unique. You can find friends to travel and fight with you, and you can betray them too.

If only they had been able to render a unique body and design for each character in the Fallout world- then these games would've felt truly like huge realistic worlds, but unfortunately the same few character body types repeat a lot, but generally it isn't so bad as the story and dialogue are great.

Fallout and Fallout 2 must be among the greatest games ever made. Playing Fallout 2 in 2007 I am enjoying it as much as ever and noticing how much better than many ps2 or gamecube games it is- I can't wait to see what they do with Fallout 3! Give us more amazing art design! More amazing characters! More creepy radiated monsters! More fear, more choices!

These games are legendary and must not be missed.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars fallout rules, December 8, 2007

By 

Mr. Birdlick - See all my reviews

= Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Fallout (Mac) (CD-ROM)

This has been one of my favorite games for almost ten years, and remains so.
If you are a gamer and you have not played this, you should probably take a minute to reflect, consider and weep at how long you have missed out on this masterpiece. If you are a gamer and did not like this game, you should rethink what you're doing with your life and consider playing football or some equally brainless activity.
Simply put, this game is brilliant and if you have not played it, do so right now.
This version for the mac is also quite true to the original.

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